No More Excuses

Read: Romans 3

"for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus;" Romans 3:23-24

Examine:

There are four common ways people attempt to avoid admitting their sin or try justifying their behavior: Denying the existence of God, comparing their deeds to someone the deem to be worse, partaking in religious activities, or giving of themselves to humanitarian deeds. These four things were going on in Paul's time and these four things continue to persist in my time. In the first three chapters of Romans, Paul dismantles these excuses. Chapter three starts the transition away from what does not work and begins to build a case for the work of Christ.

Apply:

I am not as bad as...

I pray, read my Bible, and go to Church...

I left my life and went into ministry...

I am a generous person and give of myself to others...

I am a good husband, father, friend, and worker...

I think that interpretation of the scripture is a little legalistic...

Prayer:

Father,

I still try to justice my actions. The excuses for my sin match my acts of sin tit-for-tat. I am not sure why this habit is so hard to break. I know better. It has never worked. Eventually I always find myself painted into a corner and forced to face my problem with my sin.

Freedom is not fully appreciated unless a person has first experienced captivity.

As I journey through Romans, I pray that You reawaken my sensitivity to my sin. Help me remember the places from which You redeemed me. Help me understand how hopeless I am without You. The more deeply I own the captivity of my sin the more richly I am able to experience Your grace.

I stand before You today in full confession of the sin in my life. No excuses. No justifications. I am a sinner fallen short of Your glory whose only justification in life is the gift of redemption and salvation through Christ.