Psalm 124:7 (NIV)
Escape. To me, that word is filled with adventure. As in "we made a daring escape". Or, perhaps it is filled with hope, as in "a relaxing escape". Many people are content with their lives and feel no need for escape. But as Christians, as true believers, we all have escaped. We have escaped the snares of sin.
Most people do not like to talk about sin. We live in an "I'm ok, you're ok" culture. But sin is a very relevant topic, no matter where or when you live. Man is sinful by nature. It has been that way from the beginning. Sometimes people only want to think of the "big" sins- murder, adultery, theft. You know, the going-against-the-commandments type sins. The prevailing thought is "as long as I do not commit those, I am golden". But there are other sins too. Gossip, jealousy, bad stewardship, laziness, lack of love. These are all sins that I have personally struggled with over the years. There are tons more too.
I think people are afraid to own up to sin, because they think they will be judged by others (also a sin by the way, being judgmental). But we all have a sinful nature. Read the Bible. Chock full of sinners. Pay special attention to the Gospels. Who did Jesus dine with? Tax collectors, prostitutes, sinners. He makes His reasons for this abundantly clear. Jesus came to provide hope to the sinners. He came to help us escape sin.
Faith as a means of escape is a strong theme in Scripture. The Jews escaped from Egypt through faith. Noah escaped the flood by faith. Daniel escaped the lions because of, you guessed it, faith. The point I am trying to make is, God wants to be your escape. He wants to take your pain, suffering, addiction, poverty, gluttony, jealousy, unbelief. He wants to make you new, free.
We will continue to struggle with sin, and continue to need faith to help us escape it. So, profess your faith, confess your sin, and escape into the open arms of the Lord.
