READING: Romans 1-3
From the Garden the Eden, the enemy has been about secrets. One of Adam and Eve’s first responses to their sin was to try to hide from God, and most of us haven’t changed that pattern much. We can speak the right religious language — that is, “God sees everything” — but too often we live like He doesn’t. It’s one of the enemy’s more subtle strategies: to convince us that we’re getting away with something even when we intellectually know better.
The book of Romans reminds us that God will ultimately judge all of us with complete righteousness. He will “repay each person according to what they have done” (Rom 2:6), and He will “not show favoritism” (Rom 2:11). While He extends kindness to us to lead us to repentance (Rom 2:4), He does not compromise His standards. He who really does see all things will hold us accountable for all things.
Indeed, the day will come when “God judges people’s secrets through Jesus Christ” (Rom 2:16). Others may look at us on the outside, as that’s all they can see — but God sees what others cannot see. He reads the intentions of our heart. He knows when our mind wanders into the gutters of lust and immorality. He recognizes our hidden idols, those private dreams and goals that stand counter to His will. He is not unaware of our unconfessed bitterness and anger. He who rules over the light and the dark is not deceived by our dark places.
It’s the enemy who wants us to think our secrets remain hidden from the omnipresent God we serve. Rather than listen to his lies, why not just get real with God and confess our sin to Him? In Christ, we can be “justified freely by his grace”! (Rom 3:24).
ACTION STEPS:
- Confess your secrets to God.
- There is value in confessing to someone else at times, too. Be wise, but talk to someone else if need to do so today.
PRAYER: “God, help me to be fully honest before You and others.”
TOMORROW'S READING: Romans 4-7