“Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: being found in the likeness of men, He humbled Himself and was obedient even to the point of death on the cross” (Philippians 2:5–8). What Jesus shared in common with man was ‘choice’. Like every person, He had the ability to choose. As He said, “My Father loves me because I lay down my life, no one takes it from me (forcefully): I have the power to lay it down, and I have the power to take it again” - Jn. 10:17-18.

God gave us minds and brains so we can give Him rest. Naturally, God created Man an autonomous being, reflecting God’s image—He won’t subjugate anybody, but wisdom demands we are submissive. “It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps” – Jer. 10:23, but “In all your ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct your paths” – Prov. 3:6. Choice is a universal capital, and ultimately, we are the products of the choices we make or have made.

Undeniably, there are forces behind sin, but unfortunately, many hide under the ‘forces’ as an excuse: ‘It was the devil’, ‘I don’t know what came over me’, ‘My ancestral people’, and so on. Meanwhile, they consciously consented to transact with sin.

More forcible than the pressures of sin is the power of Choice. Scripture reminds us, “This day I call the heavens and the earth as witnesses against you that I have set before you life and death, blessings and curses. Now choose life, so that you and your children may live” – Deut. 30:19.

Man is responsible for his choices, and God honours those choices. Pastor Femi Lazarus once shared a humorous story about a young girl with a habit of stealing. She stole wherever she went, and her guardians had taken her to numerous prayer houses for deliverance, but nothing changed. She had just stolen again when they brought her to Pastor Femi, who prayed for her and then asked, “Will you steal again?” As usual, she replied, “No”. Then he said, “To seal this prayer, I’ll give you six strokes of the cane”. According to him, he drove the best six strokes ever, and from that day, she never stole again. Something had shifted in her decision-making. Man will effortlessly go great lengths to satisfy his cravings; if you continue in sin, it’s because you haven’t truly made the choice to stop.