Tuesday, September 1, 2009

Tim Chester on sin and unbelief

On Sunday morning I sing of my belief in justification by faith (confessional faith), but on Monday morning I still feel the need to prove myself (functional disbelief). … I may affirm that God is sovereign (confessional faith), but still get anxious when I can’t control my life (functional disbelief). Sanctification is the progressive narrowing of the gap between confessional faith and functional faith. ...

Not many people think of themselves as someone who believes lies! But every time we don’t trust God’s word we’re believing something else, and that something is always a lie. If I get angry when I’m stuck in traffic it’s because I don’t trust God. I believe the lie that God isn’t in control or that his purposes for me are not good. …

This is a radical view of sin. It means many of our negative emotions are sinful because they’re symptoms of unbelief – the greatest sin and the root sin. Whenever we’re depressed or bitter, it’s because we believe God isn’t being good to us or that he’s not in control. …

We can sin only if we suffer from a radical loss of perspective. Only if we forget that God is great and good can we sin.
Tim Chester You Can Change 82, 87, 92, 103

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