Daily Discipline #21
By Colleen Donahue
"It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick...for I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners." Matthew 9:12b, 13b
One of the most unpopular topics to be written about or spoken of is that of sin. When Peter and John spoke before the Sanhedrin and addressed them concerning their sin that had crucified the Saviour, Peter and John's very lives were on the line. When John the Baptist confronted King Herod regarding immorality with his brother's wife, John was beheaded. Time and again in John Wesley's journal (the great evangelist of England) you'll read that he preached about sin and our need to repent, only to be banned from preaching again at that location. Why is it that man reacts so strongly to this subject? Is it because he is guilty?
SIN - Are We Guilty?
Day 1- God didn't make us sinful creatures, but He did make us with a free will to choose to love and obey Him. Adam and Eve, our first parents, were created perfectly and given everything that was good. Their one test of love to God lay in obedience to one simple command....
Genesis 2:16-17
Day 2 -There were lots of provisions for Adam and Eve to enjoy without disobeying this one command, but what happened?
Genesis 3:6
Their "misfortune of being caught" brought about two responses:
Day 3 -First came fear and the need to hide.
Genesis 3:8-10
Day 4 -The second response was a readiness to blame it on someone else or something else.
Genesis 3:12-13
These two responses are the same today.
Adam and Eve's FIRST or ORIGINAL SIN set in motion a chain of events.....
Day 5 -How was each person to be born after Adam and Eve?
Psalm 51:5 / Psalm 58:3
Day 6 -What were to be the consequences of parents' sins upon their children?
Exodus 20:5 / Lamentations 5:7
Day 7 -How far has sin spread among men?
Genesis 6:5 / Psalm 53:2-3 / Isaiah 53:6 / Romans 5:12
Most of us think of ourselves as "basically good" people. This is especially true if we have been a successful father or mother, a good, law-abiding citizen, or in general, a helpful member of society. Unfortunately, according to the Bible, this is false thinking and not at all how God sees us.
Day 8 -From the time of Adam and Eve what was the state of man's heart?
Reread: Genesis 6:5
Day 9- Why?
Isaiah 59:2
Day 10- How did this affect God's heart?
Genesis 6:6
Day 11- How does God see us?
Isaiah 64:6 / Romans 3:23
Day 12- How do you see yourself?
I John 1:8
Day 13 -As the world has progressed right up till today, what is more apparent than ever?
Jeremiah 17:9
What are some of the ways that our hearts can be turned away from God?
Day 14 -Surrounding ourselves with those that are unbelievers.
I Kings 11:1-6
Day 15- Not humbling ourselves under the leaders God has put over us.
II Chronicles 36: 11-13
Day 16- Not recognizing the sovereignty of God in our lives.
Psalm 14:1
Day 17- When we accept rather than confess the sin in our lives.
Psalm 66:18
Day 18- Knowing what is right to do but not doing it.
James 4:17 / I John 3:10
Day 19- When our hearts become hardened towards God.
Matthew 13:15
Day 20- When we have contempt for other people.
Proverbs 14:21
Day 21- Where is sin first committed?
Matthew 5:28 / Matthew 9:4 / Matthew 15:19 / Mark 7:21
Day 22- Therefore, when we are listening to God, where do we first feel His conviction?
Acts 2:37
Day 23- Why is it that we feel God's conviction within our hearts first?
I Kings 8:39b / 2 Chronicles 6:30
God alone knows all our hearts, and as a doctor He knows where to press to find the diseased (sin-filled) areas.
Day 24- The result and penalty for sin are stated many times in the Bible very clearly. What is it?
Genesis 2:16-17 / Genesis 3:16-19 / I Chronicles 10:13-14 / Proverbs 11:19 / Ezekiel 18:4 / Romans 5:12 / Romans 6:23
Day 25- It will sometimes be in the form of physical death but always sin will bring spiritual death. Spiritual death is separation from God.
Isaiah 59:2 / Isaiah 64:7 / Hosea 5:6
Day 26 -When our hearts are far from God and longing to get back, what can be our only prayer?
Psalm 51:10 / Psalm 139:23-24
Day 27 -When we acknowledge our sins and confess them, what will God surely do?
I John 1:9
Day 28- How then will God deal with our hearts?
1. He'll cleanse our heart by faith
Acts 15:9
2. He will disclose our true heart.
I Corinthians 4:5
Day 29- Once our hearts are changed, how can they be kept pure?
Philippians 4:7-8 / Colossians 3:15 / I Thessalonians 3:13
Day 30- How are we able to be wholeheartedly devoted to God?
Jeremiah 24:7 / Jeremiah 32:39-41 / Ezekiel 11: 19-20 / Ezekiel 36: 26-27
Day 31- What is the great danger today in our churches and personal lives?
Isaiah 29:13 / Matthew 15:8 / Romans 1:21
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