During my freshman year of high school, I got one of the greatest honors–to suit up for our Varsity basketball team. I had done well for our JV squad and now would be in uniform with a chance to contribute.
Only I didn’t get to suit up.
I was suspended.
The weekend before my game I got invited to my first ever high school party. I was big-time now. At the party, I got offered a beer and drank it. I knew it was against our team rules we had agreed to but this was a high school party! There were juniors saying hey to me!
That next week at school I, along with 2 of my teammates, got called into our coach’s office and questioned about the weekend. One of our team captains had snitched on us (he was a good leader and wanted us to learn our lesson) and I was guilty. I confessed and my punishment was a one-game suspension.
I wanted to be a part of this team. I knew drinking that beer was wrong. And it only led to feeling shame…especially when I walked out of that tunnel in street clothes to sit on the end of the bench.
So why did I do it?
I allowed the desire to fit in to overpower my commitment to my team.
Believers in Jesus face a similar conflict. We want to obey God are continually drawn away towards sin. It’s easy to lose focus.
Paul describes the dilemma he faced when it came to sin. There were competing forces battling for control of what he did. In Romans 7 he says, “15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”
Have you experienced this battle? Are there sins you keep going back to over and over even though you try to avoid them?
Since Genesis 3 Satan has been trying to distract our focus away from the goodness of God. When Satan asked, “Did God really say…?” he was inserting a poisonous lie that maybe God doesn’t really want us to be happy. He succeeded in taking Adam & Eve’s focus off of God and His Word for a brief moment. That same lie reverberates in human hearts to this day. The battle remains as we wrestle with whether to obey God or give into sin.
Sin happens anytime we choose something over or before God. God is worthy of our ultimate focus and devotion. He has set a standard of morality and obedience that all of us fail to live up to in our actions or thoughts. Because of our rebellion, we deserve death and eternal separation from God. But God, in His mercy, sent Jesus to pay the penalty for sin through His death on the cross and resurrection. Now followers of Jesus have been set free from the penalty of sin, having been justified by faith.
Even though we’ve been set free from the penalty of sin, its power still nags at believers. The same lie from Satan still echoes today. We hear the whisper, “Maybe ____(fill in the blank)____ will make me happy?” and allow ourselves to lose focus. Listening to that lie is why we keep going back to sin.
Sin is serious. We must be careful not to brush sin aside in the name of “grace.” Though sin does not change a believer’s legal standing before God, it does disrupt fellowship with God. Just like lying to a friend would have consequences for your trust, or cheating in a class would impact your grade, sinning against God invites His discipline and displeasure. Yes, God is rich in mercy and patient with us, but we can’t take advantage and cheapen His grace.
So how do you fight back against this terrible lie? What are the tools to combat the temptation that comes from within yourself, the world, and Satan? How can you “win” when it comes to sin?
God’s Word shows us there is a right way and a wrong way. In their dealing with sin, many turn to self-help style methods that deal with habit-breaking. Others turn inward and search for some past trauma or triggers that are the source of their sin. Both methods fail because they are primarily focused on yourself – your will-power or your personal history.
God has commanded “You shall be holy, for I am holy” (1 Peter 1:15-16). God is our standard. We look to Him for holiness. Our motivation to fight sin comes from our desire to honor Christ. We need God’s Word to disciple us in our fight against sin.
This week’s question is “How do I deal with sin?” The doctrine that disciples us in this area is called: Sanctification.
DOCTRINE DEFINED: SANCTIFICATION
“Sanctification is the lifelong process of believers progressively being set free from the power of sin to be transformed to look more like Jesus Christ.”
That’s what you want! You want to look more like Jesus. This is a doctrine you are going to want to learn and apply.
Sin brings suspension. It hurts our usefulness (2 Timothy 2:20-22) and can force God to sideline believers to the end of the bench. We want in the game! God has given us the tools we need to fight back against sin and win.
Over the next several weeks I’ll be posting about various theological topics that speak directly to questions we ask on a regular basis. It’s a series called: DOCTRINE that DISCIPLES. Each doctrine has a passage of Scripture to study on your own. Let the Bible study this week turn your focus back to Christ as you learn about Sanctification and grow to look like Jesus.
PUT IT INTO PRACTICE:
I created a 4 page Bible study through Colossians 3:1-17. This is a foundational passage in understanding sanctification. It would serve as a great way to see God’s prescription for how we are to fight against sin.
This week is all about FOCUS. Like a race horse with blinders on, you must learn to focus your mind on Christ to steer clear of distractions that lead you into sin.
Feel free to download the PDF and work through this first passage. If you are interested in the rest of the study let me know!
