LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Saturday 21st August 2021
GOD’S WORD – KEEPS US FROM SIN
Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression. Psalm 19:13
Sin is not good. Sin is doing something that is not in line with the way God wants it to be done. It is preferring our own way over God’s way. Sin keeps us from enjoying all that God has made available to us. Because sin comes to us camouflaged as superior knowledge or desirable pleasure; it is able to entice us away from God’s path. Can the child of God overcome sin and its temptations? Yes, we can.
Our passage for today shows the progression of sin in our lives. It shows us how sin starts and grows in our lives.
In verse 12 of this Psalm the Psalmist pleads, ‘Cleanse me from secret faults’. And now in verse 13 the passage mentions presumptuous sins and great transgressions; three progressions of sin in our lives. We will look at each one of these sins and consider what they mean to us.
- A secret sin. A secret sin as we see it in this Psalm, refers to something you do wrong without knowing it is wrong. A secret sin is not a sin you’re trying to hide in secret. It is a sin that is unknown to you, or things you do that you’re not aware of as sinful. It could be a feeling of envy that you’re not conscious of, or not doing the right thing you were supposed to do.
- A presumptuous sin. A presumptuous sin is a sin that is committed willfully. They are sins born out of arrogance. We sin presumptuously when we are fully aware that what we are doing is wrong and yet do it anyway. Many sins of this nature are wrong things we do for pleasure or self-gratification. We know from reading the Bible that such acts are wrong, but we choose to do them anyway because we derive some pleasure from them. That is a presumptuous sin.
- A great transgression. A great transgression is a sin that makes us depart from God and revolt against Him. This happens when sin so separates us from the Lord that we end up totally turning our backs on God. Sadly, many who used to serve the Lord have gotten to this stage in their relationship with Him. The good news is that, like the prodigal son, we can return to Lord. His arms are wide open to receive all His returning children.
The cure for all the three progressions of sin is the Word of God. When we hide God’s Word in our hearts, it leads us in the paths or righteousness and restrains us from sinful pride.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, let your Word keep me from pride and sin. Instruct me in the way of righteousness. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Scripture Reading: Psalm 19:13
13 Keep back Your servant also from presumptuous sins; Let them not have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, And I shall be innocent of great transgression.