Killing Sin
It’s always a slow fade into sin.
In The 7 Resolutions Karl writes “Killing sin is our calling, and this very real battle saturates Scripture. We can’t play with sin. It’s a high-stakes game of spiritual table tennis. Satan is serving up sin on a steady basis. Add to that that our heart is easily deceived into thinking we’re winning and we’re trying to manage things that are hurting us, and we have a royal battle.”
Every sin we allow to go unopposed in our lives opens the door to greater sin, not only in our own lives, but in the lives of everyone around us. Society never crumbles in a day, or in a generation. One story in scripture that demonstrates the horrifying effects of failing to kill sin is found in Judges. During this period while there was no king in Israel, the people of Gibeah, of the tribe of Benjamin committed a horrific crime. When reports of this crime spread through Israel, the leaders of all the other tribes assembled to hear from the victim.
“Tell us, how did this evil happen?” And the Levite, the husband of the woman who was murdered, answered and said, “I came to Gibeah that belongs to Benjamin, I and my concubine, to spend the night. And the leaders of Gibeah rose against me and surrounded the house against me by night. They meant to kill me, and they violated my concubine, and she is dead. So I took hold of my concubine and cut her in pieces and sent her throughout all the country of the inheritance of Israel, for they have committed abomination and outrage in Israel.” (Judges 20:3-6)
Having heard this the leaders of Israel sought to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to justice. They wanted to “purge evil from Israel” (Judges 20:13). But the best time to kill sin is always when it’s smallest. All of Israel had allowed sin to grow for generations. In the time of the Judges “everyone did what was right in his own eyes” (Judges 21:25).
Every lustful thought, perverted joke, hateful gossip, unfaithful spouse, jealous neighbor, and cowardly bystander in Israel laid the foundation for Gibeah’s crime. The failure to kill sin always has consequences.
The tribe of Benjamin refused to surrender the murderers and rapists. Instead they mustered an army of 26,000 men to defend them. In response, Israel raised an army of 400,000 men of war to do battle with their brothers.
On the first day 22,000 Israelites died.
“And the people of Israel went up and wept before the LORD until the evening. And they inquired of the LORD, “Shall we again draw near to fight against our brothers, the people of Benjamin?” And the LORD said, “Go up against them.” (Judges 20:23)
On the second day 18,000 Israelites died.
So again they asked God,
“Shall we go out once more to battle against our brothers, the people of Benjamin, or shall we cease?” And the LORD said, “Go up, for tomorrow I will give them into your hand.” (Judges 20:28)
On the third day 25,000 Benjamites died and the victory was won.
God will give us victory in the battle of killing sin, but he also allows us to suffer the casualties. People, families, churches, and nations never crumble in a day. As Casting Crowns so beautifully reminds us, it’s always a slow fade into sin.
What sin do you need to ask God’s help to put to death before the cost grows?
Shawn
Executive Director, T7R
P.S. We had a great webinar last week on memorizing Scripture with Glenna Marshall. You can watch the recording below and you can buy her book Memorizing Scripture here (it’s currently on sale for $9.99!). Karl specifically asked Glenna about how we can use Scripture memorization to kill sin in our lives, and you won’t want to miss her answer!