{"id":11796,"date":"2016-01-28T01:00:18","date_gmt":"2016-01-28T09:00:18","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lighthousebc.com\/beacon\/?p=11796"},"modified":"2016-01-28T00:34:13","modified_gmt":"2016-01-28T08:34:13","slug":"be-killing-sin-or-it-will-be-killing-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lighthousebc.com\/beacon\/2016\/01\/28\/be-killing-sin-or-it-will-be-killing-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Be Killing Sin, Or It Will be Killing You"},"content":{"rendered":"

So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh\u2014for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live. (Romans 8:12-13)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

by Josh Liu<\/em><\/p>\n

Are you living according to the flesh? Or, are you putting it to death? This is the difference between life and death.<\/p>\n

The Apostle Paul uses the word \u201cflesh\u201d in a variety of ways. He has used it to mean the physical body (cf. 1 Cor. 15:39; Rom. 2:28); all of humanity (cf. 1 Cor. 1:29; Gal. 2:16); in reference to heritage (cf. Rom. 4:1); to contrast with the spiritual (Gal. 4:23; Rom. 9:8); and to encapsulate evil, corrupt, fallen nature of unregenerate man (cf. Gal. 5:19-21; Eph. 2:3).<\/p>\n

In the context of Romans 8:13, Paul is speaking of the sinful flesh as that which encompasses unregenerate man\u2013all that opposes the Holy Spirit. He warns that those living according to the flesh must die. In other words, those who engage in habitual ongoing unrepented sin, characterized by a life consistent of an unregenerate person, a life without faith and submission to Christ as Lord and Savior, will die. Paul is not describing the loss of salvation or even threatening believers. He is simply stating that those who do not have (and, as a result, walk by) the Holy Spirit will die (the second death in hell; cf. Rev. 20:14)\u2013the life of unconfessed and unrepented sin identifies an unregenerate person. This is not to say that salvation or eternal life can be earned by obedience; or, a genuinely saved person can never sin. Rather, disobedience\u2013a life opposed to the Holy Spirit, a fleshly life\u2013is characteristic of one who is spiritually dead, and one who will (certainly, in the future) experience eternal death. By contrast, a truly regenerate person will be characterized by obedience\u2013a life opposed to the sinful flesh. So, Paul goes on and teaches that a life that puts to death all that is reminiscent of the life before regeneration is characteristic of one who is spiritually alive, and one who will experience eternal life (cf. John 3:16; 1 Cor. 15:50-57; Rev. 2:7, 11). In preaching on Romans 8:13, John Piper offers a helpful summary:<\/p>\n

If you are living according to the flesh \u2013 if you are not making war on the flesh, and not making a practice out of killing sin in your life, then there is no compelling reason for thinking that you are united to Christ by faith or that you are therefore justified. In other words, putting to death the deeds of the body is not the way we get justified, it’s one of the ways God shows that we are justified. And so Paul commands us to do it \u2013 be killing sin \u2013 because if we don’t \u2013 if we don’t make war on the flesh and put to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit \u2013 if growth in grace and holiness mean nothing to us \u2013 then we show that we are probably false in our profession of faith, and that our church membership is a sham and our baptism is a fraud, and we are probably not Christians after all and never were. (\u201cHow to Kill Sin, Part 1\u201d)<\/p>\n

When the Apostle Paul says \u201cputting to death the deeds of the body,\u201d he is saying kill, destroy, slaughter, put an end to any sign of life, mortify, totally obliterate any deed, thought, attitude, speech that stems from the remaining sin principle in believers. Do not nurture, engage in, or practice sin. Kill it. John Owen says, \u201c\u2026the choicest believers, who are assuredly freed from the condemning power of sin, ought yet to make it their business, all their days, to mortify the indwelling power of sin\u2026.Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin, or it will be killing you\u201d (The Mortification of Sin, 25-26).<\/p>\n

Fellow children of God, you cannot afford to be passive about sin. You have an enemy who opposes you, like a roaring lion seeking to devour his prey; you are surrounded by the world, whose tide is always seeking to sweep you away; you have the flesh within you, which is always seeking to deceive you with its sinful passions and lusts.<\/p>\n

Yet take hope. Victory is won through Christ\u2019s death and resurrection! The Holy Spirit has been given, empowering believers to overcome sin.<\/p>\n

Sin is more evil than we realize, for we forget how holy God is. Our consciences are prone to excuse actions, attitudes, words, and thoughts that are abominations before God. The purpose of this article has been to exhort you to actively confront sin. Jerry Bridges\u2019 book, Respectable Sins, helpful exposes sins that many believers are guilty of nurturing, of neglecting to mortify. Below is a list of sins that Bridges addresses, with my personal annotations. Look through the list and prayerfully examine yourself.<\/p>\n

Ungodliness<\/strong><\/p>\n