Overcoming Sins of Omission Through Obedience

Sin of Omission and God’s Prompting

James 4:17 on Doing Good

Evil wins when we aren't obedient. As James warns, "Therefore, to him who knows to do good and does not do it, to him it is sin" (James 4:7). Many times God presents us with opportunities to do good for others but we don't recognize them. Good goes undone because we haven't prayed for the ability to discern a chance to serve. Many times we don't think of our "sins of omission" as we do "sins of co-mission." In the next two stories you'll see how this plays out in real life.

 Seeing Opportunities You Might Miss

The implications of not doing good can go so far beyond what we can see. I want to relate a story of two people: two ER encounters, both accounts true, but one is of obedience while the other is of disobedience.

Two ER Encounters—Obedience vs. Fear

Story 1: A Bold Witness in the ER

In my first story a young woman was at the emergency room with a friend. Before she entered the ER she prayed that God would use her to speak to someone if He wanted her to. She prayed that she would have an opportunity to witness.

That day she wore a Christian t-shirt. A homeless-looking man, also waiting in the ER spoke to her and said that he liked her shirt. She recognized this as an opportunity to share her faith. She told the man she had recently accepted the Lord as her Savior, been baptized, and was now living for God.

The man continued talking with her about God and even wanted to have his picture taken with her. Though she was a little uncomfortable with the man's appearance, thinking he could have been on drugs or something, that didn't stop her from being obedient. Afterwards, she felt so happy and blessed that she was able to share her story.

Now, she didn't see any immediate effect of sharing Jesus with him, but we can't see into the future. We don't know how or in what way our obedience will bless others. All we can do is be willing to speak to others. The Bible tells us that our duty is to share Christ with others. We are to serve the Lord with humility. This is one of the many ways we are called to do good.

Story 2: When Fear Holds Us Back

The second story begins when an older Christian woman went to the ER for a possible infection. Sitting there, waiting her turn, she could hear another woman on the other side of the wall moaning with pain. The woman was literally just on the other side of the wall from her. There was no door, only fear as a barrier. Let me explain.

This woman had not prayed before her visit for an opportunity to witness. But as she heard the moans of the woman on the other side of the wall she knew in her heart that God wanted her to speak to her and offer her prayer. But then, fear spoke to her. Fear said, but what if I get in trouble with the hospital? What if the woman is offended? What if I'm not supposed to be in that area, even though there was no door to keep me from it?

All of those what-if's spoke louder than the gentle prodding of the Holy Spirit, so she did not get up and speak to the woman. A few moments later she was called into the back and the opportunity was gone. She knew to do good, but did not do it; for her it was sin.

Overcoming Sins of Omission Through Obedience

Thinking over what happened she was brought to tears realizing her disobedience. Overcoming sins of omission through obedience begins when we choose to act on that gentle nudge of the Holy Spirit, even when fear whispers otherwise. So, if the hospital fussed at her, or the woman was offended, or if she shouldn't be in that area — this is what she knew that God wanted her to do and she didn't do it. Maybe the woman wouldn't have wanted her prayers, but the very fact that someone had offered prayers for her may have been enough to accomplish God's will.

Above all of this the woman who missed her opportunity to be obedient realized there was great irony in what happened.

The woman had consistently prayed that God would use someone to speak to her children and bring them back to Him. So, this woman's prayer was that someone be bolder and less afraid to do God's will than she was. If she was sincere in her prayer for her children then it seemed only right that she should be willing to be there for others in the same way.

Thankfully God forgives us and hopefully we learn, not just from our mistakes, but we learn from the example of others (Psalm 32:5). The older woman learned an important lesson from the younger obedient woman. For some boldness is not so hard, but for others, learning to rely on God's strength and not our own is more difficult. Which woman are you most like today?

Daily Acts of Kindness: Simple Ways to Serve

We are offered opportunities to do good every day. We are often in too much in a hurry or focused too much on ourselves to reach out to others. These chances to do good can be in the simplest of ways, smiling at a stranger, being kind to someone who is fed up with us, going the extra mile for someone by taking our time to help them. We should have a servant's heart. We often witness more by how we treat others than by what we say. As James says elsewhere, deeds are more important than words.

Perseverance in Doing Good (Galatians 6:9)

Doing good can be tiring. It means doing things for others when we don't feel like it, when it inconveniences us, and when it seems we see no results. Galatians 6:9 addresses this,

"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

Like a missionary who labors for years and sees little results, or the mother praying for her children who longs for their return to God, we mustn't give up. It is all in God's perfect timing, not ours. Maybe no one notices what we do or we get no thanks from anyone, but our reward is not from others but from God and as it says "in due season we will reap." We are to serve because He served.

Biblical Examples of Obedience and Failure

There are many people in the Bible who failed to do good or be obedient to God, some repented and some did not.

• Jonah ran from God's command to call the people of Nineveh to repentance. After languishing in the belly of a fish for three days and finally repenting, Jonah went to Nineveh and they repented.

• Peter who said, "... 'You are the Christ, the Son of the living God'" (Matthew 16:16), denied Him three times before others, saying he didn't even know who He was. When Jesus looked at Him Peter wept for his sin (Matthew 26:75).

• Saul's disobedience to God and lack of repentance led to his throne being removed and eventually David installed as King instead.

• Ananias and Saphira had hearts filled with Satan (Acts 5:3) and hypocritically lied about how much money they gave the church. Their judgment was immediate. When discovered by Peter, they both died.

True Repentance: Turning from Omission

Let's not forget what repentance really means. Repentance doesn't just mean saying you're sorry, it means turning away from a sin and in your heart of hearts promising to no longer do it. Remember that repentance itself is a gift of grace (Acts 11:18). I love what Charles Spurgeon once said about repentance,

"Remember that the man who truly repents is never satisfied with his own repentance. We can no more repent perfectly than we can live perfectly."

We may have other missed opportunities to do good or be obedient but the more obedient we become the closer to Christ we grow. We are His light to the world. As the Word says, don't hide your light!

When we repent from not doing good we should, as the first young woman in my examples did, pray that God shows us each day what good He would have us do. What is His will for that day? Would He have us spend more time in prayer or Bible study at home alone, or is this a day He would have us reach out with our words and actions to show Jesus to others?

Whether we pray as the Lord did in Matthew 6:10,

"Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven"

or as He prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane in Luke 22:42,

"... yet not my will, but yours be done";

whether we are weary or full of energy, happy or sad, seek His will in all that you do. If you fail, and we all will in some way, repent and draw near for He knows us and loves us still.

Final Exhortation: What Good Will You Do Today?

We have a limited amount of time on this earth to make a difference. When we miss opportunities, it is a sad thing. What good will you do today? Remember the words from an old hymn by Fanny J. Crosby entitled, "We All Can Do Good."

Do good unto others, do good while we can,

Our moments how quickly they fly;

Remember the proverb, remember it now,

We all can do good if we try.