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The more familiar a person is with the Bible, the harder it becomes to concentrate deeply, slowly, intensely as we read it. This happens to me constantly. Three chapters of Old Testament and one chapter of New Testament gets me through the Bible in a year. But the goal isn’t simply to “get through it.” That would benefit me nothing.
Still, when I’m reading each morning while drinking my coffee, or praying along with a Psalm, or concentrating on one book as I do later in the day (currently Jeremiah), I can easily find myself skimming over familiar parts, like “I already know this so no need to take time with it.” Considering I’ve been into the Bible for almost 60 years, I’m “familiar” with almost all of it. But when I catch myself skimming, I have to stop, back up, close my eyes, and pray, “Holy Spirit, show me something I’ve never seen here that you want me to see today; give me revelation insight beyond all former understanding.” Because no matter how familiar I am with the Word of God, I could never say I’ve got it all down pat!
Sometimes I find myself preferring to read books that explain the Bible, or even the lengthy footnotes in what’s called a “Study Bible,” instead of concentrating on the Scriptures themselves and believing that the Spirit will reveal it’s meaning to me…which is one of the reasons why he lives inside believers. I’m not saying commentaries or footnotes on the Bible are not helpful, but when I find myself spending more time two steps away from the Scriptures than I do with eyes and mind focused directly upon it, I need to wonder what kind of spirit (read evil) is happy to keep me at that distance.
We are on a rather long path to create new life-reconstructing habits. First to eradicate unwanted or sinful old habits, then to create and maintain new ones. We’re not doing this simply to make our lives more ordered and tidy, but to turn ourselves and those around us away from the current world darkness and into the brilliant light of life as it was meant to be.
So I want to use this post today to share the increased levels of difficulty in creating new habits, destroying non-sinful negative habits, and destroying sinful habits. Then I want to draw you deeply into a few chosen Scriptures about our sinful desires and actions. Later I will share “Eight Keys to Kill Negative or Sinful Habits.” Finally, we’ll be able to get on with creating new positive, life-transforming habits!
From easiest (relatively) to most difficult:
1) Create new habits
2) Destroy non-sinful negative habits
3) Destroy unwanted sinful habits
At each level we need more powerful inner tools, more effective change agents, and for passion to be increasingly stirred, convinced, and equipped. Examples: At level one we might want to make our bed daily, exercise daily, and put limits on Facebook scrolling. At level two we might want to speak no judgmental words to our spouse and forgive all who have offended us. At level three, we might need to turn pride to humility, measure out daily alcohol allowance, and crush sexual sin in both thought and action!
You can see why we want to concentrate deeply at level three before moving on to the rest. Let’s concentrate, then, on a few Scriptures to deeply motivate us at level three.
“Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away along with its desires, but whoever does the will of God abides forever” (1 John 2:15-17).
The three most universal sins are listed here. Lust of the Flesh refers to all sexual sin which is anything sexual apart from marriage occurring in our thoughts, words, or actions. Lust of the Eyes refers to our desires, often insatiable desires, to have material possessions, to place our primary use of money in having them, to find our greatest pleasure in the things we own, and to be jealous of what others have that we cannot afford. Pride of Life is that longing for others to look upward at us, to see us above them in some way, and to talk about ourselves in a way that makes us look better than we really are. Other Scriptures say that God hatespride and loves humility, and that he reserves a special place for those who deny themselves to take up their cross and follow him.
“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience— among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Ephesians 2:1-3).
This Scripture reveals to us the sources of sin, which we normally refer to as The World (“following the course of this world”), The Flesh (“among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind”), and The Devil (“following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience”). For each of these sources to become sin, they must first move from temptation to thought to desire to will to action. It’s never true that “The devil made me do it,” but rather “The devil’s demons tempted me, and I chose to grab onto that temptation and turn it to evil thoughts, plans, and sometimes action.”
I’m going to leave you today with a few more selected Scriptures about sin, and ask you to take a moment before reading them to pray that the Spirit of God would speak to you and give you personal insights or impulses as you slowly read and concentrate on them:
Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication, uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.
Proverbs 25:28 Whoever has no rule over his own spirit Is like a city broken down, without walls.
Mark 7:21-22 For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.
James 1:12-15 Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him. Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am tempted by God"; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death.
Mark 7:15 There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.
Matthew 5:27-30 "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery.' But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.
1 Corinthians 6:18-19 Flee sexual immorality. Every sin that a man does is outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own body. Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
Galatians 5:17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
1 Corinthians 10:13 No temptation has overtaken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it.
Colossians 3:2 Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.
• Hebrews 4:15
For we do not have a High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin.
I mostly sing contemporary worship songs, but there are a number of "oldies" that stay deep in my spirit. This is the third verse of "Come to Calvary's Holy Mountain":
Come with hurts and guilts and meanness
Come however soiled within
From the most ingrained uncleanness
From pollution by your sin
Wash your robes and make them white
You shall walk with God in light
Be blessed today as you seek a deeper walk with Jesus, a deeper passion for and revelation from His Word, and a growing anticipation of a life truly renewed in ways you may have desired for some time.
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