One Step at a Time

READ: PHILIPPIANS 3:12-14

I just keep sinning even though I know Jesus—I’ll never get it!

Have you ever been frustrated with yourself for sinning? Have you felt like you should be able to get it right, but you just can’t? Lots of us feel this way. Here’s the good news: as Christians, we don’t have to “get” anything. Jesus already did. He got everything right—He never sinned. He is the only One, and He died for our sins so that we could be totally cleansed from sin. If we’ve put our trust in Jesus, we will continue to struggle with sin—but our sins cannot define us anymore. Because we are in Christ Jesus, we are forever forgiven. God sees us as His blameless children, and He has compassion on us when we stumble.

It may be helpful at this point to think of a toddler who is just learning to walk. At first, they fall all the time. Actually, at first they can’t even stand! But when they lose their balance and fall flat on the ground, everyone who loves them will run to help and cheer them on toward their first step...and the many more steps that will follow. It’s a one-step-at-a-time process that we have to go through in order to learn how to walk.

Knowing Jesus is a walk too—one where we fall down a lot. But He’ll always forgive us and help us get back up. None of us will be able to walk perfectly, at least, not until we see Him face-to-face someday. But, little by little, He’s helping us learn to say no to sin and walk more closely with Him.

So we walk forward in hope, knowing that Jesus is walking right beside us, helping us grow to become more and more like Him. We can trust Him, one step at a time, looking forward to the day when He’ll finish the work He’s started in all of us, and our struggle with sin will finally be over. • A. W. Smith

• Once we’ve put our trust in Jesus, we can know that He’ll always be at our side, ready to forgive us and help us up when we fall. Consider taking a moment to talk to Jesus about any sins that come to mind, confessing them and thanking Him for His forgiveness.

• When you’re struggling with sin, who are trusted Christians in your life you can be honest with? How could you support each other through prayer, encouragement, and reminding each other of God’s great love, unending forgiveness, and steady power inside us through His Spirit?

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6 (NIV)