If You Absolutely Cannot Stop Sinning, Start Doing This Now

I want to talk to you about how the Holy Spirit helps us to overcome the sin nature. Whether you're dealing with lust, with pride, with fear, doubt, unforgiveness, greed, laziness, impatience, no matter what it is, no matter how frustrated you've become with yourself, no matter how many times you've thrown your hands up in the air in defeat saying, "I messed up again. I made the mistake again. I allowed myself to get in that mood again. I allowed my thoughts to wander there again. I allowed my attitude to shift to that ungodly attitude again. I said words I shouldn't have said again. I had an outburst of anger again. I was impatient, unkind again. I was a poor reflection of Christ again." how many times you felt backed into a corner, frustrated with who you aren't yet, the Holy Spirit is your helper. No matter how deep the darkness seems, no matter how difficult the problem seems, no matter how complex your issues may appear, the Holy Spirit can untangle that web of deceit and selfishness and pride and cause you to yield to his work in such a way that the character of Christ comes out. You see, Christ lives in you. And there is no nature more powerful than the nature of Christ. There is no power more strengthened. There is no power so powerful as the power of the Holy Spirit within you. And so, if you are a born-again believer, if Jesus is your Lord, if the Holy Spirit lives within you, then there is a force within you that's fighting against the forces of darkness. There is a power within you that is pushing back against that nature in you that you battle with so often. Every day you are faced with decisions. Each moment presents to you two paths that you can go down. You either respond like Christ would respond, act like he would act, or you act like the flesh. You respond as the world says to respond. And the Holy Spirit helps you. You don't have to fight that battle alone. You don't have to give up. You don't have to quit. I know that many believers become frustrated because they feel like hypocrites. Perhaps you look at your other brothers and sisters in the room and you assume that they don't have a struggle and you say, "If only I could be where they are. If only I could act like them. If only I had it together like they had it together." Well, I want to remind you that all of us need the help of the Holy Spirit. All of us need to be a little more like Jesus than we were yesterday. And that really is the goal as a believer. Is to progressively be sanctified. Progressively have the layers of self peeled away so that the nature of Christ can arise. Now, here's how the Holy Spirit's going to help you. Number one, the Holy Spirit is going to stay with you even when you fail. In John chapter 14 verse 16, Jesus says, "And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate who will never leave you." Remember this, the Holy Spirit is not a reward for holiness. He's the source for holiness. Now, Jesus promised that when the Holy Spirit came to abide with you, and when the Holy Spirit united with you, that he would never again leave you or abandon you. I've spoken about this several times here at Encounter Church, but I think it it's worth repeating because it's a foundational truth. Far too many Christians imagine that the Holy Spirit comes closer as they do well, and then he takes steps backwards as they make mistakes. But the Holy Spirit doesn't work like that. When the Holy Spirit came to dwell in you, he came to dwell in the fullness of his power, and he united with you. So that now your spirit is one with the Holy Spirit. You cannot separate the waters again. You're one with him. So that when you make a mistake, it may feel like the Holy Spirit says, "Well, you know what? You've messed up one too many times. Now I got to pack up and leave." Or you know what? You You really crossed the line this time, and now I have to abandon you. Or I've been very patient with you all of these years, and you've been promising me that you'd get better. You've been promising me that you'd improve. I'm just not seeing any improvement, so I'm going to remove myself from your life. Ask yourself this question. What sense would it make for God to remove from you your only power to be holy as a punishment for you not being holy? The Holy Spirit's the only chance you have. He's not your trophy for being good. He's the only way you'll ever be good, and he's the only way you'll ever even desire to be good. Others are not so patient. Maybe you've been abandoned and rejected before. Maybe you grew up with parents who constantly reminded you of your mistakes. Maybe you have family members who you were there for for years, but then you made one mistake and they said, "Well, now I see your true colors." And they cut you off. You know, some people are very good at that. And it's usually the people who are hurt within. They're very good at cutting people off. Very good at saying, "Well, I'm done with you. That's one too many. I gave you enough chances." But that's not how the Holy Spirit is. The Holy Spirit is not like that one who abandoned you. The Holy Spirit is not human in nature in that he grows so tired of us that he gives up on us. The Holy Spirit does not abandon you. He stays with you to help you get it right. So, the next time you make a mistake, the next time you say something, and you hear it coming out of your mouth and you say, "Ugh, I should not have said it like that, or I should not have said that at all." The moment you catch yourself thinking a thought you should not have thought, or perhaps repeating some mistake that you promised God you would never make again, the moment you catch yourself at that time, you're going to be tempted to think in terms of the Holy Spirit is off at a distance. The Holy Spirit has not turned his back on you. The Holy Spirit has not walked away. Instead, the Holy Spirit puts his arm around you. And he says, "I'm here to help you get it right. Let's try again." The scripture declares that his mercies are new every morning. Every day that you wake up, there's another opportunity to please God. Every morning that comes is a new chance to try again. So, don't give up. Don't get frustrated. Don't think in the worst case scenario. Don't imagine that God has withdrawn the Holy Spirit from you. That's legalism. But, instead realize that the Holy Spirit is there as a faithful friend, understanding our weaknesses and our frailties, empowering us to be more like the Lord. And other way he's going to help you is he's going to give you a love for the word. In Jeremiah chapter 20:9, we read, "But, if I say I'll never mention the Lord or speak in his name, his words burn in my heart like a fire. It's like a fire in my bones. I'm worn out trying to hold it in. I can't do it." The word of God can be like that fire. Something that once it's taken root, just forces its way out. People in the word, you can tell. You can tell as they speak. You can tell as they pray. In conversation with them, you can hear the depth of the word of God. Now, in Ephesians chapter 5:25 and 26, we see something interesting. This is more so about marriage, but we see something about the word here that's powerful. Verse 25, "For husbands, this means love your wives just as Christ loved the church. He gave up his life for her to make her holy and clean, washed by the cleansing of God's word." Notice here that the word of God, yes, the context is marriage, but the word of God we see here has a cleansing effect. This is why the old saying goes, "Sin will keep you from the word, and the word will keep you from sin." As you take in the word daily, and the Holy Spirit gives you that love the word, something begins to transform in your heart. Psalm 119:11 says, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you." When the word is planted in the heart, it becomes like a shield against the sin nature. If you have a sin problem, you likely have a word deficiency. Lack of the word will always produce a rampant sin nature. Lack of the word will always produce a lack of discipline. If you are struggling with greed, materialism, and you're so caught up in the things of this world that you don't consider others or God, get into the word. If you're ensnared in some bondage, some lust problem, some anger problem, some addiction, get into the word. If you're ensnared in doubt, if you're ensnared in pride, if you're ensnared in any trapping of the flesh, get into the word. And when the word gets in you, freedom is produced. The word cleanses you, the word transforms you, and it's the Holy Spirit who gives you that desire for the word. If you have concentration issues while you're reading scripture, ask the Holy Spirit, "Help me to concentrate." If you have a comprehension issue while you're reading the word, ask the Holy Spirit to help you understand the word. If you have a discipline issue where you do not take time to read the word daily, ask the Holy Spirit to give you discipline and then act upon what he has given you. No believer should neglect the word. Whether you're a preacher or not, whether you're in ministry or not, whether you have some level of social media influence or not, or you lead some church movement or not, you need to know the word. It is the responsibility of every believer to know the word. At basics, every believer should be in the word daily. That that's basic. Turn to your neighbor and say, "Get in the word." Write it in the comment section, "Get in the word." The Holy Spirit gives you that desire. So, he's going to produce this hunger in you for the scripture, and as you begin to consume the scripture, something begins to change in your nature. Suddenly, you will find that it's just a little bit easier each day to say no to what the flesh desires to do. The more you read the word, the more you want to read the word. The next thing the Holy Spirit's going to do for you is he's going to give you a desire for holiness. In Galatians chapter 5, verses 16 and 17, we read this. Paul writes, "So, I say let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then, you won't be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is the opposite of what the spirit wants. And the spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions. The key to overcoming sin isn't necessarily found in fighting old desires. You should be accountable to other believers. You should exercise your willpower to try to resist those things in you that are not like the Lord. You should avoid opportunities and tempting situations. You should do all things practical that you can in order to stand against that which tempts you. But after all of that has been applied, you have to recognize that it's not by power nor by might, but by my spirit, says the Lord. It's one thing to fight old desires. It's another thing to have those desires changed. You see, there's a work that the Holy Spirit does that's so deep that as the Holy Spirit works in you, eventually I want to give you some hope here. >> [snorts] >> The work of the Holy Spirit goes so deep that eventually what once tempted you will soon repel you. To where you're not fighting the desire for that anymore, >> [clears throat] >> but instead, there's this new desire birthed in you, and it's the desire of the spirit for the things of God. Resist temptation, resist sin, resist tempting situations, absolutely. But recognize that your greatest power against that wrongdoing is going to come in desiring the presence of the Holy Spirit. Desiring the things that God has for you. Looking to not just what he doesn't want you to do, but instead, also looking to everything he has for you. Now, this is a powerful truth because the Holy Spirit is that force that fights against the nature of sin. He desires holiness through you. He desires holiness on your behalf. He does a work within your heart that bends your desires toward the will of God. The next thing the Holy Spirit's going to do for you is he's going to rescue you in times of temptation. Watch this in Romans chapter 8. I'll read beginning at verse 10. Romans 8 verse 10. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors not to the flesh to live after the flesh. Notice here that the Holy Spirit quickens your mortal body. And what does that mean? We understand as believers that one day we're going to be given new bodies. What those new bodies look like, I have no idea. I'm sure they're very similar to the ones we have now. I'm interested to hear theories on what they may look like, but I'm not going to stand up here and say I know. But what Paul is writing about is your physical body now, this flesh. You know, this physical body was trained for so many years under an old way of thinking, wasn't it? The body is the hardware, the mind is the software. And the body has become used to certain things. Used to certain movements, certain cravings, certain ways of being. And so the Holy Spirit, yes, within us is a deposit, a guarantee of the physical bodies we will gain in the heavenly realm. But recognize also that the Holy Spirit quickens your mortal body. Now, this is so important. Because there are some sins of the mind and heart like iniquity, the sin nature, some things that are internal. And we know that all sin nature begins internally and eventually trains the body to do that which it should not do. But some things eventually become physiological. They become biological. Take for example, an addiction. Someone who becomes drug addicted, at first that began as deception. That deception produced temptation. That temptation was given into, and as they repeatedly gave into that temptation, they trained their body to crave that substance. So that even when now internally they make a shift and say, "I no longer want this." Though the mind has gone one way, the physical body has yet to follow. And this is why when counseling people who deal with drug addiction, alcohol addiction, pornography, or really any behavior that becomes compulsive in nature, I often refer them to the scripture where the Holy Spirit quickens your mortal body. In other words, he doesn't just liberate the mind and emotions. He sets your body free from the cravings that you trained it to have. He breaks the power of drug addiction. He breaks the power of alcohol addiction. He breaks the power of pornography addiction. He breaks those habits under which we trained this physical body. He quickens >> [snorts] >> the mortal body. Empowering that physical being unto holiness. So, he's going to rescue you in times of temptation as he quickens you. Now, a lot of believers think that he's not going to hear them in times of temptation because of his disgust for them, but he's not offended by you being tempted. I'm serious, call out to him. Right when you're about to say that thing in anger. I mean, it's on the tip of your tongue and sometimes when you're saying something in anger, your mind starts thinking in slow motion and it it's the the words are coming out and you're already think I shouldn't be saying what I'm saying right now. Or perhaps you're driving and you want to react in a certain way to someone who's just not operating their vehicle the way you would have in that situation. Or perhaps you're getting ready to load that webpage. Maybe you're getting ready to send a text. In that moment when you're about to make that post on social media that you know you ought not to make. In those split seconds before you speak those words of gossip and slander. In those split seconds just before you harden your heart. You know, that's your choice to do that. Do you know what that looks like? To harden your heart? It means to stubbornly hold to something you know is wrong. Because of your pride that doesn't want you to admit that you were wrong. And so, here's what's so scary about hardening your heart is eventually you back yourself into a corner to where you start believing your own deception and you become self-deceived because you hardened your heart and you're given over to delusion. For example, someone might encourage you to forgive and because of the pain of the offense, you back into the corner and come up with some excuse as to why forgiveness doesn't apply to you and why you don't need to forgive and you've just hardened your heart. But the Holy Spirit will catch you in those split seconds just before you harden your heart, which is a conscious choice. It can become habitual, so it doesn't always feel conscious conscious, but it is. And the Holy Spirit will catch you in those split seconds. I'm serious. Call out to him in those split seconds where you are under the pressure of temptation. Throw up your hands and say, "Help me, Holy Spirit. Speak out and say, 'Holy Spirit, rescue me.'" He provides a way out. There's no temptation that you're under that God hasn't provided a way out for you. If you'll just call upon the Holy Spirit and say, "I need you in this moment." You will be amazed, astonished at how powerful that is. And see, some of us don't do that because we we feel the shame of what we're tempted to do or say in that moment. And so, we don't involve the Holy Spirit because we've assumed that he's just distancing himself from us because of what we're struggling with. But you can call upon the Holy Spirit in that moment of temptation. He rescues you in times of temptation. The next thing the Holy Spirit is going to do to help you is he's going to bring conviction when you make the mistake. John 16:7 and 8, please. But in fact, it is best for you that I go away because if I don't, the advocate won't come. If I do go away, then I will send him to you. And when he comes, he will convict the world of its sin and of God's judgment and of the Uh, excuse me, and of God's righteousness and of the coming judgment. Now, in verse 8, when Jesus says that he'll convict the world of its sin, primarily he's talking about their lack of belief in him, which is the root of all sin. When he talks about God's righteousness, he's talking about that righteousness that's available because of what Jesus would accomplish because Jesus is going to the Father. So, he convicts us, that is, he convinces us about the truth concerning righteousness and of the coming judgment. What is the coming judgment? That God has already placed his judgment against the powers of the enemy and by connection, he's placed judgment against anybody who's under disobedience because those who live in disobedience are under the jurisdiction of the kingdom of hell. So, these are very specific things that the Holy Spirit convicts us of. But what is a conviction? It's a strong belief or opinion. So, the process of being convicted is becoming convinced. The conviction of the Holy Spirit is the strong persuasion of the Holy Spirit. It's him convincing you, pleading with you, reasoning with you in regards to these things. But notice, he doesn't just convict the world of its sin. Yeah, he's going to tell you when you've messed up and you ought to thank God for that. I was watching a medical documentary about a young girl who had a disease that kept her from being able to feel any pain whatsoever. She couldn't feel pain. Now, in my ignorance, when I saw the first half of this documentary, I thought, "Well, that would be great to never have to deal with any physical pain." But then, as her parents began to talk, I realized just how severe the problem actually was. They said, "When she plays at the park or falls and hits her head or falls and just scrapes her knee or bumps into someone, we never know if there's anything serious going on in her body. We never know if she has a broken bone or internal bleeding or some disease that's eating away at her from the inside, and we just we don't know because there's no physical pain." Conviction is to the soul what pain is to the body. That conviction is necessary because only when you sense that conviction do you know, "I've done something wrong." You see, God has planted something in each and every one of us called a conscience. And that conscience is the compass of the soul that helps you to know when you're going in the wrong direction. Paul writes of godly sorrow working repentance. Look at what what the psalmist writes in Psalm 32 verses 1 through 5. Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sin is put out of sight. Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of guilt, whose lives are lived in complete honesty. Now, watch verse 3. Look at this. This is powerful. When I refused to confess my sin, my body wasted away, and I groaned all day long. Day and night, your hand of discipline was heavy on me. My strength evaporated like water in the summer heat. Finally, I confessed all my sins to you and stopped trying to hide my guilt. I said to myself, "I will confess my rebellion to the Lord," and you forgave me all my guilt is gone. What came first was conviction. First, the Lord's hand weighed heavily on him. And that's a blessing. It means he loves you. He disciplines those whom he loves. When he convicts you, it means he's calling you to a higher standard. When he convicts you, it means he loves you too much to leave you to your compromise. When he convicts you, it means he wants to transform you to be more like the Lord Jesus. So, that conviction is a gift, not a punishment. God's conviction is not about punishment, it's about restoration. At least when it when it involves his children. Now, the final thing that the Holy Spirit does that will help you to overcome sin, and this is going to be counterintuitive, honestly, because a lot of people struggle to make the connection as to how this even helps at all. But, the next thing that the Holy Spirit is going to do for you is he's going to free you from guilt and condemnation. Now, watch this in Romans 8:15-17. So, you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God's spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now, we call him Abba Father, for his spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are God's children. And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ, we are heirs of God's glory. But, if we are to share in his glory, we also must share in his suffering. The joy of forgiveness is one of the components of living holy. When you're stuck in despair, and you feel guilty, and you feel sinful, and you feel dirty in the soul, it actually just drives you further into the darkness. When you feel that shame, shame pushes you away from God. Conviction draws you forward. Conviction says, you made a mistake. Shame says, you are a mistake. Conviction draws you to God in repentance. Shame pushes you away from God with guilt and burden. But you know, I think there are many in here >> [music] >> and watching this all over the world. I think that there are many who are listening to this message. And maybe there are times when you felt like you didn't belong in the kingdom of God. Or you stood in a church service and you felt like you didn't have a place among the people of God. I want to tell you something that at first may sound a little bit confusing. So please don't take this out of context or clip it just for a certain portion of online. I'm talking to all those who watch our ministry just to get those clips. But you know, many of you look at the fact that you're struggling and you condemn yourselves. And you say, well, I must not be God's child. [music] I see it the opposite way. I think that the fact that you're struggling with sin is proof that you belong to him. Now, hold on a second. I know how that sounds. My point is this. If you didn't have the Holy Spirit, you wouldn't be struggling with sin. You would just be sinning. The fact that there's a struggle is proof that he lives in you. The fact that there's this frustration is proof that he's working on your heart. The fact that there's this desire to be free of that old nature is proof that the Holy Spirit is working in your heart. >> [applause and music] >> When you begin to finally accept that you do belong to him, that he is your father, when you become fully convinced that you are forgiven, that is when the joy of salvation sets you free from guilt and condemnation. But if you're constantly questioning whether or not he actually has forgiven you. If you're constantly questioning whether or not you finally made your mistake that made him reject you. If you're constantly questioning whether or not you've lost your salvation today. You're going to live in such shame and such darkness that it'll be very difficult to come out of that pit. But when you recognize he's cleaned me, he's saved me, he's made me new, he's given me a brand new nature, then and only then do you have the boldness and the faith to go after the righteousness he has available for you, available through Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit frees you from condemnation. Father, I lift your people to you now. And I pray that this word would be as a seed planted in their hearts. Let this truth bear forth fruit in their [music] everyday lives. And help us to cooperate with the work of the Holy Spirit as he causes us to become more like Jesus. Father, peel away those layers of flesh and self. We say, "I must decrease, but he must increase. No longer I live, but Christ lives in me. I'm crucified with Christ. Let that nature come forth in the name of Jesus we pray. Father, walk with us. We yield to the work of your spirit. In the mighty name of Jesus we pray. And if you truly believe it, I want you to say [music] amen. If you truly believe it, I want you to type that in the comment section. Type amen.