“For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”
Here are two truths that we can be absolutely sure of. If we live to please our bodily appetites and indulge in sin, the end of such a lifestyle is death and separation from God. Those who couldn’t give God a second thought while they were alive, will find their cries to Him for mercy after their death going unanswered. Romans 6:23 tells us, “For the wages of sin is death”. This encompasses both physical death (which we all experience because of Adam’s sin, passed down to us), but also spiritual death, separation from God, if our spirits have not been made alive through faith in Christ.
There is another way: to live by the Spirit. Through the Spirit’s power – granting resurrection life – we are able to break free from the cycle of sin, and death as its consequences. By the Spirit we are able to ‘put to death the misdeeds of the body’. We are able to say ‘no’ to sin, and to live righteously. This is possible because of an internal rejuvenation. We are brought into God’s family: He imparts to us some of His essence – the Holy Spirit. If we are led by the Spirit, then we are following in our Father’s footsteps. Sure, we will still stumble and fall from time to time, but if our honest intention is to live in a way that is pleasing to God, we can be sure that we have indeed been born again. We can be sure of the promise of eternal life.
Sin will come up daily. God enables us to deal with sin. We have to deal with sin in our mind. Deal with sin the first time it is an action before it becomes a habit.
ReplyDeleteDeal with sin before it becomes a habit, because a habit may become your destiny.
Therefore, drawing on the resources provided for you; you can deal with sin.