What is wrong with me?

Charles Schulz, creator of Charlie Brown, developed a character who struggled with this question most of the time.  Have you ever felt like something was wrong with you?  Have you ever wondered why others seem to get it right, but you tend to mess up?  Especially as it relates to the Bible and the things of God?

In Romans 7, Paul records an internal struggle that helps us understand the heart of the apostle.  He tells us, "For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want." Paul was human.  Paul struggled with sin just like the rest of us.  Or do we struggle like this?

I heard a preacher talking about the beatitudes yesterday, and he was referring to the passage, "Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted." (Matt 5:4), and he explained that the mourning that Jesus is talking about is the "mourning" over our sin/sinfulness.  I don't want to re-preach his sermon, but he did a great job making his point.

While he was speaking though (I was driving back from Knoxville), my thoughts were brought to this section in Romans, and the struggle that Paul records.  He is wrestling with the law of the flesh and the law of God which obviously is more powerful.  However, it seems that occasionally, or at least much more often than he would like, he bends his will to the law of sin.  His desire is to follow completely the law of God, but the "law of his members" wins out sometimes.

It is this struggle that exposes the heart of the apostle to see him "mourning" his sinfulness, to the extent that in 1 Timothy he refers to himself as the "chief" of sinners.  He recognized more of the depth of his sinfulness than any of those around him.

It is into this "mourning" that the blessed message of the gospel shines through!  Christ's righteousness is sufficient for me and my belief that this is so allows me to be declared righteous before God.  What is the greatest blessing I can receive?  Is it not that my sinful, wretched flesh that I struggle with daily is only limited in my demise to the extent that I do not rely on the righteous perfection of our Savior?  It no longer has any power over me (unless I chose to allow it to) because as Paul goes on to remind us in Romans 8 - we are conquerors through HIM (in Him, clothed in His perfection).

What is wrong with me?  I am sinful.  I mess up.  I fail.  And as a result of this I should mourn my condition.

BUT, in CHRIST I stand before the Father clothed in His righteousness.  This is the blessing that we receive.

Praise be to God for His unmeasurable mercy and grace.