Sin is not a stranger to the human heart. By nature, we do not merely fall into sin. We love it, protect it, excuse it, and return to it even after it has wounded us.
That is why Christ speaks so sharply about cutting it off. “If your right eye makes you stumble, tear it out and throw it from you” (Matthew 5:29). He is not teaching self harm. He is showing us how serious sin is, and how ruthless we must be with anything that drags the soul away from God.
The flesh does not surrender easily. It does not calmly hand over its idols. It clings to lust, pride, bitterness, greed, envy, and secret rebellion as though those sins are precious treasures. But what feels dear to the flesh is deadly to the soul.
“Therefore consider the members of your earthly body as dead to immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and greed, which amounts to idolatry” (Colossians 3:5).
True repentance is not decorating sin with softer names. It is not managing sin so it looks respectable. It is bringing it into the light, confessing it before God, and putting it to death by the power of the Spirit.
“For if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Romans 8:13).
The sins we refuse to kill will not remain harmless. They will harden the heart, darken the mind, weaken the conscience, and rob the soul of peace. Better to lose what the flesh loves now than to keep it and be destroyed by it.
Christ did not shed His blood so we could make peace with what nailed Him to the cross.
Lord, do not let me become a man who speaks truth with my mouth while walking past suffering with my eyes open. Do not let me hide a cold heart behind sound doctrine, busy ministry, or religious language. Break the pride in me that notices the great but ignores the broken.
Teach me to see what You see and love whom You love. Not the useful only. Not the impressive only. Not the people who can give something back. Teach me to stop long enough to notice the poor, the wounded, the forgotten, and the unwanted.
Do not let me become skilled in defending truth while becoming blind to mercy. Do not let me preach grace and live untouched by the pain around me. If my heart can hear the cry of the broken and remain unmoved, then something in me is terribly wrong. Have mercy on me, Lord.
Teach me to love with hands, time, patience, sacrifice, and presence, not with words alone. Make me more like Christ, who did not pass by the helpless but came near to the ruined, touched the unclean, welcomed the despised, wept with the grieving, and gave Himself for sinners who had nothing to give back.
Let the love of Christ not remain a doctrine I defend, but a life I reflect. Let the mercy I have received make me merciful. Let the grace that saved me bend me low before those this world has thrown away.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
“Whoever shuts his ear to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and not be answered” (Proverbs 21:13).
The idea of a wrathful God in the Old Testament and a loving God in the New is a false divide. God does not change. “I, the Lord, do not change” (Malachi 3:6).
We see His love clearly in the Old Testament. He shows patience, mercy, and covenant faithfulness again and again to a rebellious people. “The Lord, the Lord God, compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in lovingkindness and truth” (Exodus 34:6).
And we see His wrath clearly in the New Testament. The same Christ who speaks of grace also warns of judgment. “These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46).
The cross itself holds both together. It is the greatest display of love and the fullest expression of wrath against sin. “God demonstrates His own love toward us… Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
So there are not two different gods. There is one God, perfectly just and perfectly loving, revealed consistently from beginning to end.
What began w/ a 183 Disciples in an empty room in Jan 2023 with Mt 1, The Lord used as a catalyst for us to carry the Gospel to the whole world by Mt 28:19—a 3 year journey that changed everything. Overwhelmed with tears.
“FOR CHRIST ALONE…..🎵”
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There is no school that forms a Christian like sorrow and trial. What we often try to avoid is what God most often uses to teach us. In seasons of ease we can remain shallow, but in suffering we are forced to face what we truly believe. Our strength is exposed as weakness, and our confidence in self begins to break. That is where real learning begins. “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance” (James 1:2-3).
Trials are not random interruptions. They are purposeful dealings of God. They humble us, correct us, and drive us back to Him. What we learn there cannot be learned in comfort. “Before I was afflicted I went astray, But now I keep Your word” (Psalm 119:67). Affliction has a way of bringing clarity that prosperity never can.
Even suffering itself becomes a means of deeper knowledge. Not just about truth, but about God. “And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope” (Romans 5:3-4). These are not theoretical lessons. They are formed in real struggle.
So sorrow and trial are not wasted seasons. They are classrooms. Hard ones, but necessary ones. And what is learned there stays, because it is learned under the hand of God Himself.
An unknown writer, wrote about the Bible...
"This Book is the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding; its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler's map, the pilgrim's staff, the pilot's compass, the soldier's sword, and the Christian's character. Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is its grand subject, our good its design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. Follow its precepts and it will lead you to Calvary, to the empty tomb, to a resurrected life in Christ; yes, to glory itself, for eternity."
Father, search our hearts and remove every place where we have justified offense. Let our lives bear witness to the truth of Christ, not the narrative of unforgiveness.
Teach us to walk in the Spirit, submitting every wound to You, the One who heals.
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