JUST BECAUSE I DON'T RAISE MY FIST

JUST BECAUSE I DON'T RAISE MY FIST

Recently I was reading an e-mail message from the Billy Graham Evangelical Association. Mr. Graham was talking about why we were created by God. He mentioned Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden and talked about how God loved them and wanted them to return His love and fellowship with Him. But Satan entered the picture and changed all of that in an instant. Sin entered into paradise and forever changed how God was able to look at his creation. Mr. Graham used the term "rebellious" and said that just because Adam and Eve didn't raise their fists to God, their act of rebelliousness was sin nonetheless.

And that got me to thinking about how subtly sin creeps in and causes a rift between God and me. I don't raise my fist in outright rebellion toward God, but when I do what I want and fail to follow His Word, or do what He has commanded me to do, it is rebellion - pure and simple. Oh, I can rationalize it and make it sound less than what it is, but the truth of the matter is that I have raised my fist to God and said, in effect, I will do what I want; I will do it my way.

And still, just as God provided for a blood sacrifice to cover Adam and Eve's sin in the Garden, so did he provide the blood sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus, to cover my sin and yours. And praise God, that while sacrifices needed to be made over and over again in the Old Testament, Jesus Christ's sacrifice for us on the cross was once and for all. No longer is there a need for any additional sacrifice. The need I have now is to confess my rebellious sin attitude, and seek my Father's forgiveness and be restored to the loving relationship a father has with his child.

So remember that while you may not be outwardly raising your fist to God, every act you commit, every thought you think, every word you speak that does not honor God and does not follow His Word is rebellious sin. And even more importantly, remember that the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, cleanses us from all sin (I John 1:7). Praise be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Lynn Randall