Right, Wrong & Sin

I don’t really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don’t do it. Instead, I do what I hate.
-Romans 7:15 (NLT)

At work the other day, we had our annual Drug Free Workplace meeting. A total waste of an hour, but at least I got paid for sitting there and listen to someone describe drugs, how to tell if someone is on drugs and what to do about it. On a side note about the meeting, most of the symptoms of drug use are the same as that of the flu or common cold. Now, every time someone sneezes or coughs, my first thought will be, are they on drugs? Well, maybe not, but I thought that was interesting.


During the segment on alcohol, the speaker said that no one ever really gets totally free from drinking alcohol or smoking. She said many people can go for years and years without drinking or smoking. But, when they cave in just one time to the desire for alcohol or smoking, then it "tastes better than ever." As she was talking about this, my thoughts were about sin. I've been writing a lot about sin lately. I started thinking about my struggle with sin. Each of us deals with sin, and must keep ourselves from falling into sin. And when we do fall, sin "tastes better than ever."


I think the words of Paul in Romans 7:15 says it all. "I don't really understand myself, for I want to do what is right, but I don't do it. Instead, I do what I hate." We try to do what God's called us to do, but we fail. We keep falling into sin over and over again. We must not give into sin. We must not allow sin to control our lives. If you smoke, then the nicotine in cigarettes is what controls you. If you're an alcoholic, the alcohol controls you. If you're a drug user, then drugs control you. If you're a liar, then the lie controls you. It you're a sex addict, then the pleasure of sex controls you. If you're a gambler, then gambling controls you. The list goes on and on. Paul says in Romans 6:16, "Don’t you realize that you become the slave of whatever you choose to obey? You can be a slave to sin, which leads to death, or you can choose to obey God, which leads to righteous living." That sin that you hold on to and obey, that is what you're a slave to. The question is, will you continue doing what you don't want to do? Or, will you start to obey God and do what He's called you to do? Think About It.