Daniel Fast Day 7
FRUITFULNESS
Become A Killer - Part 1
It is time to become a killer! Yes, you read those words right, it is time to become a killer. I would go so far to say, not just a killer, but a deadly assassin who has locked into the target and is not going to stop until the enemy drops! There is an enemy that needs to be eliminated. “Where is this enemy?” you might ask. The enemy is lurking within you.
Paul, writing to the Colossians gives us a very clear picture of what this looks like. Colossians 3:5-9(NLT) “So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds.”
This is not a very pretty picture, but it is a necessary one to address. If we are going to live in the freedom that is available to us and produce the fruit that is expected of us, we must kill that which is trying to suffocate us. Glory awaits us but we must deal with the gory of our old sinful nature. Talking about sin has become extremely unpopular to the point where we barely address it or simply accept it. To think that sin is acceptable is to diminish what Jesus did for us on the cross. It is not just diminishing His work, but it is neglecting the reality of how much we truly need the Savior. It is because of our sin that Jesus died on the cross. Just because we struggle with sin does not mean we should accept sin as normal behavior.
Sin is your enemy and it is trying to kill you. Sin wants to take ground and the more ground you give, the more it takes. Sin is never satisfied. Sin has an insatiable appetite for more, the more you give in to sin, the more sin wants. Sin wants to ultimately control you to the place where your sin becomes part of your identity. Sin is deceptive. It starts small. It promises satisfaction, but in the end, it leads to death. If you think it is strange to use the analogy that we must become assassins or killers of sin, you might not know that sin is trying to kill you. Sin has already declared war against you!
1 Peter 2:11(CSB) “Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul.”
We have to declare and wage a full-on war against sin. Sin is an enemy that must be eradicated. As far as sin is concerned for us, it is kill or be killed. Coddling sin, denying sin, hiding sin, accepting sin, or simply not dealing with sin, is nothing but spiritual suicide. To not kill what is slowly killing you is ludicrous. To not fight that which is robbing your joy, stealing your peace, polluting your holiness, and vexing your soul is asinine. Romans 8:12-14(NLT) “Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.”
We don’t have to dance to the tune that sin plays. We don’t have to give in to sin’s demands. We don’t have to put up with sin. We don’t have to say, “But this is just who I am…” For us as Christ’s followers, sin should never become normal behavior! Sin should be an anomaly, not a general rule of behavior. The ugly truth is that we like our sin because it gives us temporary satisfaction and momentary pleasure. Therein lies our challenge: are we willing to give up momentary pleasures for eternal benefits? Sin only communicates to us the pleasure, but never the cost. Sin has a small print on its contract: “the wages of sin is death; you engage sin, you die”. But very few of us believe it. There is no obligation to do what sin tempts us to do. Sin works through temptation by arousing our own sinful nature within us. That is why we are encouraged to put to death the deeds of our sinful nature through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Lord does not tempt us or test us with sin. Sin is purely an inside job that leans on our sinful nature for its expression. The problem with sin is us, and our old nature. We sin because we want to, not because we have to.
James 1:13-15(MSG) “Don’t let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, “God is trying to trip me up.” God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one’s way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.”
Once we understand that we are responsible for how we treat temptation and that temptation comes from our own desires, we could be on our road to victory. When we sin, we have no one to blame but ourselves. The enemy of our faith might throw out the bait, but we still have a choice whether we take the bait or not. Become mindful of the future consequences of sin, and not just the present pleasure of it. Sowing to the flesh will always reap corruption, not just sometimes, but every time. Sin robs us of all the good that the Father has for us. Sin is the greatest thief of fruitfulness in our lives. To sin is to be preoccupied with what I want, instead of being desirous of what God wants for me. Sin might make us feel good for a moment, but it slowly rots away our Christ-like potential. Sin robs our joy, robs the quality of our relationships, robs the effectiveness of our witness for Christ, and ultimately leaves us empty and devastated.
So, it is time to arm ourselves with the right attitude, a Christ-like attitude. An attitude that says even if I have to suffer to overcome, it is nothing in comparison with what Jesus suffered on my behalf. He suffered so I don’t have to live the rest of my life chasing my own desires, but that I can faithfully do the will of God.
1 Peter 4:1-2(NLT) “So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.”
Prayer and Reflection:
Pray this today: Matthew 6:9-13(J.B. Phillips) ‘Our Heavenly Father, may your name be honored! May your kingdom come, and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day the bread we need, Forgive us what we owe to you, as we have also forgiven those who owe anything to us. Keep us clear of temptation, and save us from evil’. In Jesus Name, Amen
Become A Killer - Part 1
It is time to become a killer! Yes, you read those words right, it is time to become a killer. I would go so far to say, not just a killer, but a deadly assassin who has locked into the target and is not going to stop until the enemy drops! There is an enemy that needs to be eliminated. “Where is this enemy?” you might ask. The enemy is lurking within you.
Paul, writing to the Colossians gives us a very clear picture of what this looks like. Colossians 3:5-9(NLT) “So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds.”
This is not a very pretty picture, but it is a necessary one to address. If we are going to live in the freedom that is available to us and produce the fruit that is expected of us, we must kill that which is trying to suffocate us. Glory awaits us but we must deal with the gory of our old sinful nature. Talking about sin has become extremely unpopular to the point where we barely address it or simply accept it. To think that sin is acceptable is to diminish what Jesus did for us on the cross. It is not just diminishing His work, but it is neglecting the reality of how much we truly need the Savior. It is because of our sin that Jesus died on the cross. Just because we struggle with sin does not mean we should accept sin as normal behavior.
Sin is your enemy and it is trying to kill you. Sin wants to take ground and the more ground you give, the more it takes. Sin is never satisfied. Sin has an insatiable appetite for more, the more you give in to sin, the more sin wants. Sin wants to ultimately control you to the place where your sin becomes part of your identity. Sin is deceptive. It starts small. It promises satisfaction, but in the end, it leads to death. If you think it is strange to use the analogy that we must become assassins or killers of sin, you might not know that sin is trying to kill you. Sin has already declared war against you!
1 Peter 2:11(CSB) “Dear friends, I urge you as strangers and exiles to abstain from sinful desires that wage war against the soul.”
We have to declare and wage a full-on war against sin. Sin is an enemy that must be eradicated. As far as sin is concerned for us, it is kill or be killed. Coddling sin, denying sin, hiding sin, accepting sin, or simply not dealing with sin, is nothing but spiritual suicide. To not kill what is slowly killing you is ludicrous. To not fight that which is robbing your joy, stealing your peace, polluting your holiness, and vexing your soul is asinine. Romans 8:12-14(NLT) “Therefore, dear brothers and sisters, you have no obligation to do what your sinful nature urges you to do. For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live.”
We don’t have to dance to the tune that sin plays. We don’t have to give in to sin’s demands. We don’t have to put up with sin. We don’t have to say, “But this is just who I am…” For us as Christ’s followers, sin should never become normal behavior! Sin should be an anomaly, not a general rule of behavior. The ugly truth is that we like our sin because it gives us temporary satisfaction and momentary pleasure. Therein lies our challenge: are we willing to give up momentary pleasures for eternal benefits? Sin only communicates to us the pleasure, but never the cost. Sin has a small print on its contract: “the wages of sin is death; you engage sin, you die”. But very few of us believe it. There is no obligation to do what sin tempts us to do. Sin works through temptation by arousing our own sinful nature within us. That is why we are encouraged to put to death the deeds of our sinful nature through the power of the Holy Spirit. The Lord does not tempt us or test us with sin. Sin is purely an inside job that leans on our sinful nature for its expression. The problem with sin is us, and our old nature. We sin because we want to, not because we have to.
James 1:13-15(MSG) “Don’t let anyone under pressure to give in to evil say, “God is trying to trip me up.” God is impervious to evil, and puts evil in no one’s way. The temptation to give in to evil comes from us and only us. We have no one to blame but the leering, seducing flare-up of our own lust. Lust gets pregnant, and has a baby: sin! Sin grows up to adulthood, and becomes a real killer.”
Once we understand that we are responsible for how we treat temptation and that temptation comes from our own desires, we could be on our road to victory. When we sin, we have no one to blame but ourselves. The enemy of our faith might throw out the bait, but we still have a choice whether we take the bait or not. Become mindful of the future consequences of sin, and not just the present pleasure of it. Sowing to the flesh will always reap corruption, not just sometimes, but every time. Sin robs us of all the good that the Father has for us. Sin is the greatest thief of fruitfulness in our lives. To sin is to be preoccupied with what I want, instead of being desirous of what God wants for me. Sin might make us feel good for a moment, but it slowly rots away our Christ-like potential. Sin robs our joy, robs the quality of our relationships, robs the effectiveness of our witness for Christ, and ultimately leaves us empty and devastated.
So, it is time to arm ourselves with the right attitude, a Christ-like attitude. An attitude that says even if I have to suffer to overcome, it is nothing in comparison with what Jesus suffered on my behalf. He suffered so I don’t have to live the rest of my life chasing my own desires, but that I can faithfully do the will of God.
1 Peter 4:1-2(NLT) “So then, since Christ suffered physical pain, you must arm yourselves with the same attitude he had, and be ready to suffer, too. For if you have suffered physically for Christ, you have finished with sin. You won’t spend the rest of your lives chasing your own desires, but you will be anxious to do the will of God.”
Prayer and Reflection:
- Why do you think talking about sin seems so challenging? Do you get annoyed when people start talking about sin? Why?
- The power of sin is always in its secrecy. What are you hiding that you need to expose to His light?
- If God’s Word says it is sin, then it is sin. Don’t let sin deceive you. How do we allow sin to deceive us? What can we do about it?
- Sin is missing the mark. But sin is also trying to fulfill a legitimate need in an illegitimate way. What is your first response to temptation, do you just try to manage it or do you ask the Holy Spirit for the power to overcome it?
- Jesus told us to pray that we will not be led into temptation, but that we would be delivered from evil. How often do you pray that?
- It is better to ask for permission than always needing forgiveness but if you need forgiveness, simply ask in faith…
Pray this today: Matthew 6:9-13(J.B. Phillips) ‘Our Heavenly Father, may your name be honored! May your kingdom come, and your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day the bread we need, Forgive us what we owe to you, as we have also forgiven those who owe anything to us. Keep us clear of temptation, and save us from evil’. In Jesus Name, Amen
Posted in Daniel Fast 2024