This Bible Verse Sums up Our Every Day Struggle to Be Better
You don't need to be a Christian to identify with what Paul was writing about in the book of Romans
Romans is one of the most complex theological books in the Bible. It’s impacted Christians throughout history and continues to influence our culture. Some of the topics it covers are sin, law, judgment, faith, works, grace, creation, redemption, justification, and salvation. It’s full of wisdom about personal responsibility and how we should conduct our lives.
One of the most famous passages is found in chapter 7, verse 15 (NIV) which the apostle Paul writes, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” He’s talking about the power of sin in our lives and our struggle to avoid it, but it also can refer to choices we make that aren’t sinful but go against our plans and goals from the non-Christian perspective.
This verse applies to any part of our lives when we have temptations and give in when we shouldn’t. Some of us fall short on big things like not being faithful in marriage, being unethical in the workplace, or cheating on the SAT to improve your chances of getting into the college you want. Paul gave the perfect description of what a lack of discipline and ethics in important areas of our life feels like.
It shows that people who are the best at what they do still struggle with accomplishing what they want and doing things they regret. Paul is the second most prolific writer in the New Testament by the number of different letters/books he wrote and even he struggles with sin or things he wishes he didn’t do. Everyone falls short in their lives because it’s part of being human.
Paul describes the ultimate fight within all of us we fight every day. Adults make about 35,000 decisions in a day. Most of them are things we wouldn’t think twice about. It’s the little choices that add up the most and determine the direction of our lives. We need to be self-aware of the choices that seem insignificant at the time but add up to us doing things we hate.
If you are a Christian, you are torn between your old and new nature. Life and the enemy never run out of ways to get you off track when you try to do good, especially if you are trying to live as a Christian. Doing things we know we shouldn’t do is part of life everyone struggles with but we are responsible for making sure we don’t keep making the same mistakes.
We must respond quickly to right our wrongs to ourselves, ask for forgiveness if we hurt others, and ask God for forgiveness as 1 John 1:9 (NIV) says, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” Recognizing your sins and asking for forgiveness is a part of building a relationship with God. You don’t have to live in a state of discouragement for doing what you hate because of the grace and forgiveness Jesus gives us.