Conquering My "Core" Sins

Day 14 of 365...


Job 38-39

Job 38:1-3 - "Then the Lord answered Job from the whirlwind. He said: 'Who is this who obscures My counsel with ignorant words?  Get ready to answer Me like a man; when I question you, you will inform Me.'"

First of all, we have finally reached the conversation between Job and God.  We no longer have to hear from friends making conjectures about things.  We hear from God Himself!  That is why I love verse 1 of chapter 38!  It says the LORD answered Job.  I think it's important to note something else...not only did God, Himself, speak, but I find the timing in which God spoke interesting.  God could have answered Job at any point during this whole process, but God decided to wait until Job "got it all out."  This is just another example of how BIG my God is.  He can handle my anger, distress, discouragement, confusion, sorrow, or anything else I can throw at Him.  When all my emotions are exhausted, God is still standing there ready to respond, just like He does here with Job.  The last thing to point out about this short passage is this...after Job has thrown all his emotions and verbal jabs at God, God responds by saying that Job must now answer Him like a man.  Whatever God asks Job, he must be prepared to give a response.  I think this is an important lesson to learn.  In my opinion, this is the final step in the process of what God wants me to learn.  First, I must come to the end of myself because that's where I finally relinquish control to God.  Then, I must be prepared to listen to what God has to say.  Finally, I must be willing to answer the tough questions that God will inevitably ask.  In my experience, the questions that God asks me cut straight to the core of what the issue is.  While I think I may be struggling with an anger problem, let's say, God points out that anger is just the end product of a deeper issue that needs to be resolved.  Chip Ingram said in his book "Living on the Edge" that there are only 3 core sins, but the by-products of those sins are limitless (I actually added the last part).  The 3 core sins are:

1. The lust of the flesh = the passion "to feel" -this is hedonism.
2. The lust of the eyes = the passion "to have" -this is materialism.
3. The pride of life = the passion "to be" -this is egotism and self-centeredness.

So, it's "simple" really...all I have to do is conquer 3 core sins!  Well, the only good news is that there are only 3, not 10 or 20.  The bad news is that there are a lot of "by-products" that I have to work through in order to get to the "core."  This is why the refining process is difficult the closer I get to the core of who I am.  God begins to ask some difficult questions that I don’t feel like answering sometimes.  However, I've found that I would rather face those questions than live in ignorance.  When I lived in ignorance, my life had no direction, my marriage was a disaster due to my egotism, and I felt dead inside.  When God began the refining process, it was difficult to endure (and still is) at times.  But, the results of the process were a life with a clear direction, a marriage that has never been better than it is right now, and a well of life that springs up from inside me.  Now, when God asks His questions of me, He digs a whole lot deeper, and it's difficult to answer Him, at times.  However, I continue to pray that He gives me the strength to continue to answer Him like a man.