Testimonies Worth Telling (Part 2)

This is part 2 of an ongoing series on Testimonies. For part 1 of this series click here

What if the biggest sin you have committed happened after you became a believer?

There are many Christians who were raised in church, professed belief in Christ at a young age, and were baptized. For a lot of these believers it was also the last time they told their testimony. The testimonies can be simpler when you are young. Much to the credit of believing parents or a strong church home, some children are shielded from many temptations to sin. Young faith testimonies may include theft of a few dollars worth, lies told to parents and friends, and cheating on a test or two at school. Is this every child’s experience? Absolutely not. But many believers have this experience and then the strong temptations and abilities to sin did not come until high school, college, or being a young adult. They may have never had the availability of drugs and alcohol to abuse, the intellect to manipulate and extort on larger scales, or the opportunities to experiment sexually. So what happens to these believers who committed their most heinous crimes against God years after they professed their belief? Does this void their faith? Will God forgive these sins? What happens when you tell other Christians of sins you committed while you knew that what you were doing was wrong? How can you justify those sins?

The short answer is: You can’t. You can’t justify the sins you’ve committed as a believer. But the great thing about that is—you were never supposed to! That’s Jesus’ job! Christians generally are comfortable saying that their salvation was not dependent upon their works, but it was Christ’s work that saves. (Rom. 5:1-11; Eph. 2:1-4) However, in the church we have also allowed this idea to infiltrate that says--God looked in the future at our faith and the works we did because of this faith and chose to save those who had that faith. The problem with that is if our salvation was dependent upon our future ability to follow God’s commands then it ceases to be grace.

Ephesians 2:8 says, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not the result of works.” That is not just in past tense. It is all sin past, present, and future.

All of our testimonies, whether you were saved at 7 or 70, should include being adopted into God’s family. Ephesians 1:5 says, “In love he predestined us for adoption as sons through Jesus Christ according to the purpose of His will”. Parents do not have the ability to see the future actions of their children before they decide to bring them into the family. As a parent, I know that my children will disappoint me, act to my displeasure, and directly disobey me. Nothing that my children could do could ever stop them from being my kids. Whether they are 7 or 70. Whether on accident or deliberate. They will always be mine. They forever have my DNA, my resemblance, and my love. This is true with God, but to an even greater degree! He knows all the actions we will do and lovingly chose to adopt us as sons and daughters despite it all.

“For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angles nor rulers, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38)

God’s ongoing grace in one’s life is just as important, if not even more, than the grace received at conversion. By sharing the stories of God’s ongoing grace and faithfulness we prove that God’s grace is not only amazing, but sufficient for whatever he brings us through in life.

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Austin Hilmer

About the Author:
Austin serves on staff at Westchester as Associate Pastor of Corporate Worship