REPEATABLES

I heard a bible teacher mentioning once that it is very important to pay extra attention to the times in scripture where the Lord repeats some truth for our benefit. Basically given the fact that so many of us are easily distracted and don’t always pay attention we can appreciate why God would repeat some details.

After all if we are told something enough times most of us will “get it” sooner or later. At least that does work in a lot of situations.

The only complication comes when one misunderstands the original truth. Having a wrong interpretation only complicates the matter later because the repeatables become a verbal anvil. They end up being somebody’s “proof” text that their spiritual bias is approved of God.

One area that is so evident is in the area of sin and the issue of salvation. Legalism comes in many forms, including those of the “enlightened” teachers who claim to teach salvation by faith, but always add some qualifier that you have to do. They too are legalists, they just don’t accept that substituting one set of rules about things like giving or commitment for the ten commandments is still legalism.

It is through the vast array of scriptures devoted to talking about sin that God desires to convey a simple idea. Basically, the idea I feel being expressed is that we can’t be saved by our own efforts. No matter how good we think we are or try to become, we will never be without sin in our lives. And therefore we will always be in need of trusting by faith in the Lord for our salvation.

The other day I had an image given to me about the problem of sin in this life. Sin isn’t just when we do something wrong. It is in reality an energy or force that resides in the world to corrupt us. In that sense it becomes like a rain or river. You can use and umbrella or even attempt to dam the river, but sooner or later you will get wet.

There are some who attempt to dam up the river of sin by using some stones made of rules. The only problem is that the dam is going to leak. You might succeed for example in giving up some sinful behavior in your life. But the thing is even if you do manage to build the dam that ends one behavior, the simple fluid power of sin with end up gushing from somewhere else in life.

This isn’t intended to suggest that we should simply say, “If I can’t be sinless then I’ll just do whatever I want.” God looks upon willing reveling in sin as a form of rebellion. To knowingly and eagerly commit a sin with the presumption that “that God will forgive me” doesn’t work with the Lord.

So we are trapped in a spiritual wasteland and desperately thirsty for pure refreshment that will quench our parched soul. It won’t be quenched by thinking that somehow avoiding a given briar patch of sin will keep us spotless. The only real way to feel any sense of cleanliness for the soul is through being washed by the power of the Holy Spirit and the blood of the lamb. And because our garment of life gets dirty far too often with new sins, we have to constantly look to God and rely upon his spirit to do our laundry rather than take them to a legalistic Laundromat.