A Process of Delusion

This post will deal with a point from my adult Bible class lesson yesterday.  It will be a review for any of them that read this (which does not hurt any of us) but I wanted to share this thought with those of you that would not have been there.

It is amazing to me in my own life how when tempted with sin my mind has a tendency to focus on the pleasures of sin.  The effects that the sin will have on my life and spirit  seem  either absent or at the most a faint whisper.  Why is it that the "new man" does not throw a fit, kicking and screaming at the notion of my being tempted to violate the Word of God?   I will never say that the new man never has victory but far too often I find myself under such a powerful force within me that wins the battle.  We must first realize that our flesh is far more powerful than we think!  This battle is the one described by Paul in Romans 7.  It helps to know that I am in good company in my fight.

The point I want to make is that the process of sin is a process of delusion.  We know sin brings with it shame, fear, suffering, and death.  We know that obeying the principles of God's Word bring happiness, peace, blessings, and abundant life.  This process of delusion convinces us that the way to happiness, joy, prosperity, etc is through sin (see Eve in Gen. 3:6).  If we could only realize this process in action before it results in sin we would have a greater opportunity to yield to the Spirit of God and His power over sin therefore winning the battle.  

I know this is an age old battle that all God's children face on a daily basis but I for one am not happy to sit by and with apathy say "Oh well we'll never be perfect this side of heaven anyway."  God commands us to "Be ye perfect (mature) even as your Father in heaven is perfect." - Matthew 5:48     

Psalm 119:9 says, "Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy Word."  The Word of God is powerful and has the ability to strengthen us in this battle with the flesh.  Plain and simple, the more time we spend in His Word the more powerful we become in our attempts to live as He did.  John 15:5, "I am the vine ye are the branches: he that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit (victory!): for without me ye can do nothing (defeat!)."  His Word is fully capable of cutting though the delusion the flesh creates granting us the clarity of mind to comprehend the grave nature of what is going on when tempted of sin.  We will never have complete victory over sin 'til we see Him, but we can experience more and greater victory as we honor Him in all we do through the power of His Word.