This Proverb says, “All the ways of man are clean in his own sight, but the Lord weighs the motives.” The Bible indicates that God will weigh our actions during our life on Earth. God will also weigh the motives behind our actions. We may say or do something that is not sinful. However, if what we say or do is produced by a sinful motive, then those words and deeds are sinful.
As humans we are all tempted to sin. It reflects our natural state. The Bible tells us to turn away from sin and walk rightly before God. That takes conscious effort and motivation. It is not easy to do.
Our initial motivation to turn from sin comes from realizing that God is our Heavenly Father who will discipline us for our sins. Such motivation is then sustained through our belief in Jesus, who frees us from bondage to our sins.
However, even with motivation to turn from sin, we still are still subject to our temptation to sin. Those temptations may lead us to or orchestrate situations that will lower our resistance to sin. Such a situation may not appear sinful. However, it is motivated by our sinful desires.
Therefore, we must not justify our sinful motivation. We must always defend ourselves against wrong motives. The only way to do that is to be firmly established in the Word of God. Reading the Bible daily will give us the tools necessary to defend against our temptations. It will also enable us to avoid self-deception to pursue bad motives.
