03.09.09
"So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions." Romans 6:11-12
Last weekend our pastor, David, told a story of his recent trip to Africa. He and a few of the guys on his team had a few hours to spare so they decided to paddle out in Cape Town, South Africa, which is known for its shark-infested waters.
He explained that after they were done surfing, it turned out that one of his buddies, fairly new to surfing, had seen a Great White in the water, but had actually paddled back out, apparently not realizing the danger. David then told this story while teaching and had one of the locals, a guy named Greg from Port Elizabeth near J-Bay, tell him about a time when he himself was surfing with some friends at a local reserve area, a beach teeming with wildlife.
Greg explained how that day, he actually witnessed a friend get attacked by a Great White shark. After his friend, amazingly, beat the shark until it left him, Greg and his two other friends, had to drag his now-unconscious friend to the shore. Thankfully, Greg's friend survived, with his arm intact.
After hearing his story, David asked Greg, "So, do you ever surf there anymore?" Greg replied emphatically, "Absolutely not!"
And so it is with our own walks with the Lord. Once we've experienced the grace and forgiveness that comes with our Salvation in Jesus, we become a new creation, and our new identity is in Him, not in our past sins.
If we have died to sin, why would we want to go back to that sinful life? Why would we get back in the shark-infested waters once we know about the danger? We should stay away from that sinful place, not living on the edge, but rather, let's turn 180 degrees in repentance and embrace our newness of life.
"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold the new has come." 2 Corinthians 5:17
Guest Author: Nicole Bennett, www.thefieldschurch.org
Founder of www.sandiegomommyspot.com and surfmamas.ning.com
