TODAY IS…

the day to eliminate sin.

“Neither before nor after Josiah was there a king like him who turned to the Lord as he did – with all his heart and with all his soul and with all his strength, in accordance with all of the Law of Moses.”  2 Kings 23:25 NIV

An eight year old boy became king of Judah and reigned for 31 years.

His name was Josiah and he was known for his obedience to God. When he was 26 years old, Josiah sent his secretary, Shaphan, as a messenger to the Lord’s Temple to see Hilkiah, the High Priest. His intended purpose was to arrange payment for the workers who were restoring the temple, but when Shaphan returned to his king, he brought with him a scroll given to him by Hilkiah. When Josiah read the scroll, he discovered that Hilkiah had given him something that had been lost for many years…..God’s Word.

As he read this incredible document, he realized with shame that his kingdom had drifted far away from God. Josiah set about enacting sweeping reforms throughout the nation to conform to the Law of Moses.

Unlike Josiah, we do not have to wait.

The Word of God is available to us on a daily basis and we should follow Josiah’s example and strive to bring our lives in line with it. One of the first things we must do is eliminate sin. In order to do this we must first recognize it, and then attack its causes. While we may think that recognizing sin is easy, our behavior sometimes speaks differently. Given the permissiveness in today’s society and the downplaying of the role of God in our lives that seems to constantly test our faith, we sometimes allow ourselves to become comfortable with improper thoughts and actions. We then rationalize these thoughts and actions with a litany of excuses.

We blame our human weakness.

We blame everyone else.

We blame satan.

We even blame God.

A big part of being a good Christian is taking responsibility for our own thoughts and actions, praying for God’s forgiveness, and asking Him to help us identify and resist sinful temptations.

Jesus’ brother James said, “Blessed is the man that endureth temptation…” (James 1:12a KJV).

A good relationship with God is tantamount to eliminating sin in our lives. Only when we are in constant communication with Him can we steadily draw upon His strength to help us identify, resist, and attack sin. Some of us may think that this type of relationship with the Lord is too arduous and time-consuming – too ‘high-maintenance’, if you will – yet we think nothing of spending hours every day maintaining our automobiles, our homes, our yards, and our physical appearance.

It would be wise to remember that all of these things are temporary and superficial when compared with the eternal benefits of striving to maintain a sin-free life and a strong relationship with God enables us to do that.

By all means, wash your car. Paint your house. Mow your lawn.

And talk with God as you do all of these things and ask for His help in eliminating sin from your life.

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Taken from “TODAY IS….A Gift From God”, (C) 2013 Tony Casson