Repentance is the first step up

Mark 7:20-23 And He said, “What comes out of a man, that defiles a man. 21 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, 22 thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. 23 All these evil things come from within and defile a man.”

There can be good that comes out of the battle of depression; at the bottom of our pits we can only look up, and we realize our need for God to get out of there. In these days of tormenting battles of the mind, Satan does some of his best work pointing out failures in life. He dwells there in the agony of the pain, in the strains of the mind, many times accompanied by physical pain. My testimony was one of pride, one of physical strength, now Satan dwells in daily pain at an elevated level only I know; my body is physically hurting, and Satan uses that door to create diversion tactics in the spiritual world. It really is simple how he uses the distraction to elevate many areas we unknowingly, or even such, to tug us to, and to point out sins to a heart that is already hurting. These tactics seemingly begin to swirl into the drain of despair.

I have had talks with people who didn’t understand repentance, or even acknowledge their need for it, and I shook the dust from my feet over it. Repentance is humbling cleansing part of a Christians life, and the beginning of salvation is one’s realization of it. Jesus was speaking to the battle of legalism with the religious of the day here; there were those that rather to follow the traditions of men, rather than God who stood before them. They believed how you eat, what you eat, all played into salvation, and in Jesus’s own words, he clarified it by saying the body poops it all out :-). Jesus said what defiles the man is the sin that is within him, and he gives an extensive list that likely all of us can attest personally to every one. Even if you have not outwardly committed, the sin in your mind has lusted over sins in this list. Matthew 5:28 But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart. So many times in our heart we think evil thoughts toward people almost daily; we lust after things others have, we wish evil things, we refuse to ask for help, we…..the list could go on and on and more personal with each of us. Our minds are steep in sin, before Jesus, and after Jesus. The difference the Gospel of Jesus brings, is the forgiveness of all our sins, past, present, and future. He accomplished what no amount of religions perfection can do; the Law pointed us to our need for a Savior, and all these traditions grew from it, but not one can save by it.

The world is growing more evil around us every day. The need for us to spend more time in God’s Word and prayer is evident in the level of evil around us, and within us. The battles of depression show us our weaknesses, and our need for daily repentance and forgiveness. The more we focus on the world, the more we are dragged into the pit of it. Colossians 3:1 If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God. 2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth. Let God do a work in you, even when you feel you are at your lowest point. Let God show you the need for repentance, and the promise of cleansing that comes from him. Let God show you the paradise that awaits you even when this world seems to be all that matters. Let God show you that he is even using the lows, to make the highs even greater. The farther you go down, the greater your ascent with him will be.