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Show Notes
So, the other day I was talking to a friend about how living the Christian life can be a struggle. Specifically, we were talking about those nagging little shortcomings that we all experience. You know the ones, those moments of caving to self-interest, to the sin we thought we had beaten, that we believed we had been delivered from only to have it sneak around and bit us on the butt yet again. Don’t pretend you that you don’t know what I’m talking about, that’s very unbecoming. But here’s the question, is there a way for a Christian to resist caving in, to prevent this sin from ever biting us again? That is what we are going to explore here in episode 6.
My name is Charles, and this is the Simple Not Shallow Podcast. A podcast for those who want a deeper faith, not a confusing one. That is what our name is about, keeping faith in Christ simple, simple enough for a child like me to understand it and yet, not so shallow that when the storms of life hit, our faith runs aground. Here we go.
As my friend and I were talking about this, we noted that our intentions are honest and good, we truly mean to guard against caving in, to never stumble that way again… and yet we do. We quickly thought of something Paul says in Romans 7 (verses 14-23) to mind. Here, Paul shares how he too was unable to break this cycle of stumbling yet again, and how he passionately wanted to break it. However, he could not. He could not stop himself from caving, nor could he make himself do what he truly wanted to do. So, I began to wonder, if Paul ever shared how he finally broke that cycle, for if he did, maybe I could too. So, I looked up Romans 7 and sure enough, Paul goes on to say that Jesus has saved him from this cycle of helplessness (verse 25). Just to make sure I had not read something into what Paul was saying, I checked out what all Paul had said about this. I found a passage in Romans 6 where Paul also says that we can now choose to not let sin reign over us, for sin is not our master, and we have been set free from it (Romans 6:8-23). John even says that this is the reason he wrote the letter of 1 John, to begin with, so that we will not sin (1 John 2:1).
So how does all this play out? I mean, if Jesus is the one who breaks the cycle, why do we still stumble and fall? If sin is not our master and we have been set free from it, then why does it seem too powerful to resist? These questions set me on the path of thinking and investigating (I know… I know… I know… a dangerous to do, but I wanted an answer).
Now, before sharing too much of what I have discovered, I want to make sure we understand something very, very important, the Bible makes it quite clear that breaking of this cycle, that is the eradicating of all sinful actions from our lives, is not something we can do on our own. It is impossible for us to do; it is too strong. There are many passages which tell us this. Because of the limits of time, here I’ll only refer to two specific passages. 1) Paul’s statements in Romans 7 where he shares the need for Jesus to break this cycle and 2) Jesus’ statement in Mark 10 (verse 27) where he plainly states that such things are impossible for human beings to achieve and they are only possible for God to make happen.
So, we are powerless to stop sinning by ourselves, yet, we are told, sin has no power over the Christian, and it is God that makes this the truth. The question then becomes, how does he do this? How is this cycle broken, for it seems that I am still in it? And why is it taking sooooooooo long?
While digging into this, I came across something and that I would like to offer it as a suggestion for you to consider. It resonates with me, and I would love to hear what you think about it.
I found John to say something very interesting in the letter of 1 John. He says that whoever loves a brother is both full of light and that “there is no occasion for stumbling in him” (1 John 2:10). Did you hear that? That if I truly love others, I am free from the power of sin. Right away I was reminded of something in Matthew, the passage about the 2 greatest commands. Which are to love God with our entire being and our neighbor as ourselves. Specifically speaking, this brought up the verse that reads, “The whole law and the prophets depend on these two commandments” (Matthew 22: 37- 40). Which, also brought to mind passages in Romans and Galatians; both of which tell us why these two fulfill the whole of the law (Romans 13:8-10; Galatians 5:13-14). Simply put, if I am loving as God does, with our entire being and others as ourselves, I am fulfilling the whole law because love does no harm to our neighbor. And if I am doing this, I am free from sin.
Track with me a second. For next, I stumbled onto something in 1 Corinthians. Here, Paul talks all about this type of love. He says that no matter what he does if it is not from love, he ends up being obnoxious sounding, is nothing, and gains nothing (1 Cor 13:1 – 3). So, efforts done without God’s love is the essence of doing nothing, of meaninglessness. Then he says something that is mind-blowingly simple, love is: patient and kind. It rejoices in truth, and always protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres. Love is not: envious, boastful, proud, rude, self-seeking, easily angered, a record keeper of wrongs, and takes no delight in evil (1 Cor 13:4 – 13). I see why John can say there is nothing that can cause a person to stumble if one is centered in love.
This brings up one of my favorite chapters in the Bible, John 15. This is the chapter about abiding in Christ. Verses 9-17 speak about God’s love and remaining, that is abiding, in it. Here Jesus says that if we obey his commands, we will be abiding in him and our joy will be complete. And, “This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you” (John 15:12). Even as God has loved us...
If we love one another we are abiding in Christ and are in his love; we are then full of light and there is nothing to cause us to stumble into sin. How simply profound. As I look back over my life, it is precisely at the times when I was most focused on loving God (on becoming centered in him and his love) that my struggles with sin stopped. And it is when I was no longer intently focused on this that the struggles resurfaced. I am not saying that this is a magic wand to be waved over your head and presto no more struggles. This takes growth, this takes time; all strong and vital relationships always do. What I’m saying is, this is a committed relational action, this is a way of life. Abiding in Christ is a daily choice and it is one that involves growth on your part. And as human beings we tend to grow slowly, we just do. But we do grow. And the more we grow, the less we will struggle with the same shortcomings. Others may arise, but that is a topic for a different episode.
So, back to the question, how is this done? How is focusing on loving God and growing in our relationship with him done? I have been studying the Psalms and I think I have found, in the very first one, an answer to this question. “But, if the law of our Lord is his delight and on his law, he will muse day and night; he will be happy. He will be as a tree planted by channels of water…” (Psalm 1:2-3). Musing on God and his law, day and night; that is, to muse on loving God and your neighbor day and night. To delight in loving God and our neighbor is the way of happiness; it is the way of being blessed. It is the way to grow in your relationship with God. The more you do this, the more God’s love will fill your heart, the more you will not be self-seeking, and so the more sin will be gone from your life. Removed by God as each and every day you choose to love him and allow his love to fill you. And make no mistake about it, it is God who removes the sin, not you. It is as his love fills you, engages you, motivates you, and becomes the lens that helps you stay focused on him, that it silently removes your tendency to choose sin (to choose your self-interests instead of God). If we do this, then one day we will look back in amazement, realizing that we were not even aware of that unbreakable cycle being broken. That is simple and not shallow.
Well, what do you think? I’d love to hear from you, so please, go to simplenotshallow.com, and under the Simple Not Shallow Podcast section, find this episode, #6, and leave a comment for me there. Also, in the show notes, I’ll list all the verses I referenced, in the order and at the location in the transcript at which I referenced them. That way you can check me out to make sure I’m not totally in left field. Also, please take a second to rate this episode and subscribe to this podcast through iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify… or whichever service you use. Thank you. I’ll catch you next time.
