Untitled Sermon

Introduction

On January 1st or a short time before in homes across the nation and even the world there were people that were ridding their kitchens of all the food they did not want to be enticed with beginning in the new year.

If you are like me you accomplished this process through tapering off. In other words, I take this time to eat all of the yummy things left in the house and simply do not replace it with more yummy things. Of course, I always wait until I am well into January to begin my “dieting” because it takes a little time to eat all of those holiday delights. Nevertheless, at some point very soon my house will be void of cookies, pie, cake, and coke. I do this so that I can begin to lose a little weight.

Then you have another group of people. These are the people that have decided to commit fully to the diet thing and lose some weight. They begin the new year with a total commitment to resisting the holiday left overs and immediately without delay riding their home of the diet killing pests; the cookies, the pie, the sweet potato casserole loaded with brown sugar, the green been casserole that is so fattening, and the stuffing that is full of carbs. If we can’t convince someone else to take it home on New Year’s Eve then it all goes into the trash because nothing can remain in the house on New Year’s Day when you begin a new you; getting lean and getting into shape.

Then there are the people that all the people in the first two groups despise. The people with so much self control it fills our hearts with envy. Those people that can have all the holiday delights in their house and simply resist them. The cookies and the pies have no hold on these people. The casseroles might as well be unleavened bread to these people. It can be on the counter and in the fridge and they are resolved not to touch them and they have the self-control and discipline not to do so. It can be there for everyone else, but they simply ignore their presence and existence.

When it comes to sin the same three groups exist in some way. We all fall into one of the first two groups at times and some of us are in group number three at times; all depending on the sin of choice.

When it comes to sin Jesus said something that is extremely hard to do. He said to be like group two. When sin comes knocking get rid of it. In fact, what makes what Jesus said so hard is that he told us if we are enticed by sin then we should get rid of avenue that provides us a way to sin. That is the hard part.

Jesus uses hyperbole to help us understand how great the lure of sin is for us. He says, “If thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out.” He also says, “If thy right hand offend thee, cut it off.” This is an extreme measure, don’t you think? Not if you understand the power of sin over you. Let’s take a look at a biblical understanding of sin to help us understand what Christ is telling us.

TURN YOUR BIBLES TO

1 John 2:15–16 KJV 1900

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.

Here the passage lays out for us the three lures of sin.

The Lust of the Flesh (Sinful Cravings)

The Lust of the Eyes (What We See)

The Pride of Life (Boasting of What I’ve Done or Have)

The Pride of Life

TURN YOUR BIBLES TO

Genesis 3:1–6 KJV 1900

Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die. And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat.

In verse 6 we see these three lures of sin.

“…saw that the tree was good for food.” (Lust of the Flesh - Sinful Cravings)

“…that it was pleasant to the eyes.” (Lust of the Eyes)

“…a tree to be desired to make one wise...” (Pride of Life

Eve was lured by all that sin had to offer.

TURN YOUR BIBLES TO

Matthew 4:1–11 KJV 1900

Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred. And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread. But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.

Stones to Bread - Lust of the Flesh, Sinful Cravings

Jump and the Angels will Save Your - Pride of Life

Get all the kingdoms of the earth if you worship me. (Lust of the Eyes)

In all three of these passages we see the same lures of sin. John identified them, Eve was attracted by them, and Jesus resisted them. Jesus understands the temptations that we face and the lure of sin. He went through the temptations exactly like we do.

Hebrews 4:15 KJV 1900

For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

He faced the temptations just like we do. He was lured with their attractions just like we are. His temptations were as real as ours are today. Thankfully, he chose not to sin and through his sacrifice on the cross gives us the power to overcome sin. Before we can overcome sin we have to do something that Jesus said and it is hard. We have to cut off the avenues by which sin lures us.

The right hand and the right eye are central to our temptations. The lures of sin often attract us through our right eye or hand. So Jesus used them to paint a picture for us. Jesus never meant the command to be literal, but figurative. If sin is enticing you and luring you then cut off the avenue by which it lures you.

We have to be like the second group of people in the diet ILLUSTRATION. We have to take all the food and get it out of our house. We don’t need to let it linger. We do not need to taper off of our sin like I tend to do with my holiday sweets. We need to get rid of it.

That sounds easy, but it is hard because we enjoy the pleasure of our sin. Often times the reason we don’t get sin out of our lives is because we are enjoying it too much. Jesus said get rid of it. He went further to say not only to stop sinning, but to get rid of the avenues by which sin lures us. There is the sticking point. We don’t want to do that, but we must if we are to have victory over sin.

ILLUSTRATION:

Some people roll their eyes at a person that refuses to eat a restaraunts that serve alcohol. Should we shouldn’t we? Some ask what is the big deal? Well, in this case I fit into the third group. I am not tempted with alcohol. I have never had it, I have a negative view of it, and I have no desire for it. Having it nearby or in the diner where I am eating has no effect on me. In fact, if a person put it in my refrigerator and I was opened to it I could leave it in there and never be tempted to drink it. But a person that was overcome by drunkenness at some point in their life may need to abstain from being present in places that sell alcohol. Some argue the same person goes to the grocery store that sells alcohol to buy their food. What is the difference? Well, in a restaraunt the alcohol is served open. That persons “right hand” or “right eye” may be the aroma of alcohol that lures them. So they choose to stay away from any place serving open alcohol. You can also many times go to the grocery store without ever seeing any alcohol if you know that layout of the store and how to avoid it.

Some might see this as extreme, but it is exactly what Christ was telling us to do to the lures of sin in our lives. He wants us to rid ourselves of the avenues by which sin lures us so that we can be protected and stay safe from falling into sin’s trap.

Have a problem with cursing? Might want to avoid watching most television shows so that you can cleanse the language from your mind.

Have a problem with bad stewardship? You may only want to go to the store when you NEED something and only buy the things on your list.

Have a problem with lust (the sin Jesus specifically addresses here)? You might want to be more careful what shows you watch and put filters on your computers and phones to provide accountability.

Whatever sin that lures you Jesus wants you to cut off the avenues by which that sin allures you.

How do I cut off things that lure me?

I. Attentiveness to the Holy Spirit

He will help you identify, not only sins you are committing, but he will also be able to help you identify avenues by which Satan uses to lure you into that sin.

II. Action to Practice Self-Control (in the power of the Spirit)

We must develop self-control if we are to cut off sin from our lives. One such way that God has provided for us to develop our self control is by fasting. It denies our flesh of something we most readily crave - food. When we fast the yearning for food is supposed to remind us to cleave unto him. Fasting helps us learn to lean on God in times that we desire something in our flesh. So, when the temptations of sin come we have developed self-control and dependency on God.

III. Accountability to a Spiritual Person

For some people this can be your spouse. For others you might need a close friend that is spiritual and will keep you accountable. You could seek out a deacon or his wife. The point of this is not to develop a confession booth, but to help free you from the shackles of sin through the help of another spiritual person that loves you.