No Question About It, The Struggle Is Real!

Sometimes the power of sin in our lives can seem overwhelming.

When I was a boy, we had a large pine tree in our front yard right next to the street. We had thick hedges growing on both sides of our yard, so when friends were coming to see me or going to another house, they’d walk between the tree and the hedges. Over time, their frequent passage killed the grass that had been growing there and created a well-worn path.

This is essentially how habits – and sins – work. They may start with a single action, but if repeated often enough they can become behaviors. This can be good or bad, depending upon what you’re doing. Sinful behavior, when it happens over and over, can turn into a besetting sin, something extremely difficult to overcome. It becomes a familiar path that’s taken almost without thinking. 

 

Even as followers of Jesus Christ, we’re not exempt from this type of problem. Yes, the Bible says we become “born again” (John 3:3) and “new creations” (2 Corinthians 5:17) when we commit our lives to Him, but old sinful patterns can die hard – in fact, some never die at all.

 

Years ago, I had a friend who had gotten deeply involved with online pornography before committing his life to Christ. Whenever he faced a lot of stress in his life, whether at work or at home, he’d resort to pornography for relief. To use a computer term, it became his ‘default setting.’ After becoming a believer, his familiar sinful “path” unfortunately didn’t disappear. One day he’d succeed at warding off the temptation but would succumb to it the next, filling him with guilt. His struggle was real.

 

This, to one extent or another, is true for every believer, whether new to the faith or a follower of Jesus for many years. The type (or types) of sins we struggle with differ from one person to the next, but they continue to entice us. Even the apostle Paul, a leader of the early Church and author of more than a dozen books of the New Testament, understood this struggle all too well. 

 

He candidly admitted, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do…. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do – this I keep doing” (Romans 6:15-19). Does this sound at all familiar to you?

 

Some have suggested Paul was reflecting on his life before his dramatic encounter with Christ while traveling the road to Damascus. However, based on the context of his writing as well as his use of present tense verbs, it’s reasonable to conclude that this “super-Christian,” like all of us, continued to struggle with sinful thoughts and behavior.

 

We don’t know specifically what those things were, but that doesn’t matter. The point is, we all have what the Scriptures call our “sinful nature” (Romans 8:5) or “the flesh,” as other translations put it, and God doesn’t eradicate it when we become followers of Jesus.

 

Does that mean we simply shrug our shoulders in resignation, reasoning, “Well, I’m only human. Nobody’s perfect”? Not if we believe the Scriptures. Because God clearly tells us that while sin will never be dead to us, poised to take us off course and back to our old, familiar sinful paths, we are dead to sin. No longer under its domination. And because of that, we need not wallow in guilt.

 

After admitting his own struggles with sin, Paul offered the following assurance:  “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death” (Romans 8:1-2).

 

He’s saying that victory over sin – regardless of how long it’s been with us – is promised through the power of Christ and His Spirit: “For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering…in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit” (Romans 8:3-4).

 

What the Bible teaches is if we’re true followers of Jesus, we don’t need to continue following the same sinful path. God graciously offers an exit so we can start following a new path. Something for us that, to borrow a phrase from poet Robert Frost, might be called, “the road less traveled”

 

There’s an old hymn called “Victory in Jesus.” That’s exactly what we have and can experience as we learn not to strive in our own strength and determination to overcome sinful impulses, but to be victorious over them – in the power of Christ and His Spirit living in us every day: 

“I heard an old, old story how a Savior came from glory,

How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me;

I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood’s atoning,

Then I repented of my sins and won the victory….

 

O victory in Jesus, my Savior, forever!...

He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood.” 

Joy in Knowing Victory’s Already Won

For Ohio State fans, watch a replay of the Buckeyes' College Football
Championship victory is far less stressful than it was watching it live.

“I can’t stand the suspense!” How many times have you heard that? How many times have you said that yourself?

We do this with page-turning novels that keep us guessing until the last paragraph. Movie thrillers keep us squirming in our seats, wondering how the good guys are going to prevail. And season finale cliff-hangers on TV sometimes ratchet our suspense to extremes.

But this matter of suspense isn’t limited to the make-believe world. It’s a big deal in real life, too. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could be certain of the outcome for things important to us, and could know well in advance? It sure would save us a lot of anxiety, stress and worry, don’t you think?

For instance, how would you feel if your favorite team was playing in the championship game and someone were able to provide an ironclad, no-doubt-about-it guarantee that they would win the contest? (For the sake of discussion, let’s just assume this assurance was on the up-and-up. No game-fixing.) How do you think that would affect your tension level as the game unfolded?

Or maybe you’re one of those rabid fans – as I am – that records the game while watching it live, so if your team wins you can replay it and revel in the victory again. After the game, when you know the outcome, doesn’t that enable you to relax and enjoy it more the second time around? No need for gnashing teeth every time your team makes a mistake or the other team scores. Victory is certain!

Consider a different scenario: You’ve just been diagnosed with a very serious disease and the first physician you consult with offers a dire prognosis. But then you pursue the oft-recommended second opinion and the specialist, upon reviewing your test results, assures you the outlook is far more hopeful than you’d been told. In fact, the doctor advises you not to worry at all, that you’ll undoubtedly be cured; the earlier diagnosis was incorrect. How would you feel then? You might be angry about the first evaluation, and a bit concerned about the course of treatment, but with faith in the medical expert’s promise, you’d feel confident that after going through it you would be good to go.

How about a friend or loved one going through an extremely difficult time, leaving you feeling helpless. Wouldn’t it be great at such times if someone could tell you with unwavering certainty, “It’s going to be OK. I promise”?

Unfortunately, living in a sin-scarred, broken world, the fairy tale endings of “happily ever after” don’t always translate into everyday life. And yet, as we read the Bible, we find God does offer assurances and guarantees, even for the toughest circumstances.

Speaking through the prophet Jeremiah to His chosen people, God stated, “For I know the plans I have for you…plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future” (Jeremiah 29:11). Although addressed specifically to the nation of Israel, this is a declaration He makes for all of His children. The end result, the Lord promises, will be a good one.

Knowing His crucifixion was looming in the near future, Jesus offered similar assurances to His followers when He said, “I have told you these things, so that in Me you may have (perfect) peace and confidence. In the world you have tribulation and trials and distress and frustration; but be of good cheer (take courage; be confident, certain, undaunted)! For I have overcome the world. (I have deprived it of power to harm you and have conquered it for you.)” – John 16:33 (Amplified translation).

Confronting not only our personal problems but also frightening events in the world around us, it’s easy to despair and lose heart. But we don’t have to - we can trust in the “guarantee” God provides, being reassured as Jesus said, “I have overcome the world.” That’s what “victory in Jesus” is all about.