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 When Sin Plays Dead by Tommy Clayton


Have you ever watched an opossum escape from a predator? They use a defense mechanism distinct to only a few animals—playing dead. When faced with a threat, an opossum will often fall on the ground, close his eyes, extend his limbs, and lie very still. He appears lifeless—and harmless. But when the danger passes, he revives and scurries away. You can almost hear laughter as he makes his escape.

Playing dead seems to be an effective means of survival, but opossums aren’t the sole practitioners of that strategy.

Our sins often “play dead” too, especially when faced with the threat of execution. They fake death in order to escape it. While you may think you’ve slain a particular sin, sometimes life still pulses within your enemy and it secretly takes its leave, stays quiet, and waits on danger to pass.

We’ve all been tricked by sin’s craftiness, haven’t we? How many times have you sheathed your sword, convinced sin was finished, only to suffer a violent retaliation a few hours later? How does that happen, and what can you do to stop it?

You may already know this, but John MacArthur has preached more than 3,000 sermons, written more than 150 books, and spent the last 50 years feeding God’s sheep from God’s Word. Much of that material relates directly to how you and I combat sin. John has a unique ability to equip, clarify, and warn, especially when he’s dealing with sin in the life of a Christian. One message in particular stands out to me in which John listed what killing sin is not.

I’d like to introduce you to my expansion of that list and end this series by addressing an important issue—What do you do when sin plays dead? In other words, how do you know if you’ve successfully slain sin? To answer those questions, I’ll share what I’ve learned biblically from John MacArthur and John Owen about what killing sin is not.

Killing sin is not covering it up. You may appear successful at covering up your sin. You can easily deceive your friends, family, and pastors. For awhile, you may even deceive yourself (Jer. 17:9). But hiding sin is not killing it—you’ll reap what you sow (Gal. 6:7).When you paint over sin like graffiti on a wall, that’s not putting it to death, it’s practicing hypocrisy. Proverbs 28:13 says, "He who conceals his transgressions will not prosper. But he who confesses and forsakes them will find compassion."

Rather than conceal your sins, confess and forsake them. That’s how you kill sin (1 John 1:9). Merely covering up your sin obscures the problem from plain sight, which keeps it secret. You can’t hit a target you can’t see. Sin doesn’t die in those conditions—it thrives.

Don’t be deceived. Achan hid his sin and silenced his conscience until it was too late. He even brought sin’s treachery into his own home (Joshua 7:21). His deception cost him his life—and the life of his entire family (vv. 24-25). Don’t cover up your sin, kill it.

Killing sin is not internalizing it. When you stop your tongue, body, hands, eyes and ears from sinning, don’t make the mistake of assuming you’ve killed sin. Stopping the action is part of the process (as we noted last post), but binding your hands is not the same as keeping your heart (Pr. 4:23). Sinful actions are driven by sinful attitudes (James 4:1-2)—you must kill both.

Some imagine that ceasing sinful activity equates to gaining victory over sin, yet they often continue ruminating on the pleasures of previous sins in their mind. John MacArthur said this:

Perhaps you reason with yourself, “I'm not going to entertain myself by going to movies that parade immorality,” and so you stop. But maybe you allow the vivid imagery of those past sins, the experiences of seeing those movies, to creep back into your mind and relive the pleasures of those sins over and over. That’s not killing sin.

Killing sin is not forsaking some sins while tolerating others. Don’t imagine you’ve slain sin when you merely forsake one glaring sin while you tolerate others. Remember, even the minutest transgression of God’s holy law carries enough guilt and offense to cast you into hell for all eternity (Rom. 6:23). What good could come from trading the lust of the flesh for the lust of the eyes, or the lust of the eyes for the pride of life (1 John 2:16)? The lust hasn’t died; it merely changed forms. That would be like drinking a less-deadly poison—the result is the same. Likewise, forsaking sexual immorality but tolerating greed and covetousness is futile and puts you at greater risk of being hardened by sin’s deceit (Heb. 3:13).

Remember when Simon Magus appeared to forsake his sorcery in Acts 8? Time revealed the truth—his repentance was a sham. He apparently put away his spells and incantations, but his sinful ambition was alive and well. When Simon’s un-slain sin sought expression, the apostle Peter called him out:

You have no part or portion in this matter, for your heart is not right before God. Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours…for I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity. (Acts 8:21-23)

Don’t engage in selective sin-forsaking, and then imagine you’ve progressed spiritually. To trade sins is simply to prefer one sewage over another.

Killing sin is not repressing it. Some people repress sin with drugs and alcohol. They drink themselves into oblivion or take drug-induced trips away from reality. But there are even Christians who suppress their guilt with movies, music, and worldly entertainment. They find distractions to eclipse the misery sin brings. If that doesn’t suit them, some will even consult counseling professionals who attempt to manage the person’s guilt by elevating his self-esteem.

People seem to become very lazy, almost indifferent when it comes to contending against sin. Even the thought of fighting against temptation wearies them. So they don’t fully commit to the battle. Instead, they repress their sins with work, the gym, or tragically, even ministry—anything to resist full engagement with the enemy. But that’s not killing sin. David wrote:

When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away through my groaning all day long. For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; my vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. (Ps. 32:3-4)

Keep in mind, that confession came from a man after God’s own heart (Acts 13:22). David testified to both the deceit and misery of sin. He was able—for a time at least—to suppress his guilt, until God came and announced His glorious work of putting David’s sin away (2 Sam. 12:13). David slaughtered God’s enemies by the tens of thousands (1 Sam. 18:7), but the enemy within his bosom proved too elusive for him.

Killing sin is not enjoying occasional victories over it. I’m going to let John Owen make this point:

Occasional conquests of sin do not count as killing sin. When a person faces some sudden invasion of sin in his life—such as a scandal or some evil tragedy—and becomes all stirred up about it, he may feel he has killed sin. He reacts to sin as fervently as the Corinthians did in 2 Cor. 7:11. But when the lust dies down for a time, he forgets about it. Yet the lust is like a thief that has only lain low in order to start its felony once more.

Likewise, when a sinner faces the affliction of some calamity, or the exposure of some sin, he deals with the problem by resolving never to do it again. It appears that the sin is gone, whereas it is only concealed, waiting to come back later on.

Killing sin is not ignoring your conscience. Part of the process of killing your sin is working through the issue of guilt. Until your conscience is quiet, and fully appeased, sin is still alive and active. If you truly want to know those areas of your life where sin thrives, listen to your conscience. Like sonar on a battleship, it can detect enemy presence hidden beneath the surface, in places you can’t immediately see or hear. To ignore the presence of the enemy is to hasten death.

If you want to kill sin, don’t ignore your conscience. Inform it with biblical truth so it functions accurately, flooding your soul with knowledge like a skylight brings light into a dark room.

You and I live in a culture that counsels us to run from guilt and kill our conscience. But it’s not wise to throw away your shield in battle, nor is it safe to ignore your conscience. Pain tells you something is wrong in your body; guilt tells you something is wrong in your soul. Listen to your conscience, Christian. If you silence the pangs of your conscience, you’re not killing sin—you’re accommodating it.

So the next time your sin drops to the ground before you, closes its eyes, and appears dead, don’t sheathe your sword. Review the points we’ve covered, examine your heart, and make sure you’ve done the grueling, Spirit-empowered work of completely executing your sin.

Kill your sins God’s way, or die sin’s way. Be killing sin, or sin will be killing you.


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SI Moderator - Greg Gordon

 2011/4/3 18:41Profile
davym
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Joined: 2007/5/22
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 Re: When Sin Plays Dead by Tommy Clayton

Thanks for posting this. An important word. How can God fill us with His Spirit if sin is being tolerated in our lives?
John Owen's work 'The mortification of sin' should be read by all periodically throughout their Christian life.


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David

 2011/4/3 19:31Profile
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 Re: When Sin Plays Dead by Tommy Clayton

A very honest word indeed. Thankyou for posting this. I'm presently awaiting a copy of "The Morification Of Sin Study Guide" by Banner Of Truth Ministries. Your post reminded me of when Saul let that king live (whom walked delicately) until the prophet found out about it, took up the sword, & slew him once & for all, according to the word of the Lord. Praise God! I need more reminders like this; for this is my duty by the grace of God.


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Richie

 2011/4/3 22:22Profile
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 Re:

I can see that this is an important message, though I haven't read it yet in its entirety. I wanted to bring it back up for easy finding. Perhaps someone else can benefit from this scarcely-discussed topic?

Brother Paul


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Paul Frederick West

 2011/4/4 11:24Profile
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 Re: When Sin Plays Dead by Tommy Clayton

Quote:
Killing sin is not ignoring your conscience. Part of the process of killing your sin is working through the issue of guilt. Until your conscience is quiet, and fully appeased, sin is still alive and active. If you truly want to know those areas of your life where sin thrives, listen to your conscience. Like sonar on a battleship, it can detect enemy presence hidden beneath the surface, in places you can’t immediately see or hear. To ignore the presence of the enemy is to hasten death.

If you want to kill sin, don’t ignore your conscience. Inform it with biblical truth so it functions accurately, flooding your soul with knowledge like a skylight brings light into a dark room.



Very important. Thank you Paul for bringing it back up.


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Michelle

 2011/4/4 11:40Profile
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 Re:

Wow, that was powerful. I think we all need to review this from time to time. Thanks for posting this it was a real blessing.


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Mike Wright

 2011/4/4 12:28Profile
PaulWest
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Joined: 2006/6/28
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 Re:

I think it was the Puritan John Owen who said the deepest waters are often the most still. When all is quiet and calm around you, sin is lurking in the depths. I have found this to be true in my own life, and others have attested to this fact. Sin knows very well how to play possum, haven't you discovered this?

The moment you think you've gained a victory, you go down. If you keep your mind idle long enough, unchristlikeness will eventually surface, like a loathsome crab. Evil notions, adulterous thoughts, greed, self-promoting, atheism. As natural as breathing. If you make enough of a ruckus on the surface of the water, however, the crab will descend back down for a season.

Victory comes when we understand there's a crab living down there; legalism attemps to trap it and kill it. What a futile chore this is! Even if we could, there's an entire army of denizens on the floor of the sea waiting to rise and take its place. The Lord never promised to kill the crabs before the end of the world, but He has promised to provide us sanctuary from their attacks.

We abide in Christ by faith - and what's more, by His faith. It's like being put by God in an iron shark cage with an unlimited supply of oxygen. The integrity of the iron is Christ's promise; but do we trust its strength? The sharks get too close, the bars bend, and we often panic. I've gotten careless and a little too close on occasion and been "nicked" by a shark tooth and bled. Have you? But despite my bleeding, never have I been utterly consumed or have run out of oxygen.

These encounters teach us two things: God's cage is stronger than the sharks, and our abiding within the confines should be balanced. Our rest comes from placing trust in the security of Christ's faith (i.e. the iron) and God's promised oxygen of restoration. Our job is to remain stedfast in where He has placed us (I Cor. 1:30). When a shark comes, we learn to keep in the middle and go to neither extreme - and most of all, not to panic. Accidents will happen, bites will occur, struggles are inevitable. The idea of permitting us to get bit (despite being in the cage) is to teach us rest, trust and balance.

Brother Paul


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Paul Frederick West

 2011/4/4 14:42Profile
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 Re:

Lucky for us Jesus has put to death our sinful nature with it's passions and desires through the cross (gal 5:24). Jesus ran that oppossum over with a pick up truck the day he took my hell and wrath on the cross. Sin is only as alive in your life as you let it be, you're the righteousness of God in Christ and I will abandon this faith if what Jesus did isn't able to deliver me from the whims of a faking "opossum".


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John

 2011/4/4 15:03Profile
davym
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 Re:


We should not only be on our guard against those sins of the flesh which we consider vile e.g. lust, wrath etc, but also those sins we consider 'good'

2 Samuel 23:20-21 KJV

"And Benaiah the son of Jehoiada, the son of a valiant man, of Kabzeel, who had done many acts, he slew two lionlike men of Moab: he went down also and slew a lion in the midst of a pit in time of snow: And he slew an Egyptian, a goodly man: and the Egyptian had a spear in his hand; but he went down to him with a staff, and plucked the spear out of the Egyptian's hand, and slew him with his own spear."

In this chapter the Egyptian, the Moabite, and the lion fell beneath the sword of Benaiah; and victory over the world, the flesh, and the devil is assured to him who shares the power that animated Benaiah.

The "flesh" has a double personality, one repulsive, the other attractive, one moral, the other immoral---both lion-like, and both sprung from the one corrupt father. Both must die (Romans 6). Men applaud the putting to death of the repulsive "flesh," but they rebel against a like doom for the attractive "flesh"; but that was the lesson that Job had to learn. He found that all his goodness had to be put to the sword as well as all his foulness. This is a lesson that men refuse to learn; for they are proud of their own goodness, and cannot understand that it must die beneath the wrath that at Calvary judged both the goodness and the foulness of man.

(Excerpted from The Student's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures by George Williams)


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David

 2011/4/4 15:09Profile





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