Tug of War

Let me get to the point. God will not play Tug of War with you over your pet sin. He will convict you; He will hold out His hand; He will even take it from you. But He will not wrestle you for it, and He will not yank it out of your hand. You must give your pet sin to Him with an open hand. The question for some of us is, “What is it going to take to bring us to that point?” 

Are you weary from the guilt and shame? Do you long to be free from the demands of sin? Or, as someone once said, “Are you sick and tired of being sick and tired?” If you are, then you are ready to do the work necessary to be set free. Yes, you heard me correctly; there is some work to be done on your part.  

Let me be very clear, the work I am talking about does not consist of gritting your teeth and trying harder. In Galatians 3:3 Paul asked the church, “Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort?” Our goal, to be like Jesus, is not realized by our effort. It is a work of the Holy Spirit. Our work is to walk in step with Him as He makes us more like Christ. 

We need to believe God when He says that when He placed us in Christ, we became a new creation, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation, the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Cor. 5:7). You are not the man you were! Therefore, God expects you to act like the new man you are, not like the old man you were before you were placed in Christ. Ephesians 4:22-24 Paul says, “You were taught…to put off your old self…and to put on the new self.” We do this by faith.  

Remember, you are not in this alone. The Holy Spirit will enable you to do God’s will for your life. “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” (Philippians 4:13). We need other believers, too! Find a couple of mature brothers in Christ to encourage and challenge you in your faith journey.  

You CAN be free of your “besetting” sin! Don’t give up because, “…the One who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4). Believe it!