In my previous post I explained the issue of killing sin in the "sweeping webs" fashion instead of attacking the sin by "killing the spider". In this post I would like to dissect the issue in greater detail and offer some solutions as well. It is very easy to attack sin by simply sweeping the webs away and very difficult to actually do the hard work of finding the spider and killing it. Just like the spiders in the basement, they hide and can be more difficult to find but the webs are usually pretty large and easy to spot. In the same way, the heart of the sin issue is usually obscured and hidden and the manifestation of the sin problem is overt and easily spotted.
For instance, someone might have a lust for drunkenness and the manifestation of that sin could be marital issues, problems with the law, DUI's, liver problems and other issues. The problem is not primarily that the person drinks too much, but that their heart is drawn away from God and towards idols. Every sin issue is an issue of the heart and some form of Idolatry. Most if not all sins are an issue of the heart and idolatry. If a person has a problem with looking at pornography it is because their god is sex. If you wish to sweep the webs you could tell the person to smash their computer, get software to ensure they cannot look at pornography or perhaps put the computer in a public area of the house. This might stop the person from looking at porn, but it does not deal with the real issue. The question is not what is the sin, but why is the person sinning? The reason someone looks at porn is because their heart is drawn towards the idol of sex and pleasure. Sex is a fantastic gift of God, and inside of marriage it is enjoyed and God is glorified. However, when it is removed from it's proper context it goes from being a good thing, to a god thing which in the end is a bad thing. We oftentimes replace God with the gifts he gives us which is idolatry. If I struggle with pornography it would be wise to deal with my heart instead of smashing my MacBook Pro. Not only is it an expensive mistake, its also unfruitful. My heart is still filled with lust and sexual immorality regardless of whether or not I am carrying out a specific sin. Instead of smashing my MacBook I should smash the idol of lust. This happens all of the time within the church. If someone is successful in modifying their behavior apart from changing their heart they will simply become prideful in their victory wrought of the flesh. If the same person fails at modifying their behavior and give in to a temptation they feel guilt and shame for breaking the rules. Behavior modification results in pride when success is achieved or guilt and shame when we fail. Did you notice that joy is not the result of success or failure? The gospel teaches the exact opposite. We should never just attack the sin itself, but instead pursue the reason for the sin
In order to kill the sin, we must go to the heart of the problem and then apply the Gospel to it. Instead of simply removing the computer, we kill the sin so that the computer does no lead us into sin. Another way to put it, is if we are believing the gospel, we won't stumble if the opportunity to stumble is present. If we struggle with shopping too much, we shouldn't stop going places where we could be tempted but instead we should believe the gospel and be content with what we have. In doing so, we are free to go to a mall and also free from the sin of being covetous. If we just avoid the mall, we have not killed the spider of covetousness, we have simply swept away the web of covetousness.
In order to be free from the entanglement of the webs of sin, we must kill the spider of sin first. In order to do that, we must search into the heart to find the idols and then destroy them with the gospel by the power of the Spirit. Perhaps in another post, we can discuss some practical ways to kill sin by the spirit.
Posted by Mitch Sliwa in
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