more than their fathers, in following other gods to serve them, and to bow down to them; they ceased not from their own doings, nor from their stubborn way.". Here is a statement that distinctly says that they were putting their will above God's will. Self interest! What are the charges? Unfaithfulness, yes; rebellion, yes; blasphemy, no doubt; and as they were following the other gods, the list goes on and on. All in self interest. If we consider the list of sin actions as symptomatic rather than as the sin itself, then self interest becomes the root, and everything can be traced to it. I believe Satan is delighted when he hears sermon after sermon being preached against the `sins' in our lists, rather than the sin of self interest. If a person is treated for the symptom but isn't treated for the root cause, the problem recurs over and over and over again. Case in point, athlete's foot. If the fungus is only controlled to the point where discomfort ceases, it sits and waits for an opportunity to reappear. If we don't treat our self interest problem, then our sin symptoms are like a beach ball. We push a bump in here, and it pops out there, action and reaction. But if we release some pressure from the inside, the bumps become more manageable. Isaiah 14:12-14 shows us Satan's sin, which is our sin also: "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.". Look at that last sentence, there the word I appears 5 times. It's not difficult to see where Satan's priorities are. This ties into what Jesus had to say in Mark 7:20-23: "And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders. Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, 133 _______________________________________________________________________________ foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.". Also in Matthew 22:36-40 it says: "Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.". Is it coincidence that to properly spell heart the i is left out, but i is in the middle of sin? The answer my friends is with us, and the type of surrender we are committed to. I am desirous of unconditional surrender, not a conditional surrender that is filled with yes, buts. Recognizing the true cause of our failings should help. The more room we give for the Holy Spirit to operate within us, the better off we will be. If we consider the fact that we are saved by grace, and apply it to this situation, we begin to see that even after salvation everything is by God's grace, and not our works. If we attempt to do it on our own, God will let us, and we'll probably mess it up on our own. But, if we listen to the Holy Spirit, and act on only his direction, who or what can oppose us? Still not convinced? Take the list that you developed at the first part of this chapter, and using scripture, look for a different root cause than self, the big I. If you find one, I would appreciate hearing about it. All, that is, except -` The devil made me do it.' Finally, I say in Christ's love, listen to the Holy Spirit and keep the faith. 134 _______________________________________________________________________________ _______________________________________________________________________________ |
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