Dec 27, 2011
Stop it!
Living by faith means fighting against sin.
But too many of us try to fight sin by doing what Bob Newhart says in this 2-minute video —
Thankfully, that’s not how God talks to us.
God promises that He will help us overcome sin — as we —
- come to Jesus as we are, confessing our sin and trusting His mercy to forgive us, cleanse us, and change us (Luke 18:13; 1Jo 1:9).
- ask for the power of the Holy Spirit to strengthen our faith in God’s promises and our heart-taste of Jesus’ glory (Psa 51:10; Rom 8:13).
- pray earnestly over God’s Word until we feel the Holy Spirit changing our hearts so we desire Jesus more than anything else (John 8:31-32; 2Cor 3:18).
Next steps
Do you have any comments or thoughts about this? I’d love to hear them. Leave a reply below — thanks.
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Ha, it sounds so easy, doesn’t it. Just “stop it!”. I’ve tried so many times with so many different sins and struggles just to stop it. It usually leads to frustration, and being absolutely disgusted with myself. But when I follow the steps you’ve listed, I have peace, and often discover, to my surprise, the the struggle has just evaporated.
Thanks for the reminder!
You are so welcome, Sami. And it brings me joy to hear from you.
Thanks Steve, I hope you don’t mind if I share this. I had an aunt visit a few months ago and she shared a small little daily devotional. Each day has a different scripture but in the end they all point to the Cross of Jesus. This has been so liberating for me. Because, unlike Bob Newhart…sometimes (on our own) we just can’t “Stop It”. But as I go to the Cross It becomes so much easier to leave my sin at his footsteps. Thanks for sharing this.
I agree about the Cross. I have specially found Rom 8:32 to be powerful in motivating me — since God did do the extremely hard act of giving up His Son on the Cross, I can be completely confident that He will give me everything I need in Himself today. And when I am confident that HE will give me everything I need, I’m freed from pursuing what SIN promises to give me. Thanks for your thoughts!
Nice post Steve. The reminder in the reply above is even more helpful to me, as it pinpoints the main reason I have sin. Thinking that want or need, which causes me to sin will fulfill me in some way greater than God himself can (will). Having that reminder, brings me back to my proper position under God. To seek and trust Him with all I think I need. He’s so good and hugely wiser that He goes ever far beyond what my puny intellect can fathom. Thank you for the post. :))
I do have to tell you as well. What caught my eye to make this a must-read was the title “Stop It!”. I felt called out and knew this would be good. Just saying. ;).
It’s always good to hear from you, Deanna. And it does my heart good to read what you wrote — that God is so good and hugely wiser — so true! Thanks for your thoughts.
Totally! just stoppin’ it rarely works. Bob Newhart is pretty awesome though. Good stuff:)
Thanks for your thoughts — and if you are interested, there is a longer version of the video available on YouTube. Just search “Stop It.”