Day 2235 of the 7 day Bible verse challenge.

Romans 6:21 NIV

There's something about this verse that just packs a punch! I've literally had to go back and read it over and over again for a couple of nights now. We've been talking about Easter and what Christ's gift means for us. But I also realized something last night while I was praying. Unless that gift takes root in our hearts it can't do the job it was meant to do. Until His death and the story of His resurrection become personal it won't be able to change us.

Sin seems great on the surface. It's fun. It's easy. It's exciting. It's popular. It presents this care-free kind of life that appeals to everyone. Being able to do or say anything you want with no limitations, no regrets sounds like the ultimate kind of freedom. But we know better. In our hearts we know there is a big difference between right and wrong. And that knowledge brings with it a weight that we cannot escape.

There's a reason that sin feels bad. There's a reason that we feel shame whenever we blow it. There's a reason that it hurts to look back at all of our past mistakes. It's because sin is wrong. No matter how great it may look on the surface it doesn't change the fact that sin is empty and dangerous. And no matter how ignorant we try to remain, no matter how much we try to ignore it, there is no getting out of the consequences of our poor choices.

That's why I love this verse. It smacks us right in the head with the question we should be asking ourselves. What do we gain from our sins? A little fun? A few moments of excitement? They make us feel good for a little bit? They help us fit in with the crowd? Okay. But how long do those feelings last? How long does it feel good before you feel like a scumbag? How good does it feel to fit in with the world when it leaves you feeling empty and lost? How exciting is it when that rush wears off and you're left sinking in shame again?

We have to see what sin is and what it does to us. Again, it might look like fun and games on the surface but underneath it is killing us. It pulls us away from God. It pulls us away from lasting joy and peace. It offers us this sudden thrill that vanishes like a breath in the wind and leaves us with nothing but regret. Why live like that? What possible gain is there in the constant ups and downs that sin offers? All the darkness in the world can never offer us what God does in Christ Jesus. It can only pretend to.

Don't fall for the lies anymore. Christ showed us that we should want more than that for ourselves because He died to give us the chance at something better. Stop settling. Stop lying to yourself. Stop thinking that a few seconds of excitement are worth the hours and days of feeling miserable afterward. Sin kills us by stealing our joy and leaving us hollow. Please don't let that happen anymore. It just isn't worth it my friends!