True Conviction

For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. —Psalm 51:3

King David’s affair with Bathsheba and his attempt to cover up his sin reads like some sort of soap opera (2 Sam. 11). But when the prophet Nathan confronted him, David’s response showed genuine conviction.

The fact that he had sinned was eating David up. He understood that sin, at its core, is an act of rebellion against a holy God.

In Christian circles we tend to use the word “conviction” as an adjective. We associate conviction with the way that we feel. However, conviction is a noun. It’s much more than a feeling; it’s being convinced that you are guilty of wrongdoing.

Romans 8:1 assures us that there “no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” God mercifully forgives and cleanses us from all sin: past, present and future—but that does not mean sin is a trivial matter! Anyone who wants to live a victorious Christian life needs to take the problem of sin seriously. They are genuinely convicted about the sin they see in their lives.