NEIL ANDERSON DAILY DEVOTIONAL
from Freedom in Christ Ministries

February 19

Keeping An Honest Account

If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves, and
the truth is not in us (1 John 1:8).

We deceive ourselves when we say we have no sin. The Scripture
doesn’t say that we are sin; it says that it is possible for us
to sin and for sin to reside in our mortal bodies (Romans 6:12).
We are not sinless saints; we are saints who sin. It’s important
to keep honest account of our failures and pick up our cross
daily. When we become aware of a discrepancy between our identity
and our behavior, we must confess it and deal with it. The person
who deceives himself by ignoring these sinful discrepancies and
allowing them to build up is headed for a great fall.

Those of us who live in earthquake-prone Southern California keep
hearing about “the big one,” which is thought by many to be
inevitable along the San Andreas fault. Whenever we experience
minor earthquakes (up to about 4.0 on the Richter scale), we may
be frightened by them a bit, but we also see them as a good sign.
These little tremors mean that the plates in the earth’s crust
beneath us are shifting. As long as the crust is adjusting this
way, it’s unlikely that “the big one” will hit. It’s when we
don’t get any minor earthquakes for several months or years that
the danger of a major, devastating quake increases.

Similarly, living in the light, holding ourselves accountable to
God, and confessing and dealing with sin on a daily basis
prevents the major spiritual crises from building up in our
lives. If we keep saying, “I don’t have any sin,” or if we fail
to acknowledge our shortcomings and settle our differences with
people as God convicts us of them, we’re in for “the big one.” We
will eventually lose our health, our family, our job, or our
friendships. Unacknowledged sin is like a cancer which will grow
to consume us.

Lord, I know Your guidance is for my benefit. I refuse to allow
stubbornness and pride to render me insensitive to Your nudges
and warnings in my life today.

This daily devotional is published and distributed by
http://www.GOSHEN.net/ . It is written by Neil Anderson at
http://www.freedominchrist.com/ .