Not being reconciled to the fact of sin— not recognizing it and refusing to deal with it— produces all the disasters in life. You may talk about the lofty virtues of human nature, but there is something in human nature that will mockingly laugh in the face of every principle you have. If you refuse to agree with the fact that there is wickedness and selfishness, something downright hateful and wrong, in human beings, when it attacks your life, instead of reconciling yourself to it, you will compromise with it and say that it is of no use to battle against it. Have you taken this “hour, and the power of darkness” into account, or do you have a view of yourself which includes no recognition of sin whatsoever? In your human relationships and friendships, have you reconciled yourself to the fact of sin? If not, just around the next corner you will find yourself trapped and you will compromise with it. But if you will reconcile yourself to the fact of sin, you will realize the danger immediately and say, “Yes, I see what this sin would mean.” The recognition of sin does not destroy the basis of friendship— it simply establishes a mutual respect for the fact that the basis of sinful life is disastrous. Always beware of any assessment of life which does not recognize the fact that there is sin.

Jesus Christ never trusted human nature, yet He was never cynical nor suspicious, because He had absolute trust in what He could do for human nature. The pure man or woman is the one who is shielded from harm, not the innocent person. The so-called innocent man or woman is never safe. Men and women have no business trying to be innocent; God demands that they be pure and virtuous. Innocence is the characteristic of a child. Any person is deserving of blame if he is unwilling to reconcile himself to the fact of sin.

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Journal Entry for Today-JDV

June 23, 2010

I wonder what point Oswald Chambers is trying to make in this devotional? It is another about the impact of sin in our lives. He is focused on the fact that human nature is not good; that we all have sin in our lives and that our goal is not innocence but purity. He reminds us that our friends and neighbors all have sin as a part of their nature as well.

Being reminded of this fact makes me wonder why I would ever reach out to anyone but Jesus. When I need hope or help and direction, why would I reach out to another human first? Why would I go to anyone except Jesus? I suspect I would and could reach out to a brother or sister in whom I could see Jesus, just as I hope others see Jesus in me.

And God says…”Stay close and connected to Me through Jesus. When you miss the mark, and you will, allow the Holy Spirit to point it out to you, AND allow Jesus to make the changes in you. Your job is to be obedient and trust Me and be receptive to the Holy Spirit’s direction. You know your position with Me in Jesus. You can easily identify brothers and sisters in Christ as well. You can reach out to other connected believers and seek their counsel, knowing that they too (just like you) will have great capacity to be disconnected. The Spirit of God within you can and will, connect with the Spirit of God within them and you can know when you can reach out to them. You can reach out to me through Jesus, and you can reach out to Jesus in others just like others can and will reach out to Jesus when they see Him in you.

The natural state is for others to see the flaws in you. They can see the sin that is obvious and always a part of a human. However, when you are connected to Me through Jesus, they will always see Jesus.