Mortified!

There is a concept the Puritans understood with which modern day Christians aren't very familiar.  People have a very serious problem and it's not low self esteem. It's sin.  The Bible indicates that the greatest block to our sanctification is sin against God. All sin, by the way, is sin against Him.  There are two very aggressive modes of handling sin. The first is outright full frontal attack.  We must mortify it.  We must kill it.  I think far too many believers, myself included dabble in repentance.  There is a habitual sin against which I've struggled for a long time.  Mere swatting at it won't do.  It requires every piece of spiritual armor I've got. It must include the Word of God, confession, prayer, self control and many other disciplines of grace.

Full frontal attack means killing sin. Sinclair Ferguson says:

What then is this killing of sin? It is the constant battle against sin which we fight daily--the refusal to allow the eye to wander, the mind to contemplate, the affections to run after anything which will draw us from Christ. It is the deliberate rejection of any sinful thought, suggestion, desire, aspiration, deed, circumstance of provocation at the moment we become conscious of its existence.  It is the consistent endeavor to do all in our powers to weaken the grip which sin in general, has. it is not accomplished by saying "no" to what is wrong, but by a determined acceptance of all the good and spiritually nourishing disciplines of the gospel."

The second mode of combating sin is avoidance. Avoidance in the sense of Joseph fleeing the grasp of Potipher's wife.  Even if it meant leaving his coat behind.  Scripture indicts us to "flee immorality." I sometimes think Christians are challenged by seeing how close they can get to sin without succumbing.  Once we know where we are particularly prone to sin we can avoid such circumstances and create a hedge of protection for ourselves. 

C. J. Mahaney in his book "How Can I Change, Victory in the Struggle Against Sin" says:

{Battling sin} involves genuine confession, repentance, obedience to Scripture, accountability to others, and the consistent practice of the spiritual disciplines.  You'll also need courage and perseverance.

I'm asking that you pray as I endeavor to mortify a huge habitual sin in my life in the weeks to come. I've coddled it long enough. Tonight I declare battle against it with the help of the Body. If there is a sin that needs to be mortified in your life, please ask for prayer in the comment section on the blog or Facebook. The church needs one another and if Christ is coming back for a holy and blameless church, we need to be about mortifying the sins that beset us.