“ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Philippians 4:8.
The Christian warfare is a personal struggle that would detract from the marvelous, spiritual life people of God are called to live. It is not unique to anyone, rather it is universal to spiritual people bound in a fleshy body with carnal, mental capability. I Cor. 10:13 puts it this way, “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” The pious need not deny its presence.
John said, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” I John 1:8. But the good news is that there is universal help to all God’s people, allowing them to win in the struggle. Moreover, the apostle encourages us all by freely confessing the problem was his as well. He said, “For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” Thus are we to expect the challenges of this warfare, and to requisition the necessary help to win.
Consider this: when friends visit, we welcome and entertain them, and hope they’l call again. But, the same cannot be said about undesirable visitors. If we warmly welcome them into our lives it can be very difficult to get them to leave. Entertaining visitors is similar to entertaining thoughts. We have to be very discerning about what thoughts we choose to entertain. If we welcome undesirable thoughts they’l soon become unwelcome guests.
Entertaining such thoughts as worry, judging, jealousy, bitterness, lust, pride and so on, only encourages them to make themselves at home. Don’t give them space, let alone the easy chair.
Once entrenched, it is immensely difficult to get them to leave. Consciously choosing to replace a negative with a positive is a powerful answer. It is called sublimation.
Sublimation is the act of putting down undesirable things, but always replacing them with higher, more noble things. With God’s help each of His dear children may sublimate the slime of life by using what He revealed in Philippians 4:8 . “ Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.” Then sublimate the slime with noble, charitable, godly thoughts.
FOR THOUGHT: I Peter 1: 13 say in part, “. . .Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind,. . .”
What do you think he meant by that? How much responsibility do you think one has for what goes on in his mind? Do you actively practice sublimation?
SUM TOTAL OF SIN: EYE, FLESH, PRIDE OF LIFE
“Sin” basically means “to miss the mark.” A target, practice, shooter who aims yet misses, may rightfully say, “I sinned!” But while technically correct, “sin” is a word especially applied to the spiritual world. Specifically, it means to miss the mark of God’s wil for one’s life.
To miss that mark, to find oneself outside of the will of God, makes one to be exposed, and guilty of an extremely wide variety of activities that, sooner or later, bring destruction in one form or another. So why would anyone desire to be in such a position? It is because sin is presented as the means to achieve a selfish goal. Outside the will of God, life is extremely a selfish existence. Most often one deems that selfish goal to be pleasant, good, and desirable, but the end result is hidden from view to the unwise. To understand the motivations to sin, one need only look to the fountainhead of sin in the human family.
When mother Eve was faced with that monumental decision to transgress the law of God, or to think in terms of serving herself, she was led most masterfully in the temptation.
Based on the subtle lie Satan fed her, the motivations found their place in full force. 1) She saw that the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil was good for food; 2) that it was pleasant to the eyes, and 3) that it was desirable to make one wise. Genesis 3. She could not see that exercising this option would forever seal her life in sin, and unlike God, not be able to leave off the evil and choose the good. So, these three powerful motivations were her undoing, and the prospects of separation from his mate became the undoing of her husband. Eve was deceived in the transgression, but Adam was not deceived, I Tim. 2:14. He consciously chose oneness with his wife over obedience to God. I John 2:16 tells us, “For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.”
Therefore, regardless of the class of sin, whether of beauty, wealth, power, prestige, popularity, health and longevity, etc., they all fit into one or more of the categories John mentioned, and priority given to self, as Eve experienced in the Garden of Eden so long ago.
Truly, it may be summed up as a “me, first” attitude since all three temptations are self-centered.
Is it any wonder then that the first and great commandment is: “Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might?” Deut. 6:5. The second commandment is “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Truly, on these two hinge all the Law, Matt. 22:37-40. How can this be? The answer is simple.These are the two commandments that successfully turn the focus of the individual away from himself, and to his Creator where it belongs. Certainly, men must earn their bread, and thus provide for their family, but where is the focus of your life? Is it on how to get ahead at any cost, or is it pleasing God and promoting your neighbor? The former is a life filled with motivations to sin!
FOR THOUGHT: Has it occurred to you that “Sin” is the misuse of anything? Why do men misuse things or people? Is it not to gain their own selfish aims regardless if those aims are considered bad or good? Think about how all wrong doing fits into the three categories of life John mentioned In 1 John 2:16, and how they fit mother Eve’s temptation.