Fear of the Lord and combating sin

My cry has been for the body of Christ. The more that I surrender myself to God, the more at peace I am, but the more frustrated I personally become. The frustration I have is towards the body of Christ, which has allowed society to redefine what sin is and has allowed tolerance and compromise.

In the book of Revelation, we see Jesus addressing tolerance and mentioning how it is wrong to tolerate sin in those who claim to be His.  

To the church in Pergamum (Revelation 2:12-17)

• Jesus acknowledges that they live in a city “where Satan has his throne,” and even in that, they stood firm in the fact that God exists and that Jesus is the true messiah. Their faith did not waver. 

• But the bone that Christ is picking at them for is the fact that they are tolerating false teachings, which is leading them to idolatry and making it seem to them that sexual immorality is not that big of a deal.

• Jesus says to them, “Repent therefore! Otherwise, I will soon come to you and will fight against them with the sword of my mouth.“ V. 16. Jesus will come and FIGHT those who do not repent from their sins. He will fight those who do not turn away from their sins. Those who do not hate the sins they are indulging in. 

To the church in Thyatira (Revelation 2:18-29)

• This was a church that was thriving. Jesus acknowledges that they are doing good in his eyes, and he is pleased with the growth they have made. 

• But yet again, he has a problem with this church. “Nevertheless, I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophet. By her teaching, she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she is unwilling.” V. 20-21.

• Jesus then goes on to speak about how he will rebuke those who do not repent. Saying things like “I will strike her children dead.” V.23A. 

Sin in the eyes of the Lord is directly correlated to death. Even now, more than ever in the End times. We often think that the consequence of death was only really for the Old Testament, but within the new covenant, the death that comes can be physical - we lose our mental health, our sanity, and we lose who we think we are and embrace a false belief of what it looks like to live as a christian and we live further and further from who God has designed us to become yet were so close. Simply because we allow tolerance and allow compromise. 

“Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” - Matthew 7:13-14

Not everyone in the church accepts the Jesus standard.

So let's get some definitions.

What is sin?

• Sin is an immoral act considered to be a transgression against divine law. In simple words, anything that goes against what the Lord defines as “good.”

• This also includes convictions from the Lord and the body of Christ that we disobey. Guidance from the Lord and the body of Christ that we dismiss. 

What is repentance?

• To repent is to feel or express sincere regret or remorse about one's wrongdoing or sin. 

• Naturally, we as humans never do again the things we regret and feel bad for. To feel sincere regret would imply that you understand the full measures of what you did and the impact it has and or will have on you and those around you or involved in the situation. And if you understand all of that, you can guarantee that you will do whatever is in your control to not do it again… correct? 

• Why don’t we give that same luxury to God? 

Why do I keep sinning? 

We sin for two reasons: 

• One, because it is our nature. When Adam and Eve consumed the fruit, the lord cursed the land and the generations to come after for sin (DISOBEDIENCE against what the Lord defined as good) had entered the world with the influence of Lucifer (Genesis 3), which led to death by saying “for dust you are and to dust you will return.”  

• Two, we commit the sins we commit simply because we want to. 

Our nature of sin makes it hard for us to resist the things we want. Because Jesus asks us to reject ourselves. Turn from our sins. Carry our cross! Jesus said, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” - Matthew 16:24.

Sin is all over, we live in the world the the devil triumphs over. Look around you, look at Hollywood, look at social media, listen to the music. None of it is shouting LORD, HOLY, and PURIFIED. And yet we keep consuming these things that we define as good and wonder why we're so empty and stuck in these loops. 

Sin is all around us, but let sin not come from within us!

“At that time, the disciples came to Jesus and asked, 'Who, then, is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: “Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. And whoever welcomes one such child in my name welcomes me. “If anyone causes one of these little ones—those who believe in me—to stumble, it would be better for them to have a large millstone hung around their neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea. Woe to the world because of the things that cause people to stumble! Such things must come, but woe to the person through whom they come! If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life maimed or crippled than to have two hands or two feet and be thrown into eternal fire. And if your eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to enter life with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.” - Matthew 18:1-9

Let's break this down.

• Unless we become blameless and pure at heart like the children… we will NEVER enter the kingdom of heaven. NEVER!?

• Jesus sees us all believers as his children, and further adds that if anyone is to cause his children (one of the little ones, US) to stumble into sin… it is better we off ourselves. For Jesus has just claimed that it is better that we DIE than lead one another into sin!

• Woe to the world, because sin is in it… But woe to THE PERSON whom they come.

Maybe it’s just me, but it dont seem like Jesus was playing. 

In Mathew 5:48, Jesus said, “So be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” To be perfect in this verse means to be made complete. To be whole. And we as Christians know that to be whole in Christ means to adopt and accept EVERYTHING he is about and that he says. 

Sin is serious in the eyes of the Father. Even in the smallest form. An example is when Christ said that just hating a brother makes you a false believer, a liar, and points out that you might as well be a murderer. For it is no better to hate than to murder before the Lord. Forgive as Christ forgave. Love as God loves. And be PERFECT and COMPLETE as the Father is.

'So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.” - Romans 7:21-25

Eliminate every bit of sin in your life. But know that you cannot do it alone. You NEED JESUS, and you also need a community of brothers and sisters in Christ that DO NOT FEAR your thoughts, your emotions, and care more about your soul… enough to tell you the truth, that SIN IS NOT OKAY; but THROUGH CHRIST you are becoming sanctified and made righteous.

The standard is Jesus. For men and women in the body of Christ. We are called to be Christ-like and adopt his standards! Let us wait no more. Rise and cry for the nation and the communities you reside in.

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:” – Philippians 2:5

“In the same way, you who are younger, submit yourselves to your elders. All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but shows favor to the humble.” – 1 Peter 5:5

“For those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted.” – Matthew 23:12

“Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will lift you up.” – James 4:10

Questions to ask yourself:

Self-Examination and Repentance

Do I genuinely hate sin, or do I just hate the consequences of sin?

Am I tolerating any "false teachings" or societal norms that redefine sin, even in seemingly small ways (like sexual immorality or idolatry mentioned in the text)?

When I sin, do I sincerely repent, or do I rationalize my actions and make excuses? The text defines repentance as feeling sincere regret and being willing to "do whatever is in your control to not do it again." Am I living this out?

Lifestyle and Influences

What am I consuming? The text mentions Hollywood, social media, and music. Am I willingly engaging with content that is not "shouting LORD, HOLY, and PURIFIED"?

Am I actively denying myself and taking up my cross, as Matthew 16:24 suggests, or am I indulging my desires and allowing my "sinful nature" to be a slave to sin (Romans 7:25)?

Am I living a life that is heading toward the "narrow gate" or the "wide gate" (Matthew 7:13-14)?

Community and Accountability

Do I have a community of believers who are willing to "tell me the truth, that SIN IS NOT OKAY"?

Am I "causing one of these little ones to stumble" (Matthew 18:6) by my actions or my silence?

Am I humbling myself before God and others (1 Peter 5:5, James 4:10), or is pride preventing me from addressing my sin?

The Standard

Am I striving to be perfect and complete "just as your Father in heaven is perfect" (Matthew 5:48)?

Am I just trying to be a "good person," or am I striving to be Christ-like by adopting his standards and having the "same mindset as Christ Jesus" (Philippians 2:5)?