The two dimensions of sin (4)

Ps 81 “11But my people would not hearken to my voice; and Israel would none of me. 12So I gave them up unto their own hearts’ lust: and they walked in their own counsels. 13Oh that my people had hearkened unto me, and Israel had walked in my ways! 14I should soon have subdued their enemies, and turned my hand against their adversaries.”

This passage opens the whole mystery of sin, it is impossible for one who constantly listens to the voice of the Lord and walk in his ways to sin: He is the one who does not sin, he does not commit sin and he cannot sin! (1 John 3:6,9). The man who finds pleasure in the law of the Lord and meditates in it day and night (Ps 1:1-2) cannot sin because he abides under the shadow of the Almighty (Psalm 91:1).

Our enemies are those who can steal us away from under that shadow, i.e. the likings of our evil heart that are manifested outside in the lusts of the flesh. And these enemies (fornication, greed, idolatry, dissoluteness, debauchery, drunkenness, orgies ...) are in our members, but if we remain in His shelter, the Almighty reassures us that these enemies “…the Egyptians whom ye have seen to day, ye shall see them again no more forever.” (Ex 14:13-14). We have only to remain in the shelter of the Almighty Himself and He will deal with these enemies and crush them, as He has already crushed them on the cross of Calvary.

How does it happen to a man dedicated to God to sin (yield to a desire the flesh)? - This is when he takes a short break. David pondered the law of the Lord day and night, but at a certain occasion he relaxed and got to behold the good things that are in the world, he took some air, looking at the buildings, rivers, etc., and among other things, he also saw a beautiful woman to look upon who was bathing . It is in this recreation that David succumbed to the pressure of his flesh, it was not when pondering the law of the LORD. He who hears His voice, walks in His ways, does not follow the likings of his heart, walk in the counsel of the wicked, but takes refuge in the counsel of the Lord and ponders His words day and night has crucified his members. By cons, he who takes a retreat from the things of the Spirit yielding the likings of his heart, he is prey to the desires of the flesh. There is no neutrality: either one is under the authority of the Word of God or under the authority of the flesh.

We all know that our flesh is opposed to the law of God because of what happened in the Garden of Eden when our mother Eve stained the blood of all mankind. She followed the voice of another preacher, that old serpent, than Adam that God had appointed for her. This preacher was more eloquent and, therefore, also more convincing than Adam. Eve listened to him and began to think by questioning the words of God that her pastor Adam had preached her. Then she yielded to the likings of her heart and committed sin, i.e. the desire of the flesh. Since then, no flesh is able to comply with the law of the LORD, as it is written: Ro 8 “7Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.”

Thus, the flesh is already judged since the fall in the Garden of Eden, and redemption only relates to our souls. Again, we read this in the same chapter “3For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh.” More explicitly in the Epistle to the Corinthians, the Spirit says: 1Co 15 “50Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption.” Our flesh and blood have been corrupted in the Garden of Eden and their judgments are sentenced: they cannot inherit the kingdom of God that is free from corruption.

Paul received this revelation and made ​​this poignant statement: 1Co 9 “27But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” Paul did not tread barefoot on the tips of the nails, nor bruise his body with knives or broken glasses as did the prophets of Baal and Astarte to show their love and stir up Baal’s compassion. How did Paul beat his body? - He invested himself without respite in meditation on the law of the Lord. The flesh has no interest in the law of the Lord, instead it is annoyed thereby, because it is opposed. The flesh delights in leisure, ballads, casual, going out, socialization, entertainment, and any other way that invites or may invite to enjoy the desires of the flesh. Depriving the flesh of these things in dedicating oneself entirely and unceasingly into pondering the Word of God; this is to treat it harshly, and this is what Paul did. And similarly we must resist our flesh making us slaves of Truth, no other way.

And by the way, let no one mistake trying to manufacture a certain piety or holiness outside the Truth, because while doing so he is already spiritually idolatrous, i.e. adulterous by getting into relations with other gods (Ps 81:9). People who have tried to make their own piety according to their religion - not that resulting from the submission to the Truth - by imposing celibacy to any one who wants to be a priest or bishop (which is a doctrine of devils according 1 Timothy 4:1-3 and contrary to the Holy Scriptures that set marriage among other eligibility criteria of the pastor or bishop 1Ti 3:2, Titus 1:6), were delivered to the stubbornness of their hearts for rejecting the council of God and shame of their works of the flesh that manifested. In lieu of piety, it is adultery, pedophilia, homosexuality and other such facts that overwhelm those rebels in the reports that are released daily and strangely. It's really sad! Oh! if my people would listen to me, and Israel had walked in my ways!

Let us struggle with God as Israel and crucify the likings of our evil heart. Let us listen to His voice and walk in His ways and He does not ask us more. We don’t have force to subdue our enemies that are in our own members. Let us kill in us the preconceived religion and leave Him alone to sanctify us through His Word; we shall see the result only. Jr 7 “22For I spake not unto your fathers, nor commanded them in the day that I brought them out of the land of Egypt, concerning burnt offerings or sacrifices: 23But this thing commanded I them, saying, Obey my voice, and I will be your God, and ye shall be my people: and walk ye in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it may be well unto you. 24But they hearkened not, nor inclined their ear, but walked in the counsels and in the imagination of their evil heart, and went backward, and not forward.”

Whatever we think to do of ourselves in order to help us, this is even our own trap. He only asks us to walk in the ways he prescribed us and leave the rest to Him. We must ensure that our heart is not turned away from His Word to embrace men’s religions or walk according to what we think is good and so sin Dt 29 “18Lest there should be among you man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this day from the LORD our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood; 19And it come to pass, when he heareth the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, I shall have peace, though I walk in the imagination of mine heart, to add drunkenness to thirst.”

Our enemies are more powerful than us, and we must be aware thereof. But our Redeemer is yet much more powerful than our enemies and in Him we have to take our refuge, then our enemies shall take flight, they shall disappear before the one that overshadows us and we will see them no more. The enemy understands this mystery so perfectly that he tries to confuse people to try and look for solutions where they cannot be found, i.e. outside of Truth.

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