Hidden sin is like a vine which grows up around you, choking you tighter and tighter until you can’t breathe. As you gasp for air and your mind screams to tell the truth, your heart can’t because fear grips your soul. You are persuaded it is better to live in silence than to awaken all the voices in your head. You deceive yourself into believing if you keep them quiet they will eventually go away, but they don’t. Your hidden sin keeps circling you and lunging and tearing at your flesh with the viciousness of a rabid animal. There is no peace. You close your eyes hoping to find rest, but to no avail. Instead, you are given visions of chaos and turmoil. Hidden sin is a slow painful death which lurks around every corner waiting for you to breathe your last, never experiencing the power of God’s redemptive love.
Your mind is no longer your own and you believe every false thought. Your mind becomes a maze and you are lost in it. You are frantically searching, but never finding your way out. You run from corner to corner hoping to find the door, but all you find is darkness. You circle around and around not knowing what is in front of or behind you. The web of deceit and lies entangles your heart, mind and soul. You realize you now belong to someone else. The deceiver has seduced you with the promise of these four words, “It’s Not That Bad”. They are repeated over and over until it becomes your truth. Your voice of reason has left and you frolic and play in the guilty pleasure of your hidden sin. No longer do your convictions impale your heart because it has grown hardened, cold and dead. You crave your hidden sin like a drug, needing to satisfy the addiction, always wanting more and never getting enough. You will go to great lengths to get your fix never believing you will overdose.
Then out of the blue, like a comet hurtling toward earth, Truth collides with your world. The person you used to be meets the person you are now. As confusion, sorrow and pain enter your world, fear sweeps over you. You look at yourself in the mirror and don’t even recognize who you are. You are forced to look and see the ugliness of your hidden sin and the cost of selfishness. Your soul is like an abandoned garden filled with thistles, weeds and nothing good. It looks dead. It is starved for water, light, and hope.
The ground is hard, but confession and repentance till the garden making your soul soft again. You cry in anguish over your sin and tears fall to the ground, watering the seed of grace. Grace is the unmerited favor of God. Nothing we can earn on our own. You can’t buy it, charge it or get it in four easy payments. Repentance is costly, but not repenting is more so. Without repentance it is impossible to grow healthy and thrive. Understanding grace leads us to the power of God's redemption and the purpose of the cross. Share on X
You are no longer a prisoner held captive in the chains of your hidden sin. You took back the power which was given to you when you first accepted Christ. In the same way the enemy has duped others, you were tricked into believing you had no authority, but the authority of the Holy Spirit IS ALWAYS IN YOU! Every chain was broken when Jesus said, It is Finished! Now, the only thing left to do is….Claim YOUR victory! Remember, who LIVES in your HOUSE!
Galatians 2:20 (NLT)
20 My old self has been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. So I live in this earthly body by trusting in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
WOW. This is SUCH a powerful description of the destruction of sin and the agonizing life in it. I love how you you brought the shadows into the light through the ending victory of redemption! This is so real and raw and true for so many who suffer through the tangled web of secret sins and feel that captivity from it. I hope this reaches those who can truly be set free…
Christine,
It is because of my own past hidden sin that I know what it means to live in that agony, but I know the redemptive power of His forgiveness, mercy and grace and freed from the pain of my past. Thank You so much for your encouragement and it is my prayer that others do find freedom from captivity.
I wrote a post about this a while back, and when I saw your it brought it back to mind. This can be such a touchy topic for people. But I love that you were willing to write about it.
Hi Lo!
Yes, it can be a touchy subject, but if we don’t confront it the topic stays hidden. It is when we have the strength to face it we take our freedom back 🙂 I’m going to look for your article 🙂
I’m so thankful for the freedom I have in Christ! His redemption is so real if we just confess and acknowledge our need for Him. Thanks for the hope you shared through this post!
Amen Maria! The enemy may think he holds the cards, but guess what?? We do 🙂
Beautiful post. So thankful for grace and how He can change us into a new creature!
Hi Kay~
Thanks for your encouragement!There is nothing I am more grateful for than the grace of God.
I am so thankful that my sins are forgiven by what Jesus did on the cross. He continually convicts me and draws me back to turn from my sin. I’m so thankful for His grace and His Holy Spirit within me!
Amy,
Thanks for stopping by….I am thankful for His conviction too because it tells me I am HIS and HE is mine 🙂
Forgiveness is grace. Learn from your mistakes but have the capacity to forgive yourself and others.
April,
You have hit the nail on the head! We have to be willing to forgive ourselves and others because Jesus died for a reason. I’m thankful for the redemption of my sin and the gift of God’s grace!
“You are no longer a prisoner held captive in the chains of your hidden sin. You took back the power which was given to you when you first accepted Christ.”
Amen!!! So thankful!!!
Hi Toni~
It is amazing what we put ourselves into bondage about, but thankful for the conviction which leads us back to freedom. I am thankful 🙂