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"Looking at the sin," wrote Theodore Monod, "only gives death; looking at Jesus gives life."

Psalm 32:3-4 and Psalm 38:3-10 both say that your personal sins, unrelieved by Jesus, can give you

physical weakness,
depression,
heart palpitations,
back pains,
a tendency to infections,
vision problems,
and even bad posture.

Right now are you more aware of your sins than you are of Jesus? Focusing on them will do you in. There's no godliness in continually mourning over your sins. There's no merit in spending your life wringing your hands and crying, "I'm such a sinner! Oh, my awful sins!"

Any occupation with self is, in itself, sin. So don't even make the matter of seeking to renounce your sins the big focus of your life.

If you're a man, do you play with toy cars? Probably not. You did as a boy -- but there came a time when driving a real one was more fun, and you just quit playing with the others. You didn't give up toy cars; they gave up you.

If you're a woman, do you play with dolls? Probably not. You used to -- but one day a fellow asked you out, and you discovered something better! You didn't give up dolls; they gave up you.

And when you fix your eyes on Jesus and you find out that He's flooding into you His resurrection life and power -- you don't renounce a life of sin; it will renounce you.

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