“But if you will not do so, behold, you have sinned against the Lord, and be sure your sin will find you out.” (Numbers 32:23, ESV)
After Gad and Reuben had committed to go with Israel across the Jordan in the conquest of Canaan. Moses gave them this exhortation in verse 23. If they did not join Israel in the conquest of Canaan it would be sin, and the sin would have negative repercussions for them.
While sin does not define a Christian’s life, believers still may on occasion willfully sin. The sin that bothered Moses was one of a sin of omission. James writes about such sin.
“So whoever knows the right thing to do and fails to do it, for him it is sin.” (James 4:17, ESV)
So often, believers worry about the things they should not do, but often overlook the things they really know that they should do. These types of things can include an act of kindness, calling someone who needs a word of encouragement, worshipping with other believers, being baptized after conversion, etc.
So, how do these types of sins find us out? First, it is not in experiencing the wrath of God because believers will never experience God’s wrath (Romans 8:1). However, it may result in the chastisement of the Lord. He disciplines us to bring us into closer conformity with His righteousness for our own good.
Yet probably one of the most significant ways these sins of omission find us out is in the missing of blessing. Sins of omission grieve the Spirit of God (Isaiah 63:10; Ephesians 4:30) and thus prevent us from experiencing the blessing of living a Spirit filled life. Sins of omission may also keep us from experiencing the blessings of fruitful service, of intimate Christian fellowship, of maturing in our spiritual life, etc.
The solution for Christians is to live by the Spirit (Galatians 5:16), keeping in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25). What does this mean? It means that we should try very hard to yield our lives to the control of the Spirit of God. We do this when we seek the Lord with a whole heart, reading and studying His Word, praying, fellowshipping with other believers, confessing and repenting from our transgressions, and making every effort to do the good that we know to do.
Renewing the Heart 