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Sin
In the 1940's, Johnny Mercer wrote and later recorded the
song "Ac-cent-tchu-ate the Positive". The beginning words of the song were
"Gather 'round me everybody. Gather round me while I preach some. Feel a
sermon coming on me. The topic will be sin - and that's what I'm ag'in.
Settle back and just sit tight, while I tell you the story of the attitude
of doing right. Gotta accentuate the positive; eliminate the negative.
Latch on to the affirmative"...etc, etc. You probably know the words of
the song better than I do.
Today I want to talk about something we all know, something
we all condemn in others, something we all do, something true Christians
all hate.....the topic will be sin.
Sin Defined
1. Let’s start this sermon by asking, "What is sin? Who
commits it?"
1 John 3:4 defines sin very well.
(1 John 3:4 NKJV) Whoever commits sin also commits
lawlessness, and sin is lawlessness.
Perhaps the KJV says it better: "sin is the transgression of
the law." Sin is the breaking of the law. What law? As it turns out, any
law. But today we’ll concentrate on the law of God. As Judaism defines it:
The Torah or instructions of God.
Everyone sins. It's a big, real part of our lives. 1 John 1:8
states it well.
(1 John 1:8 NKJV) If we say that we have no sin, we deceive
ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Paul, in Rom 7:15-21, describes just how much sin is a part
of our lives:
(Rom 7:15-21 NIV) I do not understand what I do. For what I
want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. {16} And if I do what I do
not want to do, I agree that the law is good. {17} As it is, it is no
longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. {18} I know that
nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the
desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. {19} For what I do
is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do--this I
keep on doing. {20} Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no
longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it. {21} So I
find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with
me.
Rom 1:28-32 describes the attitude of many we see and read
about in the news today:
(Rom 1:28 NKJV) And even as they did not like to retain
God in their knowledge, . . . .
No, God has been kicked out of our schools and communities by
court decisions and public officials and anti-God organizations who
erroneously claim they are protecting the misconstrued constitutional
right of separation of Church and State. We saw an example of this in the
Courthouse in Montgomery, Alabama when the courts demanded the ten
commandments be removed. Even Margaret Thatcher, former Prime Minister of
Britain, has stated in her writings that America was founded on a
dependency on God but now can't move fast enough to separate itself from
God.
Continuing on in verse 28:
. . ..God gave them over to a debased mind, to do
those things which are not fitting; {29} being filled with all
unrighteousness, sexual immorality, wickedness, covetousness,
maliciousness; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, evil-mindedness;
they are whisperers, {30} backbiters, haters of God, violent, proud,
boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, {31}
undiscerning, untrustworthy, unloving, unforgiving, unmerciful; {32}
who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such
things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of
those who practice them.
Sound like the people you see on TV and read of in the
papers? Do you know anyone who does any of these things? How about us? Do
we practice any of these things?
(Rom 3:9-18 NKJV) What then? Are we better than they? Not
at all. For we have previously charged both Jews and Greeks that they
are all under sin. {10} As it is written: "There is none righteous, no,
not one; {11} There is none who understands; There is none who seeks
after God. {12} They have all turned aside; They have together become
unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one." {13} "Their
throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit";
"The poison of asps is under their lips"; {14} "Whose mouth is full of
cursing and bitterness." {15} "Their feet are swift to shed blood; {16}
Destruction and misery are in their ways; {17} And the way of peace they
have not known." {18} "There is no fear of God before their eyes."
Verse 9 is comparing Gentiles with the Jews. We Christians,
Gentile or Jew, are guilty of these offenses also. Let's read verses 9 and
10 again, this time from the NIV:
(Rom 3:9-10 NIV) What shall we conclude then? Are we any
better ? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and
Gentiles alike are all under sin. {10} As it is written: "There is no
one righteous, not even one;
Brethren, no one, not anyone, is perfect. Not even you and
me.
Origin of Sin
2. Now let’s talk about how sin originated. Why this
deadly pull toward lawlessness? If God wants us to live a sinless life,
why did He create the adversary, the devil, to lead us astray?
In Ezek 28:15 God describes Lucifer at the time of his
creation.
(Ezek 28:15 NKJV) You were perfect in your ways from
the day you were created, Till iniquity was found in you.
God originally created sinless angels but for some their
sinlessness didn't last. Lucifer rebelled and so did one third of the
angels. It is apparent that even angels cannot be relied on not to sin.
Three lessons can be learned from Satan's fall:
Lesson 1: Satan is spirit and presumably cannot be
destroyed. However several scriptures indicate Satan may in fact be
ultimately destroyed. Let’s look at two of them:
(Ezek 28:17-19 NKJV) "Your heart was lifted up because of
your beauty; You corrupted your wisdom for the sake of your splendor;
I cast you to the ground, I laid you before kings, That they might
gaze at you. {18} "You defiled your sanctuaries By the multitude of
your iniquities, By the iniquity of your trading; Therefore I brought
fire from your midst; It devoured you, And I turned you to ashes
upon the earth In the sight of all who saw you. {19} All who knew
you among the peoples are astonished at you; You have become a
horror, And shall be no more forever."' "
(Isa 14:16-17 NKJV) "Those who see you will gaze at you,
And consider you, saying: 'Is this the man who made the earth tremble,
Who shook kingdoms, {17} Who made the world as a wilderness And
destroyed its cities, Who did not open the house of his prisoners?'
For that reason Satan must be banished or destroyed so he
can never again become a threat to mankind. His fate is also described
in Leviticus 16 in the example of the azazel goat. 2 Pet 2:4 describes
the fate of the angels who sinned during the days of Noah and are even
now awaiting judgment by the Saints.
(2 Pet 2:4 KJV) For if God did not spare angels when they
sinned, but sent them to hell, putting them into chains of darkness to
be held for judgment;
‘Hell’, in this verse, is from the Greek word `Tartaru'. It
means `prison' and this is the only place this word is used in the
Bible. The fate of these angels is described in 1 Cor. 6.
(1 Cor 6:3 NKJV) Do you not know that we shall judge
angels?. . .
God will never again give eternal life to any unproved
being. He must be certain his future sons and daughters will be free
from rebellion - forever. He has no stomach for seeing His sons and
daughters end up with a fate like Satan's.
Lesson 2: God knew man would sin. This would give man a
chance to learn from his mistakes. The tree of the knowledge of good and
evil was not created and put in the garden of Eden for shade and for
four-legged snakes to crawl in. God knew what He was doing.
But many who profess to follow Judaism or Christianity,
even many sweet little old ladies, do not see the sin in their own
lives:
(1 John 1:8 NKJV) If we say that we have no sin, we
deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Sin is a central part of our life experiences and we need
to recognize it.
Lesson 3: Mankind must learn that sin has ruinous
consequences. Satan promotes lawlessness but mankind, even the
'60s generation, must learn that lawlessness leads to death. Moses is a
good example of one who, though raised in splendor, chose the right
path:
(Heb 11:25 KJV) Choosing rather to suffer affliction with
the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season;
Moses chose affliction rather than an easy, pleasurable,
fun-filled life.
(Prov 9:16-18 NIV) "Let all who are simple come in here!"
she [a foolish woman] says to those who lack judgment. {17} "Stolen
water is sweet; food eaten in secret is delicious!" {18} But little do
they know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths
of the grave.
Sin can be enticing and exciting, but it is deadly.
Today the people of Judah, greater Israel, and much of the
world are choosing an ‘anything goes’ lifestyle. As a result, even
government leaders are caught up in this philosophy. Corrective words from
the Bible are ignored and rejected. Bibles are even rewritten to eliminate
words and phrases the writer or the public prefers to avoid, often to
appear to be ‘politically correct.’ Some people brazenly commit sins while
others try to hide their lawlessness by attempting to appear righteous.
The Word of God which they reject or ignore is very specific about this
hypocrisy.
(Isa 29:13-15 NKJV) Therefore the LORD said: "Inasmuch as
these people draw near with their mouths And honor Me with their lips,
But have removed their hearts far from Me, And their fear toward Me is
taught by the commandment of men, {14} Therefore, behold, I will again
do a marvelous work Among this people, A marvelous work and a wonder;
For the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, And the understanding of
their prudent men shall be hidden." {15} Woe to those who seek deep to
hide their counsel far from the LORD, And their works are in the dark;
They say, "Who sees us?" and, "Who knows us?"
Today we see laws passed, judicial appointments of people of
questionable character, and highly qualified judicial candidates excluded
from our Courts by very unwise politicians of nefarious character and
unscrupulous motivation.
Deu 28:15-64 describes the consequences of sin, the penalties
of sin to be experienced by the tribes of Israel. As we read this rather
long list of penalties for sins, consider how they could very well apply
to our land and people one day soon:
However, if you do not obey the LORD your God and do not
carefully follow all his commands and decrees I am giving you today, all
these curses will come upon you and overtake you: {16} You will be
cursed in the city and cursed in the country. {17} Your basket and your
kneading trough will be cursed. {18} The fruit of your womb will be
cursed, and the crops of your land, and the calves of your herds and the
lambs of your flocks. {19} You will be cursed when you come in and
cursed when you go out. {20} The LORD will send on you curses, confusion
and rebuke in everything you put your hand to, until you are destroyed
and come to sudden ruin because of the evil you have done in
forsaking him. {21} The LORD will plague you with diseases until he
has destroyed you from the land you are entering to possess. {22} The
LORD will strike you with wasting disease, with fever and inflammation,
with scorching heat and drought, with blight and mildew, which will
plague you until you perish. {23} The sky over your head will be bronze,
the ground beneath you iron. [The results of drought.] {24} The LORD
will turn the rain of your country into dust and powder; it will come
down from the skies until you are destroyed. {25} The LORD will cause
you to be defeated before your enemies. You will come at them from one
direction but flee from them in seven, and you will become a thing of
horror to all the kingdoms on earth. {26} Your carcasses will be food
for all the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth, and there will
be no one to frighten them away.
skipping to verse 29:
....You will be unsuccessful in everything you do; day
after day you will be oppressed and robbed, with no one to rescue you.
{30} You will be pledged to be married to a woman, but another will take
her and ravish her. You will build a house, but you will not live in it.
You will plant a vineyard, but you will not even begin to enjoy its
fruit. {31} Your ox will be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will
eat none of it. Your donkey will be forcibly taken from you and will not
be returned. Your sheep will be given to your enemies, and no one will
rescue them. {32} Your sons and daughters will be given to another
nation, and you will wear out your eyes watching for them day after day,
powerless to lift a hand. {33} A people that you do not know will eat
what your land and labor produce, and you will have nothing but cruel
oppression all your days. {34} The sights you see will drive you mad.
{35} The LORD will afflict your knees and legs with painful boils that
cannot be cured, spreading from the soles of your feet to the top of
your head. {36} The LORD will drive you and the king you set over you to
a nation unknown to you or your fathers.
skipping to verse 38:
You will sow much seed in the field but you will harvest
little, because locusts will devour it. {39} You will plant vineyards
and cultivate them but you will not drink the wine or gather the grapes,
because worms will eat them. {40} You will have olive trees throughout
your country but you will not use the oil, because the olives will drop
off. {41} You will have sons and daughters but you will not keep them,
because they will go into captivity. {42} Swarms of locusts will take
over all your trees and the crops of your land. {43} The alien who
lives among you will rise above you higher and higher, but you will sink
lower and lower. [shades of the so-called Palestinians in Israel and
illegal immigrants in the US] {44} He will lend to you, but you will not
lend to him. He will be the head, but you will be the tail. {45} All
these curses will come upon you. They will pursue you and overtake you
until you are destroyed, because you did not obey the LORD your God
and observe the commands and decrees he gave you. {46} They will be
a sign and a wonder to you and your descendants forever. {47} Because
you did not serve the LORD your God joyfully and gladly in the time
of prosperity, {48} therefore in hunger and thirst, in nakedness and
dire poverty, you will serve the enemies the LORD sends against you. He
will put an iron yoke on your neck until he has destroyed you. {49} The
LORD will bring a nation against you from far away, from the ends of the
earth, like an eagle swooping down, a nation whose language you will not
understand, {50} a fierce-looking nation without respect for the old or
pity for the young. {51} They will devour the young of your livestock
and the crops of your land until you are destroyed. They will leave you
no grain, new wine or oil, nor any calves of your herds or lambs of your
flocks until you are ruined. {52} They will lay siege to all the cities
throughout your land until the high fortified walls in which you trust
fall down. They will besiege all the cities throughout the land the LORD
your God is giving you. {53} Because of the suffering that your enemy
will inflict on you during the siege, you will eat the fruit of the
womb, the flesh of the sons and daughters the LORD your God has given
you. {54} Even the most gentle and sensitive man among you will have no
compassion on his own brother or the wife he loves or his surviving
children, {55} and he will not give to one of them any of the flesh of
his children that he is eating. It will be all he has left because of
the suffering your enemy will inflict on you during the siege of all
your cities. {56} The most gentle and sensitive woman among you--so
sensitive and gentle that she would not venture to touch the ground with
the sole of her foot--will begrudge the husband she loves and her own
son or daughter {57} the afterbirth from her womb and the children she
bears. For she intends to eat them secretly during the siege and in the
distress that your enemy will inflict on you in your cities. {58} If you
do not carefully follow all the words of this law, which are written in
this book, and do not revere this glorious and awesome name--the LORD
your God-- {59} the LORD will send fearful plagues on you and your
descendants, harsh and prolonged disasters, and severe and lingering
illnesses. {60} He will bring upon you all the diseases of Egypt that
you dreaded, and they will cling to you. {61} The LORD will also bring
on you every kind of sickness and disaster not recorded in this Book of
the Law, until you are destroyed. {62} You who were as numerous as the
stars in the sky will be left but few in number, because you did not
obey the LORD your God. {63} Just as it pleased the LORD to make you
prosper and increase in number, so it will please him to ruin and
destroy you. You will be uprooted from the land you are entering to
possess. {64} Then the LORD will scatter you among all nations, from one
end of the earth to the other. There you will worship other gods--gods
of wood and stone, which neither you nor your fathers have known.
[Shades of the inquisition on Jews in Spain and elsewhere.]
These are all physical penalties of sins. But what of
spiritual penalties?
(Rom 6:16 NIV) Don't you know that when you offer
yourselves to someone to obey him as slaves, you are slaves to the one
whom you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to
death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?
Do we enslave ourselves to sin? Do we give in to sin? Do we
tell ourselves that sin just doesn't matter? Do we tire of the battle? If
we give in to sin, we enslave ourselves to it. We are just like the drug
addict who toys with the forbidden substance long enough to become
enslaved by it, though he didn't intend to become enslaved when he
started. Sin is very addictive.
(Rom 6:23 NKJV) For the wages of sin is death, but the gift
of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Broken laws cause death and suffering. It's just not worth
it. But, as we said earlier, some may say, no one will know of this sin.
(Num 32:23 NKJV) "But if you do not do so, then take note,
you have sinned against the LORD; and be sure your sin will find you
out.
(2 Sam 12:13 NKJV) So David said to Nathan, "I have sinned
against the LORD." And Nathan said to David, "The LORD also has put away
your sin; you shall not die.
Yes, David repented and meant it. But, one person's sin can
cause another's death. While David learned that with the death of his
infant son, both King Saul and Judas paid for their sins with their own
lives.
Is sin that serious to us. Can we clearly see that sin is
really dangerous? Do we agree that compliance with God's instructions is
beneficial?
The next two scriptures describe the second death which
awaits all sinners who are not forgiven:
(Rev 20:14 NKJV) Then Death and Hades were cast into the
lake of fire. This is the second death.
(Oba 1:15-16 CJB) "The day of Adonai is near for all
nations. As you did, it will be done to you; your dealings will come
back on your own head. {16} For just as you have drunk on my holy
mountain, so will all the nations drink in turn; yes, they will drink
and gulp it down and be as if they had never existed.
Repentance is mandatory
3. The third major point of this sermon is: We must
repent of sin and seek forgiveness.
(Acts 2:38 NKJV) Then Peter said to them, "Repent, and let
every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the
remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
It's not always easy to truly repent of our sins, but it's
something we must all do - often.
(1 John 1:9 NKJV) If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.
But if we confess our sins before God and others we
have sinned against, we will be forgiven. How can we learn the
proper attitude of repentance?
Psa 51 contains David’s words of true repentance for his sins
when the prophet Nathan came to him after David had committed adultery
with Bathsheba and had her husband Uriah killed:
"Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love;
according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions. {2} Wash
away all my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin. {3} For I know my
transgressions, and my sin is always before me. {4} Against you, you
only, have I sinned and done what is evil in your sight, so that you are
proved right when you speak and justified when you judge. {5} Surely I
was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me. {6}
Surely you desire truth in the inner parts ; you teach me wisdom in the
inmost place. {7} Cleanse me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me,
and I will be whiter than snow. {8} Let me hear joy and gladness; let
the bones you have crushed rejoice. {9} Hide your face from my sins and
blot out all my iniquity. {10} Create in me a pure heart, O God, and
renew a steadfast spirit within me. {11} Do not cast me from your
presence or take your Holy Spirit from me. {12} Restore to me the joy of
your salvation and grant me a willing spirit, to sustain me. {13} Then I
will teach transgressors your ways, and sinners will turn back to you.
{14} Save me from bloodguilt, O God, the God who saves me, and my tongue
will sing of your righteousness. {15} O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth
will declare your praise. {16} You do not delight in sacrifice, or I
would bring it; you do not take pleasure in burnt offerings. {17} The
sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O
God, you will not despise. {18} In your good pleasure make Zion prosper;
build up the walls of Jerusalem. {19} Then there will be righteous
sacrifices, whole burnt offerings to delight you; then bulls will be
offered on your altar."
David's prayer of repentance teaches us that we must
acknowledge our sins before God, request God’s forgiveness and cleansing,
and promise to turn around and live God’s way instead of our own way.
Overcoming Sin
4. The fourth major point of this sermon is that we must
overcome sin. This is something many never accomplish. This lesson was
taught early in man’s existence. In Genesis 4, God encouraged Cain to do
better.
(Gen 4:7 NKJV) "If you do well, will you not be accepted?
And if you do not do well, sin lies [is crouching] at the door. And its
desire is for you, but you should rule over it."
Cain was being encouraged and warned by God. He wanted Cain
to change. His warning to Cain certainly applies to us. Sins's desire is
to pull us down, but we can rule over sin. We must put sin out. We
must strive for perfection. Is this possible?
In Romans chapters 6-8, Paul, recognizing that committed
Christians are under grace (unmerited pardon), describes a Christian’s
proper reaction to sin better than I ever could. In chapter 6, he
eliminates some wrong ideas regarding teachings about grace. In chapter 7,
he shows that in the struggle against sin, the believer must not condemn
the law. Then in chapter 8, he pictures sin as a powerful tyrant that
cannot be defeated by human effort alone. It requires God’s Spirit
residing in the converted Christian. Paul concludes these chapters by
pointing out how victory can be attained. We’ve read some of these verses
before but let’s read these chapters:
Romans 6 – Being under grace:
(Rom 6 NKJV) What shall we say then? Shall we continue in
sin that grace may abound? {2} Certainly not! How shall we who died to
sin live any longer in it? {3} Or do you not know that as many of us as
were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? {4}
Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just
as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so
we also should walk in newness of life. {5} For if we have been united
together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the
likeness of His resurrection, {6} knowing this, that our old man was
crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that
we should no longer be slaves of sin. {7} For he who has died has been
freed from sin. {8} Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall
also live with Him, {9} knowing that Christ, having been raised from the
dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. {10} For the
death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He
lives, He lives to God. {11} Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be
dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. {12}
Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey
it in its lusts. {13} And do not present your members as instruments of
unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive
from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God.
{14} For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law
but under grace. {15} What then? Shall we sin because we are not under
law but under grace? Certainly not! {16} Do you not know that to whom
you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one's slaves whom
you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to
righteousness? {17} But God be thanked that though you were slaves of
sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you
were delivered. {18} And having been set free from sin, you became
slaves of righteousness. {19} I speak in human terms because of the
weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves
of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now
present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness. {20} For
when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness.
{21} What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now
ashamed? For the end of those things is death. {22} But now having been
set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit
to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. {23} For the wages of sin is
death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 7 – Don’t condemn the law (instructions), a weakness
of much of Protestantism:
(Rom 7 NKJV) Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to
those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as
he lives? {2} For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her
husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released
from the law of her husband. {3} So then if, while her husband lives,
she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her
husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress,
though she has married another man. {4} Therefore, my brethren, you also
have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be
married to another; to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should
bear fruit to God. {5} For when we were in the flesh, the sinful
passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to
bear fruit to death. {6} But now we have been delivered from the
[penalties of the] law, having died to what we were held by, so that we
should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the
letter. {7} What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On
the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I
would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, "You shall
not covet." {8} But sin, taking opportunity by the commandment, produced
in me all manner of evil desire. For apart from the law sin was dead.
{9} I was alive once without the law, but when the commandment came, sin
revived and I died. {10} And the commandment, which was to bring life, I
found to bring death. {11} For sin, taking occasion by the commandment,
deceived me, and by it killed me. {12} Therefore the law is holy, and
the commandment holy and just and good. {13} Has then what is good
become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin,
was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the
commandment might become exceedingly sinful. {14} For we know that the
law is spiritual, but I am carnal, sold under sin. {15} 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. {16} If, then, I do what I will
not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. {17} But now, it is no
longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. {18} For I know that in
me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present
with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. {19} For the
good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that
I practice. {20} Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I
who do it, but sin that dwells in me. {21} I find then a law, that evil
is present with me, the one who wills to do good. {22} For I delight in
the law of God according to the inward man. {23} But I see another law
in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into
captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. {24} O wretched man
that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? {25} I thank
God; through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself
serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.
Romans 8 – Sin cannot be defeated without God’s Spirit.
(Rom 8 NKJV) There is therefore now no condemnation to
those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh,
but according to the Spirit. {2} For the law of the Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death. {3} For
what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did
by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of
sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, {4} that the righteous requirement
of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the
flesh but according to the Spirit. {5} For those who live according to
the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live
according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. {6} For to be
carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and
peace. {7} Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not
subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. {8} So then, those who are
in the flesh cannot please God. {9} But you are not in the flesh but in
the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone
does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. {10} And if Christ is
in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because
of righteousness. {11} But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from
the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also
give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.
{12} Therefore, brethren, we are debtors; not to the flesh, to live
according to the flesh. {13} For if you live according to the flesh you
will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body,
you will live. {14} For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these
are sons of God. {15} For you did not receive the spirit of bondage
again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry
out, "Abba, Father." {16} The Spirit Himself bears witness with our
spirit that we are children of God, {17} and if children, then heirs;
heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him,
that we may also be glorified together. {18} For I consider that the
sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the
glory which shall be revealed in us. {19} For the earnest expectation of
the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. {20}
For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because
of Him who subjected it in hope; {21} because the creation itself also
will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious
liberty of the children of God. {22} For we know that the whole creation
groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. {23} Not only
that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we
ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the
redemption of our body. {24} For we were saved in this hope, but hope
that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees?
{25} But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with
perseverance. {26} Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For
we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit
Itself makes intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.
{27} Now He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit
is, because He makes intercession for the saints according to the will
of God. {28} And we know that all things work together for good to those
who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. {29}
For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image
of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. {30}
Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called,
these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.
{31} What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can
be against us? {32} He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him
up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?
{33} Who shall bring a charge against God's elect? It is God who
justifies. {34} Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and
furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who
also makes intercession for us. {35} Who shall separate us from the love
of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or
nakedness, or peril, or sword? {36} As it is written: "For Your sake we
are killed all day long; We are accounted as sheep for the slaughter."
{37} Yet in all these things we are more than conquerors through Him who
loved us. {38} For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor
angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to
come, {39} nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be
able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
We can not overcome sin by ourselves. Overcoming requires the
Holy Spirit.
(1 Cor 6:9-11 NKJV) Do you not know that the unrighteous
will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither
fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor
sodomites, {10} nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers,
nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. {11} And such were
some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you
were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our
God.
The wicked (sinners), who are led by the sins of the flesh,
will not be in God's Kingdom.
(Psa 51:10 NIV) Create in me a pure heart, O God, and renew
a steadfast spirit within me.
God must create in us a clean heart.
God must be certain of us. He won't take any chances on us.
That point was made earlier, but we must keep reminding ourselves of it.
(1 John 3:6 NIV) No one who lives in him keeps on sinning.
No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.
People who repeatedly sin the same sin don't know God. They
are being led by the flesh, not by God’s Spirit.
In conclusion, God can not sin because his character won't
allow it. We must strive to develop that kind of character.
Let's rededicate ourselves to hanging in there and following
God’s Spirit, not the pulls of the flesh. We gotta accentuate the positive
and eliminate the negative.
Sermon
given by Wayne Bedwell
31
July 2010
Copyright 2010, Wayne Bedwell
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