The Cure:
Sin is a heavy burden that weighs upon us all men. To first understand who and what we are, would be a first good step taken for the cure. Jesus said,
Matthew 9:12, “They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick. But go ye and learn what that means, I will have mercy and not sacrifice: For I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
But what man is there who is righteous?
Paul writes, Romans 3:10, “There is none righteous, no, not one.”
Verse 12, “They (mankind) are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no not one.”
So who needs a Savior? God in His mercy looks down on us from heaven, examining the hearts of every man. He inquires, “Who is it that fears me? Who is it that seeks after me? “Mine eyes look on the inward parts; I will not be deceived.”
Jeremiah 17:9-10, “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins (mind,) even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings (deeds.)”
Our whole nature is darkened with sin. What man is there that can restrain their every thought, their every action, and their every motive? Sin is an unwelcome visitor! The eye scans the landscapes, the mind lusts after that which the eye has seen; and the feet run to destruction. What person of us has not reaches out and taken hold of the beast, He who devours the flesh, and destroys the soul.
Does any one person’s worth distinguish him from another? Is their any particular characteristic that separates any of us from others? What reward shall we claim? God marks, then seals the heart: the beast seals the flesh!
Yet if there is a difference in one man’s character, it’s only the cause that has affected that difference; and what cause may that be?
We are fallen creatures! The love our Father had for us was so deep, that He sent His only Begotten Son to die for us. If this were not true, what other purpose could be served in sending a Savior?
False reasoning, presumptuous hopes, varying views of religion, as does pride stand before us as stumbling stones. We continue in a state of a sleeping, and unregenerate creatures; we present to the world a false glossed over spiritual security, a blindness of body, soul, and spirit inducing a false satisfaction; then continually side-step the one thing that is needful.
Can salvation be found in the singing of a melody, in the long prayer of a pastor? Can it be found in the giving of alms, or the politeness of a person? In which of these can salvation be found?
Man’s portrait is accurately sketched by the pen of God, our true nature having been revealed. But how different is that blessing the Holy Spirit presents us with, and presented in brilliant, colorful mosaic patterns is the bride of Christ. The artist stands alone in His esteem and glory, for He is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; and we are the workmanship of His hand.
Phillip LaSpino www.seekfirstwisdom.com