Anchor Devotional

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Sin’s Birthmark

“Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” Psalm 51:5

Perhaps the most tragic legacy of sin is that its inheritance belongs to us from birth. In this life there is no possibility of being blameless. We sinned and fell with our first parents in the Garden (see Romans 5:12). One of the first words we master in our terrible twos is “No!” Then as “threenagers,” we learn how to support our “No” with greater obstinance. The birthmark of our sin stays with us.

Think about this: we are not sinners because we sin; we sin because we are sinners. In other words, sin is not just something we do; it marks out our whole identity apart from Christ. Our thoughts, words, and deeds give voice to the sin that already belongs to our hearts. We are born bearing the wounds of our fallen nature.

But there is grace! While David acknowledges that sin is inescapable, he also trusts there is grace beyond it. “Surely you desire truth in the inner parts; and you teach me wisdom in the inmost place” (v. 6). The same fount that pumps sin into the whole of our lives can also be filled with the living water of Jesus Christ.

SCRIPTURE FOCUS
Psalm 51:1-6

INSIGHT
The starting place of our sin became the starting place of His grace.

THROUGH THE BIBLE IN A YEAR
1 Chronicles 24-25
Psalm 5
Matthew 6-7

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