28 February 2016
I. Introduction
-- turn in
Bibles to Proverbs 4:13-15
Proverbs 4:13-15 (NIV)
13 Hold on to instruction, do not let it go; guard it well,
for it is your life.
14 Do not set foot on the path of the wicked or walk in the
way of evil men.
15 Avoid it, do not travel on it; turn from it and go on
your way.
-- since
the start of this new year, we have not really been following a sermon series
per se, but we have been on somewhat of a sermon trajectory discussing sin in
our lives and how we might be victorious over sin in this new year -- it wasn’t
even intentional on my part, but looking back, that’s exactly what has happened
-- we
started off the new year by talking about the hand on the table -- referencing
Jesus’ comment in the Upper Room to His disciples that the one who would betray
Him was the one who had their hand on the table with Him -- calling to mind
that all of us are prone to temptation and sin -- as the hymn, “Come Thou
Fount,” says, all of us are “prone to wonder” and “prone to leave the Lord I
love”
-- we
followed up this message with a discussion on original sin and the sin nature
with which we are all born -- it was this sin nature that Jesus came to destroy
on the cross -- He didn’t die just to offer us forgiveness for the sins we had
already committed, but He destroyed the power of that sin nature in our lives
so that we might be able to actually overcome temptation and sin for the first
time
-- then we
looked at 1 John 2:1, which points out that sin is a choice in the life of a
Christian -- and that we are no longer condemned to give in to temptation and
sin -- just as Jesus told the adulterous woman to “go and sin no more,” we now
have the ability to choose to do the same
-- we
talked about how the power to choose not to sin was solely dependent on the
sanctifying grace of the Holy Spirit in our lives -- as we read in Jude 24, God
has the power to keep us from falling -- that means that choosing to not sin is
an act of faith in God’s power and ability to overcome our natural bent to sin
-- apart
from the work of Christ in our lives, we have no power over temptation or sin,
but it is by grace, through faith, relying on His power and His alone, that we
begin to see victory over sin
-- last
week we talked about how we can begin to incorporate the power of the Holy
Spirit into our lives by being broken and poured out -- just as Christ was
broken and poured out for us on the cross, He commands us through the sacrament
of Holy Communion to go forth and do likewise -- to be broken and poured out
for Him
-- to be broken
before God means admitting that we cannot take care of our sin on our own --
that we need more than just to have our sins forgiven -- that we need Him to
give us the power to overcome temptation and sin in our lives once and for all
-- it is at that point that we are broken before him, surrendered and submitted
to him, and available to be poured out in his name for this world.
-- so the
progression of belief that is necessary in order to overcome temptation and sin
in our lives is as follows:
1. Admit that you are capable of sin and that
the natural direction in our lives is not towards God, but away from God
2. Recognize the source of sin in your life is
your sin nature -- the original sin you were born with -- everyone has this --
it is common to all mankind
3. Believe that the power of our sin nature --
our flesh -- our “old man” -- has been destroyed by Christ on the cross and now
we can choose to not sin through Him
4. Be broken before God by submitting to His
sanctifying power in our lives -- stop trying to overcome sin through our own
strength and will-power -- instead, recognize that we are still powerless
before sin, and the only way we can overcome sin is through God’s power in our
lives
II. Scripture Lesson
-- This
morning we’re going to talk about application -- about putting all this
together and applying it in our lives -- in other words, how can we put our
faith into practice to better overcome temptation and sin?
-- which
brings us to the Book of Proverbs and the passage we opened up with -- Proverbs
4:13-15 -- in this passage, we see some very practical tips on dealing with
temptation and sin in our lives -- let’s look back at this passage again
-- verse 13
13 Hold on to
instruction, do not let it go; guard it well, for it is your life.
-- “hold on
to instruction” -- what instruction is Solomon referring to in this verse? --
primarily, of course, he’s talking about the word of God
-- in order
to overcome temptation and sin, we first have to know what sin is -- and we
find that primarily in God’s word -- it is in the Bible that we learn what God
wants us to do and what He does not want us to do
-- several
times over in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul gave us lists of what to
avoid and what to choose -- for instance, over in Colossians Chapter 3, Paul
tells us, “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:
sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry”
and to clothe ourselves “with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and
patience. Bear with each other and
forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another.”
-- the
Bible is filled with this type of instruction -- that’s a good place to start
-- which brings up an important point -- you have to be in the Bible -- you
have to actually read God’s word -- to know what God’s word says -- I can’t
emphasize that enough -- it is not enough to just hear the Bible read on Sunday
morning -- you have to make it part of your life if you want to get serious
about defeating sin
-- Psalm
119:11 says, “I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against
you” -- we need to hide God’s word in our heart -- Solomon calls it “holding on
to instruction” in this verse -- that means you have to be reading God’s word
daily -- immerse yourself into it and hold on to its teachings
-- the
thing to remember, though, is that the Bible gives us the principles of God --
it won’t cover every situation -- but by knowing the types of things God tells
us to get rid of, it provides guidance to help us make right choices in this
modern age
-- and, of
course, we have the Holy Spirit indwelling us -- giving us His power and His
counsel and guidance in situations -- as you submit to Him and trust through faith
in His power working within you, you will come to know and hear His voice
guiding you and instructing you in what is right and what is not -- Isaiah
30:21 says, “Whether you turn to the right or to the left, your ears will hear
a voice behind you, saying, “this is the way; walk in it.”
-- power
over temptation and sin begins with knowing what is right and what is not and
holding on to this knowledge in your life -- hiding it deep in your heart so
you will not sin against God
-- verse 14
14 Do not set foot on
the path of the wicked or walk in the way of evil men.
-- in other
words, be careful with whom you associate -- don’t follow the pattern of other
people who are not walking with God
-- it has
been said that you are the sum of your five closest friends -- in other words,
you will begin to look like the people you surround yourself with -- in action
and attitude and belief
-- if you
spend all your time with people who aren’t following God’s word or trying to
choose not to sin, then you’re going to start acting like them -- as the Life
Application Bible says, “even friends can make you fall” -- it’s just too easy
to go with the crowd and begin doing what they are doing, often without you
even knowing it
-- I’ve
seen this lived out in real life at my work place -- a few years ago, we got a
new commander who cussed a lot, even in meetings -- honestly, I think he did it
because he thought it would make him look tough and manly -- and, it wasn’t
long after he got there that I noticed that a lot of the younger military men
and women began using the same language -- because their boss was doing it,
they began to do it -- you’d hear them cussing in conversations in the hall or
around water cooler or out on the jobsite
-- but when
this commander was replaced with another commander who was more professional in
his choice of words in meetings and conversation, the overall communication in
the squadron improved -- people stopped cussing like sailors in the hallway and
in meetings and they started acting more respectful to those around them
-- it
points out what Solomon is saying here -- friends can make you fall, because
you will start acting like they act
-- this is
especially hard for young people, who are subjected to so much peer pressure
and who are around a lot of people who are not godly individuals -- it’s hard
for someone in that situation to confront or criticize their friends because
they’re doing wrong things -- and it can be hard to choose to do the right
thing and walk away when everyone else is doing something wrong -- that’s where
you have to make a hard choice and really depend on the Holy Spirit to give you
His power and strength
-- I heard
an interview on Focus on the Family one time with a young man who had started a
Bible club at his school -- the person interviewing him asked him how he handled
the peer pressure -- how was he able to continue to do what was right while
everyone else was pressuring him to do wrong? -- and I loved his response -- he
told the interviewer, “In my school, I am the peer pressure” -- in other words,
rather than letting the world influence him, he was actively influencing them
to the point where they were choosing to follow his lead rather than vice versa
-- choose who you are going to be and don’t let anyone negatively influence you
--
Solomon’s recommendation here is that if your friends are causing you to walk
down wicked paths or are causing you to make wrong choices, you need to get
away from them and find better friends -- and that goes for all of us
-- if you
are so influenced by the people you are surrounded with, then you need to be
very careful who you allow into your life -- you don’t want just anybody to
influence you -- and that goes for your attitudes and beliefs, as well as for
the things you do
-- Verse 15
15 Avoid it, do not
travel on it; turn from it and go on your way.
-- avoid
temptation, avoid sin -- turn away from it in your life and don’t go near it
-- here’s a
question for you -- do you learn from your sins? -- Are you learning how to
avoid sins, so the next time you’re tempted, you are better able to overcome
it?
-- sin is
going to happen -- it just is -- but are you learning from your experience?
-- thinking
about this reminded me of the movie, “Groundhog Day” -- I assume if you haven’t
seen the movie, at least you’re familiar with the plot -- Bill Murray gets
trapped in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania, on Groundhog Day and he ends up living the same day
over and over again -- it’s only when he starts learning from his mistakes and
starts improving himself and his life that he’s finally able to get out of this
time loop
--
that’s how we need to approach sin in our lives -- we should look at sin as
more than just failure -- we should look at it as an opportunity to grow and
move on -- to learn from our mistakes
-- when you
sin, think about what happened -- what were the circumstances? -- what were the
particulars that led you to that temptation and that caused you to give into
that sin? -- and then think about how you might avoid that situation or that
feeling or that action the next time
-- let me
give you an example -- let’s say you’re walking around in your yard today and
you fall in a hole -- how are you going to avoid falling in that same hole
again? -- you’d probably mark it, so you would be able to walk around it,
right? -- or you’d fill it in so it’s not there anymore
-- same
principle with sin -- learn from your mistakes so you can avoid that temptation
and sin in the future -- and if what you tried this time didn’t work, try
something else
-- remember
the quote from Einstein: “The definition of insanity is doing the same thing in
the same way and expecting different results” -- if what you’re doing is not
working, then change what you are doing
-- I
remember when I was at ABAC, we were in a class on spraying herbicides and
pesticides -- the instructor was going over safety principles we should follow
to avoid getting the chemicals on us -- he asked if anyone had ever gotten
contaminated with chemicals before -- one kid raised his hand and said, “Yeah,
every year I end up getting chemicals all over me” -- the teacher said, “That’s
just stupid -- why don’t you learn how to do it right so you won’t do it again
this year?”
-- we
should learn from our mistakes -- learn from our sins -- If you know an area
where you were weak, or if you know something that causes you to stumble or
fall, avoid that -- Solomon says, “turn from it and go the other way” -- learn
to avoid the temptations in your life
-- I know
I’ve mentioned this guy before, but it’s just such an obvious thing I have to
mention it again -- I was counseling a guy who was having a problem with
alcohol -- he had lost his job -- he had lost his wife -- and he spent all day
drinking -- and his mother asked me to come and talk with him -- so I did and I
kept dropping by and checking on him
-- one day,
he was so excited because he had found a job -- guess where? -- a liquor store
-- if you have a problem with alcohol, you probably need to avoid liquor stores
-- whatever
sin is hindering you -- whatever sin and temptation in your life that is
tripping you up, you need to identify it and avoid it -- the best way to stay
out of trouble is to not go where trouble is in the first place
-- trust
the Holy Spirit -- He’ll guide you -- He’ll point out where you’re weak and the
conditions that got you in trouble -- and trust that He’ll show you the way out
-- 1
Corinthians 10:13 says, “No temptation has seized you except what is common to
man. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can
bear. -- But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you
can stand up under it.”
-- when you
are tempted, look for the exit -- avoid the situation -- choose to follow God
and the promptings of the Holy Spirit rather than giving in to temptation and
sin one more time
III. Closing
-- I want
to close by sharing with you a story about Rich Mullins -- a lot of you are
familiar with the name -- Mullins was a very famous and admired Christian
musician and songwriter -- he died in 1997 in a car wreck at the age of 41
-- Mullins
once confessed in a concert that he struggled with watching pornography while
traveling alone -- One of his spiritual mentors told him, "It's not that
you're so bad, it's just that you're not supposed to go out by yourself."
-- So
Mullins took a friend along with him on a trip to Amsterdam near its famous
red-light district -- he said he was hoping his friend would fall fast asleep
and start snoring so, as Mullins put it, "I thought, 'Maybe it would be
fun to just take a walk and be tempted.'"
-- so
Mullins sat up all night -- he waited until 5:00 in the morning for his friend
to start snoring, but he never did -- and while he was waiting -- in the midst
of his temptation -- Mullins picked up a notebook and wrote the words to one of
his more popular songs, 'Hold Me, Jesus':
“And I wake up in the night and feel the
dark
It's so hot inside
my soul
I swear there must
be blisters on my heart
So hold me Jesus,
'cause I'm shaking like a leaf
You have been King
of my glory
Won't You be my
Prince of Peace"
[Source: Luke Gilkerson, "'Hold Me Jesus': A Prayer for Porn Addiction,"
Covenant Eyes, June 17, 2010.]
-- you see,
temptation comes on us all -- that darkness that Mullins spoke of in that song
is in each of us -- from the newborn babe in Christ -- the new believer -- all
the way to the mature saint and the Christian leader -- there is in all of us
this natural bent to disobey God and give in to temptation and sin
-- but the
good news of the Bible is that because of Christ’s death on the cross, we are
no longer bound by sin, but we have the ability to choose God over temptation
and sin -- before we were Christians, we didn’t have a choice -- sin held sway
in our lives -- but now, through the power of the Holy Spirit inside of us, sin
has lost its grasp and we no longer have to listen to it or give into
temptation and sin -- because of Jesus’ death on the cross, we can choose to do
what is right
-- Solomon
gave us some practical tips in this passage to help us do just that:
--
hold onto the instruction of the word of God
--
be careful who you let influence your life
--
and avoid the situations and the conditions that cause you to give into temptation
and sin -- as Paul put it to Timothy, “flee from these things”
-- as I
close, I want you to know who are you now -- you are the people of God -- you
have within you the power of the risen Christ -- you are no longer a person who
has no choice but to sin -- instead, Christ has given you the power to choose a
better way -- a better path
-- but it’s
something you’ll have to do -- trust in the Holy Spirit’s power within you and
avoid the people and places and things that cause you to stumble -- and you’ll
find yourself victorious over sin more and more in your life
-- you
don’t have to sin any longer -- freedom is there -- but you have to believe and
you have to choose
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