Why doesn’t our “walk” match our “talk?”
Jan 22, 2010
Case for Grace - part seventeen in a study of the book of Romans
Mike Gaudet
We know what we should do.
We want to do what we should do.
We don’t do what we should do.
We do what we shouldn’t do.
Why doesn’t our “walk” match our “talk”?
“I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do — this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.” Romans 7:18-20
It’s hard to believe that a devoted follower of Christ wrote these words! With astonishing honesty the apostle Paul exposes the war of wills that raged within him. We are able to peer into his dividedness and, if we are honest with ourselves, find ourselves shaking our heads in knowing agreement.
We know exactly what he is talking about! We can identify with knowing what is right, wanting to do what is right, but not being able to turn knowing and wanting into doing.
We know what it is to house competing sets of desires.
We know what it is to be at war within ourselves.
Although we can identify with Paul’s experience of conflict, we don’t normally place the blame where he places it . . . “it is sin living in me that does it.”
“It isn’t my fault!”
“It’s the fault of 'sin living in me'!”
Does this sound like a “cop out” to you?
When we try to explain why we don’t do what God wants, we normally place the blame on ourselves.
“It’s my fault.”
“I’m not devoted enough!”
Paul flatly disagrees with this assessment. He tells us that we are not the problem; what is “living within us” is the problem. Like a cancer that invades cells and destroys organs, sin is living within us, preventing us from doing what God wants . . . preventing us from doing what we, in the deepest part of ourselves, want as well.
You are not the problem.
Sin living in you is the problem.
How can you deal effectively with sin?
If a physical illness is accurately diagnosed, it is likely that the treatment will be effective. The same is true with spiritual illness. Once we accurately diagnose the problem, we are able to treat it effectively.
If a lack of devotion is the problem, the treatment must center on increasing devotion. In this case trying harder to “do the dos and not do the don’ts” would be indicated.
However, if “sin living within” is the problem, then trying harder to keep God’s rules is exactly what we do not want to do. Paul discovered that “apart from law, sin is dead.” Romans 7:8 When we focus on keeping God’s law, we don’t decrease sin’s influence - we increase it!
Using a “try harder” approach to control “sin living within” is like using cigarette smoking to control lung cancer!
How then do we reduce the influence of sin that lives within us?
The remaining studies will deal with this question. But for now, we would do well to pause and reflect on treatments that we want to avoid. When someone offers you a “try harder” solution to sin, remember . . .
. . . “sin living within” is your problem, not lack of devotion.
. . . “try harder” treatments don’t work.