"Therefore, gird your minds
for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be
brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As children of
obedience, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your
ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all
your behavior" 1 Peter 1:13-15
Last weeks encouragement was on how the enemies most effective area to
attack is our mind and how all sin starts off as a thought. The thought
itself is not sin, it's when we don't bring the thought captive to the obedience
of Jesus Christ (2 Cor. 10:3-6) and replace it with whatever is true, noble,
just, pure... (Philippians 4:8) then the process to sin has begun.
Charles Stanley uses the letter E to teach seven steps that lead
to the Erosion of our lives:
Entrance of the thought -
This is where we must act, as stated above, to end the possibility of
the next six steps.
Entertainment - when we start
entertaining the thought we are heading into dangerous territory. By not
Philippians 4:8-ing the thought we have let it linger, which leads to ...
Examination - we begin to
meditate on the sinful thought and ponder it's ramifications;
this speeds up the process of committing a wrong act, leading us into the
...
Enjoyment - the fantasying or
daydreaming of the thought; at this point the thought has now become
comfortable which can lead us into ...
Experience - the thought
becomes an action. If not dealt with somewhere within the first four
steps, experience is inevitable ...
Excusing - we have
fallen and are now becoming defensive and defiant about our wrong
attitudes and actions; which leads to the ...
Enveloping of the sin - we
are consumed with having our way, and have no intention of doing
anything else by carry on in our sin.
Dr. Stanley warns, "Just as waves will destroy a beautiful beach over time,
so sin will carve into the beautiful plans God has for us" when we've yielded
to the "thought" and allowed it to reach step seven.
Beloved, the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes and the boastful
pride of life are summed up here. We must never forget "the world is
passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God abides
forever." (1 John 3:17)
Remember this promise which God, Himself, made to us: eternal life (1 John
2:25) and choose to practice righteousness as one born of Him; He has given us
the strength to do so.
Have a wonderful day in the
Lord!
April
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