What To Do When You Wrestle With Sin

My Utmost For His Highest

 

"If you will return, O Israel," says the Lord… —Jeremiah 4:1

 

{CHAMBERS}  “Our battles are first won or lost in the secret places of our will in God’s presence, never in full view of the world. The Spirit of God seizes me and I am compelled to get alone with God and fight the battle before Him. Until I do this, I will lose every time. The battle may take one minute or one year, but that will depend on me, not God. However long it takes, I must wrestle with it alone before God, and I must resolve to go through the hell of renunciation or rejection before Him. Nothing has any power over someone who has fought the battle before God and won there. […] I must first get the issue settled between God and myself in the secret places of my soul, where no one else can interfere. Then I can go ahead, knowing with certainty that the battle is won. Lose it there, and calamity, disaster, and defeat before the world are as sure as the laws of God. The reason the battle is lost is that I fight it first in the external world. Get alone with God, do battle before Him, and settle the matter once and for all.”

 

{ELGIN} I recall Paul’s struggle with sin described in Romans chapter 7.  He was striving against the things he knew did that did not honor God – sin – and failed to do what he knew was right to do – obedient living.  Then Paul acknowledged that it is Jesus that saved him and Jesus that empowered him to be victorious over sin.  We struggle with sin before God, but actually we struggle with being holy before God.  The Spirit convicts of our sin (John 16:8) and the wrestling match begins.  There are sinful things in my life over which I have victory.  Some over which I continue to struggle.  And frankly some that I am comfortable with, I have given in to them. Which “things” those are vary from person to person.  I would address big over little sins, but, setting aside consequence of the sin (not ignoring it), sin is sin.  It is behavior contrary to the nature of God.  As born again believers, we have the very nature of God in us.  We should never be content with sin in us, but we are.  Only the Spirit can stir our hearts against it.  We can recognize it in others and speak to them about it, in love (Ephesians 4:15), but it is the Spirit that will call them into the spiritual ring to wrestle with it. What are you wrestling with?  Don’t lose hope. Don’t give up.  Stop trying to do it on your own.  Don’t forget.  God is on your side. (Philippians 4:13)