Years ago, early on in my ‘faith walk’, I came across this quote: “The children of Israel never had a problem hearing the voice of God or knowing what His will was. Their problem was in doing it.” 

 Jesus sort of brings this very point up in Luke 6:46 when He asked a group: “Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things I tell you.” 

 Here is something about me that you may not know but my family will certainly verify: I’m horrible when it comes to remembering words and lyrics to songs. I’m so bad at it that I’ve been known on multiple occasions to just ‘make up my own words’ when singing a song. Just ask my wife or any of my daughters. They’ll tell you it’s true. 

 But I do remember certain phrases or lines. Isn’t there an old hymn that talks about ‘trust and obey’? Yeah…that might even be the title of it, but I know I’ve heard that or sung that. I can hear the tune in my head. I do believe though that we have all been guilty over the years about ‘singing lies’. Yep…we sing one thing but do another. Like ‘trust and obey’. Or, “I surrender all…”. We sure can get caught up in the emotions of a good song and making professions like those but following through on those lines or promises is another story. 

 I often hear other believers confess they are ‘struggling’ with certain areas in their life. Usually it’s a sin issue. I’m going to make a statement here that on the surface may sound like or come across as being over simplified. But I’ve never been more convinced of the truth in this: If you are ‘struggling’ with a sin or an area in your life, there’s a good chance it’s because you are not ready to let go of it and/or die to it. Yep. I said it. 

 Let me use another term – ‘wrestling’. You’ve been ‘wrestling’ with this or that in your life. Now one of the reasons you may be ‘wrassling’ (I like that southern version better) with an area or sin in your life is because you have thought you needed to defeat it yourself. You know – trying harder to do better? But I’m going to tell you now that you will be in that ring/arena for a long time and never win. You will wear yourself out trying to ‘wrassle’ with that ‘sin’ on your own. 

 Funny…that Paul used that word ‘wrestling’ (translators were obviously not from the south) when he wrote in Eph. 6:12- “We do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.” Yes, Paul was talking about demons…unclean spirits; and Peter clearly says it's ‘the devil who goes about like a roaring lion’. (1 Pet. 5:8) 

 IF we could have overcome sin on our own, there would have been no need for Jesus to come and die that we might be set free. It is ONLY by His grace…that we overcome sin, the world, and the devil. This is where so many ‘gospels’ have steered us wrong or fallen short…they taught us that we’d never truly overcome but don’t worry…God still loves you the way you are and just accept the fact you are not perfect but you are forgiven. So just hang in there. 

 What a travesty of lies. He came to make us ‘More than conquerors through Him.’(Rom. 8:37, 29) 

 But back to our ‘wrassling mats’…No, I’ve never been a fan of ‘professional wrestling’. But some terms and expressions I’m familiar with. Have you ever heard of ‘tag team wrestling’? Two opponents face off in the ring and if one gets tied up and unable to free himself, he attempts to stretch out his hand with the hopes of touching his teammate who is also stretching his hand towards his ‘struggling’ partner. Once contact is made, the teammate outside the ring jumps in and proceeds to execute vengeance on the opponent who was about to pin his partner. 

 I pray God is not shaking His head with face in palm that I would use this illustration but honestly, that is kind of how this overcoming sin works. You get tied up and defeated by a spiritual opponent who is much stronger than you in your own power and will pin you every single time. But if/when you get tired of being defeated and ‘wrassling’ with the same area over and over…all you need to do is ‘call on the name of the Lord’ and reach out and ‘touch His nail scarred hand’ and just wait till you see how quickly things can change. This idea of taking years to ‘overcome’ a sin or weakness in your life is indicative of trying to do it in any other way than allowing God to intervene. 

 “They overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” (Rev. 12:11) 

 Do you think God has met His foe when He comes in to setting you free of a demon of anger or demon of lust or a demon of pride or bitterness or whatever area seems to wrap you up continually? Absolutely not. It’s almost embarrassing to see how quickly we can overcome an area of sin when we are ready to die to it. What has delayed the victory is our trying on our own to do it, or…as I suggested earlier…may be we were not quite ready to give something up to God. Like that rich young ruler in Matt. 19 who was not ready to give up greed and covetousness. 

 God doesn’t need a running start to set you free. He needs only to ‘say the word’ and you can be healed/delivered. 

 Now…once that spiritual opponent is off your back, you have just experienced being set free of that particular area you have ‘struggled’ with for so long. This would be an ideal time to start abiding in Him. Because when that enemy tries to find a way back in, (and he will try- Matt 12:43-45) your covenant partner, Jesus, will be right there to show you how to ‘resist’ the enemy and ‘bring into captivity every thought’. There will be moments of ‘suffering’(in the flesh) as you lay this old nature down and ‘die to self. But this is how we identify with His sufferings as we are conformed to His death (Phil. 3:10) and Peter then tells us that ‘those who have suffered in the fleshed have ceased from sin and no longer live the rest of their time in the flesh for the lust of men but for the will of God.” (1 Pet. 4:1-2). -go mark that passage in your bible right now. ;-) 

 Let me share another personal example of how ‘abiding in Him’ has helped me deal with pride. (who of us don’t have that area to deal with regularly?). One of the offshoots or branches of pride is the need to always be right or to get the last word in. This is an example where God is right there giving me a ‘heads up’ when I’m about to be tested in this area. And the more I yield to Him and ‘not go there’ the more power and grace I find myself walking in. Dying to pride is no cake walk, but…it’s still easier to die to it, than it is to hold on to it and still try to walk in obedience to my Shepherd who I want to follow. 

 As I wrote yesterday, it’s still about choices. When the word says to ‘lay aside every weight and sin that so easily entangles us’ (Heb 12:1) what it means in the Greek is to …’lay aside’. :- ). As in ‘die to it’…turn/repent from it…and take up that cross and follow Jesus. 

 Why is this so serious? Because we are living in a world under a curse of death and wrath and judgment. And if we ignore Jesus’s words to ‘go and sin no more’… then something worse will come upon you. (John 5:14). Paul was not using hyperbole when he wrote “Therefore having these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God. (2 Cor 7:1) 

 God is not ‘out to get you’ because you sin. The enemy is. (Read that again slowly!) 

 You do realize God could at any time remove all the forces of evil and every demon. He will indeed at some point in the future do that very thing, but for now, they are out there wanting to work more destruction in your life. Sin gives them ground to do that very thing. Jesus did not die on that cross just so you could have a ‘free-forgive-me-pass’ as you continued to sin after turning your life over to Him. He Broke and destroyed the power of sin in order that you might walk free…just like He did. Remember His statement that the devil has ‘nothing in Him’ because He does what the Father tells him? (John 14:30). When you abide in Him, you are walking in freedom because you no longer sin. (1 John 3:6; John 8:34-35) 

 Today is Good Friday. My daughter and I were talking yesterday about how in years past, we were inclined to almost over-emphasize in our church world the brutal and agonizing way in which Jesus died. I believe I see that now. Mel Gibson made that explicit and detailed gory movie depicting those final days/hours of Jesus. I’m not suggesting we ignore or dismiss the fact of how badly Jesus suffered for us because of His love for us. But I think we may have been a tad misguided in the way we tend to focus and present that fact as if we are trying to create an emotional response or reaction. How many of you know that decisions made based on emotion usually are short lived. 

 So what is our take away from that then? I think it serves as a good reminder when we read where Jesus told us that He was going to lay down his life and so we also…out to lay down our lives for others. Love as He first loved us. But make no mistake about it…He never intended for us to die in the same manner that He did. When He asked us to ‘lay down our life’ and ‘take up our own cross’, He meant we lay down and ‘die’ to our old sinful nature. All of it. Is there some ‘suffering’ when we begin to do this? Yes…but as Paul points out…not to the point of shedding blood like Jesus did. (Heb. 12:4). Nobody wants to die to pride and self. Jesus didn’t want to ‘die’ either. But there is no other way to the Father but through the cross. We sure toss that phrase around all the time about how ‘ no pain, no gain’. 

 We are told in scripture that ‘bodily exercise profits a little’. How much more…do you think awaits to those who will lay down their life and experience ‘true riches’ just like Jesus promised that young, rich ruler. ( Matt. 19:21). Give it ALL to Him…your heart, that is. Your ‘old man’ will scream and kick and resist all the way. It’s time for him to die. 

 Psst...Sunday is on the way! (1 Pet 5:6-11)