Sunday Sermons

Change

Mark Dunagan
08/06/06 - Sunday Morning

Change

There are many passages that clearly teach that becoming a Christian demands a change in our attitudes and behavior.

· “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and lusts” (Galatians 5:24).

· “But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices, and have put on the new self” (Colossians 3:8-10).

· “How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:2).

· “Our old self was crucified with Him” (Romans 6:6).

At the same time there are equally many passages revealing that this change is not a one-time act, rather Christians, even after conversation, must continue to put off the old man.

· “In reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self” (Ephesians 4:22)

· “Put on the new self” (Ephesians 4:24)

· “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31).

· Even the apostle Paul said, years after his conversion, “I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified” (1 Corinthians 9:27).

· He also exhorted strong and mature Christians, such as Timothy, “Now flee from youthful lusts” (2 Timothy 2:22).

The Continuing Struggle

The Bible clearly commands the removal of all sin, “put them all aside” (Colossians 3:8); “Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth” (Ephesians 4:29); “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice” (Ephesians 4:31). “But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you” (Ephesians 5:2). “And there must be no filthiness and silly talk” (Ephesians 5:5). So the Scriptures are clear, sin is still sinful even for the Christian, and every sin needs to be forsaken. Yet Christians who have been Christians for years still struggle with sins that range from anger, to lust, to jealousy, envy, arrogance and so on. Does this struggle therefore prove that we have never really been converted in the first place? First, for some people their conversion might have been far less then authentic, but for most people the answer is probably, “No”. Even Christians in the early church continued to battle various temptations (1 Corinthians 10:13).

What to Discard

There are certain acts or attitudes that I must remove completely. For example, immorality is never right under any circumstance (Ephesians 5:4). The same would be true for malice, bitterness or slander. There is no such thing as a healthy malice, bitterness, envy, fornication, adultery and so on. Compare with Galatians 5:19-21. Anger must be removed (Ephesians 4:31), yet not the ability to be angry at sin (Ephesians 4:26; Romans 12:9). Lustful passion must cease (1 Thessalonians 4:5), yet not the healthy passion that exists between husband and wife (Proverbs 5:18ff).

Thoughts on the Old Man

We are told to remove or put off the old man (Ephesians 4:22; Colossians 3:9), which gives us hope, for God never issues a command that cannot be accomplished for every day people. The old man or old self is more than sinful practices (Colossians 3:9), rather it appears to be the mindset or attitude that promotes, allows, justifies or enjoys sinning (Romans 6:6). This mindset or selfishness must be ruthlessly removed (Galatians 5:24), yet Christians must remember:

· Selfishness is a daily battle that we must be prepared to fight (Luke 9:23 “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me”). One mistake that Christians often make is that they immediately remove various outward and noticeable sinful practices, and clean up their language, and at that moment may assume that they are finished or conquered the old self. Yet without daily prayer, bible study, and spiritual growth, the old man will come back.

· “I remember my excitement when I first heard someone preach that we can’t do anything good by our own power—only God can do good things through us. We only have to ask God to change our faults and to overcome our sins for us. ‘So this is the secret’, I thought to myself. I couldn’t wait to put the idea into practice, simply letting God change my faults. I prayed eagerly for God to do this very thing. I gave it all to God. Then I waited---but nothing happened. So I prayed more. Still nothing changed. At first I thought the problem was just me. I finally talked to other Christians in private about the matter and found that I wasn’t the only one with this problem. Others had obtained no better results than I had. ‘So why do you go around saying that God magically takes away our faults and turns us into obedient persons?’ I asked them. ‘Because that’s the way it’s supposed to work’, was the reply” (Will The Real Heretics Please Stand Up, p. 52).

· Removing the obvious outward sinful practices is essential (Ephesians 5:3; 1 Peter 4:15 “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler”), yet more is necessary. I must equally remove the evil desires and selfish thinking that leads to such acts as well, “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). The sinful desires must be confronted and reigned in. It is never enough to simply abstain from murder, adultery or keep from uttering some profanity; I must confront the perverted and wrong thoughts that fuel such activity (Matthew 5:22,28).

· The good news is that such is possible. Jesus believed that even the Pharisees could clean up their hearts (Matthew 23:26 “First clean the inside of the cup and of the dish”).

Who Initially Heard These Commands

· It is easy to forget that all the passages that speak of removing the old man were written to people who were not raised in Christian homes, who did not necessarily have a good upbringing and who had spent much of their lives living in sin (Ephesians 2:1; Colossians 3:5; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). Thus the Bible is a book that expects and commands people who had lived selfishly for most of their lives to become unselfish, kind, self-controlled, noble, pure in thought and deed, have their anger under control and well as their sexual passions. And this is probably the first time in their lives that anyone had taught them such truths.

· Removing the old man, putting on the new man, and being consistent will demand of us all diligence (2 Peter 1:5, 11). “These are the ones who have heard the word in an honest and good heart, and hold it fast, and bear fruitwith perseverance” (Luke 8:15).

What Does Not Work

· Is not accomplished by a “hit and miss” form of Christianity.

· Is does not simply come as a result of time.

· It does not just happen naturally.

· It is not accomplished by simply being around Christians and being at services. Much more is required than just Bible reading, or just listening to sermons.

· There is no shortcut to real change. Peter speaks of “all diligence”, “faith”, “moral excellence”, that is moral courage, virtue, the love of what is right and the abhorrence of what is evil, “perseverance”, “brotherly love” , “love”, “knowledge” and “self control”. If someone is failing in the Christian life it often means that they are trying to grow spiritually and yet are skipping some necessary steps at the same time.

· An uninspired writer named Clement who lived around 190 A.D. wrote, “God does not crown those who abstain from wickedness by compulsion, but those who abstain by choice. It is impossible for a person to consistently live righteously except by his own choice. The one who is made ‘righteous’ by the compulsion of another is not truly righteous. It is the freedom of each person that produces true righteousness and reveals true wickedness”(Maximus, Sermon 55).

What Does Work

“For he who lacks these qualities is blind or short-sighted, having forgotten his purification from his former sins. Therefore, brethren, be all the more diligent to make certain about His calling and choosing you; for as long as you practice these things you will never stumble” (2 Peter 1:10).

· The word “knowledge” in this section (1:6) reveals that we will fail in the Christian life if we have the attitude, “But I do not like to study the Bible, I find it boring”. Or, “I am not into Bible class or listening to sermons”.

· The word “faith” (1:5) infers that in order to succeed I need to be willing to trust God and pray to Him often. Any insistence upon placing one’s final trust in self or something else will undermine all attempts to grow.

· The expression “moral excellence” (1:5) draws a definite line in the sand. Failure is certain if we continue to have a fondness, nostalgia, or love for something sinful. The old man will be alive and well—even if I continue to hold on to only one sinful practice.

· The word “self-control” reveals that we must learn to put up a definite fight when it comes to temptation. This means that spiritual growth can only be accomplished by “me”. I have to take charge, I have to control my thoughts, and I have to control my tongue.

· The term “perseverance” reminds us that this battle against sin and battle for spiritual improvement cannot be temporary, now and then, or only when we are well rested or in a good mood.

Mark Dunagan/Beaverton Church of Christ/503-644-9017