Dear Cornerstone Family,
I sometimes joke about the people of Cornerstone being long suffering. How week after week you sit under my long sermons and, wonder of wonders, you come back the following week. Thankfully, the Scripture tells us that suffering produces character, endurance, and hope (Romans 5:3-4). So, take heart, these long sermons are one of God’s means for growing you up in the faith ;-)
Now, as long as my sermons are, you might be surprised by the amount of content I prepare and don’t preach. I actually wrote two sermons on last week’s passage! (Mercifully, I only delivered one—you’re welcome!) In the sermon I didn’t preach, I laid out six practical instructions for putting sin to death. After speaking with a few of you this week, I thought the little tidbit below might be helpful more generally. I hope and pray it is.
First, refuse to tolerate sin’s presence – Sin will try to desensitize your conscience, so that you might be lulled into accommodating its presence. Be aware of this and resist this tug! Let this be your settled position: to not allow sin to make a home within your heart. Take Paul at his word, “Consider yourself dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11).
Second, become deaf to the false promises of temptation – Temptation always talks a big game, but it never delivers. It says, “This is not a big deal. One time won’t hurt anything. You know this will satisfy you.” But this is just the bait hiding the hook. Don’t be deceived by temptation’s lies: “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Proverbs 14:12).
Third, stir up a holy hatred for sin and its consequences – In our mind’s eye, we must see “the sinfulness of sin,” to borrow a phrase from Ralph Venning. In other words, we must see sin for the horror it is and increasingly hate what it does to us, the world, and the affront it is to glory of God. In a word, we must cultivate hearts that, “Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good” (Romans 12:11).
Fourth, strike temptation and sin with the sword of the Spirit – We are most vulnerable to sin when we are spiritually on our heels. The flesh is weak, so if our guard is down, we will fall. But if we resist temptation with the God- ordained weapon for this battle, the sword of the Spirit, then sin doesn’t stand a chance. Listen to the Psalmist, “I have hidden your word in my heart that I may not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11).
Fifth, run for refuge and strength to the Savior of sinners – Always, always, always remember the immeasurable grace available to you in Jesus Christ. This grace is two-pronged: grace to forgive and grace to sanctify! Go early and often to the throne of grace, meeting with the Savior who died to free you from sin, for he promises that, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness” (1 John 1:9).
Sixth, set your hope on future glory – Take this in: Jesus has won your battle against sin. You read that right. In his death, resurrection, and ascension, the death blow to sin was levied for God’s people. It’s just a matter of time before the presence of sin is no more! When worn down with the battle of sin, pause and cast an eye to the future—when sinless you stand before the glorified Savior, “...face to face... [and you] shall know fully, even as [you] have been fully known” (1 Cor. 13:12).
Your servant,
