From Conflict to Confidence

Introduction

We are in this sermon series entitled Simplify - Living the uncluttered life.

We digging into the meaning of the inner life and what it is to be transformed into the likeness of Christ… .

When you start paying attention to the inner life you realize that there is something not quite right… We discover that the internal life is predisposed to conflict…

The word conflict means the act of striking — it speaks of struggle kind of a battle like an armed struggle… when two opinions or principles are incompatible we talk about there being a conflict… in our hearts we want to do the right things but it seems as though every time we get tripped up..

Maxwell Maltz, who wrote Psycho-Cybernetics, estimates that 95 percent of people in our society have a strong sense of inadequacy…

Pastor Stuart Briscoe, commented on this statistic and said.. that he had no difficulty believing that figure. The only surprise is the other 5 percent. Why aren't those guys feeling insecure?

Most us are familiar with conflict that is within us..

Charles Spurgeon preached this great sermon entitled -The dual nature and the dual within.. two natures within every man.. that are odds.

The spiritual man and the flesh man and these to nature’s are in a great dual and are waging war against each other. In the book of Romans chapter 7 and 8 we find that Paul shows how we as believers can move from Conflict to confidence.

ingression:

The book of Romans has been called the Gospel of God…in it is Pauls theological Thesis --- it his a defense of the Gospel.

Paul’s argument is that Christ bridges the gap between us and God, and between cultures and races—he is the way God fulfilled his promises to Abraham. Christ is the righteousness we all seek—and it’s in him that we come together…

God’s Righteous Character is revealed to us from Faith to Faith… step by step…Isaiah tells us that we grow precept upon precept -- line upon line… trust upon trust..

This seems so doable.. it’s like getting on the freeway and the Road is just open road…no traffic in sight… When you first become a Christian just seems like everything is going to be perfect… suddenly you hit traffic… difficulties and struggles… It’s a little like driving to San Fransisco and you hit those toll booths… and all of sudden you crawling in six lanes of traffic.

In this process of spiritual Formation we are going to face conflicts in the inner life… Paul shares with us his own battle in the inner life!

Romans 7:14–20 ESV

14 For we know that the law is spiritual, but I am of the flesh, sold under sin. 15 For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree with the law, that it is good. 17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

T/S Paul points out the internal problem we all face and so the question becomes...How do we move from Conflict to Confidence? Paul lays out three strategies...

1. Know WHY Conflict Arises.

Paul is baring his very soul in this text; and he is telling us of his personal experience which lies at the heart of the human situation.

He finds himself to be a split personality. It was as if two men were inside the one skin, pulling in different directions.

He is haunted by this feeling of frustration—his ability to see what is good and his inability to do it, his ability to recognize what was wrong and his inability to refrain from doing it.

… there are some that say that this must have been pre conversion of Paul…because Paul wouldn’t have had this kind of struggle but through out the text he uses the pronoun I… he talks about his struggle in the present tense.

This is the human condition....

Ovid, the Roman poet, had penned the famous saying: ‘I see the better things, and I approve them, but I follow the worse.’

Why are we drawn to the things that we don’t want to do?

Paul examines the role of the Law and he points out that Gods laws are spiritual…

The Law is inspired by the Holy spirit… the law came from God and reveals His character… It is spiritual in that it deals with the inner man, the spiritual part of man, as well as with the outer actions….

But he also finds that there is a problem with the Law — when it comes to finding freedom form this sense of inadequacy…

The Law could be compared to a mirror that reveals our imperfection..The law pointed out the problem of sin but fails to provide the solution… Christ dealt with issue when he died on the cross....

For some reason we are drawn towards laws… we are looking for some principle to live by… some set of rules… the problem with the law is that it promises freedom but never delivered on it…

Paul explores this own issue in his own life… Paul faces his own failure.... and he comes to the realization … the law is not the problem…… the law was spiritual… provided a means for salvation in the OT.. the law was perfect… problem was within him… inside Paul

He found that his struggle was in his human nature and response to the law..

Romans 7:17 ESV

17 So now it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

This that moment where Paul identifies the true culprit...Paul realizes that his failure that was present before Christ is still in tact…

Paul calls the problem as “Sin that dwells in me.”--- Paul contemplated that the problem.. was sin that dwelled in him..

Thomas Browne who once said “The man without a navel still lives in me.’ In fact there is a greater awareness of sin..

Charles Spurgeon once said to his congregation if you examine your life and you discover that there is a battle within you.... You need to be congratulated because there many unregenerate people in the world who don’t even see the problem of the sinful nature… Ig is a good thing to be broken over our condition

Jonathan Edwards the great revivalist during the first Great Awakening ....said that he often thought about his own sin and it caused him to weep… In fact that after his conversion he had even a greater sense of his badness of his heart than ever had before his conversion…

Paul tells us that the problem is Indwelling sin... .... He tells us that it’s not I but the sin that is in me…

He makes the separates the spirit man — and the outer man…..betwen the dual natures of the flesh and the spirit.

Paul is not deflecting responsibility, but recognizing the ongoing problem of sin living in the flesh. As long as we live in unredeemed, fallen human bodies, our redeemed inner person must contend with our sinful nature trying to regain control..

illustration

During the Iraq war — operation freedom we began to see reporters taking great risks… they were going in armored vehicles behind enemy lines.. These reporters were embedded with the troops… The troops would have contact with the enemy— bullets flying everywhere and these reporters had the camera rolling… they were embedded with troops…

This the picture that Paul is painting for us that.

Sin is embedded in Soulin human nature.. The word flesh the the physical aspect of a person in distinction to the immaterial soul — Made up of the mind, emotions and will… Sin is embedded in the mind… sins is embedded in our emotions and will…

It’s part of the fallen nature that has been past down to you from Adam… Adamic nature… its deep… and it impacts… decisions and the will… Paul tells us that Sin has been the culprit all along. The arrival of the law simply revealed that sin is inescapable..

implementation

One of the reasons we struggle to be confident in our walk… is because we are being tripped up by embedded sin… The sinful nature was not eradicated...

while the whole human person has been invaded by the Spirit of God, no single part or facet has been fully subdued, this side of the resurrection...

We try and sanitize sin…

These days you have sanitation trucks and you go to the landfill… but what is in the landfill.. is garbage --- The last time I was at a landfill… I wanted to get in and out as fast as possible… I

We have scented garbage bags at home for a good reason… we don’t want our kitchen to have the smell of garbage… What happens when garbage gets fill… we take outside… then it eventually goes to the dump where it belongings....

ingression- Paul has discovered why we struggle with internal conflict and now he tests his thesis… If its not the Law and it’s not the inner man… How does it play out…lets read Rom 7:20 ff..

inspiration

Romans 7:20–25 ESV

20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

interconnection : How do we move from Conflict to Confidence? There are three ways to overcome inner barriers… Firstly, we need to Know WHY inner Conflict Arises and secondly..

2. Know WHERE conflict exists.

instruction

Paul has discovered WHY has this internal struggle within him. He has exonerated the law… the Problem is the embedded sin Flesh (mind, emotions and will).. Now he identifies where this Law of “embedded sin” operates..... And he identities four areas where the sinful nature is manifested.

a. His Actions - or behavior

Paul says - 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me.

Sometimes, I respond in a way that I didn’t mean to… Have you said ever done something or said something and regretted it immediately… You didn’t intended to hurt someone but have did anyway… The embedded sin is going to impact my actions.. These are both seen in sin of commission… these are willing things that I do… I know very well that my actions are going to impact someone… and so I do it...

and the sins of omission… something that I didn’t do… Regrets can be painful.. I should have said this… or I should have done this..

Another place where this is manifested

b. In our Intentions

How many times have we intended to do good… and somehow… it never materialized… We intended to go help someone… or to write that letter… give some encouragement… our lives are scattered with good intentions… Why does this happen? garbage… embedded sin. Another area Paul hits on his..

We see manifestation of the imbedded sin in our.

c. Neglect of the Spiritual life

22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being,

Paul tells us that the laws of God are spiritual… The word of God is powerful… I don’t know about you… but it is a struggle between my flesh and my spirit to feast upon Gods word… It’s available…..

We know the benefits of Gods word… we know the benefits from prayer… like in the song what a friend we have in Jesus… all sins and griefs he bares… oh what peace we often forfeit — oh what needless pain we bare… all because we do carry everything to God in prayer.

Paul recognizes that embedded sin impacts.. … but it also, impacts the mind..

d. His MIND....

Paul was a person who tried to learn from his experiences, so now he concluded, I find this law at work.

I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members

This is not the Mosaic Law, but a principle drawn from experience.

“law” (nomos) means principle...The indwelling principle of sin is constantly mounting a military campaign against the new nature, trying to gain victory and control

The mind is the marvelous thing… but that is where the battle is fought… It’s no mistake that in Galatians the Spiritual Armor is putting on the Helmet of Salvation… The mind needs renewal and sanctification… We can’t overstate the importance of having the mind of Christ...

illustration..

Saint Augustine in his famous book The Confessions reflects on an incident in his youth. In his youth at one point, he broke into a private orchard and stole some pears (that weren’t his, of course) off a tree. Later on he reflected theologically and pretty profoundly, actually, on that incident

He thought back on it, and he said, “Why did I steal the pears? a) I wasn’t hungry. b) If I was hungry, I didn’t like pears.”

After he stole the pears, he threw them to pigs. He didn’t even like pears, but he went and stole the pears. The answer is, “I stole the pears because somebody told me they were forbidden.” In other words, someone says, “Thou shalt not take those pears.” He says, “Until someone said, ‘Thou shalt not …’ I had no interest in the pears, but once they said, ‘Don’t take those pears,’ I wanted them.”

There is something about the heart. Deep inside the heart there’s an aspect of our hideousness, of our self-centeredness, of that self-absorption, that says, “Nobody tells me how to live.”

implementation

The law of sin is waging against the law of the mind?Who will rescue me from this body that is taking me to death?

Paul tells us it seems like we are trapped with this internal war… that there is no way out… the

Message Bible says... I've tried everything and nothing helps. I'm at the end of my rope. Is there no one who can do anything for me?"

Then he answers His own question…

Romans 7:25 ESV

Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

ingression..

Paul tells us that Christ is the remedy to the ongoing struggle…That even though we are tethered to the sinful nature we break free from this hopeless cycle of failure.

John Piper calls Romans 8 the Greatest Chapter in the Bible.

Romans 8:1–4 ESV

1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

interconnection

T/S How do we move from Conflict to Confidence? There are three ways to overcome inner barriers… Firstly, we need to Know WHY inner Conflict Arises and secondly..

2. We need to Know Where conflict exist

3. Know HOW to Overcome Conflict.

instruction

One of the reasons we loose our confidence is because of feelings of condemnation…

… Condemnation is judicial language… it got to do with declaring someone guilty…but the problem is that it doesn’t stop at guilt it goes onto sentencing and punishment… One of the problem with condemnation is that we keep on punishing ourselves with the guilt...

Condemnation is that tape that keeps on playing in our brains that tells us that we are no good… Can you imagine if you walked around with someone all day that commenting on every mistake you made.. or when you looked in the mirror pointed out all your blemishes… We wouldn’t be friends very long… But think about the messages that we play about ourselves constantly… You are useless father, you are hopeless, you failure.... You should be more that what you are....

The solution to Paul’s dilemma was living in the power of the Holy Spirit

Paul uses a declarative sentence - “There is therefore Now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus…” For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

This is a declarative sentence.. This is declaration of independence fo the believer.... The word Now means at this present moment… or from the moment you are found in Christ… That moment forward… there is NO CONDEMNATION..

Then he tells us why!

2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

When Christ died on the cross not only did we die to the obligations of the Mosaic Law but also to condemnation of sin…

The book of Romans is about the Righteousness of God…How do we approach a holy God… The just shall live by faith… When we place our faith in Christ… He has set you free from this principle or this law of sin and death… there is a new law in operation… the law that keeps on giving grace upon grace upon grace.. it is the law of the spirit.....

How was this accomplished? The law was powerless to save us from condemnation…So God himself came to us through the incarnation in the form of man… He took on the weakness of the flesh… and the cross he condemned sin in the flesh… He didn’t come to abolish the law but he fulfilled every requirement…

Every place where it was written that you messed up… Christ… declared freedom…

illustration:

Now lets look at this… Every place in your life where you have placed a mark… red line and said you failed… every mark… Jesus on the cross with his own prescious blood has come behind each failure… said Not guilty… You are free.... not just the big things.... but every line — every negative thought… He says you are free.. That is why those whom sons sets free is free indeed....

There is now a new law in place.. the law of the spirit. The law of sin held us down bu the Holy Spirit within us lifts us out of the gravitational pull of sin and death and sets us in orbit around Christ and our heavenly Father.

Conclusion

In the last days of the Civil War, the Confederate capital, Richmond, Virginia, fell to the Union army. Abraham Lincoln insisted on visiting the city. Even though no one knew he was coming, slaves recognized him immediately and thronged around him. He had liberated them by the Emancipation Proclamation, and now Lincoln's army had set them free. According to Admiral David Porter, an eyewitness, Lincoln spoke to the throng around him:

"My poor friends, you are free—free as air. You can cast off the name of slave and trample upon it …. Liberty is your birthright."

Jesus gives us our true birthright—spiritual freedom… we now have to walk in the Spirit...

imploration

To be confident in our Spiritual walk...

be free from the guilt of performance and the guilt of failure…

Sin is defeated… Victory is found in the renewing of the mind through the power of the Holy Spirit…