SWHW Two Year Bible Reading Plan: March, Year 2Sample

Top Takeaway from Somer Phoebus:

Take sin seriously. 

That’s the lesson in chapter 5 that I just can’t get away from. 

Sin is tragic. It’s a big deal. Just because we know it will be a reality for us as believers doesn’t mean we can sweep it under the rug and say, “it is what it is” when it presents itself. 

You see, we can know that we’re sinners and also refuse to tolerate it.

We can expect to struggle but be adamant about claiming victory OVER it. 

That’s the power we have in Jesus. 

When we call ourselves “sinners saved by grace”, we need to be very careful that we’re boasting in His grace and not just getting comfortable in our sin. Don’t grow numb to these Christian catch phrases. We are sinners saved by grace, but that’s not as much a diagnosis as it is our treatment plan.

Jesus didn’t die on the cross so He could be our “fallback” when the Christian life was found to be harder than we expected. 

Let me be unequivocally clear here--you don’t have to work to earn your salvation. You literally cannot be good enough to earn it. But Jesus doesn’t ask you not to sin so that you can be good enough to be saved. He asks you not to sin because you love Him more than you love your sin. 

Because He’s so overwhelmingly enough for you that you don’t need whatever that sin is. 

In chapter 5, it was a sexual relationship that Paul was telling the church they needed to address. That might not be your issue. Maybe it’s that extra glass of wine for coping, that secret credit card debt you run up when you need to fix yourself with a treat, or that gossip that you can’t get yourself to hush about because highlighting the negative in other people’s lives is easier than addressing the sin in yours. 

Whatever it is, your sin grieves the heart of your Savior. Do you know that? 

This isn’t a guilt trip — it’s the truth. When you choose sin, Jesus feels that. 

But He also forgives that. And that is the Good News that we can cling to. 

So let’s make every effort to see our sin as a big deal. Because it really is. 

Repent, turn away, and run into the arms of Jesus. 

Father, please forgive me for the sin in my life. I am so, so sorry that I have done so many things that have grieved You. (Take time to speak your sins out loud and bring them into the open. Don’t be afraid; He already knows and He loves you anyway.) God, I will not take your death on the cross for granted anymore. Thank You for Your grace that I don’t deserve. Purify my heart; I want to want what You want. I want to be more like You. I really do love You, God, and I want to live in such a way that my love for You speaks so loudly that I don’t even have to say a word. Thank You for listening to me and for being here with me right now. I never want to grieve You again, God. Amen.