“Since we have been united with Him in His death, we will also be raised to life as He was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ we were set free from the power of sin. And since we died with Christ, we know we also live with Him.” (Romans 6:5-8 NLT)
Using Paul’s powerful words above, let’s formulate a simple gameplan to free you from the shackles of sin that may still have you bound. First, if you’re born again of the Spirit of God you are free from the penalty of your sin. You have accepted the sacrifice Jesus made on the Cross as your payment in full for your sin debt to God; however, you are still accountable for the sins you continue to commit.
What does that mean? It means sin has a cost. Sin separates us from God, not in an eternal sense once we’ve been born again, but each time we choose sin over submission to His will, we push ourselves further from Him, in the sense it makes it more difficult to “hear” His voice and to follow His directives.
As a child of God my goal is to listen to the Lord intently, follow His directives completely, worship and adore Him with every fiber of my being, trust Him without reservation, and to submit to His Lordship over my life without question. It’s taken me many years to understand that and to seek to practice it in my life 24/7. But it started with some simple understanding.
First, Satan doesn’t own me, Jesus does. What does that mean? It means I obey Jesus, not Satan. I have to make a choice. When Satan is drawing me to lustful pleasures in whatever form they may come, just like Jesus when He was being tempted, I say an emphatic “NO!” Then I turn from whatever it is, whether that means turning off a device or literally walking away.
What if I don’t have the strength to do that? You do! He’s the Holy Spirit who lives in you as God’s child. You have the strength, courage, whatever you need, you just need to let yourself believe you can. But how can I recognize His presence? His voice? Initially, the easiest way is to partner with a believing friend. Put their phone number on speed dial and the second you get tempted and are starting to squirm with conviction, call them!
Explain the situation and spend time in prayer, seeking the Lord’s forgiveness for letting your mind wander so far, then confirm your determination to walk obediently with the Lord. You can use the same process whatever spiritual habit you’re seeking to form. It’s much easier to partner with someone who is a little further down the road to maturity than you are, but who will be patient with you and understand when you fail.
Spiritual habits MUST ultimately replace your unhealthy habits. Nature abhors a vacuum, so if you make room by stopping something that’s been hurting you in some way, if you don’t replace it with something good, it will revert back to something unhealthy. Get on a healthy schedule of personal worship – reading, studying Scripture, praying, and spending time with other godly people who will hold you accountable and help keep you on track.
It’s also healthy to know that every second of your day is your “God Time,” in the sense, He’s always with you and wants you to consult Him about every decision you make, and everything you do, whether working, eating a meal or working out at the gym. Every second is an opportunity to either draw closer to the Lord or move further away. It’s up to us whether we let Jesus or Satan win in the decisions we make.
Food for thought.
Blessings, Ed 😊
Walking With Jesus 