August 21
“For that which I am doing, I do not understand; for I am doing the very thing I hate.” (Romans 7:15)
Yesterday, we started a discussion of two sides of the question “Why?” Why am I doing immoral activities, and why should I not be doing immoral activities? I am asking these questions because I think it is helpful as we begin to attack the problem and formulate strategies for overcoming these sins that we know how we got to where we are in the first place and to the extent possible try to understand why we do what we do. We pick up now where we left off yesterday looking at reasons why we might engage in immorality.
Other reasons “Why?” we might engage in immorality, pornography, and lust could be peer pressure and the desire to please a boyfriend or girlfriend, or peer pressure from friends that think we are not cool if we don’t do these things and might call us names and reject us if we don’t participate. (Because the world applauds and commends promiscuity and evil, and ridicules and even persecutes those who speak out against it, we have been conditioned to accept it and not think of it as the damning perversion that it is.) Or it might be none of these things but simply a matter of curiosity or boredom that initially attracts us to these evils. But before long, because we have fed our hearts evil, we begin to desire these things apart from the original reasons, we begin to form very bad habits, we quench the Spirit and don’t desire God much anymore, and we become enslaved to these immoral evils.
ASSIGNMENT: If you struggle at all with immorality, pornography, or lust, then I suggest that you think carefully about what was going on in your life when you first got started down this road. Think about who influenced you and why you agreed or chose to do these things. Think about how these people or situations shaped how you viewed yourself, how you viewed God, and how you viewed the immoral behavior. Think about how these views and attitudes do not align with what scripture says. Write down each distinct thought you can identify, and then study the scriptures to see what God says about you, about Himself, and about the immoral behavior. You may want to consult with a trusted Christian pastor or counselor in this area, or perhaps a trusted friend or someone more mature in the faith than you. Some of us have deeper issues that required expertise and skill to identify and help us overcome, especially in these areas of immorality that can cause deep emotional scarring. I want to be sensitive to those of us that have those types of issues, but I also believe that ultimately healing consists of understanding the truth of God and replacing the lies we have believed with those truths, believing those truths, and acting on those truths in obedience to His word.
I stand on and commend to you Jesus’ promise, “If you abide in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine, and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” John 8:31-32
We will pick up the question of why we should not do these things tomorrow.