The next time you think sin is getting the best of you and you want to turn back, remember you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. Through the Holy Spirit, never forget the saints gone by, and remember Jesus himself, who went willingly to the cross and shed his blood for your salvation.

Some aspects of biblical truth run so contrary to culture that even many in the church find them extreme. Take, for example, the author of Hebrews’ admonition to his readers about resisting sin. He had already told them that without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness of sin. In saying this, he was talking about justification, but in chapter 12, he uses a similar phrase concerning sanctification. He says, “In your struggle against sin, you have not resisted to the point of shedding your blood” (Heb. 12:4).

We know that standing for Christ can sometimes be difficult, and the temptation to back away presents itself when opposition and adversity come at us. The problem is that we are rarely as strong as we think, and we tend to want to shrink back under the lightest of difficulties. This tendency to timidity is why, after listing many great Saints in the Old Testament in Chapter 11, some who even gave their lives, the author tells us not to turn back even if it means our own flesh is torn apart.

The author of Hebrews says this concerning our struggle with sin. What does this mean? How do we struggle with sin?

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