Tag Archives: sin

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Enticements

Just Say No

Synopsis: As Christ-followers, we are on a glorious journey, but it is no easy trip. An infinitely glorious and eternally rewarding trip, yes, but a very difficult one. In fact, Jesus said that the path we will travel is straight and narrow, and not too many will actually find it, much less successfully walk it. To stay on this path, Jesus went on to say, there will need to be self-denial, cross-bearing, and intense focus—on a daily, if not moment-by-moment basis. But if we will do the hard, focused, self-denying work of turning our back on sinful enticements, we will reap the grand prize at our journey’s end that will far outweigh any pain our self-denial required as well as whatever “loss” we incurred by rejecting those sin’s mouthwatering promises. And best of all, we will hear the Lord say, “Well done! Now come and share your master’s happiness.”

Discerning the sugar-coated manipulations of sin

Moments With God // Proverbs 1:10

My child, if sinners entice you, turn your back on them!

Oscar Wilde famously said, “I can resist just about anything—except temptation.” Me too!

God’s Word says that you and I are on a glorious journey, but the truth is, this is no easy trip. An infinitely glorious and eternally rewarding one—yes—but easy? No way! In fact, Jesus said that the path we travel on is straight and narrow, and not too many will actually find it, much less successfully walk it. To stay on this path, Jesus went on to say, there will need to be self-denial, cross-bearing, and intense focus—on a daily, if not moment-by-moment basis.

That means today (let’s let tomorrow worry about tomorrow), you will have to say “no” to what this proverb calls sinners: “My child, if sinners entice you, turn your back on them.” (Proverbs 1:10) The fact of the matter is, these “sinners” are all along your way, devilish hecklers disguised as adoring fans whose one and only assignment is to entice you down an alternative path, a shortcut to pleasure that, truthfully, always fails to deliver what it promises while saddling you instead with nothing but disappointment, pain, and loss.

Sorry to have to be the one to break it to you like this, but those “sinners” are waiting for you as you head out the door to wherever your glorious journey will take you today—to work, to school, to play, or even staying indoors to serve God in the daily routine required by your assignment at home. Here’s the thing: You have to be alert to them, be discerning to their sugar-coated manipulations, and be ready to give them a throaty “no way” when they ply you with their counterfeit divines.

I am sure you already know this, but these enticing “sinners” may not be real, live people. They may be subtle arguments that enter your mind, slick operators coming through the airwaves, simple desires at work within your soul, or sinful systems at work in the world that throughout the day routinely pull you away from God as sure as the gravitation pull of the moon working twice a day on the tides.

They are called temptations, by the way, and you are called to resist them. Moreover, as strong as those temptations might be, 1 Corinthians 10:13 reminds you,

Remember this—the wrong desires that come into your life aren’t anything new and different. Many others have faced exactly the same problems before you. And no temptation is irresistible. You can trust God to keep the temptation from becoming so strong that you can’t stand up against it, for he has promised this and will do what he says. He will show you how to escape temptation’s power so that you can bear up patiently against it.

If you will do the hard, focused, self-denying work of turning your back to the sinner’s enticement, you will reap the grand prize at your journey’s end that will far outweigh the pain your self-denial required as well as whatever “loss” you incurred by rejecting their mouthwatering promises.

Take A Moment: Meditate on 1 Corinthians 10:1-13. Identify some of the “ways out” God has given you in every temptation. Today, look for those divine exits—and take one of them.

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Unintentional Sin Is Still Sin

What Is Sin?

To downgrade sin, or to do away with it entirely, is to show contempt for the God who is holy. When we reduce the sinfulness of sin, we do away with the need for a Savior—which is the whole point of the Bible. Yet there is a growing number of Christians today who do just that. What an affront to the doctrine of salvation, and to the cross of Christ.

The Journey // Focus: Leviticus 5:17-19

Suppose you sin by violating one of the Lord’s commands. Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin. For a guilt offering, you must bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of equal value. Through this process the priest will purify you from your unintentional sin, making you right with the Lord, and you will be forgiven. This is a guilt offering, for you have been guilty of an offense against the Lord.

“Even if you are unaware of what you have done, you are guilty and will be punished for your sin.” Wow—that’s harsh. But yes, sin is sin, no matter the good intentions or unawareness of the sinner. Sin is a very big deal to a holy God, and even though as modern readers we live at a time where the offensiveness of certain types of sin have been downgraded, if not done away with altogether, we would do well to remember that God has not changed his mind one iota regarding the matter.

Dr. Karl Menninger, the famed psychiatrist and found of the Menninger Clinic, wrote a book called Whatever Happened to Sin, in which he tells us that the word “sin” has practically disappeared from our vocabulary. And yet, the sense of guilt remains in our hearts and minds. Likewise, the outcome of sin is plainly evident in the world—both near and far. Yes, sin is still sin, even if sophisticated man says it doesn’t.

Pride is still sin. So is inappropriate anger. Cheating, too. Mistreating the poor, contempt, lying, unbiblical divorce, selfishness, gluttony, abortion, homosexuality, heterosexual lust in the heart, pornography, disrespect for authority, laziness, stinginess—you get the picture. Or, if you don’t, here is how pastor-theologian John Piper puts it:

What is sin?
It is the glory of God not honored.
The holiness of God not reverenced.
The greatness of God not admired.
The power of God not praised.
The truth of God not sought.
The wisdom of God not esteemed.
The beauty of God not treasured.
The goodness of God not savored.
The faithfulness of God not trusted.
The commandments of God not obeyed.
The justice of God not respected.
The wrath of God not feared.
The grace of God not cherished.
The presence of God not prized.
The person of God not loved.
That is sin.

We could fill page after page of a very long book with the ways, big and small, obvious and subtle, willful and intentional, that human beings violate the law of God. Sin is missing the mark, whether it is by miles or inches, and it is an offense to God, who to be true to his just and righteous character, must either punish it or find a means to forgive it.

To downgrade or to do away with sin is show contempt for the Creator and the cross of Christ. When we reduce the sinfulness of sin, we do away with the need for a Savior—which is the whole point of the Bible. Yet there is a growing number of Christians today doing just that. Far too many have been lured into a false gospel that believes, apparently as he evolves into a better, kinder deity, that God now grades on the curve, that if the person’s heart was right, or if they just didn’t know that what they were doing was wrong, that God will give special consideration when grading their final.

In reality, that is a theology of works—that we are saved by our own goodness and not by grace through faith and not of works. In other words, if a person is morally good enough, or if they were ignorant of their sinfulness, God will take their goodness and their ignorance into account. After all, how could God assign good and unwitting people to punishment, not to mention, perish the thought, eternal damnation?

What an affront to the most basic tenet of the Bible: that salvation is by grace through faith, and not by works—sola fide, justification by faith alone. The fact that even sin for which we are unware brings guilt before God and must be punished is a clear reminder of that. Obviously, all sin was a big deal to a holy God, and if his people were to live in holiness, they would need a way to deal with the sins they committed along the way.

Between Leviticus 5-7 God shows his people how to deal with their sin and guilt through a series of sin offerings. And while we may be tempted to pass over these sin offerings since we no longer live under this system—thankfully—yet there are several eternal realities that this section of Scripture teaches us. Let me offer three:

  1. God is utterly holy, and sin is a violation of his holiness—always!
  2. Man is thoroughly sinful, and therefore deserving of judgment. The fact that sin may be unintentional and unknown and still render the sinner guilty before a holy God reminds us that there is none righteous, not even on our best day. We tend to think that God judges sin based on our motives, but this clearly shows that even the littlest sin drops our standing before him. Fallen man was born with a sin nature, and since it won’t be eradicated this side of heaven, it must be atoned for—some how in some way.
  3. Forgiveness is always available. Atonement for sin is made through God’s path to forgiveness. God, in his grace and mercy, made it possible for his people to have the guilt of their sin removed so they could live in right standing before him. Of course, we now know in light of the New Testament revelation that the Old Testament system of sacrifice was a temporary placeholder until the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ was made, but it was still a beautiful picture of a God who longed to forgive, not punish, the guilt of his people. But they had to do it his way.

We still do—do it God’s way, that is! And God still longs to forgive—that is just who God is. But we block the flow of the forgiveness of the forgiving God when we join the growing trend of those removing the sinfulness of sin. We need to remember that whenever sin is removed by any other means than through repentant faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus, we have just removed the whole purpose for the Incarnation: that Jesus came to seek and to save the lost by giving his life as the ransom for their sin.

Going Deeper: Have you found yourself making excuses for sin—either yours or another’s? That in itself is sin, and a very serious one at that. Repent, and ask God to give you a heart that is hyper-sensitive to sin. Far from being a bad thing, that is a very healthy way to live and the path to Divine blessing.

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Calling Out Sin

Being With Jesus:
John 7:7

Jesus said, “[the world] hates me because I accuse it of sin and evil.”

One of the things an authentic, fruitful, effective Christ-follower must master in life is balance. Balance isn’t listed as a virtue in New Testament theology; it is not a mark of discipleship that Jesus articulated; it is not the tenth fruit of the Spirit. Yet balance is the byproduct of Christian virtue. It demonstrate that we have a grasp on what it means to live as a true disciple and it is evidence of the Holy Spirit’s production of spiritual fruit in our lives.

If we are to live as Jesus lived and think like Jesus thought, then like Jesus, we must learn to balance truth with grace, tolerance of flawed humanity with fidelity to God’s standard of holiness, working out our salvation with resting in God’s effort, and on and on the list of needful balances will go. But balance for the Christian is neither easy to achieve, nor to maintain, because the drift of the sin nature still fighting for mastery of our lives is always toward an extreme.

Nowhere is this imbalance more apparent in our contemporary American experience of Christianity than in our posture toward sin. It is especially noticeable in our current American cultural debate on same-sex attraction where many spiritual leaders are now rejecting this idea that the believer must “love the sinner but hate the sin” as un-Christlike. Yet Jesus did exactly that. So that, too, is a balance that we must learn to achieve.

Of course, some will passionately disagree with my statement. I understand that push back. There is a legitimate discussion these days about how to approach the issue of sin in our culture. But my fear is that because the secular mindset is increasingly pressuring the church to not only condone same-sex lifestyles, but to celebrate them as perfectly healthy and appropriate, and because of our growing fear that the world will hate us if we stand in their way, many Christians—leaders and lay people alike—are going to great lengths to avoid calling out sin where sin desperately needs to be called out. A too large percentage of believers now live with a consuming phobia of being labeled—labeled a homophobe, a hate-monger, intolerant and ignorant, and worse.

But let’s remember that Jesus was hated and called names precisely because he pointed out the evil and sin in the world. Sinful man didn’t reject and ultimately crucify him because he came saying “everything is alright; go your merry way.” Jesus was murdered because he said things like, “You are slaves of sin, every one of you.” (John 8:34) Believers by the thousands have not been martyred throughout Christian history because of their tolerance of sin; they were killed because they rubbed against the grain of evil cultures.

Leave Your Life of SinNow again, balance is the key. Jesus didn’t come to condemn sinners—they were already under condemnation—but by his righteous lifestyle and message of holiness, sin was condemned. Jesus didn’t condemn the woman caught in adultery in John 8, but he wasn’t afraid to tell her to go and “sin” no more. The very first words out of Jesus mouth as he began to proclaim the Gospel of the Kingdom was “repent”! “From then on, Jesus began to preach, ‘Turn from sin and turn to God, for the Kingdom of Heaven is near.’” (Matthew 4:17)

Jesus wasn’t afraid to use the “s” word. Sin is sin, and it separates from God. As C.S. Lewis said, “Jesus Christ did not say – Go into all the world and tell the world that it is quite right.” If we are to truly love people as Jesus did, then at some point their sin must be a topic of conversation. For people to enter the Kingdom of Heaven, sin must be acknowledged and repentance must be expressed. There is no other way. To point that out is truly the most loving thing a believer can do with an unbeliever.

“Jesus Christ did not say – Go into all the world and tell the world that it is quite right.” (C.S. Lewis)

Of course, it is all in the delivery. People must know that you truly love them if the call to repentance is to be received from a loving heart. But even them, since the message of righteousness rubs against the grain of a fallen world, we must be prepared to be labeled. But remember, it won’t be the first time.

________________

“The greatest want of the world is the want of men—men who will not be bought or sold; men who in their inmost souls are true and honest; men who do not fear to call sin by its right name; men whose conscience is as true to duty as the needle to the pole; men who will stand for the right though the heavens fall.” (Ellen G. White)

Getting To Know Jesus: Don’t ever be afraid to call sin, sin. Jesus did, so should you. But you must figure out how to do it as Jesus did—from a posture of love, grace and mercy. And one of the best ways to get into that posture is to, first, truly repent of your own sin, and secondly, humbly live in the knowledge that you are nothing more than a sinner saved by grace.

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Sin Resistant

Read: Proverbs 1

“My child, if sinners entice you, turn your back on them!” (Proverbs 1:10, NLT)

It was Oscar Wilde who said, “I can resist just about anything—except temptation,” Oh yeah, me too!

God’s Word says that you and I are on a glorious journey, but the truth is, this is no easy trip. An infinitely glorious and eternally rewarding one—yes; but easy—no!  In fact, Jesus said that the path we’ll travel on is straight and narrow, and not too many will actually find it, much less successfully walk it. To stay on this path, Jesus went on to say, there will need to be some self-denial, cross bearing, and intense focus.

That means today (let’s let tomorrow worry about tomorrow), you will have to say “no” to what this Proverb calls sinners: “My son, if sinners entice you, do not give in to them.” (Proverbs 1:10) The fact of the matter is, these “sinners” are all along your way, devilish hecklers disguised as adoring fans whose one and only assignment is to entice you down an alternative path, a shortcut to pleasure that, in reality, always fails to deliver what it promises while saddling you instead with nothing but disappointment, pain and loss.

Sorry to have to be the one to break it to you like this, but those “sinners” are waiting for you as you head out the door to wherever your glorious journey will take you today—to work, to school, to play, or even staying indoors to serve God in the daily routine required by your assignment at home.  Here’s the thing: You’ve got to be alert to them, be discerning to their sugar-coated manipulations, and ready to give them a throaty “no way” when they ply you with their counterfeit divines.

I’m sure you already know this, but these enticing “sinners” may not be real, live people.  They may be subtle arguments that enter your mind, or slick operators coming through the airwaves, or simple desires at work within your soul, or sinful systems at work in the world that throughout the day routinely pull you away from God as sure as the gravitational pull of the moon working twice a day on the tides.

They’re called temptations, by the way, and you are called to resist them.  And you can!  And if you will, the real prize at your journey’s end will far outweigh any of their mouthwatering promises.

“Temptation usually comes in through a door that has deliberately been left open.” ~Arnold Glasow

Winning At Life:

Read and meditate on I Corinthians 10:1-13.  Identify some of the “ways out” God has given you in every temptation.  Today, look for those divine exits—and take them.

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Don’t Tempt Me

Read Romans 7

“For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do,
that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do… For the good
that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do,
that I practice… O wretched man that I am! Who
will deliver me from this body of death?”
(Romans 7:15, 18-20, 24)

Food For Thought… Huh? Did you catch that? Paul had a convoluted way of saying something pretty straightforward, which was simply this: “I do what I shouldn’t and I don’t do what I should—man, am I in trouble!”

Can you relate to Paul? I sure can. He was in a wrestling match with sin, and sin was whupping up on him. It was frustrating because Paul knew what he shouldn’t be doing—yet he was drawn to sin like a mouse to a cheese-laden trap.

Let me ask you this: Where are you most vulnerable to temptation? What represents your cheese-laden mousetrap? Maybe it’s a box of Krispy Kremes—perhaps you are an overeater. Maybe it’s the letters S*A*L*E—perhaps you’re an overspender. Maybe it’s an adult site on the Internet—perhaps you’ve got a compulsion for porn. Could it be your compulsion is alchohol or drugs or gambling or gossiping or griping? Maybe it’s the joy of passing judgment on other cheese-eaters, which in reality, reveals your battle with a critical spirit.

Each of us has an area where we do what we shouldn’t and don’t do what we should. “What a sicko I am! Who will rescue me from the cheese?”

Jesus will! That’s what Paul said in Romans 7:25, “Thanks be to God—it’s through Jesus Christ our Lord!” When Jesus died, he broke the power of sin, so it no longer has a hold on us. Through the power of the resurrection, Paul says in I Corinthians 10:13 that God has provided a way out from under every temptation:

“No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.”

Did you catch that? Your battle with temptation is winnable. The last part of the verse says, “But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out.”

That’s good news. There’s always an escape route—always. When you’re tempted, God himself will provide a way out; he will make a way. God has provided a door—but I must look for it and walk through it!

What are those escape routes?

One way of escape is to immerse yourself in Scripture. Psalm 119:9 & 11 says, “How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word…I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you.”

That’s how Jesus battled temptation in the wilderness. Every time the tempter came at him with something that would tear him away from his Father, Jesus came back at Satan with the truth of scripture. There is no more potent weapon against temptation in your life than in reading systematically, meditating daily, and memorizing strategically God’s Word.

Another escape route from temptation is to become accountable to another believer, especially for your particular weakness. Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living.” We need to bring our temptation into the light of accountability to other people—as difficult as that may be.

Proverbs 27:5-6 says, “Better is open rebuke than hidden love. Wounds from a friend can be trusted, but an enemy multiplies kisses.” You would do yourself a huge favor by finding someone with whom you can be accountable for your weakness.

And yet another way out is to ask God to deliver you daily from the tempter. Jesus taught us to pray a daily prayer that acknowledges both our weakness and our need for divine power in this area: “Deliver us from the evil one.” (Matthew 6:13) As simple as that sounds, the amazing thing is, God hears those prayers. And he provides a way out.

Who will rescue you from this body of death? Who is going to keep you out of the cheese?

“Thank God! Jesus Christ will rescue me.”
(Romans 7:25)

Prayer… Father you are as close as the very oxygen I breathe. I praise your name. May your will be done completely in my life today—which includes keeping me pure and sin-free. Today I ask that you will deliver me from the evil that the Evil One will tempt me with. I ask this so that I might bring glory and honor and praise to your holy name.

One more thing… “Temptations, of course, cannot be avoided, but because we cannot prevent the birds from flying over our heads, there is no need that we should let them nest in our hair.” —Martin Luther