Only God is capable of delivering a person from his sinful condition, through what the Puritans called “strong grace.” They used to say that “strong sins argue strong grace,” meaning that deep moral failure requires an equally powerful divine intervention.
Once a person receives such grace, he enters a fragile equilibrium—capable of living according to God’s will, yet still vulnerable to temptation. He may fall again, in any form of sin.
The true beauty of a person emerges not in the absence of temptation, but in his resistance to it—when sin appears but no longer has the power to draw him in. Whether it be a lie, sycophancy, sexual misconduct, or financial corruption, these behaviors reveal a character that still needs to take discipline seriously, while grace is still at work.
The Deeper Diver 
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