Killing Sin Part 2 | Romans 8:13
Last week, I began to explain that for those of us who are “in Christ,” we can choose to live a life marked by victory or by injury. I illustrated my point by showing you pictures of three different men who pitched for the Arizona Diamondbacks.
- The first man is rookie relief pitcher Eddie Oropesa.
- Next is the current Diamondback starting pitcher Archie Bradley who was seriously injured this year on the field
- The third picture is Hall of Fame pitcher, Randy Johnson.
All three of these men have something in common: Whether they played well or poorly, or got injured in the game, they are major league pitchers. The biggest difference between them lies in how they played the game. This morning I’d like to use these three examples from baseball to describe types of believers.
- Last week I talked about the believer who is a rookie on the team, someone just beginning their battle against sin. They are progressing and working hard. Here is a quick recap of last week’s teaching:
#1 You’re on the team: realize who you are in Christ
The killing off of sin is not a means of salvation but the end result of salvation. The good news of the gospel is not “kill off you sin and then you’ll be accepted by God.” The message of the gospel is “God accepts you on the basis of grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone.” Once you and I are placed into the family of God, then we have the power to pursue holiness and the joy of its rewards.
It was important to first establish who we are in Christ. Todays’ passage has direct application to 2 other kinds of Christians:
- One who is injured, the are in a wrestling match between sin and the Holy Spirit. The struggle has placed them on the sidelines.
- One who is living victoriously, someone who is allowing the Holy Spirit to perform His sin-killing ministry
John Owen famously said, “Be killing sin or it will be killing you
#2 Sin can cripple you and render you ineffective
Diamondback starting pitcher Archie Bradley made news in April of this year when he was struck in the face and seriously injured by a 115 mile per hour line drive off the bat of Carlos Gonzalez.
When Bradley got hit in the face with a line drive, it completely took over his life. The injury was so severe, that he was completely unable to function until he took take care of the damage related to that injury. The baseball game stopped and they took him off the field. Someone else finished in his place.
When you and I allow sin to come into our lives, it can quickly overpower us like a 115 mile an hour line drive to the face. It can make us unable to accomplish anything else in the kingdom until the injury from that sin has been addressed.
Sin never sleeps. It is relentless.
- Sin is out to ruin us.
- It seeks to drag us as far away from a victorious life.
- It seeks to derail our spiritual journey.
Sin is dangerous. You and I will never allow the Holy Spirit to deal with sin as dramatically as it needs to be dealt with until we are convinced that sin is our greatest adversary.
Sin’s dangerous nature lies at the heart of the statement, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die.” (Rom. 8:13a) Sin is out to trap you, enslave you, knock you down, and even kill you if it can. Too often we tolerate sins like ungodly anger, materialism, and worry because we don’t see those things the same way that Jesus does.
It is easy to claim that sin is an awful thing while at the same time assuming that our own personal, minor offenses are little more than slight variations on overly rigid rules. I’ll say things like, “I might drive a couple miles over the speed limit, but at least I don’t smoke pot.”
I can treat my sins as little more than annoying warts while treating the sins of others as infected, open wounds. Christ doesn’t see it that way. He never sees my little, annoying, wart-like sin as no big deal. He sees every sin as a cancerous spot that requires being cut out before it grows any larger. Sin is dangerous, it is crippling. Let me give you two quick reasons why sin is so dangerous:
-1. Sin deceives us.
Hebrews 3:13 says, “…exhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.” Sin deceives us.
Sin will present itself as something other than what it really is. It is often in disguise. It can look satisfying, but hidden beneath its pleasant exterior is death and destruction. It’s like chocolate covered poison – it tastes great at first, but in the end it will kill you.
Solomon was warning his son about the dark sin of adultery. Listen to his description of this sugar-coated sin… Proverb 5 3-6 says,
“3 For the lips of a forbidden woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil, 4 but in the end she is bitter as wormwood, sharp as a two-edged sword. 5 Her feet go down to death; her steps follow the path to Sheol; 6 she does not ponder the path of life; her ways wander, and she does not know it.
Sin blinds us to the warning of our conscience and then it tries to kill us. It is dangerous, deceitful, and desensitizing.
-2. Sin desensitizes us to the Spirit’s leading
Romans 12:2 says, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”
If the goal of Christian discipleship is to be “transformed by the renewal of your mind,” so that ultimately you and I look more like Jesus. The opposite of that goal is to be “conformed to this world.” Sin conforms you and I to the world and disables our attempts to do what is good and acceptable and perfect in the sight of God.
Sin divides our hearts. A baseball playing astronaut can’t be whole-heartedly committed to being the world’s greatest pitcher and the world’s greatest astronaut. Trying to do both things will divide his heart and render him ineffective.
Spiritually, you and I can’t be seeking both the empty promises and pleasures offered by this fallen world and the authentic promises and pleasures offered by God. Trying to conform to both the world and to the will of God will result in conforming to neither.
I visited a man’s house last week and in his front room he had constructed an interfaith shrine. On this shrine, he had relics from Buddhism, Hinduism and Catholicism all sitting side by side while K-LOVE was playing the background. It brought to mind the passage in Joshua 24:15 that says, “choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your fathers served in the region beyond the River, or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
Serving the false gods of this world doesn’t strengthen our faith. It disintegrates the souls of the unsaved and disfigures the image of God in those who are saved. Choosing conformity to this world over the transformation of the Spirit ultimately makes us less than what God intended. It renders us crippled.
- It’s hard to be an effective player when you are laying in a hospital bed or sitting in the dugout.
- It is hard to have a life marked by victory when we are recovering from injury.
So what does it take to keep ourselves from getting repeatedly clobbered by sin? How do we live victoriously for Jesus? A person who is actively engaged in victorious Christian living quickly realize when their actions have turned into sin and are grieving the Holy Spirit. They take immediate action against anything that would enslave them in a trap of sin.
#3 Victorious Christians keep their eye on the goal
Over the course of Randy Johnson’s Major League career, he made over $175 million dollars. He earned multiple Cy Young Awards and a position on multiple All Star teams. He was named co-MVP of the 2001 World Series. AND… the list goes on.. Could you imagine a player like that ever saying these words to his coach:
“I don’t think I feel like a Major League ball player today. I’m kinda scared of getting hit by the ball actually. I think today I’m just gonna sit on the sidelines and eat a hot dog instead of playing.”
Why would he never say those words? He would never say that because Hall of Fame athletes don’t give up. They play with a goal in mind and victory in sight.
A professional athlete plays with an earthly victory for their team in view and with the promise of monetary rewards. The believer is playing for something much more important. We live out our lives with eternal rewards hanging in the balance. Being richly rewarded by God for all of eternity is a far better goal than just receiving a fat paycheck or a place in the Hall of Fame.
Listen to what 2 Peter 1:10-11 says about the reward given to those who are diligent in pursuing their God-given calling, “ …[B]rothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. 11 For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
In other words, those who are in Christ (and who prove that they are in Christ by living out their lives according to the Spirit) will not only be given entrance into the eternal kingdom of heaven. They will be “richly provided” for by the God who is the maker, creator, owner and ruler of all things.
It is not just an entrance, but an abundant (KJV) and triumphant entry into the God’s everlasting Kingdom. When the gates of heaven are opened to let these people in, it is a party of epic proportions!
God is not telling us to work really hard in an attempt to earn our salvation. He gave us salvation as a gift. He is telling us to live out our lives to His glory so that we can enjoy riches in His kingdom that last forever!
Jesus said, in Matthew 6:19-21, “19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”
If we thought of ourselves increasingly as pilgrims of eternity (which is exactly what we are) then our whole outlook on life would be transformed. Paul has stated here in Romans 8:11b to, in essence, keep your eye on your eternal life, your eternal body and your eternal destination. He said, “he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”
More directly, the Apostle John says in 1 John 3:3, “3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure.” The trouble with most believers is that we live too much like those around us who are still enslaved to the world. We quickly forget that we are pilgrims and strangers here. Peter says in 1 Peter 2:11, “Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.”
We don’t belong here, God’s Word says that we are citizens of heaven so there is no use getting entangled with those who are enemies of the cross. Consider Paul’s exhortation in Philippians 3:17-21, “17 Brothers, join in imitating me, and keep your eyes on those who walk according to the example you have in us. 18 For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things. 20 But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, 21 who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enables him even to subject all things to himself.”
If we keep our eternal home and the promise of heavenly rewards firmly at the forefront of our minds, think of how different our choices might become!
- I’m a citizen of heaven.
- My goal is eternal rewards from my Father.
- I ultimately belong to God’s household as a prince and a co-heir with Jesus Himself.
A human analogy might be helpful to show this truth even more clearly:
Let’s say I’m tempted to do something illegal in my business practice. As I consider the outcome of my choices, I remember that I’m a father. I have a wife and kids who count on me to do the right thing. I don’t want to let them down, nor do I want to bring disgrace on our family name. I’m a Stafford and I want the name of our family to represent something honorable in this community.
OK, so multiply that feeling by an infinite measure and remember that your citizenship is in heaven. Your goal is eternal rewards from my Father. The weight of that truth is meant to hit you like a ton of bricks. The nature of your citizenship as a believer carries significance beyond measure. Here on earth, you represent the honor and reputation of the family of God. You belong in the eternal Kingdom. You are remaining here for a short while only as a temporary representative.
Application
God is calling you and I to allow the Spirit of God to kill off our old lives so that we can live like who we really are – so that we can live like Children of the Most High God. Romans 8:13 is a call to action. Let’s take one last look at it. It says, “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.”
- Do you know about a sin in your life that needs to be put to death?
- What is there in your life right now that needs to die so that something new can live?
The modern world makes huge allowances for sinful behavior. Our society’s tolerance level for sin is absolutely off-the-charts! But… children of the King don’t play by the same rule book as the modern world. Sin in our lives can’t somehow be redeemed and transformed into holiness any more than cancer in our body can be treated and turned into medicine.
- Both sin and cancer must be cut out; neither are your friends.
- Both will try to kill you; neither can be allowed to live.
The harsh, impatient word, the lustful eye, and the greedy hand aren’t to just be suppressed or medicated. The Bible says to allow God’s Spirit to do His work of killing those desires within you. Cut off their life-line. The way forward in living a victorious Christian life is to refuse to let sin to cripple our walk. It is a rugged, take-no-prisoners, determination to stop the indulgence of sin and to pursue righteousness no matter what the cost.
For those of us who are “in Christ,” we can choose to live a life marked by victory or by injury. Which will you choose? A victorious life takes a lot of courage but our incentive is the promise of abundant life and our helper in none other than the mighty Holy Spirit of God Himself.
– Pastor Mark
[1] Owen, John “Of the mortification of Sin in Believers,” Page 5
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