“20For by works of the law no human being will be justified in his sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” — Romans 3:20 (ESV)
I have been justified by the works of the LORD and have been and will be held accountable to the sins I have and will commit as I continue in this world. And that is the thing, I have and will continue to commit sins. And to go along with those sins, I have to continue repenting and seeking forgiveness for those sins I know of and even those that I am unaware.
Just because I have been justified does not mean that I am out of the woods as relates to accountability. It does not mean that I can just do whatever I want and not have to worry with pleasing or displeasing God. I am still a sinner, and even more importantly I now know of sin and that makes me even more accountable. I now know right from wrong and my sin is a choice at each instance. I now choose to sin.
As a small child, I was given certain liberties to knowing right from wrong. I did not know that taking something from the store was a crime and sin because I did not know the law. I did not know that lying was a sin as someone had not explained it to me yet and I did not understand the concept. But now that I am older (Ha Ha), I do know and if I do indeed take something from the store or tell a lie, I choose to do so and will be held accountable to that choice. The same holds true for the other sins in my life.
As a Christian and child of God, I now am aware of my sin and am held accountable to knowing when I am about to or have sinned. I have the knowledge and it is up to me to use that knowledge each and every moment of the day. I know what is right and what is wrong in the eyes of the LORD and I am responsible to abide by His Word each and every time.
How do I know? I have to study His Word each day. I have to dig into and work to understand what it is to abide in the LORD. He tells me in His Word and it is my duty to read study and understand so that I can abide in Him at all times.
Am I going to sin, yes, I am a sinner and just because I have been given and accepted salvation does not absolve me of what I am. I do however have a better knowledge of what I am doing and when I work to align myself with His teachings and doing as instructed by Him, I will find myself sinning less and those sins I do commit will impact others less. I will know I have sinned as some point in the day and I will know to ask God again to forgive me of those sins I have committed.
What knowledge do you have of right and wrong? Are you continuing to actively sin even though you know? What if you were to get into God’s Word and understand so that you would have a better chance to avoid sin?
Trevor's Thoughts 