Word Count: 1424
THE HAZARDS OF HOLDING ON TO SIN
Thesis: Sin blocks fellowship with our Lord. Sin hinders our prayers and praises. Sin destroys lives.
Text: Romans 1:18-32
Opening:
Every person in this room has a story to tell about how sin has affected their life or the life of someone they love. Many of you could tell of your heartbreak, and the tears you have shed over the wreckage of broken lives.
Every one of us possesses a sin nature, inherited from Adam. As believers under the blood of Jesus Christ, we have received a new nature. Yet, these two natures wrestle for dominance in our heart. At Pentecost, the Holy Spirit was sent to reside in the hearts of believers to be our Comforter. The work of the Holy Spirit is to bring conviction of sin which leads to repentance. As believers, it should be our desire to relinquish sin as it is brought to our attention by the Holy Spirit. Our attitude should be one of horror that we have so grieved our Lord, and of humility as we come to Him in confession and repentance, seeking His forgiveness.
Unfortunately, that is not always the case. We often deceive ourselves into believing that our sin isn’t that bad, by comparing ourselves with others, thinking that as long as the scale is heavier in their favor, we can’t be all that bad. So we continue in our sin, not realizing how hazardous this is too our relationship with our Lord.
Today, we are going to look at some of the hazards of holding on to sin, and how to overcome those stubborn sin areas in our lives. There are three points that we will look at:
· Sin blocks fellowship with our Lord.
· Sin hinders our prayers and praises.
· Sin destroys lives.
(Read Romans 1:18-32)
1. Sin blocks fellowship with our Lord.
Have you ever had your child put his hands over his ears when he doesn’t want to hear you? It’s a sign of rebellion. That little child is trying to block out your words. As a parent, you immediately go to your child, and pull down his hands, explaining how ugly it is to block out the sound of your voice. This rebellion has to be corrected so that your child can learn to be obedient.
When we believers won’t forsake our sin, we are in rebellion against our Lord. He has put it into our hearts to know truth; to know the difference between right and wrong. We are without excuse. When we hold on to that sin, we are doing so by choice, exercising a rebellious nature that is in disagreement with our Lord. Rebellion takes away our desire to praise Him, because it breeds anger and indignation, causing a breech in our fellowship.
Our Lord wants to bless our obedience. Like a Father, He wants to praise us and reward us for righteousness. As a parent, do you reward bad behavior from your kids? Of course not! The idea behind correction is to turn that child toward righteousness. God wants to turn us to righteousness too! He hates to see the consequences of sin affect our lives.
If iniquity continues to reside in our heart, it is our sinful choice.
2. Sin causes our Lord to close His ears to our prayers and praises.
Collectively as a corporate body, we are to praise our Lord for His wonderful works—those we read about in His Word, those we have experienced as a Church body, and those we have experienced individually. We are exhorted to remember what God has done! He is faithful, and His works are worthy of our praise! Chapter 66 in the book of Psalms is written to the chief musician. It is a song of praise to our Lord for delivering His people, and also an exhortation to remember all that He had done for them. Praising our Lord keeps our focus on Him.
However, in the midst of his praising, the psalmist turns his thoughts inward, recognizing that the Lord had heard him in the midst of his troubles. Why? Because he was forgiven. The psalmist tells us in verse 18, that if iniquity or sin, left unconfessed, had taken root in his heart, then our Lord would not have heard his prayers or his praises. He would not have been delivered. He would not have had praises to sing.
Psalm 66:18 “If I regard iniquity in my heart, the Lord will not hear me”
Apparently the psalmist, aware of his own sinful heart, knew the hazards of holding on to sin. He knew that our Lord wouldn’t hear him when he prayed or offered praises.
3. Sin destroys lives.
Are you experiencing the consequences of a foolish decision? Maybe you forgot to consult with our Lord to find out His will, and now you recognize the folly of your choice. Maybe you were deceived, and thought you were doing the right thing, only to discover that there were hidden consequences you hadn’t even considered.
When you walk away from God to pursue unrighteousness, you must realize that God will allow you to go. With a grieving heart, He will allow you to make that choice. When you leave Him out, you will lose your direction. You can’t know His will. You will make costly mistakes that could have been avoided if you had sought the Lord’s counsel.
“Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey; his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?” Romans 6:16
God gives us fair warning. Who are you in allegiance to?
“He that walketh with wise men shall be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” Proverbs 13:20
Have you been corrupted by those who do not follow our Lord?
“For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse: because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools.” Romans 1:20-22
“And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient” Romans 1:28
Sin is difficult to resist. We try, and maybe even promise ourselves that we won’t succumb to the temptation. Not this time, we tell ourselves. Yet, in the end, we feel powerless to stop ourselves.
“Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” Romans 1:32
Closing:
God wants you to come to the realization that He is to be desired above anything else. God wants your heart. He wants to see you freed from sin. With every temptation, our Lord provides a way of escape.
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement. “ Romans 5:8-11
God wants to deliver you.
“There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13
Satan is the great deceiver. He is a roaring lion, seeking to devour believers! He wants to kill you. He is not going to help you to succeed. He is going to destroy you. That means he will use whatever means necessary to bring you down. He will find your weaknesses, and use them against you. He is our adversary, luring us to sin.
“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist stedfast in the faith, knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in the world. But the God of all grace, who hath called us unto his eternal glory by Christ Jesus, after that ye have suffered a while, make you perfect, stablish, strengthen, settle you.” 1 Peter 5:8-10
If you are in sin today, do you see that way of escape that our Lord offers? Do you realize that to escape, you must turn around and walk away? You must renounce the sin. Agree with our Lord. He brings conviction of unrighteousness through the power of the Holy Spirit in your heart. Don’t argue. Don’t dispute. He is the Creator. He knows how you think. He knows how you react. Nothing is hid from Him. You can’t fool Him!
“He that covereth his sins shall not proper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.” Proverbs 28:13
The Holy Spirit resides in the heart of every believer, and it is His role to reveal our true nature. Why? So that we can repent of our wickedness, and turn back to God. We are called to walk in all His ways, not our own. We don’t formulate a plan, and ask God to approve it. We are to ask God what His plan is and then go and do it.
“Now we know that God heareth not sinners: but if any man be a worshipper of God, and doeth his will, him he heareth.” John 9:31
If you will listen and obey, your life can be turned around.
“I will hear what God the Lord will speak: for he will speak peace unto his people, and to his saints: but let them not turn again to folly.” Psalms 85:8
