SEPTEMBER  28

WHAT’S YOUR PROBLEM?

PSALM 51


“Against thee, thee only, have I sinned, and done this evil in thy sight: that thou mightest be justified when thou speakest, and be clear when thou judgest.” (Ps. 51:4)

As a youth, David faced a lion and a bear with his bare hands and prevailed. The young boy boldly fought the giant Goliath when no one else would. David was fearless in countless battles and never faced a foe he didn’t defeat – except himself. David was his own worst enemy. Wild animals couldn’t kill him. Countless numbers of enemy troops couldn’t destroy him. But his own lust slew him and caused untold grief.

This is the case with us all. The enemies without are nothing compared to the enemy within – our selves. You must kill yourself or it’ll kill you. This doesn’t mean the end of us, because through Jesus we have a new self – a new identity. We are born again. We are new creatures in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17). When the old man dies, the new man lives.

One of the greatest plagues of our world today is a lack of recognizing ourselves as the enemy. People blame their problems on everyone and everything but themselves. The truth is, outside pressures are only influences, not the determining cause of our actions. We’re the ones who choose our actions and reactions. Other people aren’t are problem. We are our problem. Only in Jesus can we experience freedom from ourselves.

David humbled himself and acknowledged his sin. He blamed no one but himself. He turned from self to God and found forgiveness. We need to do the same (AW).