The Spiritual Microscope.

The apostle Paul called himself the “worst of sinners.” I always wondered about that. I mean, this is the Apostle Paul! This is the guy that historically had the largest effect on Christianity, next to Jesus of course. If anyone has ever been CLOSE to God, its the Apostle Paul — yet he calls himself the WORST of sinners. Why?

I think back to 9th grade Biology class. One of my favorite things was working with a microscope in the labs. Maybe I’m a geek – but I still remember the time I looked at a celery cell. The microscope had three different lenses that increased in power. With the first lens, we could see a large group of the individual cells. When we turned up the power to the second lens, we could see three or four cells, and some of the stuff on the inside. When we turned up the power to the highest level, we could see the details of one individual cell. We could see the mitochondria, the lysosome, cell wall, everything (I didn’t even google that stuff, I still remember it!).

When we get close to God, its like we turn up the power on the spiritual microscope and we can see what we couldn’t see before. I think the closer we get to God, the more we see our own sin. This happens to me, but it also explains why the Apostle Paul called himself the WORST of sinners. It wasn’t that he sinned more than anyone else, it was that he could see better. It also indicates his humility.

Do you struggle with your sin? (That’s rhetorical!). My bet is that you say “yes, of course I struggle.” But please press further before simply passing this off as an irrelevant blog post:

Do you truly STRUGGLE with your sin or do you just feel bad about it?

That’s a really introspective question. Go ahead and think about it. No really – think about it. I’m going to wait.

.

.

.

I think most of the Christians in America, especially the Midwest region, just feel bad about their sin – they aren’t struggling – they are not OVERCOMERS. I think most Christians couldn’t make a list of the sins they are struggling with because they’re not struggling at all – they think they have everything under control but they don’t realize they have nothing. It’s not until they are close to God when they will see clearly through a higher powered lens in the spiritual microscope.

That is the description of the Church in Laodecia that is talked about in Revelation 3. The very nature of this sin is that you don’t realize there is even a problem… it’s a “slow and subtle fade” away from your relationship with Christ. It’s self-deception. I encourage you to ask God to show you if you fit into this “lukewarm Christianity” described in Revelation 3. I wrote more about it here.

3,868 Replies to “The Spiritual Microscope.”

  1. Good day! I could have sworn Iíve visited this web site before but after browsing through a few of the articles I realized itís new to me. Anyhow, Iím definitely pleased I stumbled upon it and Iíll be bookmarking it and checking back regularly!

  2. After looking over a handful of the blog articles on your web page, I truly appreciate your way of blogging. I bookmarked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back soon. Please visit my web site too and tell me how you feel.

  3. Aw, this was a really nice post. Finding the time and actual effort to make a very good articleÖ but what can I sayÖ I procrastinate a whole lot and don’t manage to get nearly anything done.

  4. Hi! I simply would like to offer you a huge thumbs up for your great information you have got here on this post. I am returning to your web site for more soon.

  5. Iím amazed, I have to admit. Rarely do I encounter a blog thatís both equally educative and entertaining, and let me tell you, you have hit the nail on the head. The issue is something not enough people are speaking intelligently about. I am very happy that I found this during my search for something concerning this.

  6. Hello there! I could have sworn Iíve been to this website before but after going through a few of the posts I realized itís new to me. Regardless, Iím definitely pleased I stumbled upon it and Iíll be bookmarking it and checking back often!

  7. Your style is really unique compared to other people I’ve read stuff from. I appreciate you for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I’ll just bookmark this blog.

  8. After I initially left a comment I seem to have clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on whenever a comment is added I receive four emails with the exact same comment. There has to be a means you can remove me from that service? Many thanks!

  9. After looking into a number of the blog articles on your site, I truly like your way of blogging. I book marked it to my bookmark website list and will be checking back in the near future. Please check out my web site as well and let me know your opinion.

  10. Next time I read a blog, I hope that it does not disappoint me just as much as this one. I mean, I know it was my choice to read through, however I really believed you would have something interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of complaining about something that you can fix if you were not too busy searching for attention.

  11. After I originally left a comment I appear to have clicked the -Notify me when new comments are added- checkbox and from now on each time a comment is added I get four emails with the same comment. Is there a way you can remove me from that service? Thanks a lot!

  12. An outstanding share! I’ve just forwarded this onto a colleague who was doing a little homework on this. And he actually ordered me lunch simply because I found it for him… lol. So let me reword this…. Thank YOU for the meal!! But yeah, thanks for spending the time to talk about this matter here on your internet site.

  13. Howdy, I believe your web site may be having browser compatibility issues. When I look at your blog in Safari, it looks fine however, when opening in IE, it’s got some overlapping issues. I merely wanted to give you a quick heads up! Besides that, wonderful blog!

  14. Itís nearly impossible to find well-informed people in this particular subject, however, you seem like you know what youíre talking about! Thanks

  15. Your style is really unique compared to other folks I’ve read stuff from. Many thanks for posting when you have the opportunity, Guess I’ll just bookmark this page.

  16. Howdy! I could have sworn Iíve visited this web site before but after looking at a few of the posts I realized itís new to me. Anyhow, Iím definitely delighted I discovered it and Iíll be bookmarking it and checking back frequently!

  17. Iím impressed, I must say. Seldom do I encounter a blog thatís both educative and interesting, and without a doubt, you have hit the nail on the head. The issue is an issue that too few people are speaking intelligently about. I’m very happy that I came across this in my search for something regarding this.

  18. I blog often and I genuinely appreciate your content. Your article has really peaked my interest. I’m going to bookmark your blog and keep checking for new details about once per week. I opted in for your RSS feed too.

  19. Your style is unique compared to other people I’ve read stuff from. Thanks for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I will just book mark this web site.

  20. I was very happy to uncover this web site. I want to to thank you for ones time due to this fantastic read!! I definitely loved every little bit of it and i also have you saved to fav to look at new things in your site.

  21. Having read this I thought it was really informative. I appreciate you spending some time and effort to put this article together. I once again find myself personally spending a lot of time both reading and posting comments. But so what, it was still worthwhile!

  22. The very next time I read a blog, I hope that it does not fail me as much as this particular one. After all, I know it was my choice to read, nonetheless I truly thought you would probably have something interesting to say. All I hear is a bunch of complaining about something that you could possibly fix if you were not too busy searching for attention.

  23. Aw, this was a very good post. Finding the time and actual effort to create a good articleÖ but what can I sayÖ I procrastinate a whole lot and never manage to get anything done.

  24. Your style is really unique compared to other people I’ve read stuff from. I appreciate you for posting when you’ve got the opportunity, Guess I’ll just book mark this web site.

  25. I’m excited to find this page. I want to to thank you for ones time just for this fantastic read!! I definitely really liked every bit of it and i also have you bookmarked to see new things on your blog.

  26. I seriously love your website.. Excellent colors & theme. Did you build this amazing site yourself? Please reply back as Iím trying to create my very own website and would like to find out where you got this from or just what the theme is named. Cheers!

  27. I have to thank you for the efforts you’ve put in penning this blog. I am hoping to view the same high-grade blog posts from you later on as well. In fact, your creative writing abilities has inspired me to get my very own website now 😉

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *