Take Paul for example.
Romans 7:18-19
For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.[c]For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.
Paul's statement should make all of us as Christians breathe a little easier. The same guy who told demons to leave and healed people just by them touching his clothes also struggled with temptation and sin. He goes on to say the only way he is able to overcome this through Jesus.
Now we know that we are going to struggle but is there a right way and a wrong way to struggle as a Christian? This is the question I have been seeking and I feel like I have a somewhat better understanding. One of the ways to wrongly struggle is to do the same sin over and over and over again until you just decide it’s just who you are, it’s just what you struggle with and God’s just going to have to deal with it and that’s just what you walk in. Now the motivation for that is almost always guilt. So we feel guilty, we feel shameful, we can’t believe we did it again and there’s no real sense of offending God, there’s no understanding of belittling or mocking the God of the universe. There’s just a wish that you didn’t do that. The wrong response to the wrong motive is to try to white- knuckle it, try harder and manipulate your environment. Below is a excerpt from Matt Chandlers sermon on struggling.
[Okay, so here is what I’ll just lovingly call “the cycle of doom.” Here we go. We come to know the Lord, we become believers and there’s this thing that is a little bit more difficult than we originally thought. So we do it and feel guilty, and so we go, “I’m never going to do that again.” And depending on what type of person you are, you last anywhere from seven minutes to a few months to a year. But eventually you do it again. Now at this moment, you completely run from God to go fix yourself. “Oh, I blew it again. God must hate me.Let me go fix myself.” And so there you are again with “I’m never going to do it again. I’m not going to do it.” And you just get crazy. Type A people make up an outline of all the steps of delivering yourself from your sin. Some of you who aren’t disciplined just go crazy and do things like throw your computer away, catch your car on fire or whatever you haveto do to stop yourself. Maybe you cut off your hand, take the text literal. And you go, “Whatever I’ve got to do I’m going to stop. I’m not going to do this anymore.” So you’re nowhere near the Lord anymore, you’re over here, you’re kind of manipulating, you’re trying it and you do well for a while depending on your aptitude. And then what happens a lot of the time after this is people just go, “Aw, forget it,” and they dive headlong into their sin.]
It does not, therefore, depend on human desire or effort, but on God’s mercy.
So we see that see that trying to white-knuckle ourselves over our sin is the wrong way to struggle.
Now lets look at what I believe is the proper way to struggle with temptation and sin. First off temptation is not a sin, Jesus was tempted. In temptation God always gives you a way out. The right way to struggle with temptation is sometimes stumbling and falling but at the same time moving in the right direction. In our temptation we always have the choice to lay it down and look to God or choose the sin. There is more good news as well!
In 1 Corinthians 10:13 we see this,
No temptation[c] has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted[d] beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted,[e] he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it.
What does this do for us? This text shows that ever single person faces the same temptations We can look around and see the gospel working in other peoples lives and see them walking in victory over what we struggle with and gain the confidence that this thing will not own me. Matt Chandler sums it up well..
[I think what it means to struggle well is long obedience in the right direction. Which means our motivation to repent of sin is not guilt but an understanding that we have offended God and in that offense, God sent Jesus to die on the cross for us and that our justification in front of God alone is by the cross alone and by no act of our own merit. And that kindness, when we understand our depravity that we’ve sinned against Him and His response has been the cross, that leads us to repentance.]
I will finish it up with an example. I am not musically inclined at all. So if you came up to me with a guitar and a (insert popular rock band here) song I could no do it. No matter how hard a tried I just could not do it. If you however take the time to train me, show me where to place my hands, when to hold this chord or that chord, etc I will slowly learn how to play that song. It may take me months, years, or even decades but I will eventually learn. Its the same idea with your walk with Jesus. Paul commands us to "train ourselves in Godliness". Nothing about training is easy, it takes lots of sweat and tears. When you are progressive in training yourselves in righteousness and sanctification you can achieve what all Christians want, a transformed life. Just know that we all struggle, you are not alone. I will finish with James 5:16 as I think the value of Godly friends and accountability partners are greatly undervalued.
Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.
I pray that all my brothers and sisters in Christ keep fighting the good fight.
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