Wednesday 6 November 2013

Read Ecclesiastes 8:8. Genesis 4:6. Romans 6:6-7

There’s an old hymn, one I dearly love, that captures beautifully the theme of today’s readings. Horatio Palmer wrote in the hymn Yield Not To Temptation the words

Yield not to temptation for yielding is sin

Each victory will help you some other to win

Fight manfully onward, dark passions subdue

Look ever to Jesus, He will carry you through.

Ecclesiastes 8:8 captures the negative of the second line of Yield Not To Temptation. Sin, which crouches at the door of our heart and desires to have mastery over us, will not release us while we continue to practice sin in our heart, head or in our hands (that is our actions).

Unfortunately I’ve seen dozens, if not hundreds, possibly even thousands of genuine believers still chained to sin and bad habits. Several have even concluded that they can’t change and have given up fighting. What misery! What tragedy!

Romans 6 declares rightly that we have been freed from slavery to sin. Through Jesus’ death and resurrection we have been made slaves to Christ. But all too often we live as slaves to sin, not slaves to Christ! Can you imagine a die-hard bronco’s fan going to the opposition’s stadium and barracking for the opposition? When we sin we are going to the opposition’s stadium and are barracking for the enemy!

Christ gives us the authority and the ability to say NO to sin. He gives us everything we need to live a life of godliness. He has freed us from the mastery of sin. But when we do sin, we make a choice to return to sin and we dejectedly hold out our wrists to be chained yet again. Think of sin as a monster living within us. When we choose to enter into sin, we feed that monster and it grows more powerful over us.

The solution is to look to Jesus and to take the course of abstinence. “Cold Turkey” is the best option for sin. Jesus has given us the power to overcome. We have to walk in that power. We have to climb out of the boat onto the waves before we will see victory. Yet often we hesitate because we want to keep sinning. We want to enjoy the pleasures of sin so we refuse to take drastic action.

As no one is discharged in time of war,

so wickedness will not realize those who practice it.

It is time to stop feeding the monster within you. It’s time to walk in the victory of Christ and to say NO to sin and temptation.

Prayer:

Write down your prayer points in the space provided. Use today’s reading to help you get ideas.

Adoration:

Confession:

Thanks:

Supplication:

Pray that God would give you mastery over the sin in your life. Perhaps you can spend time confessing your sins first and then

 ª ask for this mastery in Christ Jesus. Pray that God would give you wisdom in abstaining from that particular sin completely.

ª Pray that each person in your congregation would be living in the victory of Christ Jesus day by day. Pray that there would be a growing holiness throughout your congregation and that each person would see the victory of Christ in real terms each and every day.

Discussion Questions For Families and Groups

1. If a Christian doesn’t agree with a government law that has been passed, what should or could he or she do?

2. At what point is disobedience to a particular government justified for a believer? Can you give any current day examples where disobedience is justified?