Read the transcript from today's video devotional.
This verse is so important for us to read together, because if I'm completely honest, it's very seldom that I hear a lot of conversations in my Christian communities that are involving the topic of sin.
Even saying the word sin might cause us to cringe a little bit. Sometimes we avoid the topic because we know of what it requires for us to pay attention to its presence in our lives. What I love about Romans, and particularly Romans chapter 12, is that there are a lot of direct addresses to the topic of sin and its place in your life.
Don't Let Evil Conquer You
The verse that we just read says, Don't let evil conquer you. In another version it says, Do not be overcome by these things. The reason this is important is I think sometimes, if we're not careful, rather than us rejecting evil and rejecting sin, we sometimes try to find a way to keep it around and maintain its presence in our lives.
When that happens, it happens when we make sin small. If I make sin not that big of a deal, I try to find ways to keep it in my pocket. When it's small, that means that I can maintain it. I can, sort of, believe that I can exert some control over it. Even as I'm saying this, I know there are some who can relate to this because you're probably thinking of the times where you would say something like, "I don't want to do this anymore. This is the last time, I promise I won't be this way," only to find yourself in the cycle of that sin flowering and then beginning to show itself in our life circumstances.
Again, this is an uncomfortable topic and we don't talk a lot about it. What I want you to know is that there is actually hope for us to not be overcome by the sin that has beset our lives. Some of you are hearing that and you're saying, "Man, I desperately hope that that's true." Maybe there are habits or hang ups that you've found yourself stuck in a rut of a pattern of practicing in your life, and you're just hoping and begging at times for there to be a way out.
We are Made Clean
You might be wondering, how does this happen? It says in the scripture you conquer evil by good. I think of a very silly and simple analogy that helps me to understand what this might look like. I don't want there to be contaminants in my system, and so I want to try to get rid of them. Imagine if I had a cup of water and that cup of water had a bunch of dirt floating around in it.
If I wanted to try to get the dirt out of the water, I could probably try to put my fingers in there and grab some. But you and I both know that's not going to get the dirt out of the water. I could try to grab it with as much effort as I want, but it's just not possible.
You know the simplest way to get the dirt out of the cup? I fill the cup with good, clean water. It begins to go into the cup, and as the cup fills up, the old water is pushed out and the good clean water begins to be the contents of the cup. When that good water fills up the cup, I can see it clear and clean. No dirt, no stain, because it's filled with what will bring clarity.
Our Hope in Christ
This is our hope. Don't allow sin to be something that you make small and you keep around and you manage. It says earlier in Romans, reject evil. Push away the things that are against God, and fill yourself with the good things of Christ. As you do so, you overcome evil with good in your life.
