Topic: BE CHRIST-CONSCIOUS [Joseph Prince Devotional 18 January 2020]
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Ephesians 1:7
In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace
Have you ever woken up in the morning and said, “Today, I will not sin.” And as you leave your house, you say, “I must be careful not to fall into sin today. I don’t want to sin. I will not sin!” My friend, when you do this, you are no longer Christ-conscious but sin-conscious, even though you have not sinned yet.
Men, have you ever caught yourself thinking, “I don’t want to look at any woman in case I lust”? You are being sin-conscious when you think like that. And sooner or later, you will lust in your heart. You may not sin outwardly, but you will sin inwardly.
Have you also tried confessing every sin? I have! As a teenager, when a bad thought came, I would quickly say, “I’m sorry, Lord. Forgive me for this thought in Jesus’ name.” Then, another thought would come and I would quickly say, “Forgive me, Lord, for that thought in Jesus’ name.” Then, if I happen to doubt His forgiveness, I would confess my unbelief and ask for forgiveness: “Forgive me, Lord, for doubting You.” Before I knew it, I was oppressed in my mind and so sin-conscious instead of Christ-conscious!
My friend, when you fall into sin, God wants you to be Christ-conscious. This means that when you have missed it, God wants you to be conscious that in Christ, you have forgiveness of sins through His blood. God wants you to be conscious that Christ was wounded and bruised for your sins, and that the chastisement for your peace was upon Him (see Isaiah 53:5).
When you are Christ-conscious, you will have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (see Romans 5:1). You will know that you are the righteousness of God in Christ because He who knew no sin was made sin for you (see 2 Corinthians 5:21). He took your sin and now you have His righteousness.
So when you fall, don’t be conscious of your failure and feel bad or condemned. Instead, be conscious of who you are in Christ, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and continue your walk with God!