January 19, 2018 WWJWMTD by Steve the son of John

Let’s Get Saved Series

#1 Iniquity

I still remember the evening at a Billy Graham Crusade in Fresno California when I was 13 years of age. I accept Christ as my Savior and it was a difficult decision for me. I struggled with making a ‘profession of Christ’ and admitting that I needed God’s help.

It was a scary event in my life but one that would change my life forever. I like being saved by Jesus. He has become my friend and I trust in His love for me. It has been a good journey, one with ups and downs yet with excitement and amazement.

Being saved is a process. It is as Jesus stated, “To be born again.” I am still going through that process and its completion is when God invites me to live with Him in heaven forever.

Often we talk about sin, transgressions, and wrongdoings but we either overlook or lump ‘iniquities’ together with our sins. The two are not the same. The term ‘iniquity’ is used often in the Bible but in different contexts. Proverbs 22:8, “He that sows iniquity shall reap vanity.” Iniquity has more to do with ‘not doing the right thing’ rather than ‘doing a wrong thing’.

When you do something wrong, immoral, illicit—then this is a sin or transgression. But iniquity is more about not doing the right, moral or proper action, thought or motive. Yes, we commit offensive acts against God when we do not display the Christian response to the will of God in any given situation.

If we just take a neutral position or avoid what God says our actions or behavior should be, to God this is wrong or as the Bible puts it, we are committing iniquities. God will not just judge us for what we do that is wrong but also not doing what is right. (Remember the story of the Good Samaritan, Luke 10: 30-37.)

Jesus is not just interested in us not sinning but also in doing what is right. When we fail to produce good works (when we make excuses for not doing a good deed when it is our power to do so) then we commit iniquities. God will judge us not just for our sins but also for our iniquities (the good works we failed to do).

So let’s get saved—let produce good works—let our actions, thoughts, and motives be right and just. If we love God then we must show His love to the world around us!

WWJWMTD

What would Jesus want me to do?

Dr. Steven J. Wentland www.wwjwmtd.com

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