Freedom Calls

As a child of the One True God, saved by His grace through faith in our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus, I stand redeemed yet warned.

Sin is no trifling matter; it is, as Paul declares, “exceeding sinful” (Romans 7:13). 

What begins as a whisper in the soul can grow into a roar that drowns out grace, if I let it.

The Spirit calls me to see sin for what it is—not a small misstep, but a deadly foe.

Charles Spurgeon put it plain: “Beware of light thoughts of sin. At the time of conversion, the conscience is so tender, that we are afraid of the slightest sin. Young converts have a holy timidity, a godly fear lest they should offend against God. But alas, very soon the fine bloom upon these first ripe fruits is removed by the rough handling of the surrounding world: the sensitive plant of young piety turns into a willow in after life, too pliant, too easily yielding. It is sadly true, that even a Christian may grow by degrees so callous, that the sin which once startled him does not alarm him in the least. By degrees men get familiar with sin. The ear in which the cannon has been booming will not notice slight sounds. At first a little sin startles us; but soon we say, ‘Is it not a little one?’ Then there comes another, larger, and then another, until by degrees we begin to regard sin as but a little ill; and then follows an unholy presumption: ‘We have not fallen into open sin. True, we tripped a little, but we stood upright in the main. We may have uttered one unholy word, but as for the most of our conversation, it has been consistent.’ So we palliate sin; we throw a cloak over it; we call it by dainty names. Christian, beware how thou thinkest lightly of sin. Take heed lest thou fall by little and little. Sin, a little thing? Is it not a poison? Who knows its deadliness? Sin, a little thing? Do not the little foxes spoil the grapes? Doth not the tiny coral insect build a rock which wrecks a navy? Do not little strokes fell lofty oaks? Will not continual droppings wear away stones? Sin, a little thing? It girded the Redeemers head with thorns, and pierced his heart! It made him suffer anguish, bitterness, and woe. Could you weigh the least sin in the scales of eternity, you would fly from it as from a serpent, and abhor the least appearance of evil. Look upon all sin as that which crucified the Saviour, and you will see it to be ‘exceeding sinful.’”

I remember the days after my conversion, when even a stray thought felt like a wound to my soul. That tenderness fades too easily under the worlds rough touch. I have caught myself excusing more than a harsh word or a selfish choice, saying, “It is not so bad.” But Spurgeon is right—sin is no little thing. 

It is poison, a creeping death that dulls my love for Jesus, who bore its full weight for me. Success in this fight lies in vigilance, in refusing to cloak sin with soft names, in running to the cross where its true cost is laid bare.

Watchman Nee said, “Sin is not weakness; it is rebellion. To dwell in it is to turn from the light.” C.S. Lewis warned, “The safest road to hell is the gradual one—the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings.” John Bunyan added, “One leak will sink a ship; one sin, unchecked, will drown a soul.” These voices echo Pauls truth: sin is exceeding sinful, and I must guard my heart.

So I watch, I pray, I trust the Spirit to sharpen my conscience anew. When I abide in Jesus, honoring the Son who pleased the Father, I find strength to flee even the shadow of evil. Sin pierced my Savior; let it never find a home in me.

Dear friend, see sin as it is. Flee it. Cling to the One who crushed it. In Him, we stand forgiven, watchful, free.

Let us pray:Father, open our eyes to sins deadliness. Stir us to abhor it, to flee it, to honor Your Son who bore it. Keep us vigilant by Your Spirit. In Jesus name, Amen.