Today is Sanctity of Life Sunday, and I am overwhelmed by the number of 55,000,000 babies murdered since Roe v. Wade. The Lord has put it on my heart to talk about Sin ranking (my made up term).
Some Christians could justify condemning a woman that has chosen to abort a child. We could pass judgement on her, and feel ok about talking amongst ourselves about how horrible she is. We could then feel superior to her because we never committed THAT sin.
On a more personal level, when my I found out about my husbands adultery, I felt like I was some how better than him. I believed I was superior to him. I used it to my full advantage too. I slammed him emotionally every opportunity I had. My thought process: even know I was alone for over a year I didn't cheat, he was weak to a primal urge, I would never defecate on our marriage vows we made before the Lord, I would never hurt our children that way, etc...He already was feeling horrible about what he had done to us, and I was going to make sure he continued to feel that way.
Then The Lord Convicted Me- And It Stung- And It Hurt
Exodus 20
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.â€
: 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.
John 15:12
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Mark 10:12 And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery."
What The Lord showed me was a list of my own sins. I have actually broken most of those commandments. What I realized is there is no ranking. God does not have a system of ranking our sins for example stealing is not better or worse than murder. Me lying and manipulating is not more excusable than adultery. I was a sinner in need of forgiveness, exactly like my husband.
When I was "talking through" this with a non believer the obvious question came up. What about Hitler? Me taking the Lords name in vain is the same as killing millions of Jews? Hitler can accept Christ, repent, and be forgiven, the same as all of us? The answer is YES.
It is hard to swallow if I look at it that way, but if I look at it like if I repent for my sins, sincerely ask forgiveness, and accept Jesus Christ died for my sins, and was raised three days later and is the living God, God will treat me the same as Mother Theresa if she did the same. He is a God of Mercy and Grace for every single one of us.
The only way for me to wrap my head around this is through The Lord renewing my mind. He had to take me out of worldly thinking, and into the way He thinks. He is a consistent God. When He sent His Son to die for our sins, it was ALL sins.
God did not convict me to make me feel worse than I already did. I could not begin recovery with the current thought process. I I got stuck there I would have been a nasty, angry, victim, and even if that was ok for me, my kids deserved better.
Matthew 7:5
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.
Dear Lord lead us all to repent, and seek Your forgiveness. Let us not get distracted by others sins, and not repent for our own. We know repentance, and forgiveness are critical for FREEDOM. Lord set us Free Thank You Jesus Amen
Some Christians could justify condemning a woman that has chosen to abort a child. We could pass judgement on her, and feel ok about talking amongst ourselves about how horrible she is. We could then feel superior to her because we never committed THAT sin.
On a more personal level, when my I found out about my husbands adultery, I felt like I was some how better than him. I believed I was superior to him. I used it to my full advantage too. I slammed him emotionally every opportunity I had. My thought process: even know I was alone for over a year I didn't cheat, he was weak to a primal urge, I would never defecate on our marriage vows we made before the Lord, I would never hurt our children that way, etc...He already was feeling horrible about what he had done to us, and I was going to make sure he continued to feel that way.
Then The Lord Convicted Me- And It Stung- And It Hurt
Exodus 20
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.â€
: 23 Do not make any gods to be alongside me; do not make for yourselves gods of silver or gods of gold.
John 15:12
My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.
Mark 10:12 And if she divorces her husband and marries another man, she commits adultery."
What The Lord showed me was a list of my own sins. I have actually broken most of those commandments. What I realized is there is no ranking. God does not have a system of ranking our sins for example stealing is not better or worse than murder. Me lying and manipulating is not more excusable than adultery. I was a sinner in need of forgiveness, exactly like my husband.
When I was "talking through" this with a non believer the obvious question came up. What about Hitler? Me taking the Lords name in vain is the same as killing millions of Jews? Hitler can accept Christ, repent, and be forgiven, the same as all of us? The answer is YES.
It is hard to swallow if I look at it that way, but if I look at it like if I repent for my sins, sincerely ask forgiveness, and accept Jesus Christ died for my sins, and was raised three days later and is the living God, God will treat me the same as Mother Theresa if she did the same. He is a God of Mercy and Grace for every single one of us.
The only way for me to wrap my head around this is through The Lord renewing my mind. He had to take me out of worldly thinking, and into the way He thinks. He is a consistent God. When He sent His Son to die for our sins, it was ALL sins.
God did not convict me to make me feel worse than I already did. I could not begin recovery with the current thought process. I I got stuck there I would have been a nasty, angry, victim, and even if that was ok for me, my kids deserved better.
Matthew 7:5
You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye.
Dear Lord lead us all to repent, and seek Your forgiveness. Let us not get distracted by others sins, and not repent for our own. We know repentance, and forgiveness are critical for FREEDOM. Lord set us Free Thank You Jesus Amen
