-Who are you Really?-

Eliot Spitzer rose to power in the state of New York by being a hard-lined Democrat who wanted to fix moral issues that gave his state a bad reputation. The ex-governor is a former New York state chief prosecutor who rose to prominence by cracking down on financial crimes with great valor. He was even given the nickname “Sheriff of Wall Street.” As Attorney General, he broke up prostitution rings and prosecuted moral crimes to the fullest extent.

In early March, Eliot Spitzer resigned as Governor of New York after allegations of his involvement in prostitution were proven true. Shock waves went through state and local governments all over New York. How could this have happened? Of all people, why Eliot? He stood against this kind of thing. How could he put people in jail for prostitution during the day and be involved in that very act at night? Who is Eliot Spitzer - a moral hero cleaning up the state of New York, or a hypocrite? Which identity really belongs to him?



Eliot Spitzer, a father of three, said: "The remorse I feel will always be with me. I am sorry I did not live up to what was expected of me." One of my greatest fears is that one day I will have to say the same thing - not to a courtroom in front of flashing cameras and stunned reporters, but at the seat of judgment in front of the Creator of the world.

When you look at your life as a professing Christian, are you acting like the person you claim to be? Are you the same person Monday-Saturday that you act like on Sunday at church? Do you worship a Savior who loves and forgives, but then you have a hard time loving and forgiving people in your life? You say you trust God to take care of you and always provide for you, but on payday are you cutting your tithe check and giving it to God before anything else? Do you look down on other people with moral failures and shortcomings in life like Eliot Spitzer, but quickly overlook the areas of your own life that need confessing and serious repentance?

I want to make every effort to live a life that matches what the Bible says a Christian should act like. I want to hold myself to the same standards to which I hold others. I want to love and forgive just as Christ loves and forgives me. I desperately want to hear God say, “Well done, good and faithful servant” instead of me issuing a solemn apology like “I am sorry that I did not live up to what was expected of me.” It’s a big task, but with God’s help we can do it. We can live the life he expects us as followers of Christ to live by drawing close to Him, drawing close to His Word, and always remembering that without God’s grace and mercy, we too would be lost and without hope.

Romans 3:23-24: “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.”