Why doesn’t God help me stop committing this sin?
Stop pretending you are something you are not. Your greatness comes from God as a gift. You’re not the ultimate source of it. It’s fine being small and frail as long as your foundation is God.
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Trapped in a cycle of despair we keep thinking we are improving, falling into the same old patterns, asking God to help us stop only to continue wallowing in the mire. Why?
THE BIG DECEPTION
Denial. We think we are better than we are. We are good enough not to fall into this sin. God seemingly allows us to be forced into a situation where we go against our very nature. Or do we?
Shifting responsibility to God instead of taking responsibility for your actions is dangerous.
It is self deception. It is you struggling to accept who you really are or what you are really like. It is your true self hiding behind a mask while you try to change the mask not the face beneath.
You sin because you want to. You love it. We all love it. You want to have those extra couple of beers. You want to lash out at someone you are jealous of. You want to watch that extra video. You want to get physically intimate with that person you know you shouldn’t. You want to steal for convenience. You want to gossip to help your career. You want to run someone else down to feel better.
You want to think you’re entitled or deserve more. You want to love money and status above all else. You want comfort over integrity. Pleasure over principles. The rubbing of genitals over Christ. Your Netflix series over service to Christ. Accept reality. Get comfortable being uncomfortable.
WHEN DESPAIR HELPS
Is this a reason to feel helpless? No. Embrace despair. As James 4:8 says to the proud, be wretched and mourn and weep. Turn your joy to gloom. In despairing, embracing reality, recognising reality about yourself that your heart is deceitful above all (Jer. 17:9) you will experience freedom. For James continues those who humble themselves will be exalted (James 4:10). Let the pain heal you as Christ purifies you through suffering. Sorrow can be helpful.
Letting go, facing reality about your heart and trying to sink will enable you to float. For you will realise nothing can keep you above the water other than Christ himself. In confessing your sins to him there is life and freedom (1 John 1:9), in beating your chest before him in despair there is exaltation (Luke 18:9–14).
THE LIGHT
We exalt ourselves though fallen, Christ though exalted as God chose to humble himself as a man (Phil. 2:5–11). The question isn’t why God doesn’t stop you from sinning but why you love sin so much. Observe your heart and mind. Consider your ways (Hag. 1:5). Let the light of Christ shine as a torch on your dark heart as you bring the cancers, the clogged arteries, the faltering cells and impure blood to the King who humbled himself. Give up on trying to float. Observe your faltering effort and sink into the arms of Christ. Ask him to shape your heart. To change your desires. To conform you into the image of Christ (Rom. 8:29).
Drop your ego. Drop the idea you don’t want to sin. Take responsibility. Accept the truth for it will set you free (John 8:32). Be patient as you build new habits and pursue godliness in a dark world.
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