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Get radical with sin before it’s not too late. In this post, I want to encourage you to apply the Word of God to your life and present situation. Yeshua is teaching us some radical things. The Gospel is a radical message that commands us to remove anything that is causing us to fall into sin. We cannot skip this step if we want to bring glory to God by walking in purity.
In one of my previous posts I discussed about repentance and the need for a change in our thinking. Now we will discover that we need a change in our actions too. There are specific changes for which we need to take responsibility. And these changes will bring healing to our life! However, if you do not want to do them, there will probably be no success or genuine freedom in your life.
Get radical with sin
One of the things you and I have discovered is that no matter how much we feed on sin, it will never satisfy or quench the thirst we have in our hearts. The only Person that can fulfill that is Yeshua. However, if you agreed to dedicate your life for total victory and the right motives, you need to make some changes.
These changes only you can do. God will not do them in your place. Nevertheless, He will give you the grace to make them and will give you the grace to keep them in your life as long as it takes. God will give you grace to get radical with sin.
In Mark 9:43-48 (ESV) we read:
And if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life crippled than with two hands to go to hell, to the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter life lame than with two feet to be thrown into hell. And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into hell, ‘where their worm does not die and the fire is not quenched.’
Not everybody agrees
Probably you are familiar with these words of Yeshua, and perhaps you understand better now the name of this subtitle and what I am about to share. We need to be radical with sin, and we need to remove any channel that Satan can use to tempt us back into sin. Do not look at this as an exaggeration.
Many people over the years told me something like, “Oni, but if I am indeed free from pornography, I can have my laptop in my face and not sin.“
Maybe they are right. You know what it’s interesting though? Almost every person who told me that was not free from pornography. I would suggest that you take advice from people who are free from this sin, not from the ones who are not, or from those who have never been in a situation of addiction. Any former alcoholic should not even enter a bar restaurant, and, if it is possible, should not take communion at Church with real wine. In a similar case, any person who battled pornography should have some precautions taken in his life. You need to get radical with sin.
I had to get radical with sin
After I meditated on the above verses, I realized I needed to make some urgent changes in my life. Therefore, I tried a few but none of them worked well. So, I prayed, and I sensed in my heart that I should give away my laptop and not buy a smartphone. It was hard, but I did that, and for over five years I was without a computer, laptop, or smartphone! It was tough. However, it was the best decision ever for me. You can read my testimony here.
I saw that it is possible to live without a computer in the 21st century. And I realized how much free time I had, time that I was able to invest in prayer, reading the Bible, and worship. It was a time when I learned to get rid of many bad habits and learn new positive directions. Before God builds a new foundation, He has to demolish the old one. Those five years were like a Seminary for me as I learned to draw closer to God. I learned that I needed to get radical with sin.
After I got married, the Lord blessed me with a laptop. So, one of the first things I did was to install an Internet filter on it and my new smartphone. The one that I use is Covenant Eyes. God protected my eyes and life through this filter, and I regularly pray that God will build a stronger filter in my heart and mind too.
Remove anything that makes you fall
I know other people who destroyed their computers and TVs, burned their pornographic CDs, or cut off their Internet connection. Anything that represents a temptation should be removed, according to the words of Yeshua, not mine. If you cannot cut off your Internet connection or sell your computer for specific reasons, then make sure you have an Internet filter. It helps! The price that I pay for my Internet filter is worth the service it does to me. Honestly, there should be no price too high for you to pay for keeping your mind clean. Do whatever you have to do to keep your life clean!
Yeshua is not teaching us in the above verses to physically amputate our foot, hand or eyes. No, because even a crippled person or a blind man can still battle lust in his heart. Yeshua is teaching us that we need to eliminate anything that is causing us to sin. You know better what you need to amputate in your life. We need to remove anything that can make us lose heaven! Get radical with sin.
In my case, I had to amputate my laptop, if that makes sense. Try to think what it means for you to amputate anything that is causing you to sin. For many people it means to stop an ungodly relationship with someone, to change their phone or phone number, or even move to a different place for specific reasons.
Lay aside every weight
For others it means to clean their house from any sinful CD or magazine, or whatever they know is not right. Maybe you need to do all of these things! Spend time today and think and pray about this, as it is crucial to finding the answer. Be honest with yourself!
In Hebrews 12:1-2 (ESV) we read:
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.
We can learn many things from this verse. However, one of the things one can learn is that we must lay aside every weight and sin which clings so closely. Only after we do that we can run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Yeshua. This verse is not saying to pray and ask God to do that in our place. No, it means that we should do it! However, we know we can do nothing without Him (John 15:5). Therefore, we need to ask for grace and the help of the Holy Spirit and do it, for His glory. Get radical with sin!
Get radical with sin and change your life
Ask God what is that weight you need to lay aside that is hindering you to run the race. Then put it aside or amputate it and run the race. You see, weight is not necessarily a sin. It can be a good thing in general, but it is not suitable for you or the race set before you. Therefore, the only option is to remove it! Like the Internet, it can be used for good or for evil. You know better your own life situation.
You are responsible for laying aside any ‘weight’. If you still cannot do it, ask some believers to pray with you and for you, and ask wisdom on how to lay aside that weight that is burdening your life. If you continue to keep that weight in your life, you will experience failure, like the people of Israel who experienced failure because of Achan’s sin (Joshua chap. 6-7).
Now spend some time in prayer and ask wisdom to know what to do next. Make a list of all the possible threats regarding your walk in purity, and by God’s grace, make a plan to lay them aside. Be radical. Use Covenant Eyes or K9 program, or anything that can help you in this battle. Get radical with sin and do whatever you need to do to keep yourself clean!
Now what?
I hope you will obey the words of Yeshua and choose to be a radical disciple. The teaching above is part of the Gospel message. To follow the Gospel is to obey Yeshua/Jesus. Therefore, my prayer is that the words in this post will encourage you to do the necessary changes even if it painful. It cannot be more painful than losing heaven.
And if you need help, let me know. I would like to pray with you! Nevertheless, no matter what you decide my counsel for you is to get radical with sin.
And educate yourself- read good books about how to get free from pornography.
Do you agree?
Let me know if there is anything special going on in your life or if you want prayer! Share this post with your friends and don’t forget to leave a comment.
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I am a blogger, writer, pastor, Director of Zion Romania Bible School, husband to Olguta, a father and, most importantly, a child of God. I also completed my studies at the King’s University where I earned a B.A. in Theology with a concentration in Messianic Jewish Studies. I love Israel and I love the ‘Jewishness’ of the Bible.
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