January 20

Today's reading: Romans 1:1-32

Here we see the devastating impact of sin. For those who fail to follow David's example that we looked at yesterday in Psalm 51 and confess their sin and repent, we see that they face God's wrath. While part of that wrath is future judgment in a place of eternal torment, there is also a present aspect of God's wrath.

Three times in this passage Paul writes that "God gave them up." If we repeatedly fail to deal with our sin, there will come a point where God will essentially say, "If that's the way you live, I'm just going to let you experience the consequences of your sin." That doesn't mean that God ever give up on anyone or that it's possible to sin so much that God will never forgive us. But it does mean that if we choose a life of sin, our hearts can become so hardened that we're unlikely to ever listen to God.

Do you have any sin in your life that has become a lifestyle? If so, please confess that to God today and take any steps that are needed to make sure that sin doesn't cause your heart to become hardened.