PTTS: Ephesians 2:1-3

Praying Through the Scriptures

Ephesians 2.1-3: And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest.

My Savior and my God,
Thank you for rescuing your people from the death of sin. We have sinned greatly against you. We were bound to sin and controlled by it, but this was in accordance with our depraved will. We have loved the things of darkness, served the ruler of sin and lived to satisfy sinful lusts. We cared nothing for you or your ways of righteousness, rejecting the Lord of Lords in pride and hatred.

Let us be reminded of this again. For now we have been rescued from sin by the grace of Jesus and by his atoning work, but we never ought to forget the depth of our despair. Let us never look to others who have not be redeemed and think that they are different than we once were, and still would be if not for your sovereign grace. Prevent us from looking upon others as if we care not to see them saved!

May you send forth the Gospel in the power of the Spirit! It grieves us to see those whom we love still in the grips of sin. We long to see them rescued by the Gospel and ask now that you would extend your saving hand of mercy to them.

Teach us Father how to communicate the reality of sin and enmity to others who reject your Son. Help us to speak words of truth in a sober, but loving and graceful manner. As Paul now understood his sinfulness though he once considered himself righteous, let us show others that they are in great peril - they are children of Your wrath - and let us plead with them, in a manner that shows that You yourself were appealing to them through us to trust in the righteousness of Jesus.

And Lord, please continue to sanctify us by the power of the risen Lord Jesus. Deliver us from sins and trespasses and from the temptations of our lust, our greed, and our pride. We have no strength alone, but we trust in the power of the resurrection through our union with Christ through faith.

Cleanse us we pray,

Amen.

Proclaiming the Doctrine of Sin

Mark Dever writes the following on page 148 of the book "Telling the Truth" edited by D.A. Carson...

"Sometimes we share the Gospel with people while secretly only half-believing it's true, wondering what they will concede to us, and not wanting to say much more than that lest we look ridiculous...Don't be put off by the current fad of the times. People need to grasp not only the theoretical concept of evil and wrong, but also the fact that they are evil and wrong. They need to experience their own consciences. This is difficult in postmodernism, because the self tends to dissolve away, to disappear. in many ways, that may be the biggest problem we have when we try to communicate the idea of sin today. Postmodernism encourages the evacuation of the responsible self.

But the real reason people don't acknowledge the legitimate moral claims of God is not because of any philosophy; it is simply because it is not in their self-interest to do so."

Sin and evil are two of the most difficult topics to discuss, especially when sin and evil become personal. But if there are certain things that we as Christians are absolutely convinced of, it is that sin is real and that the heart of sin is unrighteousness and ungodliness. Sin is opposition to God. This leads us to the reason for our evangelism; namely that as certain as we are that sin is real, we are certain that there is Good News and redemption from the power of the slavemaster of sin and reconciliation with God through Jesus, the Messiah.

So far in our study in Acts, we have seen Peter bring the charge of sin against Israel for crucifying the Prince of Life. Let us prayerfully consider how we may effectively communicate the depths of sin to those whom are around us today.