Battling Sexual Sin: The State of the Mind

 

Paul points out that Jesus is the only Way out of the slavery of sexual sin. How then can one who now has Jesus, but is entangled, become free from the bondage of this sin?

Again, the mind needs to be renewed, and this can be done by and with the Word of God. Paul, speaking in Acts of the Apostles 20:32 (KJV), declares:

And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. 

This is sure proof that the Word is the way out of this mess. Unless you have your mind renewed by the Word of God, you may end up having to hinge on opinions doled out by the world on how to lead your sexual life. This could leave you more like the six blind men of Hindustan who went to see the elephant and came up each with his own wrong perspective of what the elephant was based on the part of the elephant he has touched. Consider also the words of Paul in Romans 12:1-2 (KJV):

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. 

And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.  

The above reads thus in the New Living Translation (NLT):

And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice – the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him.

Don’t copy the behaviour and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

From the above, you can see that you have the responsibility to ‘change the way you think’. “Garbage in, garbage out,” goes a popular saying. It is whatever you feed your mind with that you will manifest. This is the power of the mind. If you feed your mind with sexual thoughts, consistently watching or reading pornographic materials, or even consistently engaging in sexual conversations with friends, why wouldn’t you be eventually enslaved by sexual sin? But if you feed your mind with thoughts about the Word and the things of God continually, regularly and consistently, you are most definitely on the pathway to freedom.

It is just like a baby born today. That baby would have to eat food consistently to grow. That baby, within a space of a year and a half, is already a toddler and not a helpless baby in the arms of his mother anymore.

Now, imagine feeding your mind on sexual things consistently for a period of one and a half years. Then also imagine feeding your mind on the things of the Spirit (the Word) continually for one and a half years. In life, and forever, you have to be engaged in one of these activities consistently – mundane things or spiritual things – to have either the Genesis Chapter Two relationship, or let Genesis Chapter Three strike and take over your relationship.

There is no room for sitting on the fence about this. No, not with God. Every man is involved; so it is not something for you alone without your partner going on that same path with you. Either of the paths you choose to trod, your partner has to be with you on it; else your effort will hardly hold water. Remember, it takes two to tango. This is a battle you must win.

Your actions come from the inclinations of your mind. Whether you are good or evil depends on the state of your mind. The state of your mind is determined by what or who controls your mind. Romans 8:6-7 speaks of a person’s mind being controlled either by the flesh or by the Spirit of God, as I discussed in an earlier post on this blog. The person whose mind is controlled by the Spirit of God however is good.

Other passages describe the inclination of a person’s mind being controlled by the “god of this world”, as can be seen in 2nd Corinthians 4:4. People whose minds are controlled by the “god of this world” – that is, Satan – will have their minds darkened and will not be able to understand the world as it really is.

Taking this further, 2nd Corinthians 3:14 states that:

Their minds were closed and hardened, for even to this day that same veil comes over their minds when they hear the words of the former covenant. The veil has not yet been lifted from them, for it is only eliminated when one is joined to the Messiah (The Passion Translation).

It is like a veil over one’s understanding; but the Lord can open people’s minds. God, through Jesus, and only in allowing Him into your life, can your freedom from this bondage be guaranteed. This is why Paul asked this of God for the Ephesian brethren:

I pray that the light of God will illuminate the eyes of your imagination, flooding you with light, until you experience the full revelation of the hope of his calling—that is, the wealth of God’s glorious inheritances that he finds in us, his holy ones! (Ephesians 1:18, The Passion Translation). 

However you look at it, God is out to help His own – and that would be you – if you are not on the right path today. He says He is bringing His children back to Eden where the whole issue of relationship first began (Ezekiel 36:34-36). This means the original plan in this respect has once again been reactivated. But then, as I have earlier stated, you have to work hand in hand with God to make this a reality.

Christian growth is not instantaneous but gradual, like that baby who has to feed consistently to grow. It flows naturally from obeying God’s Word and, before you know it, you are mature in the things of the Spirit, eating solid food.

But solid food is for the mature, whose spiritual senses perceive heavenly matters. And they have been adequately trained by what they’ve experienced to emerge with understanding of the difference between what is truly excellent and what is evil and harmful (Hebrews 5:14, The Passion Translation, emphasis mine).

The Christian faith is a selfless – not greedy – lifestyle and is marked by holy living. You have to believe completely in the Lord Jesus Christ to become more and more like Him each day. Yes, completely, and without reservations.

You need to do away with every sinful act and align your thoughts and actions to the standard put forth by the Word of God. You need to come clean before God and ask for His divine intervention in your life so that holiness can be a mark of your life as well. Once this is achieved – and sustained – then Genesis Chapter Two is certified in your relationship with your partner.

In my next post, I shall be sharing with you what it takes to live the God-life. God’s blessing upon you, and thank you for always checking in.