As you prepare for work each day, or Church on Sunday morning, you get
cleaned up and put on clean clothes. We always look in the mirror to make
sure that our shirt is tucked in neatly and our hair is fixed just right.
We check carefully to make sure that our clothes are not dirty or wrinkled.
If we find a stain on them we simply change and wash the soiled clothes
when we get home.

You wouldn't dream of putting dirty clothes on a clean body. Yet you will walk around with dirt on the inside, an unclean heart. A heart stained by sin. You can't see the stain of sin but you know it's there because you committed it. Your sins are not hidden from God! Sometimes we think we are getting away with it just because nobody has seen us sin. God has seen everything.

We look for the easiest way to remove the stains from our clothing with the least amount of effort. But when it comes to confessing sin in our lives most people will not get on their knees and humble themselves before God Almighty. God will not let you get away with sin.

People have a hard time letting go of their sins for various reasons. One such reason is personal pleasure in those sins. The Bible tells us in 2nd Timothy 3:2-4, "For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy,
Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good. Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God."

Many today have an if it feels good do it type attitude, instead of a lifestyle dedicated to Christ lead by the Holy Spirit. A mans pride will allow him to hold on to his sins and go to Hell instead of giving them to God and asking for forgiveness.

The Christian cannot live a worldly lifestyle and worship a Holy God. If this describes you then your worship is in vain. The Bible tells us in Luke 16:13, "No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon."

People involved in sin will try to justify it, by reasoning to themselves, that their sin was not as bad as someone else's sin. God hates all sin but he loves you and is willing to forgive you of your sins through his son Jesus Christ. I know people who are morally good. They don't drink or use bad language
and in some cases even live a life style that would make many Christians take notice. Yet they are lost without Christ in their life, they are doomed for eternity in Hell, unless they receive him as their Savior. The Bible tells us in Romans 3:23, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God."

Sins promise of pleasure will leave you empty inside with only guilt and
shame to remain. If you don't believe that sin and Hell are real, just ask the drunk who is addicted to alcohol what rules his life. Ask the drug addict if drugs are not what they live for. Ask the fornicator that has had so much pleasure in sin and now has contracted aids. And the adulterer that
has ruined their family because of an unfaithful life style. They all will tell you their sins have them in a living Hell.

They will tell you they feel trapped with no way out. Each one of these would do anything to change the past. Sin will take you farther than you ever wanted to go. It will keep you there longer than you intended to stay, and sin will cost you more than you are willing to pay. If you receive
Christ as your Savior the Bible tells us in Hebrews 10:17, "And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more."

The Bible tells us in Romans 6:7, "Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof." But there is hope. It's the blessed hope of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. There is only one way and that is to receive Jesus as your Lord and Savior. It was
his precious Holy blood that was shed for our sins. There is no sin that Jesus cannot forgive past, present, or future.

You should be aware of the consequences of your sins. The Bible tells us in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." If you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior the Bible tell us what will happen to you. Revelation 20:14-15, "And death and Hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death. And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire." Is this where you want to spend eternity? Once you
are in Hell there is no getting out! No where in the Bible does it tell you that Hell will last for just a little while and then you'll get out. On the contrary the Bible tells us you will be tormented day and night forever and ever. But it doesn't have to be that way.

The Bible tells us in Romans 10:9-10-11, "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed." And the assurance of the previous verses in Romans 10:13, "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved."

Christian if you have sin in your life today, won't you turn it over to the Lord and ask him to forgive you and restore the joy of your salvation? In Psalms 51-1:4, "Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness, according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. For I acknowledge my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight, that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest."

Those that are lost I pray that you would accept him as your Lord and Savior before it is everlasting too late. In Isaiah 1-18, "Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall
be as wool." Only you can ask him for salvation. No one can do it for you. Satan does not have the chance to be saved, you do. You don't have to pray a fancy prayer. In Luke 18-13, "And the publican, standing afar off, would
not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner." No matter what you have done Jesus can forgive you." Just tell the Lord that you are a sinner and that you
accept him as your Savior, make him Lord of your life and ask him to forgive you of your sins.

The worst thing you could ever hear when you stand before the Lord is to hear him say, "Depart from me I never knew you." How terrible, there will be no second chance. But to hear him say, "Well done thou good and faithful servant." It will be worth it all. If your life has been stained by sin, I pray that the Holy Spirit will touch your life and open you eyes to the truth. If you will take that first step, the Lord will help you the rest of the way. If Christ can make a change in my life, he can make a change in yours. I pray today that you will examine your heart and truly ask Gods' will be done in our lives.

Inspired by: My Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him I give all the Glory
and praise.
By: G.L.F.
Ephesians 2-8:9