The 51ST Degree PART ONE

Posted on July 13, 2022 by Catey Stover in Freedom Fighters

“For I know my transgressions, And my sin is ever before me. Against Thee, Thee only, I have sinned, And done what is evil in Thy sight, So that Thou art justified when Thou dost speak, And blameless when Thou dost judge.” Psalm 51: 3-4 (NASB)

I learned punishment at an early age, I think we all do. It’s pretty much went like this, do wrong, get punished. Unless someone explains why the latter happens because of the former, you grow up not really able to gather the right kind of stuff it takes you from doing wrong. All you really learn is “If I do this, I’ll get a whippin’. Oh well, I do this!” But as time has gone by, I’ve learned something else called contrition. Now Secularland defines this as something that causes a sincere remorse for doing wrong BUT for the Christian, contrition could mean having repentance for a sin with a sincere desire to amend that arises from a pure love for God…or something like that.

Nothing could put this on display better than what we read in Psalm 51. Many of us already know that this Psalm comes from probably one of the most heinous acts that King David ever committed. You can read about it in 2 Samuel 11:1-12:25 and as complicated as David’s transgression was, according to John Calvin, it followed a simple road. It started with laziness and lust that brought forth an abuse of power that committed adultery and violated Jewish cleanliness laws. We’ve got deceit and cover up, that leads to murder which leads to more deceit and cover up. Then there’s an insensitive opportunity that’s smothered in hypocrisy with a reluctance to repent. Actually, it does sound kinda complicated, doesn’t it? Anyway…

“Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.” — James 1:13-15

There’s a very real seriousness that needs to be drawn outta James 1:13-15. You can’t blame God if you already justified doin’ something that you desire and you already know that it ain’t in God’s will. God may allow it to happen (because there’s a lesson that’s going to be learned) but He wasn’t the one that went to Eve in The Garden, subtly suggested disobedience then said, “Surely you won’t die”. God didn’t want His creation corrupted at all but He didn’t want His creation to worship Him without it understanding its purpose. And what is that purpose?

The Westminster Shorter Catechism settles that with its opening question, “Q1. What is the chief end of man? A1. Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy Him forever.” Now for the record, glorify and enjoy, yeah, they’re verbs, they’re things you gotta wanna do, so it becomes about choice. Let no man say he’s tempted by God, especially when it’s that very same God who allows you the freedom to choose. A good God does that, so if you’re looking for an excuse to blame God for all evil in the world (even for the lost sock), good luck with that. Tell us how you make out.

There was a saying that went, “A sin is a sin is a sin” but thanks to the 21st century mindset the word sin has become a debased, distorted and an abused word. Even Secularland makes light of the word. To quote a song that I recently heard, “Oh my god look what the cat dragged in, livin’ my life sin after sin, night rolls up and I do it again, Oh my god, look what the cat dragged in, Grrrr! Ah, sin after sin!” Now, if you’re a heavy metal hair band this little diddy may be your everyday existence (except for the band Stryper), but givin’ a tip of the hat to sin like this gives a lot of credence to what we read in Romans 1:21, just sayin’. (Been there, done that, praise Him for His grace and mercy)

It is funny how Secularland can recognize the most of obvious of sins and still be dismissive of 10 commandments and deliberately distort the 2 that Jesus gave us. Guess that because citizens of Secularland can only live by sight and not by faith. So the effects of sinful living are not always discernible and these folks don’t always understand the eternal negative fruit that results from the less obvious ones. In essence, sin becomes more of a crime that you think you get away with.

There’s more to say on the doctrine of sin however, as for today, I think I’ve said enough but let me leave you with this thought. Many of us try to atone for our wrongs and hope God will bless those actions but if we were to lay a sacrifice of a broken spirit upon the altar…oh what God could do. Amen?

 

Written by Chris Hughes: Chris is a husband, a father, has an education in Biblical doctrine and is a graduate of the Colony of Mercy. He has been a Freedom Fighter contributor since 2008. You can e-mail him at cphughes515@verizon.net


Think About This: “When sin is a category you’ve left behind, you have to explain human tragedies in some other way.” – Paul David Tripp

The Daily Bible Reading: Psalm 10-12Acts 17:16-34| You can download our 2022 Daily Bible Reading Plan by clicking here. 

This Week’s Verse to Memorize: “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, And the knowledge of the Holy One is understanding.” Proverbs 9:10

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