Hi Passionate Youth Reaching Out, today is Friday, July 15, My name is Grant and this is Start Up, helping you start your day with an upward focus. Our focus today turns towards the deceitful nature of sin.
Romans 7:9–12 (HCSB)
9 Once I was alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life 10 and I died. The commandment that was meant for life resulted in death for me. 11 For sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me, and through it killed me. 12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and just and good.
If you listened yesterday, we talked about how sin takes something good that God has made, and then twists and bends it to something harmful for you.  For example, God’s law is good, but sin takes it as an opportunity to cause you to want things that you aren’t supposed to want.  If you follow through on those wants, you find yourself in sin.
Today we see the contrast between sin and righteousness.  God’s law describes right living, otherwise known as righteousness.  God’s law is holy, and just and good.  In Psalm 1 we read that that following God’s law makes us happy, and fruitful.  It’s a very good thing.  God’s law is a blessing, it leads us on the path to life.
Sin’s goal is to take you off of that path.  Sin’s goal is to use God’s law against you so that you see it as a barrier to freedom and pleasure.  In order for sin to take something good and use it for evil, there is a fair amount of deception that is involved.
This deception works at a deeper level than logic and rational thinking.  Sin doesn’t say to you, “Tell a lie”.  Sin says, “If you tell the truth, you are going to have a hard time,” and then you come to the conclusion that telling the lie is really a good idea.
How do we overcome this deception of sin?  We’re getting there, keep listening to startup, or just read through Romans 7 and you will see the conclusions that are drawn. I’ll give you a hint to what we are coming too.  Sin’s deception is so deep and heartfelt that we are in a far worse position than we could have ever imagined.  But God’s righteousness is so amazing and strong, that it can stop sin’s lie and cause a new life to be birthed in us.
Challenge
The challenge for this week is to come to Hawkwood Baptist Church’s Stampede Breakfast this Sunday Morning and invite a friend. Come hang out with us and enjoy free food and good music. Go to hawkwood.ca for more information.
Invitation
Our next youth event is on Thursday, July 21, we are having a BBQ and sports night here at the Church.  Grades 7-12 are invited, the cost is $3.
Thanks for listening to today’s StartUp, you can find all of the details about our youth group online at hbcyouth.ca.  We are also on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, just search for Hawkwood Youth.
https://www.facebook.com/HawkwoodYouthPYRO/
https://twitter.com/HawkwoodYouth
https://www.instagram.com/hawkwoodyouth/