Devotions with Pastor Jared Ritchey

You don’t have to be a Christian to see that our world is in trouble. I believe that everyone recognizes that on some level and that’s why there are so many different and conflicting religions and philosophies. People of all political persuasions, religious beliefs and ethical systems are trying to identify what exactly is causing that trouble and trying to fix it in the way that they believe is best. For Christians, the answer is remarkably simple: the world is in trouble because of sin.

When you break it down, there are two types of sin: Personal Sin and Original Sin. Personal Sin is any sinful act that any individual does. This is what draws so much of our focus because we can easily point to it and say “That! That right there is what’s wrong with the world. If everyone would stop doing that, everything would be great!” However, when we start looking at original sin, we see that the problem goes so much deeper than just the sinful acts we commit. Sin entered into the world in Genesis 3. The Serpent deceived Eve, Adam stood by and went along with it, and everything went downhill from there. Our fellowship with God was given up, and death entered the world.

When we live without Christ as our Lord and Savior, we are still under the penalty of Original Sin. Romans 6:23 says “For the wages of sin is death...” When our sin is left unchecked, it leads us further and further into it. Isaac Newton’s Third Law of Motion says that “for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.” If we apply this to our understanding of sin, we realize that every act we commit against God pushes us further away from him. However, Romans 6:23 continues with “…but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Every sinful act a person commits pushes them farther from God, but never far enough that He can’t reach us.

God cares about the state of our hearts as much as he cares about what we do with our actions. Let God change your heart, and pull you closer to Himself.
Blessings,
Pastor Jared