![]() ![]() Jesus tells us to cut off our hand or pluck out our eye if they “offend” us (Matthew 5:29–30). We simply must make every effort to run from the things that tempt us to sin, including access to food if we are given to overeating, and access to pornography if we are tempted to sexual sin. We have to adopt the attitude of Joseph who, when tempted by Potiphar’s wife to come to bed with her, left the room so quickly that he left his cloak in her hands (Genesis 39:15). Habitual sin is overcome as we submit ourselves to God and refuse the temptations of the flesh (James 4:7–8).Īnother part of the process of overcoming habitual sin is to change the habits that facilitate it. The Holy Spirit, through God’s Word (John 17:17), works sanctification in the people of God. Paul later says, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you” (Romans 8:11). That is why we need the power of the Holy Spirit. ![]() The Christian’s struggle against sin is one in which our ability does not match our desire. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out” (Romans 7:18). Paul says, “For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. The next part of the process is recognizing our inability to overcome habitual sin and our need to rely on the power of God’s Holy Spirit, who dwells within us. Therefore, when a Christian sins, it is no longer out of the necessity of his nature, but because he has willfully submitted himself to sin’s dominion (Galatians 5:1). At the cross the power of sin was broken, and, in becoming Christians, we are set free from sin’s mastery over us. We were at one time slaves to sin, but now we are slaves to righteousness (Romans 6:17–18). He uses the metaphor of slavery to make this point. When Paul says, “Consider yourselves dead to sin,” he is telling us to remember that, in coming to Christ, the power of sin has been broken in our lives. Paul writes, “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11). Part of the process of overcoming these habitual, or besetting, sins is in recognizing the transformation that has indeed taken place within the believer. These besetting sins are often, but not exclusively, habits that we developed during our lives as unbelievers and require more grace and discipline to overcome. We might refer to a sin that is particularly difficult for us to overcome as a “ besetting” sin or a "habitual" sin. For some it might be anger whereas for others it is gossip or lying. Experience tells us that we struggle differently with sin, perhaps one sin being more of a tripping point for one believer than another. James says we all sin in many ways (James 3:2). ![]() In this, he is describing every Christian’s struggle with sin. He does the evil he doesn’t want to do and fails to do the good that he wants to do. ![]() In that passage he notes that, even though he desires to do what is good in the eyes of God, he often does what is evil instead. Paul describes this battle with sin in Romans 7:15–25. Sanctification in this life will never be fully complete, which means that believers will always struggle with remaining sin. The process of sanctification is that by which those who are in Christ are conformed by the Holy Spirit into the image of Christ (Romans 8:29). ![]()
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