God wants the enemy of sin out of your life. And so he wants you to see your calling to do away with that enemy in your life. But we tend not to see sin for the enemy it is, and so we often leave it unchecked. There are the bigger sins, like sexual immorality, fits of abusive anger. Sins like Samson’s, which are present in the church today and can indeed go unchecked. But there are also what some have called respectable sins. These are the sins we coddle. We are fine with them exercising control over us—like Israel with the Philistines. They can be things like a grumbling spirit, a coveting of the possessions or the talents of another. They can also be our stubbornness in disagreements and our refusal to admit that and make amends. Our gossip, our judgmentalism toward others where we condemn the speck in their eyes but fail to see and repent over the plank in our own. Every last one of these sins and so many others are bound up with our pride and self-confidence. We use them to get what we want out of life. But the Lord won’t leave us alone. He would have us see also these sins as enemies. And sometimes, he helps us see this by bringing the consequences of our sins down upon us, in greater or lesser degrees of severity and pain. He wants you to see the enemy of your sin and cry out for help! The Lord is faithful, also in the day of trouble, when your sin catches up with you. He will hear your prayer, even a prayer as simple as Lord, please remember me because I’ve gotten myself into this mess, and he will come to your aid. This is wonderful. As we struggle with our sins that are rooted in our pride, this gives us hope and direction. He hears and answers! And he acts to save, to bring about in you what pleases him!