Part 2 - The Path to Victory (landscape)

---

The Silent War Part 2 – The Path to Victory

Intro Last week we began a discussion about a sensitive, yet brutally difficult, subject that we have preferred to stay silent about for far too long. We all decided it was better to play quiet mouse instead of talking about what everyone already knew was an issue. We cracked the door on sexual sin. We know it’s a widespread human issue because our own hearts and statistics tell us that 85% of young adults and 70% of men view porn at least once a month. Unfortunately, those who claim to be followers of God aren’t free from the struggle either. We saw that 50% of Christian men and 20% of Christ-following women say they are addicted to pornography. We are in a war; an all-out assault for our hearts and minds. The longer we stay silent, the more we stand to lose. Sexual purity is not a fight we will win on our own. The enemy is too great, his formation is too daunting, and his attacks are too cunning. Good News The good news is that [last week] we saw a way out. We found hope. We discovered that even when we were dead – when we had no way out, no hope from being defeated – that God [in His great mercy and love] provided us a rescue. He made it possible, through His Son Jesus, for our sexual sin [and all sin] to be defeated. The enemy, as much as he tried, could not find victory over Jesus. And it’s in Jesus that our victory [over all sin] and freedom from sexual sin is found.

Galatians 5 Paul addresses this freedom in his writing to the church and people of Galatia. 5:1 & 13 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery. For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. Paul reminds us that there is nothing we can do to rescue ourselves. No matter how hard we try, no matter how good we become – we do not have the ability to free ourselves from slavery to sin. And then he reminds them of something that is very easy to miss – and the starting point for our conversation next week. He tells us that we are free [when we trust and believe in Christ]. He warns us to not return back to the slavery in which we were once trapped – which makes perfect sense. Who would want to become a slave again, once they have tasted freedom? No one. But when it comes to sin [especially sexual sin] we often do. This is where Paul states something small, yet extremely profound, for us to grasp. Instead of using this new freedom as an opportunity to fulfill and satisfy your own person longings and desires – use your new life to serve other people. This shift is the beginning of growth into our new life.

5:16-17 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. As we learn to love others and learn to walk [live] in the new ways of God, we will have less of a desire to gratify the desires that once consumed us. The Spirit of God and the desires of the flesh, the new life made possible by Christ and our old nature, cannot co-exist. We cannot have our sin and Christ. Paul is not saying that we will never sin. He is also not claiming that every time we stumble, we lose our relationship with Jesus. But we cannot claim to be one when our life is providing evidence of the other. 5:19-23 [paraphrase] Paul clearly illustrates that sexual sin is something that goes directly against the will and Spirit of God – so much so, that a pattern [lifestyle] lived in this type of sin is [possible] evidence of an unchanged heart. The desires of the flesh include sexual impurity, which leads to death. However, a changed heart and life includes traits like patience – waiting on God’s timing and plan as opposed to self-gratification; and self-control – discipline given by the Spirt which allows us to resist the desires of the flesh.

5:24 & 6:14 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires…the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.

The world is dead to Paul and he is dead to the world. The old self [old nature] which was drawn by and attracted to sin has now been put to death. It has no power or influence in his life. He is not fascinated by the desires of his flesh, because he has found a new source of satisfaction – one that is far greater.

Any maybe a lot of us are asking the same question at the same time – yes, but how do I get there from here? I Thessalonians 4 Paul addresses that in another letter he wrote. 4:1 Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more. He offers insight as to how we get there. Paul’s encouragement is for these men and women to continually think about and focus on what it looks like to live a life that is pleasing to God – a life that lives out and leads to the fruit he mentioned in Galatians. Our thoughts are to be on the things of the Spirit, instead of the things of the flesh. And here’s the key – that you do so MORE and MORE. I don’t think Paul is expecting his readers to go from 0-100 in a day or a week. I don’t think he is fooling himself into thinking that someone who lived life gratifying the desires of the flesh can all of a sudden completely desire the things of God instead. But the expectation is that they will – day by day, more and more.

Sanctification It’s what Scripture calls sanctification. As you and I learn [more and more] how to live our lives according to God’s purposes and designs [found in His Word], the more we will be sanctified [set apart for His purpose], and the more we are sanctified, the more we desire the things of God. 4:2-3 For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality. The first part of this process of sanctification, in walking in a manner that is pleasing to God, is to abstain from sexual immorality. But it’s nearly impossible to stop doing something you are continually around. So, if God’s goal for us is to ultimately give our lives over to Him and be set apart for His purposes, then we have to stop setting ourselves apart for the purpose of gratifying our flesh. Question: How many of us are putting ourselves in positions we know we cannot handle on our own? How many of us are fixing our eyes on things we know will not lead to our sanctification [in the area of sexual purity]? How many of us are following the instructions of the flesh [written by writers, producers, authors, artists, poets, and musicians of the world], instead of the instructions of the Spirit [the Word of God]? It is impossible to be set apart for God, when we are choosing to be filled by the voices of the flesh.

Boundaries & Guardrails I am not [and I don’t think Paul is] suggesting that we can abstain or police our way out of lust. That can only happen when our love for Jesus overcomes our love for physical satisfaction. But I am suggesting that we can [and should] set up some boundaries to help us realize when we have moved away from a heart desiring God toward eyes desiring the flesh.

Imagine a set of guardrails on the highway. They will not completely protect a vehicle determined to drive recklessly outside the boundaries. But they will help lessen the damage. They will help those vehicles [attempting to drive safely] know when they have veered off course. They will help gently remind and correct, not without damage or incident – but hopefully from total destruction.

They also provide public accountability. Everyone knows when another vehicle hits a barrier, a guardrail. It’s evident. The same is true with boundaries and restrictions for our sexual purity. We can establish a few guardrails that will help us realize when we have steered off the path God has intended for us, and other people will be made aware of our detour as well.

Training Wheels When our kids are starting to learn anything, we provide help and support. When they begin walking, we try to soften edges, corners, and furniture – so that if they trip, the fall doesn’t do severe damage. They can get back up and try again.

When they first learn to ride a bike, we provide training wheels so that they can get used to the bike without having to worry about the dangers of riding without limitations. And when the training wheels come off, we are right there beside them every step of the way to catch them and soften the blow when they fall. We encourage them to get back up and try again. We promise that we will be there for them again and again, until they learn how to navigate the bike and road ahead of them more independently.

Instruction & Guidance I think the same is true in our walk with God – especially when it comes to sexual sin. I believe we are foolish to think that purity will just happen without instruction and guidance. Baby-proofing the house, installing training wheels, and providing continual encouragement and support is all beneficial and necessary in our journey toward freedom. Ultimate Goal Just like with our kids learning to walk and ride a bike, the first step isn’t the ultimate goal. But it is an important step toward that goal. Although the first step in our sanctification is about abstaining FROM sexual immorality, that’s not God’s ultimate hope for us. He is not concerned with saving you from something, as much as He is with saving you to/for something. 4:4-5 & 7 That each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God. For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. God is not calling you to just say no to something, but rather to say yes to something greater! He isn’t just after your impurity. Instead He desires your holiness. God doesn’t want you to not be dirty. He wants you to crave purity.

Indeed, if we consider the unblushing promises of reward and the staggering nature of the rewards promised in the Gospels, it would seem that Our Lord finds our desires not too strong, but too weak. We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us. C.S. Lewis – The Weight of Glory The instructions are that we should move from impurity to holiness – by the Word of God, through the power of the Spirit, in the process of sanctification [more and more]. You cannot have more of God without crucifying more of the flesh.