The Devil
convicts us over PAST sins, but the Holy Spirit always convicts us about
PRESENT SINS in our life. It is God's will for every Christian to depart
from a lifestyle of sin. 2nd Timothy 2:19, “Nevertheless the foundation
of God standeth sure, having this seal, The Lord knoweth them that are his.
And, Let every one that nameth the name of Christ depart
from iniquity.” Whatever sins are in the past, present or
future are gone forever, as far as our POSITION in Christ in concerned. The
blood of Jesus Christ has washed ALL our sins away. 1st Corinthians
6:11b, “BUT YE ARE WASHED.” However, our CONDITION in Christ is
determined by the life we live.
Conviction of Human Conscience
There are two sources of conviction in a persons life. For the unsaved (or unregenerate person) there is the conviction of the moral conscience. John 8:9, “And they which heard it, being convicted by their own conscience, went out one by one, beginning at the eldest, even unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman standing in the midst.” Romans 2:14-15, “For when the Gentiles, which have not the law, do by nature the things contained in the law, these, having not the law, are a law unto themselves: Which shew the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and their thoughts the mean while accusing or else excusing one another.” Every human being has a moral conscience, given to them by God. This human conscience can be seared (hardened) by pride and rebellion against God.
1st Timothy 4:1-2, “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” Although all men can have their conscience seared, I find it interesting that God chose to specifically mention FALSE PROPHETS! You won't find a more calloused, deceived and hardened group in this world than religious false teachers. I have often said that the hardest part about getting people SAVED is first getting them LOST! Proverbs 26:12, “Seest thou a man wise in his own conceit? there is more hope of a fool than of him.” You see, a fool simply needs to wise up! But a conceited fool first needs to wise up that he is a fool, before he can wise up! The Holy Spirit never forces Himself on anyone! God's voice is only heard when still. ...
1st Kings 19:11-12, “And he said, Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD. And, behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and brake in pieces the rocks before the LORD; but the LORD was not in the wind: and after the wind an earthquake; but the LORD was not in the earthquake: And after the earthquake a fire; but the LORD was not in the fire: and after the fire a still small voice.”
God wasn't found in the tornado, earthquake or
fire, He was found in A STILL SMALL VOICE!!! If you want to find God dear
friend, you'll find Him in the still small quiet pages of the inspired King
James Bible. God has already spoken in the inspired pages of the Holy
Bible!!!!!!! Someone said that if you want to hear God speak audibly, then
read the Bible out loud! Amen! I like that.
Conviction of God's Holy Spirit
And
then there is the conviction of the Holy Spirit of God. John 16:7-8,
“Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away:
for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart,
I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will
reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”
God is not an absent parent, He disciplines His children. Hebrews
12:6-8, “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son
whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with
sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not? But if ye be
without chastisement, whereof all are partakers, then are ye bastards, and
not sons.” The Holy Spirit may convict a lost person about unbelief and
sin in their life, but only the believer has the Holy Spirit living inside
(indwelling) their body. Romans 8:9, “But ye are not in the flesh, but in
the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you.
Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.”
God's Spirit will not allow the child of God to live in willful sin
without being convicted about it!
A man recently admitted to having succumbed to some horrible sins. The Bible teaches that believers must be “renewed” in the spirit of their mind. Ephesians 4:23-24, “And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness.” What sins do you struggle with dear reader? Your thinking needs to change my friend. If we think wrong, we will continue to do wrong. The inspired Word of God is the answer, which is the blessed and inspired King James Bible. I strongly recommend dear reader that you start memorizing some key passages of Scripture to help you. The Scripture passage provided below is a great place to start. Saturating our mind with the Word of God will help us not to sin...
Psalms 119:9-11, “Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.”
To
be sure, there is no permanent cure for sin as long as we are in the flesh.
Many people struggle with sexual immorality. 1st Peter 2:11, Dearly
beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain
from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul.” Lust is
without a doubt the strongest of all human temptations, next to pride of
soul and the temptation for men to earn their way to eternal life. There is
no temptation so great as to add human effort to the grace of God. The sad
truth is that most people won't heed the preacher's warning. Consequently,
they must destroy their life by sin and learn the HARD WAY! Men tend to
listen only after they are ruined by a life of sin—locked behind bars,
crippled in a wheelchair, after their marriage and family are gone, after
their health has left them—after they've lost everything! Only then do men
wise up and listen to God.
2nd Corinthians 10:3-6, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ; And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience, when your obedience is fulfilled.”
Notice that the Bible says we should have "A READINESS TO REVENGE ALL DISOBEDIENCE." When we mess up (as you just did, and WE ALL do), the Scripture tells us to have an attitude of revenge against that sins! We should think, "I am tired of sinning! I don't want to do that anymore! I am so mad at myself! Lord help me not to do that sin again!" It appears that you already do feel that way, which is why you are humbly asking for my spiritual guidance as your brother in Christ. That is good. It is good that you want to gain victory over these sins in your life. That is why I highly recommend that you commit these preceding passage of Scripture to memory. Nothing will change in your life Fonz, until you start saturating your mind, heart and life with the Word of God.
