Pervasive Depravity

Katie and I took our Pastor and his wife (Brian and Chandra Howard) out to dinner tonight. By the way, this is a great thing for people in the church to do, especially if you pastor has kids at home. As we were discussing the counseling ministry that our church is beginning to start up, he made a very interesting statement. He said that the more he talks to and counsels people, the more he truly believes that very few people even in the church have their act together like they would like people around them to believe. It's easy to go through life believing that most people live good lives free from the kinds of gross sins that are looked down upon by the Church and Society in general. However, we know biblically and practically speaking that this certainly isn't the case. The Bible teaches that men are totally depraved and who are we kidding (and harming) but ourselves to let this sin remain hidden. Now, that's not to say that we should go about proclaiming and parading our sin for everyone to see. However the public confession of sin is something that is very healthy in the church. It is a sign that the Spirit has been working through the Scriptures to bring people to conviction. More than that, for true believers, it is a sign that we are truly trusting ourselves to the Grace of God and the transforming power of His Spirit working to reveal His irresistable Glory. As believers, we all struggle to relate to God on the basis of Grace and not on the phantom concept of works righteousness. Trusting in God's grace means that we won't fear the illumination of our sin but rather rejoice that God has already dealt with it on the Cross of Christ and that His Holy Spirit is working to root that sin out from our lives to enable us all the more to enjoy making much of God!