#separation from god

[momentsbeforemass]

Sin?

(For someone who said I never talk about sin)

What is sin?

When we think about sin, usually the first ideas that come to mind are things like the Ten Commandments, the seven deadly sins (lust, gluttony, greed, sloth, wrath, envy, and pride), and other obvious examples.

The thing is, sin isn’t limited to those great scarlet sins of commission.

Because sin isn’t about any specific list of “thou shalt nots.” Sin is really about the effect that something has on us.

I’m talking about what sin does. And what sin does is separate you and me from the One who loves us best. Sin gets between us and God. That is what makes something a sin.

The lists of “thou shalt nots” are part of that.

The Ten Commandments, pride, envy, all those things? Those are just universal problems that plague every single one of us.

The thing to know is that sin doesn’t stop with a list of “thou shalt nots.”

The truth about sin is much more subtle, and much more dangerous.

Because anything that can do the job for us, anything that is capable of getting between us and God? That is a sin, for us.

That’s why anger can be a sin. Because it can get between us and God.

That’s why resentment can be a sin. Because it can get between us and God.

That’s why fear can be a sin. Because it can get between us and God.

That’s why bitterness can be a sin. Because it can get between us and God.

That is how you and I have to look at it.

Because anything that is capable of separating you from God? That, for you, is a sin.

That’s true, no matter how small or harmless it may look.

It’s also true, even if it’s not sin for someone else.

For me? There’s a reason why I don’t gamble.

For most of us, gambling is innocent entertainment. Good for you. Thank you for supporting our bingo night.

But for me? It wouldn’t take long for gambling to get out of hand. It wouldn’t take long for gambling to come between me and God. That’s why gambling is a sin for me. So I avoid it.

That is the truth of sin. 

Because anything that is capable of separating you from God? That, for you, is a sin.

If you’re honest, you know what those things are for you. So does God.

God knows everything about you, including how those things that separate you from Him mess with you. How they leave you feeling stuck or anxious. How they leave you fearful or angry. How they leave you empty.

And that is what Reconciliation – confessing our sins – is about. Not because God wants to beat you and me up about our sins.

But because that’s not how God wants you to live. God did not make you to live feeling stuck or anxious, fearful or angry. God did not make you to live empty.

God made you to live joyfully, overflowing in His love and abundance.

The first step to getting there? Let go of the things that are coming between you and God. Let go of your sins.

Push them away from you. By name, hand them over to the God who loves you.

In the Sacrament of Reconciliation, priests are in persona Christi, holy instruments of God’s grace and mercy waiting to be poured out just for you.

Not to blame or shame, but to absolve you and to rejoice with you.

Because that is the secret of Reconciliation. One of the greatest joys on this side of eternity is the feeling in your heart after a good confession.

This Lent, make time for you, for your spiritual health. Take a moment to let go of all of the things that are coming between you and God. Hand over all of your sins. Hold nothing back.

Because the God who loves you too much to let anything come between you and Him, delights in mercy and is waiting with open arms to forgive you.

Today's Readings

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

The Christian faith, simply stated, reminds us that our fundamental problem is not moral; rather, our fundamental problem is spiritual. It is not just that we are immoral, but that a moral life alone cannot bridge what separates us from God. Herein lies the cardinal difference between the moralizing religions and Jesus' offer to us. Jesus does not offer to make bad people good but to make dead people alive.

Ravi Zacharias

[dramoor]

The ego is a veil between humans and God.

Rumi

[religion-is-a-mental-illness]

Your god is a sick fuck.

[araitsume]

God is the fountain of life; and when one chooses the service of sin, he separates from God, and thus cuts himself off from life. He is “alienated from the life of God.” Christ says, “All they that hate Me love death.” Ephesians 4:18; Proverbs 8:36. God gives them existence for a time that they may develop their character and reveal their principles. This accomplished, they receive the results of their own choice. By a life of rebellion, Satan and all who unite with him place themselves so out of harmony with God that His very presence is to them a consuming fire. The glory of Him who is love will destroy them.

Ellen G. White, The Desire of Ages pp. 764

[momentsbeforemass]

Honest prayer

Proverbs has one of the most honest prayers ever, with this ask:

    Give me neither poverty nor riches; provide me only with the food I need;

    Lest, being full, I deny you, saying, "Who is the LORD?"

    Or, being in want, I steal, and profane the name of my God.

This is the prayer of someone who knows themselves well. All too well.

Someone who knows that they are able to take any circumstance, any situation they find themselves in. And abuse it, to separate themselves from God.

This is someone who is so aware of the danger that they present to themselves, that they don’t even know what to ask for. 

It’s like driving a car. The windshield seems fine. Clean enough to be able see where you’re going.

But turn into the sun, and you get a surprise. You get to see the real condition of your windshield. All of the dirt and bugs. Maybe even a crack.

When you start praying regularly, it’s easy to feel good about yourself. Spending time with God will do that to you.

But as you get closer to God, at some point you get a surprise. You get to see yourself against the glory of a holy and perfect God.

Which means you get to see the real condition of you. All of the dirt and bugs. Maybe even a crack.

When that happens, our natural impulse is to turn away. Because seeing our real condition isn’t something we like to think about.

And that is exactly what makes this such a powerful prayer. Because at that very moment when it would be easier to turn away, or not think about it, this prayer doesn’t even blink.

It says “God, you know me better than I do. How easily I can screw this up. Give me not what I think I want, but what you know I really need. God, I trust you.”

It’s one of the most honest prayers ever.

One that needs to be yours and mine.

Today’s Readings

[momentsbeforemass]

Moving the goal posts

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

Sounds like good advice, right? A way to protect yourself from scammers and con artists.

And yet, the people you regularly hear this from are some of the least happy people you’ll meet. Why is that?

Here’s why - even thought it’s said in terms that sound like common sense, “I’ll believe it when I see it” has a toxic side to it. The toxic side is where it leads us to.

“I’ll believe it when I see it” sets us up to be critics, to be judges. And there’s something about us that really likes that.

I don’t mean being a critic or a judge of things to protect ourselves from scams. Or to ensure that we’re getting the good stuff. Or to make sure that what we’re doing is leading us closer to God.

The part that we really like? The power. The power that comes with being a critic, with being a judge. Something or someone has to measure up to our standards.

The toxic part? When being a critic, being a judge becomes our focus. Not the means to an end. Not because we want the good stuff that comes from wisely judging. But when being a critic, being a judge becomes an end unto itself. Because we’re stuck on the power.

The way we can tell that we’re stuck on the power? We keep moving the goal posts. Because we don’t want to stop being a critic, being a judge. Because we want to keep whatever or whoever stuck in a mode of trying to please us.

And because we’re afraid of losing that power, should we ever judge something or someone to be good enough.

In today’s Gospel, the Pharisees say to Jesus “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”

If you’re wondering why Jesus reacts the way He does, this is why. Because their demand for a sign isn’t an attempt to make sure that Jesus is who He says He is.

It’s all about power, and their increasingly desperate attempts to hold onto it.

This becomes clear when you look at what Jesus did right before they said this.

Earlier that day, Jesus healed someone. Exactly what the prophets told them the Messiah would do. And they got upset about it.

A little later, Jesus casts out a demon. Again, what the prophets said the Messiah would do. Then they got upset about that.  

And now they’re asking for a sign?

In context, what they’re doing becomes clear. This isn’t about making sure that Jesus is who He says He is. Much less a “Lord-I-believe-help-my-unbelief” moment.

This about moving the goal posts. Because they’re desperate to cling to their self-appointed roles as critics, as judges. They’re so stuck on their own power that they cannot let go of it.

They’ve walled themselves off from everything and everyone. So completely, that it keeps them from seeing the Messiah before them. The very one who they were hoping and praying for.

In 2,000 years, not much has changed. You and I are just as capable of falling for the same thing they did. Of becoming so enamored of our perceived power. So comfortable in our self-appointed roles as critics and judges. That we spend our time devising ever-increasing ways to see other people as not good enough.

Moving the goal posts as needed. So that we can keep criticizing. So that we can keep judging. In a trajectory that will ultimately separate us from each other. From God. And from who God made us to be.

Today’s Readings

[mybeautifulchristianjourney]

Tyndale Life Application Daily Devotion

Devotional for September 13

For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God's glorious standard. - Romans 3:23

Insight

Some sins seem bigger than others because their obvious consequences are much more serious. Murder, for example, seems to us to be worse than hatred, and adultery seems worse than lust. But this does not mean that because we do lesser sins we deserve eternal life. All sin makes us sinners, and all sin cuts us off from our holy God. All sin, therefore, leads to death (because it disqualifies us from living with God), regardless of how great or small it seems.

Challenge

Don't minimize “little” sins or overrate “big” sins. They all separate us from God, but they all can be forgiven.

© 2010 by Tyndale House Publishers