June 16, 2016 Bible Study — I Have Sinned, But I Will Sin No More?

I am using the daily Bible reading schedule from “The Bible.net” for my daily Bible reading. I had been using One Year Bible Online, but it was time for a change.

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Today, I am reading and commenting on Job 34-37.

    I am not sure that Elihu is completely fair to Job, but he makes many good points. He speaks of god’s justice and His power. However, the thing that spoke to me the most was what Elihu says in chapter 34 verses 31 and 32:

Why don’t people say to God, ‘I have sinned,
but I will sin no more’?
Or ‘I don’t know what evil I have done—tell me.
If I have done wrong, I will stop at once’?

The essence of Elihu’s monologue is that no one can say that they are innocent before God. So, in a way, he is saying something similar to Job’s other friends. The key difference being that he does not claim to be without sin while accusing Job of sin. Further the verses I quoted above indicate that we may not be aware of what sins we have committed. We should ask God to show us, so that we can stop committing them, whatever sins they are. Each and every one of us has sinned. None of us is better than another in that respect. It is not our place to condemn others for their sins. We are to acknowledge our sins and strive to commit them no more, and to challenge those around us to do likewise. On a daily basis I call on the Holy Spirit to give me the strength to live that way. I pray for God to fully enter into my life and thus fully drive sin out. I know that I can only succeed in being able to honestly say, “I will sin no more” through the power of the Holy Spirit.