It surprises me sometimes that I think of doing something completely out of character for me. It actually scares me when this happens because many times it is an action against someone I love and I don’t ever want to hurt my son or my wife or even my pets! But when this thought or feeling comes into my mind it is really scary. Why did it come into my mind? Would I actually do something like this?
When you read a book that has a group of people who are trying to do something fantastic, it seems there is always at least one character that just needs a little push or nudge in the wrong direction to cause a catastrophic failure that will take someone’s life. That is the problem with our “sin nature”. Each of us is only one nudge away from snapping and becoming some truly evil person.
Could a Christian do something like this? Satan will plant the thoughts in your mind but if you are mature in your faith you will recognize it and your Spirit will help you to resist it. On the other hand, people who are not saved or just think they are saved don’t have the Holy Spirit living inside to help us stop those thoughts. They may have a conscience that is telling them it is wrong but they don’t have a helper to give them the strength to truly resist that impulse.
I once thought that I could make it without the Holy Spirit and I tried, but it didn’t work because I could not control myself and my thoughts and actions without the Holy Spirit. Many people think that their conscience is the Holy Spirit and it isn’t because you can just push it away. Pride and covetousness will cause you to think that you are able to do things that you can’t do. You will want something or you crave more money to get something and this happens to Christians too.
You need to study about Jesus and seek Him to be your Savior and Lord. His ways and His teachings are the only way to become better than you were because of the Holy Spirit coming into your heart and changing your nature. The sin nature is still there but it is deactivated and the longer you study the Bible, the more strength you will get from God’s Word. I thought, before I truly gave my heart to Jesus, that I could never read the Bible because I couldn’t make sense of it. You have to have the Holy Spirit living inside you so you can make sense of it and get the wisdom you need from it.
Don’t push the prompting of the Holy Spirit away when you feel it. You might never feel it again and it would be sad that you missed becoming a Christian because you felt that you weren’t ready yet. You don’t get ready, Jesus knows when you are ready and He touches your heart to bring you to Himself.
The Living Message of Christ 