Romans 6:14 For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
Sin Shall Not Have Dominion over You, Part 2 In Part 1, we saw that forgiveness, through the atoning work of Christ, is our complete and final victory over sin. Forgiveness results in justification and justification leads to sanctification. The work of Christ is not only a justifying work but also a sanctifying work. We begin as victors, justified. Being justified, our life is then to prove, or walk out that justification which results in sanctification. Whenever we talk of victory over sin the question immediately arises, “if I have victory over sin why do I continue to struggle with temptation and sin.” “Is this victory over sin reflected in my day-to-day life or is it a victory that I accept by faith but never actually see?” This is a common question and I will attempt to give an answer.
I used the words “we are left” to emphasize the fact that upon conversion the Lord could have translated us directly into heaven, but He chose to leave us in an environment, where, according to Scripture, the very powers of hell rule in the atmosphere and over every unbeliever. And He could have given us a new body, a body that would not find pleasure in sin, but, He chose to leave us in a body, and with a mind, in which the temptations to sin are literally never-ending. Every born-again Christian is on planet earth, and possesses a physical body and a fleshly mind that naturally are opposed to God. These two realities define our existence and set the stage for all creation to see the reality of Christ’s complete and final victory over sin. It is our victory over the world, over our own body, over our mind, and over the devil, that proves, for all to see, the work of Christ to be greater than the work of sin. We only have to look at Christ to see there is going to be a struggle for those who follow Him. Following Him always leads to conflict, conflict with the world and conflict with our own humanity. The conflict is for one reason-pleasure.
God Himself is motivated by pleasure and He created us to be motivated by pleasure. The Scripture tells us that He does whatsoever He pleases, meaning He does whatever He finds pleasure in. All people, everywhere, are motivated by pleasure, or motivated by that which they see as beneficial to their lives. Even dysfunctional and self-destructive behavior is seen as meeting a need, as somehow beneficial; otherwise it would be avoided. We have to come to grips with the power of pleasure and its preeminence in our lives. It is the most powerful force in our life; it controls our thinking, our emotions, our desires and ultimately our behavior. That which we see as beneficial, determines the quality of our life and the kind of person we will be. What we find pleasure in, determines who or what we allow to rule over us. You may say love is the most important force in our lives. Yes, but our love is wholesome only if we can enjoy who or what we love. Truth is, our greatest love is what gives us the greatest pleasure! This is why we must come to the place that we enjoy the Lord and His ways or we can never love Him in a wholesome manner. Love and pleasure go hand-in-hand, where you find one, the other is always present. And the reverse is also true, when one leaves, the other is sure to follow.
Our imagination is a silent but important part of our everyday life. It usually operates behind the scenes, but it is always on and is always involved with our decisions and consequently our behavior. Our goal is to bring it into the open, subdue it, and make it obedient to Christ. We can have a sanctified imagination that help us to honor Christ or an imagination that opposes Christ and submits to our fleshly nature. But we all have one, and it is operational in everyday life. Consider a simple but everyday use of imagination. You’re hungry for a hamburger, a big, juicy hamburger. You know where they make big juicy hamburgers so you jump in your car and head out to get a big, juicy, hamburger. So, you may ask, where is the imagination in this example? Here is the imagination: when you desired a hamburger you remembered the flavor and imagine the flavor of the next one would be the same. You imagined you would arrive safely, you imagined the food would be in properly cooked, and you imagined you it would be worth your time to obtain this hamburger. Reality is, perhaps you wouldn’t arrive safely, maybe the hamburger would be horrible; you’re aware of the negative possibilities but your imagination sees a juicy hamburger prepared just the way you like it. You remember how hamburgers taste and your imagination created the scenario of you enjoying a good hamburger and then returning home safely. This scenario is based on your desire for a good hamburger and your memory of how a good hamburger tastes and no anticipation of harm. Because of your physical appetites, and your desire for safety, you imagine a safe trip and an enjoyable dinner. A positive outcome, created by your imagination, enables you to take action that obtains the hamburger. This is a rather unsophisticated example of imagination but by this example we can see how much of our behavior is based not on reality but on what we we desire to be true. Our imagination puts a good spin on what we desire, and for that reason, it is a natural tool for the enemy of our soul.
What makes imagination so powerful is that it has the power to create. It can and does create a scenario that appeals to the desires of our heart; imagination will submit thinking and ideas until we are prepared inwardly to give ourselves to what we want. Our imagination, if not renewed, avoids the ultimate consequences of our decisions, spinning reality toward a positive outcome. It puts a favorable light on hidden and secret desires. Make a list of notorious behaviors; they all have the common denominator of an imagination that enabled that behavior by avoiding the long term consequences and seeing only the immediate pleasure. Think of our eyes, and the power they possess, to energize our imagination toward what the Lord forbids. This culture plays to our eyes, and to our imagination. TV, movies, physical appearance, all have a powerful affect on us because they stimulate our imagination, and not in a good way. We live in a culture that’s crazy drunk on sexuality, and our imagination plays a major role by enabling that drunkenness. We are motivated by pleasure, and our imagination prepares or enables us to inwardly accept a particular pleasure, or appetite, or desire. Our motivation for pleasure opens our imagination and then they together create the scenario to walk out that pleasure. The result of this linkage is a thought, a temptation, a lust, or if we follow it, sinful behavior. Of course we are talking about an imagination that is not under the discipline and rule of the Word of God.
Jas 1:13-15 (13) Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: (14) But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. (15) Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.
I emphasize our desire for pleasure and the power of imagination for they work together, and it is at this level of our being that we begin to conquer the giants that oppose our walk with Christ. Every behavior is supported by an imagination that has put a good light on whatever the heart desires. As Christians, we cast down evil imaginations, and take captive every thought (that results from those imaginations) and make them obedient to Christ.
2Co 10:3-5 (3) For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: (4) (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) (5) Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;
As we follow Christ, He teaches us to bring that feeling, wanting, part of us under His Lordship. He tells us to no longer allow our desires to rule, that He gives us power over them. We are told the cross gives victory over fleshly lusts, and as a result of that victory we are then told to walk out or prove His victory over them. Our sanctification makes visible the victory of Christ over sin. For Jesus to be Lord of all, He must be Lord of our desires, Lord of our pleasures, Lord of our emotions, Lord of our priorities, Lord of our ambitions, Lord of our will, and Lord of our imaginations. When He rules over these then He will rule over our life.