Serial Stupidity

Though you grind a fool in a mortar, grinding him like grain with a pestle, you will not remove the folly from him. (Pro 27:22)

In the Bible, being a fool is a moral failing. A fool is one who rejects God’s wisdom and makes evil, self-destructive choices. But, as this verse reveals, the very core of folly is the failure – or refusal – to learn from one’s mistakes. The book of Proverbs teaches us that sin has consequences. When I care so little about myself or others that I will continue to sin regardless of the consequences then I am truly a fool. My first reaction is to say, why would anyone do that? But then I realize I myself do it, over and over again. When I choose the pleasure of the moment I am being the fool. For a moment’s satisfaction I would trade a lifetime of consequences. I am thinking about gluttony here but it is just as true for anger, selfishness, pride or any other sin.  Lord, forgive me for my rampant foolishness. Teach me to walk in wisdom. Amen.

Out Came This Calf

Then they gave me the gold, and I threw it into the fire, and out came this calf! (Ex 32:24b)

We like to pretend there is a certain inevitability to our sin. But sin is always a choice. It is comforting in the face of our guilt to think that the laws of nature took over and we were just innocent bystanders. But if we look back at the sequence of events leading up to our sin we will always find a moment of decision. There was a fork in the road and I took the wrong path. After that moment there may have been a sense of inevitability, a feeling of being carried along by forces I could not control. But before that moment I had a choice. I could have walked away. That moment of choice, that way of escape, is always available according to the promises of God (I Cor 10:13). If we look for it we will find it. We have the power to choose because we have the Spirit of God living in our hearts.

Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God – through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Rom 7:24-25)

A Habit of Mind

Therefore, do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. (Rom 6:12)

This sentence contains several remarkable thoughts. First, that even in the life of a believer sin might “reign in your mortal body.” Second, that it is my choice whether or not it does so, since Paul exhorts us “Do not let sin reign.” Third, that the evil desires which lead to sin belong not to me, so to speak, but to my “mortal body.” As Paul explains later in Rom 7:16-17, “And if I do what I do not want to do…it is no longer I myself who do it but sin living in me.” That is, as a believer my heart belongs to God and that which is most truly and essentially me yearns to obey him. Nevertheless I yield to fleshly temptations and sin. I believe the battleground between heart and flesh is the mind. Where will I let my thoughts dwell? On Jesus Christ and his righteousness or on the fleeting pleasures of sin? When I sin, the pattern is always that consciously or unconsciously I push God out of my thoughts and let the temptation in. Whether it is worry, pride, anger or gluttony when I am sinning my thoughts are not toward God. As I wrote a couple of weeks ago the key is to cultivate a habit of mind that is focused on him, primarily through reading the Word and praying without ceasing. The habit of sin must be actively displaced by a habit of devotion to God.

Prize Fight

No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize. (I Cor 9:27)

In this life our flesh is still unredeemed, and we have a fight on our hands if we want to live for God. The Holy Spirit empowers us to win that battle. The book of Romans shows us how. “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you.” (Rom 8:9) Jesus Christ has (past tense) set me free from this body of death. (Rom 7:24-25) “For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law but under grace.” (Rom 6:14) I think Romans 6:13 contains the key: “Do not offer the parts of your body to sin…but rather offer yourselves to God.” The key really is to cultivate a closer walk with God through the spiritual disciplines of prayer and the Word, and by forming the habit of mind to turn to him continuously throughout the day. Then when temptation comes we are to instantly turn to him for deliverance. The more I cultivate a heart that is rich toward God the more likely I am to turn to him when I am tempted. It is not simply that I must have strong willpower within myself, but that I must be in communion with God when the temptation comes.

Look Who's Watching

For a man’s ways are in full view of the Lord, and he examines all his paths. (Pr 5:21)

If we could keep this truth firmly in mind it might help dissuade us from sinning. I need to cultivate being in his presence at all times. That means several things at several levels, but one of them is knowing that he is watching all my actions, even hearing all my thoughts. Lord, help me to remember you at all times. When I am tempted, help me remember that you are there, not just as judge, but as the one who both inspires me and empowers me to do your will.

Know Who Your Enemy Is

The thief comes only to steal, kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full. (Jn 10:10)

This was the text of yesterday’s sermon by Richy Fisher. He said that in the context that Jesus spoke, the thief was the Jewish leaders and their legalistic system (e.g. not allowing healing on the Sabbath). But more broadly, the thief is the world system and Satan. It was new to me to think about the whole world system as being in view here, but it is true. Through it the enemy robs us. Our life is in Christ and we must live it in him. We must not settle for less. We will only know his voice if we listen to him. Not just talk about him or at him, but listen.

Feeding the Flesh

Death and Destruction are never satisfied, and neither are the eyes of man. (Pr 27:20)

My flesh will never be satisfied. I cannot give it a little (a little gluttony, a little lust, a little laziness) and expect it to stop bothering me. No, the more I give in to such temptations the more they consume me. That path ends only in Death and Destruction. Do not take even the first step on that road.