Picture from: https://www.pexels.com/search/spider/
This time of year, I often see Halloween decorations with spiders and their webs. Now, I can appreciate the role spiders play in eating other insects, but I really don’t like spiders. They give me the creeps. Their beady eyes, nasty fangs, and hairy bodies make me shiver. So you would think that my immediate reaction to seeing one in my house would be to kill it, right?
But it’s not. See, I really don’t like the feel and sound they make when you squish them. It completely grosses me out. That crunch-squish thing is so nasty! I just shuddered thinking about it.
I remember one day many years ago seeing a spider on the shower caddy while I was taking a shower. I could have taken one of the shampoo bottles and squashed it, but I just didn’t. Instead I spent the entire shower watching it to make sure it didn’t jump on me. (This got really tricky when it was time to turn around to rinse my hair!) I’m sure I would have been much better off if I had just put on my big girl panties and just gotten rid of that thing for good, but instead I spent the whole time in that shower in fear that it would end up on me. And then, the next time I showered I was nervous because I didn’t see it. Was it hiding somewhere watching me?
Several years ago I was bitten by a spider on the back of my calf. My leg became so swollen and red that it was painful to walk. When I got to the doctor, a red streak was working its way up to my knee. Some antibiotic was required to heal that up. One more reason I don’t like spiders!
I was thinking about spiders a lot one day as I walked because I kept walking through spider webs that would then stick to my face. Yuck! And then I started thinking about how spiders and sin in my life were similar.
Even though I do not want either one anywhere near me, I am hesitant to stamp them out. When it’s sin in my life, I am often uncomfortable getting rid of it completely. It has become a habit or a practice that I sometimes believe I am incapable of getting rid of. I make excuses about it, or I convince myself it’s not a big deal. And yet, its presence makes me miserable! But I don’t want to deal with the work and the mess of getting rid of it, either.
Paul writes about getting rid of sin in Colossians 3:5-10, saying:
“5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”
Paul says we should put these things to death -- stamp them out -- squish them dead! Not “live with them creeping around in the corners”; not “keep an eye on them so they don’t jump on you.” Nope. Paul says, “Put them to death.”
If I allow sin to hang around, there will be consequences. It will eventually come back to bite me. Sometimes these consequences are very painful, like the spider bite I experienced. Most of all, the sin in my life creates a rift in my relationship with my holy God. Of course I don’t want that! But I often fail to see my sin as God sees it -- not only detrimental but offensive and ugly. Repulsive even.
I’m so thankful for God’s mercy and forgiveness that He pours out for me over and over! I know I don’t deserve it, but I appreciate how God disciplines in love and forgives my sin because of Jesus’ sacrifice for me and my faith in Him. I want to please Him. I want to obey Him. And sometimes that means taking a serious look at my thoughts, attitudes, and actions and then working with the Holy Spirit to allow Him to change me.
It’s not easy for me, but with the help of the Holy Spirit who convicts me of my sin and gives me power to overcome it, I can get rid of the sin in my life and put on the new self - the one that looks like Christ.
Lord Jesus, help us to be sensitive to Your Holy Spirit. Help us to recognize our sin and to see it as You see it. Give us the courage and desire to stamp it out of our lives. Guide and direct us, and help us to be more like You.
For Small Groups:
What is the hardest part of removing sin from your life?
How can someone else help hold you accountable this week?
But it’s not. See, I really don’t like the feel and sound they make when you squish them. It completely grosses me out. That crunch-squish thing is so nasty! I just shuddered thinking about it.
I remember one day many years ago seeing a spider on the shower caddy while I was taking a shower. I could have taken one of the shampoo bottles and squashed it, but I just didn’t. Instead I spent the entire shower watching it to make sure it didn’t jump on me. (This got really tricky when it was time to turn around to rinse my hair!) I’m sure I would have been much better off if I had just put on my big girl panties and just gotten rid of that thing for good, but instead I spent the whole time in that shower in fear that it would end up on me. And then, the next time I showered I was nervous because I didn’t see it. Was it hiding somewhere watching me?
Several years ago I was bitten by a spider on the back of my calf. My leg became so swollen and red that it was painful to walk. When I got to the doctor, a red streak was working its way up to my knee. Some antibiotic was required to heal that up. One more reason I don’t like spiders!
I was thinking about spiders a lot one day as I walked because I kept walking through spider webs that would then stick to my face. Yuck! And then I started thinking about how spiders and sin in my life were similar.
Even though I do not want either one anywhere near me, I am hesitant to stamp them out. When it’s sin in my life, I am often uncomfortable getting rid of it completely. It has become a habit or a practice that I sometimes believe I am incapable of getting rid of. I make excuses about it, or I convince myself it’s not a big deal. And yet, its presence makes me miserable! But I don’t want to deal with the work and the mess of getting rid of it, either.
Paul writes about getting rid of sin in Colossians 3:5-10, saying:
“5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature:sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming. 7 You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived. 8 But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander,and filthy language from your lips. 9 Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.”
Paul says we should put these things to death -- stamp them out -- squish them dead! Not “live with them creeping around in the corners”; not “keep an eye on them so they don’t jump on you.” Nope. Paul says, “Put them to death.”
If I allow sin to hang around, there will be consequences. It will eventually come back to bite me. Sometimes these consequences are very painful, like the spider bite I experienced. Most of all, the sin in my life creates a rift in my relationship with my holy God. Of course I don’t want that! But I often fail to see my sin as God sees it -- not only detrimental but offensive and ugly. Repulsive even.
I’m so thankful for God’s mercy and forgiveness that He pours out for me over and over! I know I don’t deserve it, but I appreciate how God disciplines in love and forgives my sin because of Jesus’ sacrifice for me and my faith in Him. I want to please Him. I want to obey Him. And sometimes that means taking a serious look at my thoughts, attitudes, and actions and then working with the Holy Spirit to allow Him to change me.
It’s not easy for me, but with the help of the Holy Spirit who convicts me of my sin and gives me power to overcome it, I can get rid of the sin in my life and put on the new self - the one that looks like Christ.
Lord Jesus, help us to be sensitive to Your Holy Spirit. Help us to recognize our sin and to see it as You see it. Give us the courage and desire to stamp it out of our lives. Guide and direct us, and help us to be more like You.
For Small Groups:
What is the hardest part of removing sin from your life?
How can someone else help hold you accountable this week?
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