How Mature Are You?

I just read James 1:15 this morning and it struck me in a curious way. It says "Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death." I talk about faith maturity all the time. Our task as followers of Jesus Christ is to become fully formed members of His Church. In order to do so we work on our Christian maturity. We seek to "grow up" in our faith and mature into what God wants us to be; Christ-like. However this scritpture causes us to see that there is a possibility that we might grow up in other ways as well.

Are you maturing in your sin? "Sin" can be defined as those things that we do and thoughts we pursue that draw us away from God. In life we tend to ignore our sins to the point of allowing that they are simply "bad habits." We allow our desire for the things that seperate us from God to control us to the point that we excuse them. We brush off their harmful effects as they work their way into our lives. They mature as we cast aside any concern saying, "That's just the way I am."

Over time these sins lead to our death. Not a quick and merciful death, but a death that is slow, painful and agonizing. They lead to separation from people we once loved. They lead to lack of satisfaction in life. They ultimately lead to separation from God as we allow ourselves to hate God in our mature sin.

Which maturity are you intentionally choosing; faith or sin?