Innocent? - by Elizabeth Reynolds

I was thinking the other day about babies, as a mother does from time to time, thinking how precious they are, how adorable, how fragile, how beautiful, how... innocent.

And yet, Psalm 51:5 says:

I have sinned and done wrong since the day I was born.

I thought of the first baby that ever existed. Cain. He must have been a joy. A wondrous, indescribable miracle from God when he was born. Eve must have been so.... in pain! (It's a shame no woman ever got to experience childbirth before the fall)... but she must have been so overjoyed and amazed as well! (I only hope Adam was supportive since there were no grandmothers, aunties and female friends to help her!)

(These are the things I think about being a mother myself)... ANYWAY, back to Cain...

He was the first baby. Ever! And he turned out to be a murderer. And I thought, how sad. And how incredibly typical of sin, and the human nature.

It could only ever be downhill from there.

Or was it?

1 John 1:8-10 tells us:

If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He (God) is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.

And in Romans 3:23, we are told:

For everyone has sinned. We all fall short of God's glorious standard. Yet God, in His grace, freely makes us right in His sight. He did this through Christ Jesus when He freed us from the penalty of our sins.

What wonderful news! We, being of the human race are not condemned and stuck in the down-ward spiralling cycle of sin. Jesus has put an end to it! We chose to die to that, and live in Christ!

Hallelujah! Innocent once more.