Never Minimize
Sin
July 26, 2004
Former national security adviser Sandy Berger says
he regrets the way he handled classified documents, calling the
whole thing "an honest mistake." Really? An honest mistake?
Taking documents from a safe room from which neither documents
or copies of documents are never to be removed was an honest
mistake? Former President Clinton defended Berger and said, "We
were all laughing about it . . . . People who don't know him
might find it hard to believe. But ... all of us who've been in
his office have always found him buried beneath papers.
Hmmm! So the fact that Sandy Berger kept a sloppy
office somehow makes the theft of classified documents funny. Of
course, we now know from the 9/11 Commission Report that Berger
repeatedly vetoed the "taking out" of Bin Laden. Is it possible
that Berger stole documents with his personal memos in the
margin that reflected negatively on President Clinton, Berger,
and the Democratic Party? Hard to say. But one thing is certain,
Sandy Berger has minimized the seriousness of his behavior. Of
course, it's easy to point an accusing finger at Berger while
failing to recognize our own tendency to minimize sin.
But we need to beware. Even though the major media
are hiding the seriousness of Berger's crime, he will one day
answer for his actions. So will we all. In Galatians 6:7 we
read, "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps
what he sows."
It's easy to minimize our sins . . . to hide them
in the shadows . . . to hope nobody will see them. After all, we
want to appear better than we are. We want our actions, like
Berger's, to be an expression of an erratic personality, not the
revelation of a dark side of our character. Yet, God commands us
to confess our sins and seek his forgiveness and cleansing (1
John 1:8-9). David, after committing adultery and then murder to
cover his sin, urged us to acknowledge our sins and confess them
(Psalm 32). He said that confession cleanses the soul and heals
the body (Psalm 32).
I've got to admit that the implications of David's
words are painful. They mean we must ruthlessly shine the light
of God's Word into the dark corner's of our life. We must let it
expose the attitudes and actions which do not conform to the
character of God. Sin is never good-but confession is always
good. With that in mind, take a few moments and reflect on the
deeds of your life hidden in the shadows. Do you have a sin you
need to confess? Or, an attitude or action from which you need
to turn? If so, remember, nothing cleanses the soul and
strengthens the body like full and complete confession.
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