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When We Sin

           My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. (I John 2:1)

Let’s be brutal for a moment. Do you dismiss at least some of your sins as “not so bad”? Are they less bad than that other person’s? Which of them is not so much a sin as a bad habit or weakness? Is it worse to be found out to have made an error than to have sinned? Of course, I’m not talking about the big sins like murder, rape, or blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. I’m talking about little things like speeding, over-eating, and enjoying those videos in which someone gets hurt.

Someone (possibly Dallas Willard) suggested that God does not allow us to see or understand how completely ruined our souls are all at once, because it would destroy us. Instead, He works behind the scenes. He’s like the doctor in the video who is going to give a toddler a shot, so he tickles, pokes, makes faces, and effectively overstimulates the child so that when the needle is inserted, the child doesn’t even notice. All the stuff going on in our lives might be distractions that allow God to do what He must without our noticing.

          Instead of unveiling the everlasting horrors that we would see all at once, God tends to show us a tiny glimpse, and sometimes that’s devastating. And that’s where this verse comes in. When we recognize that we’ve sinned, we have someone who will stand by us. Don’t misunderstand, God has always been forgiving to those who sought forgiveness. But we not only have God tickling, poking, making faces and distracting us, we also have the Son holding our hand bravely, and the Spirit comforting (though that’s not mentioned here.)   

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