It has already begun. As I've traveled around and taught at various meetings in the recent past, I've seen wonderful things. Thrilling moves of God's Spirit.
Yet as awesome as those experiences have been, I know they are only the beginning. God wants to do more. Much more.
But I'm going to be honest with you. God has impressed me deeply that before He can give us greater glory, there's something we believers must do. We must deal with the sin in our lives.
Our society today downplays sin. People mock and jeer at the very concept of it. I read an editorial back a few months ago that said psychologists are steering people away from even using the word sin, because it forces people into guilt and condemnation.
Sadly enough, the Church has followed the same pattern. Over the years, we've allowed ourselves to become casual about sin. To treat it lightly. But now, in this crucial hour, we must realize it is not a trivial thing.
You see, sin causes death.
"Oh no, Sister Lynne, you might say, "I'm born again and Spirit-filled! I'm headed for Heaven!"
You may be. But if you're in sin, you're going to walk in death while you're on this earth, because James 1:15 plainly says that "sin, when it is fully matured, brings forth death." The word death there doesn't necessarily mean physical death; it's talking about spiritual death, which is separation from or lack of fellowship with God.
"Well, I might have a few stubborn sins in my life, but I certainly wouldn't say I am spiritually dead!"
That's because death is usually a progression. Most Christians don't fall into it in one day. They slowly allow themselves to be drawn away by the lusts of their flesh. Then they begin to stagnate. They may still be going to church and saying all the "hallelujahs" and "amens," but inside they're beginning to grow cold because of what sin has done.
That coldness of heart then opens the way to more sin.
No Excuses
When you realize how serious sin actually is, you'll see how crucial it is that we stop tolerating it and start ridding ourselves of it completely. How? First of all by getting honest. By putting away all our excuses and calling sin exactly what it is—sin.
That may sound simple, but surprisingly few people do it. It's become increasingly popular in many churches to avoid saying, "I sinned," and substitute terms such as, "I have this problem," or "I have this weakness." What such phrases actually mean is, "I can't help this behavior. I'm just a victim of circumstance."
That's not true. Whenever we sin, we do so by choice. Otherwise, it wouldn't be fair of God to require us to repent, would it? Certainly not.
People have been trying to give excuses for sin ever since Adam and Eve. When God came into the Garden of Eden and said, "Adam, did you eat of the tree that I forbade you?" Adam didn't respond by saying, "Yes, Lord, I did it. Please forgive me."
No, he turned around and pointed his finger at the woman. He shifted the blame to her. Then she turned around, pointed her finger at the serpent and shifted the blame to him.
If you just listen, you can hear people use the very same excuses today. They'll say, "You know how it is. The devil just came in like a steamroller and I couldn't help it." But the plain truth is, the devil can't make you do anything. In fact, he's not your greatest enemy.
Did you know that?
Certainly he is our adversary. But he can't do a thing to us without our cooperation.
Yes, Satan will bring ungodly suggestions to you. He will try to lure you into wrong attitudes and actions, but we see in this scripture that he cannot succeed on his own. He has to have something in you to work with. What is it? Your own desire—or we could say your flesh.
Our flesh is our biggest enemy. It, not the devil, is the only thing that can keep us from experiencing a victorious life in Jesus. Galatians 5:16 tells us how we conquer this enemy of the flesh, "But I say, walk and live [habitually] in the [Holy] Spirit [responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit]; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh."
A Matter of Choice
Please understand, the term "walk in the spirit" isn't talking about some kind of mystical lifestyle, where you float around in a spiritual La-La-Land. To walk in the spirit simply means to yield yourself to and obey the promptings of your heart instead of the pressure of your flesh.
For if you live according to the [dictates of] the flesh, you will surely die. But if through the power of the [Holy] Spirit you are [habitually] putting to death (making extinct, deadening) the [evil] deeds prompted by the body, you shall [really and genuinely] live forever (Rom. 8:13).
There are times when there is nothing wrong with yielding to the demands of the flesh. If you're hungry and you go get something to eat, or you're tired and you go to sleep, that's yielding to the demands of the flesh, yet those things are perfectly all right.
When you have to put those demands to death, as Romans says, is when there is a conflict between your flesh and your spirit. For example, if somebody does you wrong, as a Christian you'll have two distinct responses inside yourself. One of them will be to strike back. (That's the flesh.) The other will be to pray for that person. (That's your spirit.)
When your spirit tells your flesh to pray for the one who wronged you, it will scream, "PRAY! I don't want to pray for him. I want to flatten him!" That's because flesh is not born again. It is ungodly. And no matter how many scriptures you can quote or how long you pray—it is still going to be in conflict with your spirit.
Therefore, every day of your earthly life, you'll have to choose which one to yield to - spirit? or flesh?
No Lazy Way
One of your greatest allies in helping you make the right decision is discipline. Discipline isn't a very popular topic among Christians today. Most of us want to do whatever we want, whenever we want to do it. Words like discipline and restricting ourselves are not high on our list of priorities.
But a large part of being a spiritual person is being a disciplined person. When the Bible says, "crucify the flesh" (Gal. 5:24) and "put to death the evil deeds prompted by the body" (Rom. 8:13), it's saying, "Discipline yourself. Don't let your flesh do what it wants to do."
There's a very simple but effective two-letter word you have to use on your flesh all of the time. It is the word, NO!
Most Christians don't like to say no to themselves. In fact, they dislike it so much they may even go chasing after doctrines to relieve them of the responsibility. Extreme teachings about deliverance, for example, that say all you have to do is cast out the devil and you won't have to deal with sin pressure anymore.
Of course, I believe in casting out devils and getting rid of demonic influences when necessary. But you can cast the devil out of someone all day long and when they go home that night, they'll still have to deal with their flesh. And if that flesh is undisciplined, they'll get right back in trouble again.
There's no lazy way to live in victory over sin. Walking in the spirit is a rigorous lifestyle. In 1 Corinthians 9:24-27, Paul likens it to training for athletic competition. There's no doubt about it, this is a strenuous race we're running.
Every day we face conflicts, times when our spirit tells us to obey God and our flesh is screaming at us to sin. It doesn't matter how many people are praying for you, or how much you love God—if you want to win the prize, you'll have to discipline yourself to make the right choice.
But, praise God, through the blood of Jesus and the leadership of the Holy Ghost, you can do it. You can turn your back on sin and live holy. You can walk with God every day of your life. You can qualify for that rich inheritance of blessings God has set aside for us. A life of health, peace and victory, and an eternal crown of glory that will make your race worth every step.
All rights reserved. Used by permission.
A teacher and an author, Lynne publishes a newsletter called Prayer Notes, has written numerous books, and currently serves as the national prayer director for Daughters for Zion. Her passion for inspiring and leading others into the life of Spirit-led prayer continues to take her around the world to minister to believers whose heart cry, like hers, is “Lord, teach me to pray!”
