#4. If something is not a conviction for me, will it condemn me?
The other day I walked into a storage building on a bright, sunny day. I was headed to a small room in the back, through an unfamiliar maze of furniture. The sun was streaming through the door behind me, but about four steps in a breeze pushed the door mostly shut.
Suddenly, the space looked very different. I was forced to navigate using cues from the tiny bit of light available. I stepped carefully around obstacles, and continued toward the back in near darkness.
Well, why didn’t you turn on the light switch? That’s a natural question, but by now I was well away from the logical place to find the switch. I had to rely only on the little bit of light coming through the edge of the door.
Kali, when we look at question number four, If something is not a conviction for me, will it condemn me? it’s like my walk through that dark room. Every obstacle, apparent to me or not, presented the very real possibility that I could be tripped up, stumble, or fall. No one would blame me for falling in the dark, but I may still get hurt.
In Romans 1:20, Paul writes, “For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse.”
It is as if he is saying that the door is closed to no one. There may not always be a lot of available light, it may not always seem super bright, but it certainly is not dark. In fact, he says, it is enough to “clearly see.”
Let’s take it a step further. If you back up two verses to Romans 1:18, you see the context in which he uses this phrase, without excuse. What we find is that the wrath of God is revealed against all the evil things people do. Now wrath, as it is used here, refers to the punishment handed out by a judge. This is not a trial to determine guilt—Romans 3:23 says all have sinned—this is the sentencing of the guilty.
So, thanks for sticking with me, here’s the answer to your question: yes, and no. All of us are guilty of enough to warrant the wrath of God—condemnation. But ultimately, conviction is not the issue. Whether we know the rule or not, breaking the rule will cause you to stumble and fall, it will hurt you.
But here’s the good news—the no part. If you are in Christ, you do not stand condemned.
John 3:16-21 reads:
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. 18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because they have not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son. 19 This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but people loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 20 Everyone who does evil hates the light, and will not come into the light for fear that their deeds will be exposed. 21 But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God.
The reality is, Jesus came into this world, not to lead us through darkness, but to welcome us into light. As long as I kept navigating that dark room heading in the same direction I began—away from the light of the door—it stood to reason I’d stumble and fall, and be hurt.
But God did not send his Son to help us continue in the direction we had already been going. He sent Him to invite us to walk in a new direction.
After I came out of that back room, I turned and faced the door, the one with the light streaming in. There was no more light than when I had been walking away from it, but suddenly, I could see clearly. It was so much easier walking towards the light than away from it.
Kali, let me encourage you with this: don’t try to navigate this world walking the same direction you were before Jesus came into your life. Instead, turn towards him, walk towards him. You are not condemned. He will lead you. He will guide you. And He will keep you from falling.
Do you have any thoughts from Kali?
How has God used conviction to lead you into His light?