By One of the songs sung on the way to the annual feasts in Jerusalem was Psalm 130. You might wonder what festival singing has to do with the guilt over your own sin, and this is where Psalm 130 provides a very important answer. Before you can joyfully come to worship, you need
The Cure for Cross-Generational Sins
It is no secret that some sins beset families from one generation to the next. Drunkenness (commonly called alcoholism) is perhaps one of the most obvious ‘sins of a father’ that reaches down through many subsequent generations. But in our times almost any bad behaviour is linked to siblings, cousins,
Repentance: the Well-Travelled Path of Every Christian
Beloved Christian, is the following not a familiar path? You sin; guilt is incurred; you feel bad because of the guilt of sin; you confess your sin; you ask for forgiveness of your sin and are restored to both God and one another; and then you do what is right
Time Doesn’t Heal Guilt
It is common in the world to believe that “time heals all things”. This might be true in some instances, but time doesn’t heal the guilt that comes from sinning against another. As Christians we ought never to sin and simply go on as though nothing happened, believing that time
The Practise of Spiritual Self-Examination
We all sin in many ways. Some of our sins we are well aware of, yet we are not always quick to repent. Other times we are not even aware of our sinful deeds to God and others. Our most loved ones might cover them many times with their great
The Two Laws of Life
There are laws of nature which describe the reality of our natural world, for example, that things always fall downward and that if left alone, things always degenerate into chaos. There are also laws of life, which describe the reality of how human life works. The one-verse summary of it
Scripture’s Role in Your Obedience
It was Jerry Bridges in his book The Pursuit of Holiness who wrote something like: “Too often we say we struggle with this or that sin. And we use it as an excuse. You do not struggle as much as you are simply disobedient.” Then in chapter 10 he gives
The Exceeding Sinfulness of Sin
A common way in which we have created a double standard of morality is by acknowledging the reality of sin, but minimising the wickedness of sin. We minimise sin by the many more respectable terms we’ve invented to refer to sin. Jerry Bridges realised the disaster to one’s soul that
Repentance is more than Remorse
In King Solomon’s prayer of dedication of the newly built temple of the LORD, Solomon elaborated on what constitutes true repentance. 1 Kings 8:46 reveals that Solomon perceived that Israel will sin against the LORD. This would result in judgment (v 46). But, if they repent by acknowledging their sin (v 47),
Jeremiah 29:11 – a case of inverting “the plans I have for you”
LONG POST ALERT — (I don’t apologise, but I do warn you so that you can set a little more time aside for today’s devotional) Jeremiah 29:11 is often referenced and even quoted by professing Christians. But what was the plans God had for His people when Jeremiah prophesied it? And