The Lord wants us to live lives that honor Him.  He desires that we live according to His Word.  We read in 1 Peter 1:16, “Be ye holy; for I am holy.”  The Greek word for holy means to be pure or morally blameless.  In Galatians 5:16 we are instructed to, “…Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.”  This simply means that if we live according to the leading of the Holy Spirit, we will have the ability to resist the temptation to sin.  Our flesh will always lead us to fulfill its own lusts, but by learning God’s Word and allowing His Spirit to teach and guide us, we can live according to God’s desires for us, and live holy lives.

If we turn our eyes away from the Lord and begin living for our own selfish pleasures, the Lord may see fit to chasten, or discipline us to bring us back to Himself.  “For whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth. If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?” (Hebrews 12:6-7).  Even as a father disciplines his child so he might learn to obey and not do wrong things, the Lord disciplines His own children so that we might learn to obey Him and not sin against Him.  We also read in Revelation 3:19, “As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent.”  The chastening hand of the Lord is a hand of love.  When discipline is necessary, the Lord works to teach us to resist sin.  Instead of just watching us sin and get further away from Him, the Lord is there to draw us back to Himself. 

The Lord also gives us the privilege of confessing our sins to Him to receive His forgiveness and cleansing.  He says to His redeemed ones in 1 John 1:9, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  So, we clearly see the Lord’s desire is that we walk with Him, that we live holy lives, that we live according to the leading of the Spirit.  He gives us the ability to do these things and He offers forgiveness and cleansing to us when we do sin through our repentance and confession. 

How far will the Lord allow us to get away from Him?  How much freedom will the Lord give us to do our own thing and live according to our own lusts?  Let’s consider the words of Romans 6:1 which says, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?”  The clear and absolute answer to this question is given in verse 2, “God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?”  It is not the desire of a godly man or woman to find out how much they can get away with.  While growing up, one of our children, when directed to obey, would often ask, “What’s my punishment if I don’t?”  Her desire was to do her own thing, and she would decide what to do based on what her punishment would be.  As people redeemed from our sins by the blood of God’s own dear Son, we should want to serve and please the Lord.  He deserves our dedication, our love, and our obedience.  He certainly is worthy of that! 

However, it is possible to live in sin so steadily that the Lord may determine that He must take us out of this scene.  He may determine to take our lives from us because of our fierce and determined disobedience.  The Bible teaches us, “If anyone sees his brother or sister committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will, for him, give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is sin leading to death; I am not saying that he should ask about that. All unrighteousness is sin, and there is sin not leading to death.” (1 John 5:16-17-NASB).  “There is a sin leading to death!”  This is not speaking of spiritual death, but of physical death for a believer who continues in sin to the point the Lord causes his death.  I often think of this as a “dishonorable discharge” from life.  If we dishonor the Lord so much with our actions, our discharge from life has no honor to the Lord. 

How far will the Lord allow us to go on living a dishonorable life?  I’m sure every case is different.  However, may each of us who are believers seek to live lives that honor the Lord.  May our attitudes reflect the life of the Apostle Paul who said, “For to me to live is Christ, and to die is gain.” (Philippians 1:21).  Paul also expressed his desire to live for the Lord in Romans 14:8, “For whether we live, we live unto the Lord; and whether we die, we die unto the Lord: whether we live therefore, or die, we are the Lord’s.”  May this be our attitude, also.  May our continuing obedience to the Lord be evidenced by our continuing desire to serve Him.  “Lord, what wilt thou have me to do?” (Acts 9:6).  (CC)  (590.6)