Stopping

James 1:19–25

Most people do not plan to wreck their lives.

They do not sit down and make goals for addiction, broken trust, wasted years, spiritual coldness, or damaged relationships.

No one says, “I hope I become selfish, careless, undisciplined, and far from God.”

No one says, “I hope one day I look back with regret and wonder how I drifted so far.”

And yet people do end up there.

Usually not through one giant decision.

More often, they get there one step at a time.

One compromise at a time.

One indulgence at a time.

One repeated habit at a time.

That is the burden of this third message in the series on Habits.

In the first sermon, we learned that before do, there must be who.

If we are going to change our lives, we must know who we are in Christ and who God is calling us to become.

In the second sermon, we asked, based on who God wants us to become, what one habit do we need to start.

Now we come to the other side of the matter.

Based on who God wants us to become, what one habit do we need to stop.

21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

That is strong language.

James is not giving us a light suggestion.

He is calling for decisive removal.

He is saying there are things in your life that do not belong there.

There are patterns that corrupt the soul.

There are habits that pull you away from the person God is calling you to be.

And they must be put away.

If We Are Going To Become Who God Wants Us To Be, We Must Not Only Start Godly Habits, But Stop Sinful Ones.

James 1:21 tells us

21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

But before we can lay apart filthiness and naughtiness, it would be wise for us to realize how we got there in the first place.

We need to understand that…

I. Bad Habits Lead People In The Wrong Direction

The reason stopping matters is because habits are never neutral.

They are always taking us somewhere.

A. Sinful Patterns Usually Work Slowly

One of the dangers of bad habits is that their damage often comes gradually.

The consequences are delayed.

The cost is hidden at first.

The pleasure feels immediate, but the pain comes later.

That is why sin can feel so deceptive.

A man does not destroy his testimony in one careless sentence.

A woman does not destroy a marriage in one passing feeling.

A young person does not ruin their future with one isolated thought.

Usually there is a trail behind the fall.

There are repeated compromises, repeated indulgences, repeated excuses.

The book of Proverbs warns us again and again about paths.

Proverbs 4:14–15 KJV

14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, And go not in the way of evil men. 15 Avoid it, pass not by it, Turn from it, and pass away.

Sin is a path, not just a moment.

People usually do not fall all at once.

They keep taking steps in the wrong direction.

Proverbs 14:12 KJV

12 There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, But the end thereof are the ways of death.

A sinful direction can seem harmless in the beginning how ever it ends in destruction.

Proverbs 29:1 KJV

1 He, that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, Shall suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy.

Hardening happens gradually, but the destruction can arrive suddenly.

That fits the truth that sin works slowly until its consequences come crashing in.

It’s a path that you go down.

That language of a path is important.

A path is not one step.

A path is many steps in the same direction.

And if the path is wrong, the end will be wrong.

B. Sinful Patterns Often Feel Small At First

That is what makes them so dangerous.

They do not seem like a big deal in the beginning.

A little bitterness.

A little laziness.

A little lust.

A little dishonesty.

A little indulgence.

A little neglect of prayer.

A missing a little of church.

But little sins do not remain little when they are fed.

They grow.

They spread.

They harden.

What starts as a tolerated weakness can become a governing habit.

Song of Solomon 2:15 KJV

15 Take us the foxes, The little foxes, that spoil the vines: For our vines have tender grapes.

The little foxes do not look dangerous at first.

But they ruin what is fruitful.

C. Sinful Patterns Shape What We Become

The habits you have today are shaping the person you will be tomorrow.

Every repeated choice is moving you in a direction.

Every indulgence is training desire.

Every compromise is teaching the conscience what to accept.

Every act of obedience or disobedience is becoming part of who you are.

Proverbs 4:23 KJV

23 Keep thy heart with all diligence; For out of it are the issues of life.

It shows that the heart is the wellspring of life.

What is allowed to take root in the heart will eventually shape actions, habits, and character.

That is why this sermon cannot just be about behavior modification.

This is discipleship.

This is sanctification.

This is about whether our repeated choices are leading us toward Christlikeness or away from it.

And once we understand that bad habits lead somewhere, the next question becomes deeply personal.

What is the one habit that is taking me in the wrong direction.

II. Sinful Habits Must Be Honestly Identified

Before a habit can be broken, it must be named.

You cannot fight what you refuse to face.

If we are ever going to lay aside something, we are going to have to honestly identify what that something is!

A. We Must Stop Speaking In Vague Terms

Proverbs 28:13 KJV

13 He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: But whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy.

Sin cannot be helped while it is being covered.

We must stop hiding it, softening it, or excusing it.

Many people speak of their problems in very soft language.

They say, “I am just struggling a little.”

“I have a few issues.”

“I have some tendencies.”

But often those vague words are hiding real sins.

James does not use soft language.

He says, “lay apart all filthiness.”

He is helping us see sin the way God sees it.

Not as a personality quirk.

Not as a harmless preference.

Not as an inconvenience.

But as something defiling and dangerous.

A critical spirit must be named.

A gossiping tongue must be named.

A lustful pattern must be named.

A dishonest habit must be named.

An angry temper must be named.

A lazy spirit must be named.

B. We Must Deal With One Habit Seriously

Some people hear a message like this and immediately think of twenty different things they need to fix.

But when you try to attack everything at once, you often end up changing nothing.

That does not mean there is only one sin in your life.

It means wisdom often starts with one clear target.

One habit.

One pattern.

One area where you stop making excuses and begin taking action.

What is your one?

What is the habit that keeps grieving the Spirit?

What is the pattern that keeps taking you away from the person God wants you to become?

C. We Must Let Scripture Search Us Honestly

21 Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.

God’s Word must help us identify what is wrong.

Hebrews 4:12 KJV

12 For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

The Bible does not flatter us.

It exposes us.

It shows us what we are often too blind or too proud to see the truth.

That is why the humble Christian does not merely ask, “What bothers me about my life?”

He asks, “What does God say must go?”

Once that habit is identified, we are ready for the hard part.

Not just admitting it.

Actually removing it.

Let’s talk about some practical things we can do to accomplish this:

III. Bad Habits Must Be Made Difficult To Continue

Stopping sinful habits requires more than wishing.

It requires wisdom.

It requires decisive action.

It requires cutting off what feeds the sin.

A. Remove The Trigger

Proverbs 4:14–15 KJV

14 Enter not into the path of the wicked, And go not in the way of evil men. 15 Avoid it, pass not by it, Turn from it, and pass away.

That is strong language.

Do not stroll by it.

Do not test yourself near it.

Do not assume you are above it.

Avoid it.

I have never felt comfortable walking down the alcohol aisle at the grocery store.

If I need ot get to the other side, I will usually walk an extra aisle out of the way to get to where I am going.

Is it evil to walk past alcohol?

Of course not, but i just don’t even want to become comfortable around it.

Many people pray for victory while keeping the temptation close at hand.

They want purity, but they leave the door open to impurity.

They want self-control, but they keep feeding the appetite they say they want to starve.

If something triggers the sin, remove it.

If the phone is the problem, put restrictions on it.

If the late-night routine is the problem, change the routine.

If a friendship is the problem, step back from that influence.

If the place is the problem, stop going there.

Proverbs 27:12 KJV

12 A prudent man foreseeth the evil, and hideth himself; But the simple pass on, and are punished.

Sometimes people talk as if removing a trigger is weakness.

It is not weakness.

It is wisdom.

B. Interrupt The Pattern

Bad habits often operate in a loop.

Something triggers the desire.

The action follows.

Then some kind of temporary reward keeps the cycle going.

That means we need to know what tends to precede the sin.

What moods make you vulnerable?

What time of day makes you careless?

What moments leave you open?

What people influence you?

What patterns tend to repeat before failure comes?

It is widely known in counseling and recovery circles that there are four common triggers to falling into sin.

We use the acronym HALT to remember it:

Hungry

Angry

Lonely

Tired

Those four times you need to make sure you are on guard, because those are the times the flesh is especially weak.

If you know the pattern, you can interrupt it.

If discouragement leads to sinful indulgence, do not wait until you are deep in the discouragement to fight.

If loneliness leads to compromise, you must answer loneliness differently.

If boredom leads to temptation, then boredom cannot be left unguarded.

Spiritual victory often requires more than good intentions.

It requires wise interruption.

C. Take Strong Measures When Needed

Jesus said in Matthew 5:29–30

Matthew 5:29–30 KJV

29 And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. 30 And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell.

He was not teaching mutilation.

He was teaching seriousness.

Radical problems require radical measures.

Some people do not need a minor adjustment.

They need a major break.

A major confession.

A major intervention.

A major step of repentance.

If alcohol is mastering you, do not play around with it.

If lust is dominating you, do not protect your privacy more than your purity.

If gambling is consuming you, do not talk as if the next week will magically be different without decisive action.

Why resist tomorrow what you have the power to remove today?

But stopping is not merely subtraction.

James does not only say lay it apart.

He also says receive with meekness the engrafted word.

There is the idea of putting off and putting on.

IV. Sinful Habits Must Be Replaced With Humble Submission To God

This is where the sermon must end.

Not with self-help.

Not with stronger willpower.

But with submission to God and receptivity to His Word.

A. We Need More Than Restraint

You can stop a behavior outwardly and still leave the heart unchanged.

You can remove one act and still leave the desire alive and strong underneath.

That is why James does not stop with “lay apart.”

He continues, “receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.”

A heart emptied of one sin but not filled with truth is vulnerable.

Real victory is not just breaking an old pattern.

It is receiving God’s truth in its place.

B. We Must Submit Ourselves To God

Sin is not merely a bad habit.

It is rebellion.

And the answer to rebellion is surrender.

We come to God and say, “Lord, this pattern cannot stay.”

“Lord, I agree with You about this sin.”

“Lord, I do not want this to shape me anymore.”

“Lord, I need Your grace, Your strength, and Your truth.”

That is not weakness.

That is the beginning of strength.

James says to receive the Word “with meekness.”

That is not weakness.

That is the beginning of strength.

Meekness means with humility, With openness, With surrender.

With a heart that is no longer arguing with God.

C. We Must Receive The Word That Changes Us

James says the implanted Word is “able to save your souls.”

God’s Word does not merely inform.

It transforms.

It renews the mind.

It exposes lies.

It reshapes desire.

It strengthens obedience.

Psalm 119:11 KJV

11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, That I might not sin against thee.

The believer does not fight sinful habits with empty hands.

He fights with truth.

He fights with Scripture.

He fights with the promises and commands of God.

Never underestimate how God can start something special through something small.

One honest confession.

One removed trigger.

One interrupted pattern.

One surrendered area.

One step of obedience.

God can use that to begin something far deeper than we imagine.

Conclusion

No one usually ends up in the wrong place all at once.

They get there one bad step at a time.

One bad habit at a time.

One tolerated pattern at a time.

So here is the question:

Based on who God wants you to become, what one habit must you stop?

Not what sin can you manage.

Not what weakness can you excuse.

Not what pattern can you keep flirting with.

What one habit must be put away?

Name it.

Face it.

Remove the trigger.

Interrupt the action.

Take serious measures if needed.

Then submit yourself to God and receive His Word.

Because if you keep the habit, it will keep shaping you.

But if by God’s grace you put it away, God can begin reshaping you into the person He is calling you to be.

Stopping may feel small in the moment.

But do not despise small beginnings.

One step of repentance can begin a whole new direction.