The Seriousness of My Sinful Nature

In Romans the Apostle Paul writes:

“For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me.”  — Romans 7:14-20, NKJV

Wow! This is one of those parts of Scripture that I keep coming back to. It’s hard, it’s convicting, and it’s also one that requires me to read and re-read both for understanding and comfort.

This week Holly and I are on a brief vacation (location undisclosed).  As I sit on the shore of the ocean, I think about how it changes from day to day.  Somedays it’s fairly smooth, with gentle rolling waves, other days is rough and violent.  No two days are exactly alike. My walk is much like this. There are days when its all I can do to keep my eyes on the horizon. The waves of life seem so big. Other days, I can feel the gentle rolling of the waves of spiritual growth.  But like the ocean, no two days are ever alike.

The truth is I can always hold on to this: “While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). Not once we cleaned ourselves up. Not after we have proven we were worthy. While we were still sinners!

Lately, I’ve been thinking about the uncomfortable truth about myself: I still sin. And not just in the obvious ways. It’s the quiet and unseen stuff like selfish thoughts, pride that disguises itself as competence, impatience that I justify as “passion,” or a lack of love when no one’s watching. The truth is, there’s something still broken in me.

I used to think that once I got serious about my faith, sin would become a rare thing—something that belonged to my old life, not the new one in Christ. But the deeper I grow in my relationship with God, the more I recognize how deeply rooted my sinful nature is. Only a full understanding of my own sinful nature will allow me to appreciate, honor, and thank God for His grace and forgiveness. And the more I study His word, the more I am convicted of my personal state. I get Paul’s struggle!

This realization hasn’t made me give up—but it has made me take my faith much more seriously. And oddly, more grateful at the same time. I am a work in progress, no doubt. As I grow in faith I rely on God’s power to lead me through the process of sanctification. I understand this is something I cannot do on my own. At my very core, I AM still a sinner. But I also have a forgiving Savior who doesn’t count those sins against me.

This isn’t about beating myself up—it’s about facing reality with the hope of the gospel. I don’t want to settle for a shallow version of Christianity that says, “I’m fine, you’re fine, everything’s fine.” I want the kind of faith that dares to say, “I’m not fine—but Jesus is enough.”

So I keep coming back to the cross, not as a place I once visited, but as the center of my everyday life. I keep asking God to search my heart, to reveal what’s hidden, to change what I can’t fix on my own.

And every time, He meets me with both truth and grace.

“Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me.” Psalm 51:10

Let’s stay rooted together!

Jim