Overcoming Sin: A Practical Guide

I was starting to notice a lack of self-discipline in a number of areas of my life. Maybe you're familiar with the I-don't-like-myself-when-I-do-that feelings. Pair that with sideways glances from others and, if you're like me, you know it's time to take action. God's Spirit and Word have brought conviction, others have affirmed it, and it's up to me to cooperate with God's process of change.

Sin can be addressed with many different passages of Scripture but the process is the same: stop practicing sinful behavior, renew the mind, and start practicing God-pleasing behavior (Ephesians 4:22-24, Colossians 3:8-10, Romans 12:1-2).

With that in mind, I pulled out a step-by-step guide from 2 Peter and reminded myself of these truths:

His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. (2 Peter 1:3-4 NIV)

I can enjoy and live a vibrant spiritual life, the life of God Himself, by knowing, clinging to and applying my knowledge of God. How?

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:5-8 NIV)

Faith, (Greek pistis: conviction of truth, belief). It all begins with faith. The book of Hebrews says that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). That same verse says faith believes 1) God is who He says He is and 2) He will do what He says He will do. What does God say about my current thoughts, attitudes and behavior? Do they reflect faith or unbelief? Do I honestly believe God will allow me to suffer the consequences? I'd better believe it.

Goodness (NIV), virtue (NKJV), moral excellence (NASB), (Greek arête: a virtuous course of thought, feeling and action”). Once I examine my faith and understand what God says about my sin, am I willing to obey? Do I agree that God’s idea is a more excellent idea than mine? That my disobedience is wrong? Do I want to do good? When I don’t want to change, I am learning to ask God for help. He wants what is best, which is why He's convicting me. I need to ask Him to help me repent—to turn away from what I want and toward what He wants.

Knowledge (Greek gnosis: understanding, moral wisdom). Once I'm convicted of my sinful behavior and committed to God’s good purpose, I must figure out how to apply it. What needs to change? How? What practical steps can I take to reach my goal of change? Keep a more orderly house? How? Lose weight? How? Say no to addictive substances or relationship? How? What kind of tools are available?Whatever the struggle, no matter what the sin, this is where I need to come up with a nuts-and-bolts plan.

Self-control (Greek egkrateia: to master desires and passions). Now that I have a plan, I must do it, exercise it, work it out. Prayerfully, dependently, I am called to learn and apply what I know to my desire for change, believing God is who He says He is and will do what He says He will do.

Perseverance (Greek hupomone: steadfastness, constancy, endurance).  I can’t do it once and be done. I have to apply self-control over and over and over. This is yet another opportunity to cry out to God, trust, and obey.  When I fail (and I will), I must go back to the beginning and work my way through each step, looking for weakness. Did I get tripped up because of unbelief? A wrong motive? Weakness in the plan? Or failure to execute the plan?

Godliness (Greek eusebeia: reverence, piety toward God). As I gain ground and taste success, I must stop and check my motives. Who am I doing this for? Myself or God? And who is getting the credit for change? Myself or God? Am I growing in godliness or selfishness?

Mutual affection (NIV), brotherly kindness (NKJV, NASB) (Greek philadelphia: love of brothers or sisters). As I grown in godliness, I need to check my relationship with others. Am I preferring others ahead of myself? Or is my focus on personal growth and change? As God works to put off my sinful nature and put on Christlikeness, I should become more aware others, not less aware.

Love (Greek agape: affection, good will, benevolence). The goal of change is greater love for God and others evidenced in personal sacrifice and service. The sin struggle which once brought death, slavery, and an inability to glorify God will, in Christ, produce life, freedom, liberty, and glory always, only to our great and awesome God.

For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins.

Therefore, my brothers and sisters, make every effort to confirm your calling and election. For if you do these things, you will never stumble, and you will receive a rich welcome into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. (2 Peter 1:4-11 NIV)

"I Want More"

It's been a while since I've shared notes from my personal Bible reading. This is what God used in my life today. Perhaps it will encourage and strengthen you as it did me. If my chicken-scratchings don't make sense, get out your Bible and read along. Ask God for help. He always reveals Himself as we seek him.

This passage is especially relevant for those of us in ministry.

Numbers 16-17 Korah's Rebellion, Aaron's Budding Rod

16:2 It wasn’t just Korah, there were 250 leaders, “men of renown,” who challenged Moses

16:3 These men said to Moses, “’You have gone far enough, for all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is in their midst; so why do you exalt yourselves above the assembly of the Lord?’”  (How human!)

16:4 Moses didn’t get defensive or fight back. He fell on his face…. Humility. It was all about whom God chooses, not who chooses God (v. 5, 7).

v. 8-11 Moses: God chose you and is using you. Isn’t that enough? Why are you seeking what isn’t yours?

v. 12-15 Moses called out Abiram and Dathan but they stayed in their tents, refusing to confront Moses, complaining behind his back, agreeing with Korah.

v. 16-17 This was their opportunity to say, “No, I was wrong. Forgive me!” Instead, they brazenly acted as Aaron before the LORD.

v. 28 Moses, “…this is not my doing.” God was the one at work, not Moses.

v. 41 Apparently the people didn’t learn b/c they  grumbled against Moses for those who died—and God, in His wrath, sent a plague. At Moses’ command, Aaron stopped it with a censor and incense.

17 God confirmed Aaron with the sign of the budding rod to keep the people from grumbling and dying.

Application: When I don’t like God’s work or doing, I need to humble myself as Moses did—waiting on God to reveal Himself, trusting Him, obeying Him regardless of the outcome. This is not about me; it’s about God. I have GOT to get that in my head and heart! Every day, every moment. That was Moses’ life-view after the burning bush—this is not my parade, this is all about God doing what He will do, with whom He will do it and I have NO idea what that’s going to look like. Moses did not come up with the plan to set the Hebrews free. He did not take it upon himself to challenge Pharaoh. He did not choose to lead Israel, set up the priesthood, or deliver the Law. He did not pursue the lead position of a grumbling, obstinate people. God put him there. God chose Aaron for Aaron’s job; Miriam for Miriam’s job; Korah for Korah’s job. Discontent breeds disobedience.

emPHAsizing the Wrong syllABle

It's important to pronounce someone's name correctly. One of our Chinese friends asked us to call him, "Lee." My husband pressed him for his personal name (instead of his common family name). Finally he said that when Americans say his Chinese name, it is offensive because we rarely get the correct inflection. At the time we had no idea what he was talking about. Now we know enough to graciously call international friends by their chosen name.

Putting the emphasis on the right syllable makes a difference. Most American names emphasize the first syllable: Jordan, Caleb, Jessica, Anderson, Kreuger.... But many Spanish names emphasize the second syllable: Ramon, Sofia, Rodriguez, Dominguez....

https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/un/world-day-cultural-diversity-dialogue

The same can be true of our relationship with God. When we put the em'phasis on the wrong syllab'le (as my mom used to say), it makes a difference. As a child, my impression of God and His expectations was all about doing the right thing. As a first-born people-pleaser, I know how to make that happen most of the time. Once I understand the expectations and parameters, let me at 'em. I will do my best to exceed the standard.

The problem with applying that to the Christian life is that it's all wrong. That was the point of the whole Old Testament--no matter how good, important, or earnest an individual or nation was, they couldn't "get it right." No one could keep God's law. No one meets the expectation. So why has that become a goal in our lives and churches? In my way of thinking, it's the right place to start, especially with children, but there has to be more.

Just as we get to know individuals and pronounce their names correctly, as we get to know God, we learn that His emphasis is on love, not doing, or performance. It takes a while for us to come to the end of our pride and efforts, throwing ourselves on His grace. It takes repeated failure before we humble ourselves and acknowledge our limitations, cry "uncle," and rest on Jesus' complete payment for all sin.

We cannot, we will not, love others without kickback. If there's nothing in it for me, I have no time or interest in someone else's needs (see Romans 3:10-12, John 15:4-5). Loving others at my expense is a supernatural, God-empowered response to His love for me. Until I am aware of, embracing, and basking in God's love for me, I will never love others. That is why love is the true test of Christ (John 13:35). If you wonder how you're doing, ask the people you live with. No love. No Jesus. Know love. Know Jesus. It's that simple--and that impossible.

To emphasize holiness and right living at the expense of love is to miss out on God Himself.

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.


No one has seen God at any time. If we love one another, God abides in us, and His love has been perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in Him, and He in us, because He has given us of His Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. (1 John 4:7-16)

Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:8-10)

But when the Pharisees heard that He had silenced the Sadducees, they gathered together. Then one of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?”

Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:34-40)