7 Tools to Avoid Sin

Jim Bakker, Jimmy Swaggert, Jack Schaap, and Ravi Zacharias are not remembered because they had national ministries; they are well-known because their names are synonymous with moral failure. Of course, it is no less sad that lesser-known Christian men and women succumb to moral failure every day. Sin scandal among the redeemed is always sad and devastating, regardless of how notable the person. While online “discernment” ministries generate content by piling onto or tearing down Christians who fail morally, this practice does not strengthen the faithful. If you, like me, do not want to be next in the list of moral failures, consider carefully the following seven tools. Whether the temptation you’re facing is gossip, jealousy, or sexual sin, God has provided effectual help to avoid being the next castaway, and instead to walk in victory. By applying biblical wisdom, you can keep your wedding vows, maintain the respect of your children, and faithfully represent our Lord to a world that desperately needs to see victorious Christian living.

The Holy Spirit

Every time you experience sinful temptation, the Holy Spirit is doing His job of reproving you of sin, righteousness, and judgment (John 16:8). According to Galatians 5:16-18, victory over the temptations of the flesh is offered exclusively through God's Spirit. Any time we try to live victoriously in our own power, we will experience the same failure and frustration that Paul describes in Romans 7. If you compare the apostle’s Romans 7 experience with the power of the Spirit he describes in Romans 8, you will find a night-and-day difference. The ministry of the Holy Ghost is wonderful in many ways, especially in aiding us to overcome sinful temptation.

The Way of Escape

This phrase is taken directly from 1 Corinthians 10:13. In that verse, Paul explains that “God is faithful.” That is, in every moment of temptation, God ensures that we have the opportunity to obey instead of being forced into sin. Each time the world, flesh, or devil solicits us to do wrong, God faithfully opens another way so we can do right.

Examples of Others

Do you remember the idea of a castaway from 1 Corinthians 9:27? It appears shortly before the discussion in chapter 10 about the way of escape. Between the two verses, in 1 Corinthians 10:1-12, God provides Old Testament examples of people who did not take the way of escape and became castaways. They serve as examples to the Corinthians—and to us—of what not to do. You will read about people who gave into their lust, idolatry, fornication, and you will read about people who yielded to pride and murmuring. Not only do we read about the sin, we read about the consequences they faced as a result of their sinful choices. Frankly, it’s devastating. The ancient stories of the Israelites, as well as the names at the beginning of the article, all serve as examples of what not to do. When you're in a place of temptation, remember the examples of sinful failure and let them motivate you to pursue spiritual success. Pursue holiness and righteousness; abhor that which is evil and cleave to that which is good (Rom. 12:9). Allow the consequences of their actions to deter you from following their sinful path.

Family Accountability

By itself, accountability is a powerful motivator towards righteousness. When people we love or desire the respect of are watching, we're way less likely to do something sinfully stupid. We enter into something we shouldn’t when we're alone, or when it seems like no one is watching. My own family has benefitted greatly from the numerous ways we have set up to hold one another accountable. It is healthy for every Christian to find ways to be fully accountable to people who love you and that you love. Your relationship with them can definitely motivate you to avoid making sinful choices.

Church Family

Your church family provides an enormous encouragement as you pursue personal holiness. One reason we should not “forsake the assembling of ourselves together” is that, when we gather, we are provoked to love and good works. Certainly, Bible-based preaching and singing is a part of that provoking to love and good works, but so is fellowshipping. There are some people in our NorthStone faith family that I don’t ever want to disappoint. The godly older ladies in our congregation are going through enough without hearing that their Pastor has been involved in some sexual scandal. In addition, the men that served on our church's pulpit committee had enough confidence in me to recommend me to our church family. I don't ever want to embarrass them simply because I couldn't control myself. Those who aren’t the pastor can draw much encouragement to pursue good works if they regularly gather and serve with a healthy faith family.

The Holy Bible

What a tool! Not only is Scripture inspired, it is also profitable. This Book was written by our Creator and describes in great detail the condition of the world around us and the details of the devil’s plans to attack us. It provides not only a play-by-play explanation of the process of temptation works, but also how it can be overcome (James 1:13-16). From Genesis 3 we learn what not to do during temptation, and from Matthew 4 we learn what to do when we are tempted. I'm saying God wrote down in the Holy Bible exactly what to do in moments of temptation. The Bible is holy because it's set apart from every other book. It's no coincidence, then, that in it we learn how to be holy. It doesn't get any more spiritually profitable than the Holy Bible.

A Healthy Conscience

A conscience is not necessarily healthy. A conscience can easily be defiled or seared, but a healthy conscience is a biblically informed conscience. When your conscience is working properly, it will either accuse you or excuse you (Rom. 2:15) and, in moments of temptation, the law of God that is written on your heart can do its job. Even if you haven't been reading your Bible lately, and you haven't been gathering with your church family, and you've muted the voice of the Holy Spirit, there's still a chance that your conscience can tell you to QUIT IT. There's a chance that enough of the law of God is still written on your heart, and therefore your conscience will point you towards the righteous path.

In conclusion, using any combination of these seven tools makes you much less likely to be the next name on the list of castaways. At the top of the list of biblical examples of success in temptation is Joseph. He is so often heralded as someone to imitate because of the way he resisted and fled from Potiphar's wife, and so won the victory. Here's a question: how many of the seven tools did Joseph have his at his disposal? He had the Holy Spirit, but he was not indwelt according to the promise of Jesus in John 16, and as He came at Pentecost. Did Joseph have the example of others? Yes, but not as many examples as we have. Did Joseph have family encouragement to live righteously? No, Joseph's family was a mess. Did Joseph have a strong church family to draw strength from? No, considering that the church wasn't born until the New Testament. Did Joseph have a leather bound, easily accessible canonized copy of the Scripture with instruction about times of temptation? Of course, he did not. The point is that God has entrusted to us so many more tools than even the great Joseph had. Yet we often take these tools for granted. We would have to ignore all these tools to walk into sinful Indulgence. You don't have to be the next name on the list of examples of what not to do. More than enough tools have been entrusted to our care so that none of us need to be the next castaway. So, let us take the way of escape that God is faithfully providing by his power and exclusively for his glory.

The above article was written by Pastor James C. Johnson. He is the pastor of NorthStone Baptist Church in Pensacola, Fl. To offer him your feedback, comment below or email us at strengthforlife461@gmail.com.

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