Snellville Church of Christ: Online Resources

Foundations of Faith
An online correspondence course
Lesson 17: Overcoming Sin

Truth is often found in apparent contradictions. To illustrate, John writes, "If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." (1 John 1:10.) Yet a few verses later he adds, Whosoever abideth in him sinneth not." (1 John 3:6.) The apparent discrepancy disappears when we discover that two different Greek tenses are used in these verses. The second passage may properly be translated, "Whosoever continues to abide in him, does not keep on sinning." What John is saying is not that it is impossible for the Christian to sin, but that the one who lives the Christian life will not live a life of sin, even though he may occasionally slip through human weakness.

Forgiveness of sins is related to motive. The faithful Christian who through weakness or ignorance transgresses the will of God may receive forgiveness by approaching God through Jesus. John explains, "And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for our's only, but also for the sins of the whole world." (1 John 2:1, 2.) On the other hand, if we rebel against God and sin intentionally, he will not forgive us until we have a change of heart. We read, "For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries." (Heb. 10:26, 27.) By sinning wilfully we have rejected the only sacrifice for sins, Jesus Christ. Until we sincerely repent there is no means of our attaining forgiveness. Of course, the rebel can be forgiven, but only by submitting his will to that of God. In so doing he ceases to be a rebel.

In this lesson we are interested in finding ways in which the Christian can overcome sin. That this is not impossible is shown by Paul's declaration, "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me." (Phil. 4:13.) This includes resisting temptation. The following things are desirable if we are to successfully overcome sin:

(1) RECOGNIZE DECEITFULNESS OF SIN. The devil works in devious ways. He often is a "roaring lion, walking about, seeking whom he may devour." (1 Peter 5:8.) Sometimes he is a tempter. (1 Thess. 3:5.) But more frequently Satan is "transformed into an angel of light." (2 Cor. 11:14.) He dresses in such a way as to make evil appear good and is thus able to trick Christians into sinning. The Christian must, therefore, carefully study the nature of sin to determine beforehand how he will act should he be placed in a questionable position. By thus anticipating the maneuvers of the devil he may be able to avoid a compromising situation.

(2) ACKNOWLEDGE WEAKNESSES. "Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us." (Heb. 12:1.) There are certain sins which trouble us more than others. One person's besetting sin may be the improper use of the tongue while another's may be drunkenness. What is one person's strong point may be another's weakness. Each Christian should honestly admit his own weaknesses. Alcoholics Anonymous teaches that one cannot overcome alcoholism until he admits to himself that he is an alcoholic. So it is with the Christian and sin. He cannot defeat it until he freely recognizes his own weaknesses.

(3) DETERMINE TO MORTIFY SIN (PUT IT TO DEATH.) James teaches the Christian in his petitions to God to "ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed." (James 1:6.) As in prayer, we must resolve in overcoming temptation not to fail. There is no room in our resolutions for "ifs" or "buts." The one who tries to defeat sin by saying, "Maybe I can do it," is sure to fail, because he has faith neither in himself nor in God. As James concludes his thought, "Let not that man think that he shall receive any thing of the Lord. A double minded man is unstable in all his ways." (James 1:7, 8.)

(4) TRY ONE'S BEST TO RESIST SIN. "Resist the devil and he will flee from you." (James 4:7.) Resistance suggests sincere, conscious effort. If we are to resist Satan, and hence temptation, we must exert every bit of effort to conquer. Paul declares, "I therefore so run, as not uncertainly; so fight I, as not beating the air: but I buffet my body, and bring it into bondage: lest by any means, after that I have preached to others, I myself should be rejected." (1 Cor. 9:26,27 -- A.S.V.) Notice that Paul uses "fight" and "buffet" to express his efforts to overcome his weaknesses. These words imply a maximum of effort on Paul's part. Certainly if this great man of God was afraid that by not exerting himself to the fullest he might be lost, Christians today cannot expect to overcome sin and win eternal life if they give the Lord less than their best. "And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?" (1 Peter 4:18.) Even with his very best the Christian will have nothing to spare at the day of judgment.

(5) LOOK FOR THE WAY OF ESCAPE. One of the most blessed of all promises is expressed in 1 Corinthians 10:13, "There hath no temptation taken you but such as man can bear: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation make also the way of escape, that ye may be able to endure it." (A.S.V.) Notice that we are not told that we will not be tempted, but rather that the Christian will not be tempted beyond his endurance. Furthermore, with each temptation God has provided an escape. It is up to the Christian to find that way. Sometimes the way of escape is found in our next suggestion for overcoming sin.

(6) AVOID TEMPTING SITUATIONS. A skillful automobile driver is not always the best. Although he may react quickly and efficiently in difficult situations, he may sometimes through pure carelessness be placed in circumstances from which his skill cannot extricate him. Similarly, the Christian who overcomes sin is not the one who tries to get as close to it as possible without succumbing, but the one who cautiously stays as far away from it as he can. Therefore Paul warns, "But thou, O man of God, flee these things." (1 Tim. 6:11.)

(7) BE VIGILANT. "Wherefore let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall." (1 Cor. 10:12.) The devil does his most effective work when we become complacent. It is then that we relax our guard and he is able to place before us temptations for which we are no longer prepared. Constant vigilance is the price Christians must pay for overcoming sin.

(8) FILL OUR LIVES WITH GOOD. It is an old saying that an idle brain is the devil's workshop. If we root sin out of our lives, we cannot keep it out permanently without filling the void created with what is good. The ex-gambler, for example, will be overcome by an overwhelming urge to return to his previous way of life unless he fills the time formerly used for gambling with something profitable. One advantage of the Christian over the non-Christian is that in overcoming sin the disciple of Christ has more worthy objectives and may therefore more easily fill his life with what is good.

(9) SECURE HELP OF OTHER CHRISTIANS. Paul admonishes, "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." (Gal. 6:2.) Our burdens are not all physical. The assistance a Christian receives from the counsel of a brother in Christ often spells the difference between success and failure in overcoming sin. Even the very act of telling another our troubles often helps to bring the solution into focus.

"But just to feel you have a friend,
Who will stand by unto the end,
Whose sympathy through all endures,
Whose warm handclasp is always yours,
Although there's nothing he can do,
It helps somehow to pull you through.
And so with fervent heart we cry:
'God bless the friend who just stands by'."
--J. M. McCaleb

(10) PRAY. The closest friend of all is God. He is attentive to the petitions of his children. Therefore Jesus tells us, "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you...If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father, which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?" (Matt. 7:6, 11.) This includes asking for wisdom and strength needed in resisting temptation. And when shall we pray? At all times, but especially when we feel that we are being tempted. A silent prayer to God in the midst of temptation will be heard by him as quickly as one offered in the solitude of our closet.

(11) TRUST GOD. Prayer implies trust, yet it is possible to utter a prayer to God without fully placing confidence in him. Saving faith is trusting faith. We are not just to believe that God might or could deliver us from temptation, but rather that he will. When we place our hand in that of the Lord, there can be no room for doubt.

Success in overcoming sin depends upon both God and the sinner. One who is not a Christian may make some progress on his own, but he can never conquer without divine aid. Therefore these suggestions for overcoming the temptations of the devil are based on the supposition that one is first a disciple of Jesus.

SEARCHING THE SCRIPTURES

After each scripture write the suggestion for overcoming sin which most nearly matches the thought of the scripture. Each suggestion is used once. The suggestions are: Recognize deceitfulness of sin; Acknowledge weaknesses; Determine to mortify sin; Try one's best to resist sin; Look for the way of' escape; Avoid tempting situations; Be vigilant; Fill our lives with good; Secure help of other Christians; Pray; Trust God.

1. Luke 22:40	pray
2. 1 Corinthians 10:12	be vigilant
3. James 4:7	try one's best to resist sin
4. Hebrews 13:5, 6	trust God
5. 1 Corinthians 10:13	look for the way of escape
6. Colossians 3:5	determine to mortify sin
7. Romans 7:18, 19	acknowledge weaknesses
8. 1 Thessalonians 5:22	avoid tempting situations
9. Colossians 3:12-14	fill our lives with good
10. Hebrews 3:13 (last of verse)	recognize deceitfulness of sin
11. Romans 15:1	secure help of other Christians

Fill in the blanks:

1. Three ways in which the devil works are a roaring lion, a tempter, and an angel of light.
2. If we bear one another's burdens we are fulfilling the law of Christ.
3. Whether one succeeds in conquering sin depends upon both God and the sinner.

True or false:

F		1. John teaches that it is impossible for the Christian to sin.
F		2. God will forgive a rebel who does not repent.
T		3. One may sin through ignorance.
F		4. One with a spiritual weakness should not admit it.
F		5. The faithful Christian does not have to try hard to overcome sin.
T		6. The Lord has always provided us a way of escape from temptation.
T		7. He will not allow us to be tempted above what we can bear.
F		8. Once we have successfully overcome sin we can relax.

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