The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, and majestic in his radiant splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him today and what came to my heart and mind in James 4:17,
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
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"Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn't do it, sins."
Sins of omission are those things God wants us to do, the things we should be doing, yet fail to do. We often think in terms of sinning as doing something God doesn't want us to do. The Israelites were told to not steal, not lie and not murder. The followers of Jesus were told not to be angry with one another and not to look at a woman lustfully. James here says we sin if we fail to do something God wants us to do.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest command in all of Scripture was he responded with two things that if we don't do them we sin: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Failure to follow through in these are considered to be sins of omission.
As an example in our day, a sin of omission occurs if we fail to actively oppose the contemporary practice of abortion. Three millennia ago Solomon wrote, "Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, 'But we knew nothing about this,' does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?" Proverbs 24:11-12. Not opposing the slaughter of innocents is a sin of omission.
Earlier in his letter, James refers to "the righteous life that God desires" as that which we should pursue as we make our choices in life, James 1:20. This righteous life is not simply refraining from vices common to man, but is a reflection of the matchless perfections and beauty of the Lord himself. God has predestined those of us who have embraced him in faith to be conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 8:29. As we observe him we find that beyond not doing evil, he also performed the good. He is our example of what the "righteous life that God desires" looks like.
Sins of omission are those things God wants us to do, the things we should be doing, yet fail to do. We often think in terms of sinning as doing something God doesn't want us to do. The Israelites were told to not steal, not lie and not murder. The followers of Jesus were told not to be angry with one another and not to look at a woman lustfully. James here says we sin if we fail to do something God wants us to do.
When Jesus was asked what the greatest command in all of Scripture was he responded with two things that if we don't do them we sin: "'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Failure to follow through in these are considered to be sins of omission.
As an example in our day, a sin of omission occurs if we fail to actively oppose the contemporary practice of abortion. Three millennia ago Solomon wrote, "Rescue those being led away to death; hold back those staggering toward slaughter. If you say, 'But we knew nothing about this,' does not he who weighs the heart perceive it? Does not he who guards your life know it? Will he not repay each person according to what he has done?" Proverbs 24:11-12. Not opposing the slaughter of innocents is a sin of omission.
Earlier in his letter, James refers to "the righteous life that God desires" as that which we should pursue as we make our choices in life, James 1:20. This righteous life is not simply refraining from vices common to man, but is a reflection of the matchless perfections and beauty of the Lord himself. God has predestined those of us who have embraced him in faith to be conformed to the image of his Son, Jesus Christ. Romans 8:29. As we observe him we find that beyond not doing evil, he also performed the good. He is our example of what the "righteous life that God desires" looks like.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share what moved you about him from your Bible reading today. I'd love to hear from you!
If you have someone you would like to receive these ruminations, send me their email address. I'm happy to add them to the list. If you are receiving this and would like to be removed from the list, just reply and let me know.
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