Have you ever been asked that question only to realize it was YOU who did it? We can all play the blame game to explain away our acts of ignorance or selfishness. We buy into our explanation by saying it was a moment of weakness or we can blame the devil. Yes, that is a good one. The devil made me do it! I believe if you try to use that excuse in a reasonable court of law, you will not get much sympathy. We hear and see through our instant media feeds of road rage where innocent people are killed simply because they were merging onto an interstate ramp same time as another causing an unbelievable act of violence. Why? Was it because the devil made him do it? Not a good defense in the legal system but all too often we hear of such incredible acts of stupidity. All of us are guilty of acts of rage but if not controlled can lead to irreparable results. Perhaps, the results are a loss of a relationship that may take generations to heal or perhaps the results lead to injuries or loss of life that can never be healed. Maybe we should all recognize that we are all humans guilty of sin in need of salvation. Maybe it is the devil working in our lives to cause chaos and to confuse us into thinking that our actions are acceptable behavior. Maybe the devil did make us do it. But wait, who do we claim allegiance? Is it the devil representing the sins of the world or a source beyond this earthly world?
Paul struggled in Romans to first distinguish between being dead to sin and alive in Christ in Chapter 6. Further in Chapter 7, he struggles with sin in the laws we abide by and in our bodies. Especially, starting in verse 14, the conflicted wording of self struggles over sin and why we do it, may seem familiar to us. But, we have a solution to our conflict in verse 25. Thank God!
Perhaps, if we are struggling with conflict within our bodies or our perception of what we should do, we should turn to Matthew 11:28. Let us take a deep cleansing breath and remember that He will lighten our heavy loads and will give us rest. Instead of succumbing to the devil’s temptation only later to regret what we did, let us find rest in Him.
T