Thursday, July 4, 2019
I have discovered this principle of life—that when I want to do what is right, I inevitably do what is wrong. I love God’s law with all my heart. But there is another power within me that is at war with my mind. This power makes me a slave to the sin that is still within me. Oh, what a miserable person I am! Who will free me from this life that is dominated by sin and death? Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord. So you see how it is: In my mind I really want to obey God’s law, but because of my sinful nature I am a slave to sin. Romans 7:21-25
A man is
trying desperately to overcome his extreme fondness/addiction to doughnuts, and
other delightful pastries. Having
ordered every pill antidote ever offered on the Internet and late-night TV
commercials, tried all the fad diets, hypnosis, psychotherapy, and playing the
mental tapes of his mother shaking her judge-like index finger in his face, the
man resorts (finally) to prayer. He
whispers this prayer moments before leaving for work: Lord, if it’s ok for me to get a
half-dozen pastries on the way to work today, let there be a parking space
right in front of the bakery this morning. He wasn’t sure it was going to work, but as
he circled the block for the eighth time, sure enough there was a space open!
The
typical reaction of a human being discovering he is trapped is to begin the
frantic search for a way out! It is like
the knee-jerking jump when you’ve walked barefoot into the hot coals of a
fire…you want out! And it is no
different in the emotional arena…the minute you sense being bullied, smothered
by somebody’s too powerful personality, or caught in a dead-end job or lifestyle;
you’re looking around for an exit door.
As with
most conditions that exist in the physical and emotional realms, our spiritual side
has its corresponding reality. Paul
discovered a life-principle that he really was a slave, trapped like a rat in a
maze, unable to free himself from the sinful ways his human nature craved. Even when he wanted to, resolved to, wouldn’t
settle for anything less than being better…it was impossible; he did the bad
stuff anyway! He described it as
something that was common in Paul’s day, being a prisoner, walking around
chained to a dead, rotting body. When
the Roman government punished convicted wrong doers, they would be sentenced to
life with a corpse, strapped to their backs.
It was a reminder that their lives were not their own; they were at the
mercy of a greater power – Rome. Paul
said it’s like that, carrying the live virus of sin around with you, being a slave
to your sin nature. The Apostle James
described what that virus does:
Temptation comes from our own desires, which entice us and drag us away. These desires give birth to sinful actions. And when sin is allowed to grow, it gives birth to death. James 1:14-15
Now, that
guy who couldn’t stay out of the bakery…that’s not just a joke you’ve heard 20
times over the past year…that guy is me!
And he’s you, too. In some way
that joke is funny because it connects with who we are…people descended from
Adam and Eve, trapped in the human condition of being slaves to our
desires. And when we finally get to the
place where we understand there is no release, that the corpse of our sin debt
will follow us to the grave, there are only two ways out:
1.
There is self-justification. We
rationalize with our prayers and intelligent post church theories how we’re ok
because we were born that way, and who is anybody to judge me, anyway. Leave me alone, I’m just going to circle the
bakery eight-times, until I feel better about myself.
2.
There is justification that God offers, as he takes our place, hanging
on a cross for what sin has done to us.
And His death sets us free!
For You Today
If you’ve circled the bakery enough, and you’re beginning to feel the
weight of being trapped…rejoice…you’re not far from the Kingdom.
Go to VIDEO
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Title Image: Pixabay.com Unless otherwise noted, all Scripture
quotations are from The
New Living Translation©
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