Sin Itself

"Sin destroys people."

SIN AFFECTS people in the same way it affects devils. We assume it’s devils making men act like the way they do. But devils also act like that way. The descent is the same.

Hang in here with me. Even a man possessed or oppressed by a devil can refuse to act like one. The man of Gadara was possessed of 2,000 devils. This was the size of the herd of swine. When released into the swine, the devils caused the pigs to jump off a cliff into the lake and drown. This was what they wanted the man to do but could not force him to do. He refused suicide, in that he was alive, and fell down at Jesus’ feet and worshipped (Mark 5:6).

He didn’t act like them, he fought back.

Most who are possessed or oppressed refuse to do what the devils are trying to force on them. Both those who are saved or those who are unsaved. They work to keep their individuality but simply can’t figure out how to get that devil to shut up. Talking goes to devils’ behavior. They talk day and night, false accusers. The word “devil” means “false accuser.” Revelation 12:10 make their behavior clear. We see it, also, in Job 1 where the devil accused Job to God of being against Him. “He will curse you,” he said. Note that Job did not do so, though he did not know of the conversation.

Being possessed or oppressed does not make you act like a devil. A study of Romans 1 shows this clearly. Sin makes devils and people act the same. The choice to sin is what caused Satan to fall like lightning (Luke 10:18). The choice to sin is why devils have nothing of God in them. They were created by the Presence of God, full of the peace of God, and God loved them. He is love. But sin caused their descent into the lies and violence depicted in Romans 1.

Sin destroyed Satan. Sin destroys people. Sin is the issue, and it is sin that Jesus died to defeat. The Lamb of God was sacrificed on the altar of the cross to erase the power of sin forever. The first to sin, the devil, was rendered useless (Hebrews 2:14). The works of the devil, the sin that he has been judged and condemned for, are dissolved (1 John 3:8). Death itself has been abolished (2 Timothy 1:10). There is no more fear of death (Hebrews 2:15).

We see the behavior of those around us, at the control of sin, and point fingers at the devil. It IS all his fault. He is our enemy. But that’s as far as it should go in us. He’s a deceiver. He appears as an angel of light. He sounds like a roaring lion. But those images are so we’ll see how small he really is. Jesus triumphed over him (Colossians 2:15). His victory is complete. Nothing is unfinished from it except for the end of death itself.

Romans 1:28-32 Remedy
“Furthermore, since they abandoned and rejected the truth about God —the only solution capable of healing their minds—he gave them up to experience the consequence of rejecting truth, and their minds became filled with lies and were horribly depraved. They did evil and called it good, and they rejected goodness and called it foolishness. (29) They have become filled with every kind of selfishness, wickedness, evil, greed, and lustful perversion. They think only about themselves and are jealous of others, they destroy anyone who gets in their way, they lie and cheat and exploit, they spread rumors and gossip, (30) they destroy reputations and hate God and everything for which he stands, they deny creation and call those who trust God ‘fools,’ they are arrogant, proud and boastful, they constantly think up new ways to do evil and disregard authority by following their own impulses, they call their parents “fools” and reject their guidance, (31) they are unreasonable, irrational, mean-spirited, hard-hearted, and they trust no one. (32) Although they know God’s righteous law—to love others before oneself—and realize their lifestyle leads only to death, they not only persist in their self-destructive ways, but throw parties and give awards to others who practice them.”


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Suzanne D. Williams, Author
www.suzannedwilliams.com
www.feelgoodromance.com