Dear Sirs, I am.
Updated: Mar 22
The question “What’s wrong with the world?” was asked by a British newspaper back in 1908. Various writers were encouraged to answer the question, and the shortest and most interesting reply came from a man named G. K. Chesterton. He answered, “Dear Sirs, I am.”
Years ago, I was catching up with someone about life and faith and all that entails with those topics. This person was telling me about all the sinful things she had been doing lately (and she knew it was sin, too). But she didn’t feel any repentance for her sin. And although that was very hard to hear, this is the part that broke my heart the most: she told me that it was okay if she did all these sins because Jesus still loves her and he forgives her sins.
Although what she said is true, this is not how we should view sin and Jesus. In Romans 5, Paul writes about the grace God gives us even though we keep on sinning. Then he goes on to add in Romans 6:1-4,
“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it? Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”
Christians need to take sin seriously. Don’t take advantage of Jesus Christ dying on the cross.
So what is wrong with the world?
I am what’s wrong with the world.
Like this person I mentioned earlier, I behave this way too. I intentionally sin because it will make me temporarily happy and I will think to myself, “I’ll ask for forgiveness and repent later so it will be okay.” – WRONG!!!!! So wrong it’s painful to even say it.
Sin is a deeply embedded illness. In Psalm 51, David is completely aware of how serious all his sin is; therefore, he prays in verse 10,
“Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew a steadfast spirit in me.”
David has a deep longing for purity and holiness – and this is completely possible when God creates a new and obedient heart. Verse 12 says,
"Restore to me the joy of your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me."
Look inward and ask God to search your heart for any sin that may be hidden in your life. If you ask God to ro reveal it to you, I can almost guarantee that He will show you those sins pretty soon.
Just a quick note - when I first did this, as in when I first asked God to reveal to me the sins that I wasn't aware of yet, He revealed my sins to me a few days after I asked... and I was on my knees begging for forgiveness. That's how much God convicted me and how heavy my sins were.
This was good, though! God convicted my heart and He helped and is still helping me work on those sins.
However, sanctification doesn't happen overnight. He might reveal those sins to you in a short amount of time, but you have to discipline yourself so that you can bear fruit.
Hebrews 12:11 says, "For the moment, all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it."
And then, as David puts it in Psalm 1:3, you will be "like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither - whatever they do prospers."
Doesn't that sound AMAZING???? Well, guess what – you can be that! You can be like the tree that is firmly planted by the water, who bears fruit and whose leaves do not wither! You can prosper!
Think about the sins in your life. Ask God to reveal more sins to you. If you really want to know what's wrong with the world, recognize that you are a part of the problem and start there.
