It’s Not Too Late

//Bill Ray

Q. What would you say to a Christian who is stuck in a sin and they want to get out of it?

A. I think it is important what a person knows about the Word of God. Jesus said we would know the truth and the truth would set us free. It’s the truth we know and act on that sets us free. So we have to know the truth about sin, its origin, consequences, and power if we are going to live in freedom.

 

The Bible says we’ve all sinned and come short of the glory of God. Sin is simply missing God’s mark. The standard of His holiness is higher than we could attain, so all of us have missed the mark. I would remind people that even though we’ve all sinned, God has provided an awesome escape and plan of victory for every one of us. If we will listen to God and follow Him, we will find that freedom.

Prayer of Restoration

Are you a believer who has been struggling in sin or under condemnation for a sin you’ve committed? If you have and you want to be free, pray the following prayer: Dear God, I come to You asking for Your forgiveness. Your Word says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9 NKJV). I confess my sins to You now. And based on Your Word, I accept Your forgiveness and Your cleansing. Thank You! I also choose to forgive myself. As You help me, I will walk in the light of Your Word. In Jesus’ Name I pray, Amen. If you prayed this prayer, we have some materials we would like to send you to help you in your walk with God. E-mail us at PartnerService@rhema.org or call us at 1-800-54-FAITH (543-2484).

Romans 6:6 says, “We should no longer be slaves of sin” (NKJV). God would be unfair to write that if we couldn’t actually have mastery over sin. I believe people sometimes think they are a slave to sin, but the Bible says we have control over sin. If we feed our flesh, sin will have mastery over us. But if we feed our spirit, we will have mastery over sin.

We have to watch our thoughts, because our thoughts turn into actions. Walking in freedom from sin means we need to be aware of what we are thinking about, looking at, listening to, and saying. When we control our mind, our thoughts will be renewed and we’ll have the freedom over sin we’ve been looking for.

Q. What practical steps would you give to help a believer struggling with sin?

A. I don’t think there is anything more effective than meditating in Scripture. If there is an area that we are dealing with, we need to find scriptures that promise us God’s freedom, grace, and victory and meditate on them. I also think having an accountability partner is very, very important. The enemy loves it when we don’t expose ourselves to accountability. When we’re accountable, it’s a constant reminder. We know someone is going to ask us how we’re doing in certain areas. When the enemy can’t keep us in the shadows, he can’t keep us bound.

Q. What would you say to a Christian dealing with the condemnation of a sin he or she has committed?

A. We need to first ask God to forgive us of our sin (1 John 1:9), and then understand that Christ has justified us. The Bible says that God has thrown our sins into the deepest ocean and separated our sin from us as far as the east is from the west. You can’t measure that! When God sees us, He sees us through the blood of Jesus, and that blood causes Him to see us completely spotless and without sin.

A person who stays in guilt and condemnation is really saying to God, “I know better than You. I know better than Your Word. You said I was forgiven, but I know better. I’m not really forgiven.” The Bible says, “There is therefore now no condemnati on to those who are in Christ Jesus” (Rom. 8:1 NKJV). We should behave like there is no condemnation. And if God has forgiven us, we need to forgive ourselves.

 

[Editor’s Note: Rev. Bill Ray has been an instructor at RHEMA Bible Training Center USA for 12 years and an associate minister at RHEMA Bible Church for 10 years.]