The Call to Kill

Owen quote?? Romans 8:13 “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”

Sexual topic disclaimer

Intro 1

Christianity is often referred to as a religion of peace. Sayings from Jesus like “Blessed are the peacemakers”, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” “Turn the other cheek” “Put away the sword” And while those are true and glorious good truths. That we are a religion of peace. That we don’t wage holy war against unbelievers and behead or bomb those who don’t agree with us. The reality is we are called to violence. Not external, not on our enemies, but internal. We are called to an internal battle. A call to kill.

Intro 2

Last week was a transition into Christian living

This week we begin looking at all the imperatives in light of all the indicatives

Put to death

Call to kill - first command

“put to death”

“to deaden or cause to cease completely, put to death ‘to put an end to the life of something, to cause to be dead’ - BDAG

What are we called to kill?

What is earthly in you

Lit “the members (of your body) the things that are on the earth”

That which is not heavenly that still resides - your sin

Paul expounds with 2 lists of sin

Anger & Sex

Same as sermon on the mount

Sexual sin

The god of sex

we’re surrounded and bombarded with sexual temptation & perversion everywhere we look.

“Have as much sex as you can with as many people as you can”

Music, tv shows, movies. Sex

Pornography industry larger than nfl mlb and nba combined

people in the porn industry are now being encouraged and celebrated

“sex work is real work”

God’s way doesn’t need an update

“Half of U.S. Christians say casual sex between consenting adults is sometimes or always acceptable” Pew Research

Sex is good. It is God’s glorious design and it is intended for our joy.

Sex is powerful. Which is why God has put boundaries around it for our good

God’s design for sex is that is a good glorious gift that should be enjoyed between one (biological) male and one (biological) female within the confines of a covenant marriage

firepit illus

Damage/hurt/pain/sorrow caused from sexual sin

Sex before marriage

Sex outside of marriage

Approx 90% of all abortions today are from unmarried women

Davids sin w/ Bathsheba

Sexual immorality - Action

Unlawful sexual intercourse

fornication

Sex outside of marriage

Impurity (uncleanness)

Often linked with “sexual immorality”

Broader sexual perversion

Rom 1 this word is used when discussing homosexuality

perhaps bestiality

Switches from physical act to internal acts - Physical to the heart

Passion (lust)

Intense sexual desire

Evil desire

Not all desires are evil

Paul says he “desires to depart to be with Christ” Phil 1

There are desires that are not good desires.

James 1:15 “Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”

Covetousness

Context is still sexual

Of course other coveting still applies

We want what we can’t have

Sexual partners

Sexual experiences

Wanting is not necessarily bad

To desire a wife is a good thing. To desire someones wife is evil

Because we lack contentment

Sexual sin begins in the heart and the mind

The progression

Covet something you dont have

Covet leads to desire

Your desire turns to a passion

Your passion turns to impurity

Your impurity turns to sexual immorality

Paul says kill it

Kill it all

Kill the covetousness

Kill the evil desire

Kill the passion

Kill the impurity

Kill the sexual immorality

Kill it

Porn?

Second list - Anger

This time, begins with heart and moves to action

Anger

Like sex, not all anger is bad

Ephesians 4:26 “Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger,”

Amos 5:15 “Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.”

Jesus in the temple with the money changers

Whip of cords

overturned their tables

drove them out

This is anger of man

Someones wronged me

someone hurt me

someone lied, cheated, stole from me

Wrath

Often used interchangeably with anger in nt

Intensifier

Can be translated as fury

Malice

I’ll will towards someone

Want something bad to happen to them

“I hope you pour a bowl of cereal tomorrow and then realize your out of milk”

Slander

Abusive, defamatory language

Aimed to tear down

Obscene talk/filthy language/shameful speaking

Contextually the language around the anger towards another

Insults, vulgarity, etc

See the progression

anger, wrath, malice, slander, obscene talk

We all battle with anger in some form or fashion but church we need to kill it

James 1:20 “for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.”

One off - Do not lie

Perhaps attached to the previous

Paul finishing the last list with sin of the tongue which lying is

Why is this here?

We don’t actually have to answer that… however

Lying is a distortion of truth

Perhaps in contrast to the false teaching

Perhaps it’s because when we lie, we are valuing something more than what is true

Consequences

Reputation

Gain

Pleasure

Peters denial of Jesus - safety, acceptance

We need to be, as christians, commited to, in love with, wholly devoted to truth

Jesus in jn 8 - speaking to the pharisees

Your father is of the devil

John 8:44 “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.”

Jesus emphasizes that satan’s character is marked by falsehood, by lies

But yet in contrast, Paul defines the gospel as the word of truth in Colossians 1:5 “because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel,”

Paul says put to death these things

Kill these things in your life

Why Do We Kill it

Idolatry

DEFINE

Not just sexual sins

these, them, them

Wrath of God

What does this mean?

This isn’t the word for discipline

Every time this word appears in NT about God's wrath is always judgement, condemnation,

So what is it?

May just be a statement of fact, that God’s wrath is coming because of sin. No sin, no wrath

Manuscripts have “sons of disobedience”

Similar to Ephesians 5:6 “Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.”

Manuscript evidence isn’t great here

Warning

Is there wrath for God’s elect?

NO

We just got done reading

You are dead

You are raised

Your life is hidden

Glory is coming for you

Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

1 Thessalonians 5:9 “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,”

In fact, it is precisely God’s wrath that we’ve been saved from

Romans 5:9 “Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God.”

1 Thessalonians 1:10 “and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”

So why warn Christians?

Ref Colossians 1:23 “if indeed you continue in the faith, stable and steadfast, not shifting from the hope of the gospel that you heard, which has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven, and of which I, Paul, became a minister.”

Proof, not power

As a means for our perseverance

like:

Encouragement

Promises

Discipline

Exhortations

God’s wrath and judgement ought to cause us to run back to Christ, not away from him

We have died (gospel realities - THEREFORE)

Colossians 2:20 “If with Christ you died to the elemental spirits of the world, why, as if you were still alive in the world, do you submit to regulations—”

Colossians 3:3 “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”

How do we kill

Put off and put on

Person & Practice

Person - Who you are - Gospel reality

Change clothing

Old man - Adam

You once walked when you were living in them

When you were in the domain of darkness

Colossians 1:21 “And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds,”

You were wearing an old uniform

Had the flag of the enemy

Rank

Son of disobedience

Your medals & ribbons

Sexual sin

Anger

Lying

New man - Christ

Transferred to kingdom Col 1 13

Child of God

Saint

Righteous, innocent, blameless, pure

Identity

You are no longer in Adam but in Christ

Therefore, become what you are

Put off put on in practice (not just do nots but also dos)

Replace

Lying - truth

anger - forgiveness

Put away falsehood and put on truth (next week)

Piper ANTHEM

A- Avoid

Romans 13:14 “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”

N - Say NO to every lustful thought within 5 seconds

James 4:7 “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

T - Turn

Defense to offense

Recall the promises and pleasures of Jesus

H - Hold

Hold the promise & pleasure of Christ until your desire is pushed out

Be violent

E - Enjoy

Enjoy the superior satisfaction found in Christ

M - Move

move into a useful activity away from idleness

Kill sin by Being renewed

Being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator

Sword is the word

You need to meditate on God’s word to recall God’s word

Happening now

Knowledge

Fill your mind with the word of Christ

Colossians 3:16 “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”

Christ is creator

Colossians 1:16 “For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things were created through him and for him.”

Staring at Christ, Not by staring at sin

2 Corinthians 3:18 “And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

Hebrews 12:1–3 “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. Consider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.”

The expulsive power of a new affection - Thomas Chalmers

Look at jesus and see his beauty

his joy

his pleasure

See he is better

sin =lie

Christ can satisfy

Here there is not:

Greek & Jew

Circumcised & Uncircumcised

Barbarian, Scythian

Slave, free

Christ is all and in all

“All”

More superior than all the treasures of the world

Piper:

Once we boasted in our culture and our intellect like the Greeks. But now CHRIST IS ALL. Once we gloried in our tradition and our religious rigor like the Jews, but now CHRIST IS ALL. Once we got our strokes becausr of our ething pedigree. But now CHRIST IS ALL> Once we reveled in not being like the barbarians and the shabby Scythians, but now CHRIST IS ALL. Or once we resented NOT being the cultured, not being the rigorous, not having the cultured pedigree, not having the wealth and refinement, but now CHRIST IS ALL.