Rewired?

Some of us have a tendency to deal too much in the "past tense" of our lives. There is this intense focus on the "what ifs" and the "should haves" instead of the stuff that actually makes up our current picture. Maybe it is because our minds have this way of capturing those moments in living memory - "scrapbooking" the sadness of our past and continually dragging it out to dredge up those old memories. There is one part of "past tense" we don't realize - what has been done doesn't need to be done or rehashed again! Perhaps this is why God thought it so important for us to recognize the futility of continually living in sin when we have ALREADY died to it!

Well then, should we keep on sinning so that God can show us more and more of his wonderful grace? Of course not! Since we have died to sin, how can we continue to live in it? Or have you forgotten that when we were joined with Christ Jesus in baptism, we joined him in his death? For we died and were buried with Christ by baptism. And just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glorious power of the Father, now we also may live new lives. Since we have been united with him in his death, we will also be raised to life as he was. We know that our old sinful selves were crucified with Christ so that sin might lose its power in our lives. We are no longer slaves to sin. For when we died with Christ, we were set free from the power of sin. (Romans 6:1-7)

Since we died to sin...this is not present tense, it is past tense. What we once were is no longer what we are now. As death occurs, the very life-giving source is cut off. When we died to sin, the life-giving source was cut off - we stopped feeding what only could produce decay and destruction in our lives. Since really means "in view of the fact that" - it is an established fact, already having been established, and is now inarguable. Once you spread butter on a piece of toast, it is on there. SINCE you spread butter on there, you cannot now "go back" on the decision to have butter on the toast - it is an established fact that butter is now in union with the bread! SINCE we died to sin, it is an established fact that this is no longer the present condition of our heart or mind!

How can we continue to live in it...this is not a casual question, but rather a restatement of the SINCE statement. Our condition has changed. When a mother gives birth to her newborn, she is no longer pregnant, but she remains a mother. She is known as a mother, but she no longer carries around this growing, breathing life within. In terms of our own sin nature, we no longer carry around this sin within us as a growing thing, but we do still have the "nature" which we are known by. It is this "nature" which seems to give us our mental and heart "tie" with the past way of living. We have to recognize that sin is no longer being "fed" from within - it may still beckon to us from without, but it is no longer connected to a life source within! We died with him...our "past" is no longer in existence. Our old man and those ways of doing business have ceased to exist as they once were. I have said it before, but it bears repeating - what is dead is dead - it develops a certain characteristic which makes it quite plain it is dead! Today, with modern science being what it is, we often make what is dead look very much alive! The entire embalming process was designed to slow the process of decay so families could have a few extra days to dress up the dead corpse and say their good-byes. Don't think me crass here, but I think we might just try to dress up our dead corpses of sin so that we can stay connected with them just a little longer!

We also may live new lives...note it is not OLD lives we are to live, but the new. There is no need to return to that which is dead - we don't dig up, wallow around in, and become familiar with that which is physically dead, so why do we do it with the stuff we had a connection with in our past? Why is it so hard to cut ourselves off from the past? Living is a choice. We must determine to take on our new identity and not continue to connect with the old. If we hold onto the old when it was declared to be "dead", wouldn't we be declared a bit foolish? The "old" is dead and the "new" is what we have to live in today. Since we have been united with him...we are now living in agreement with him - adhered so as to be only ONE unit. We no longer function independently from Christ - therefore, he is there to walk us through the choice to sin or live rightly. What we determine to connect to becomes that which is our source for every movement or continued action in our lives. 

Sin has lost its power...at the Cross nothing remains the same. We are no longer subject to it. When something exerts power over something else, there is a dominating influence which must constantly be countered. Since this dominating influence has been broken by the work of the cross, it has been rendered powerless over us. It is what we submit to which determines what we will produce. When power is cut off from one source and connected to another, the potential to live differently occurs. It is a matter of where we stay connected! Just sayin!

Junk it!

Most of us don't think of ourselves as 'idol worshipers', but in reality, we likely have a few we have placed on a pedestal. Lest you think I am suggesting they are the little Buddha dolls, patron saint figurines, or other religious paraphernalia we keep laying around, I am not. Idols are things we elevate to some place of adoration in our lives - even our own ego! The things we hold onto soon have a hold on us, so we might do well to do a little 'inventory' of what we have 'lifted up' in our lives. Even things from our past can be 'idols' we have held onto. What "dead idols" from our past do we need to finally let go of? I think if we look hard enough, we will probably find a few lurking in the back of the recesses of our minds!

Do you know that all over the provinces of both Macedonia and Achaia believers look up to you? The word has gotten around. Your lives are echoing the Master's Word, not only in the provinces but all over the place. The news of your faith in God is out. We don't even have to say anything anymore—you're the message! People come up and tell us how you received us with open arms, how you deserted the dead idols of your old life so you could embrace and serve God, the true God. They marvel at how expectantly you await the arrival of his Son, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescued us from certain doom. (I Thessalonians 1:7-10)

A couple of things come to mind as I posted this passage today. First, word gets around! No matter how hard we try - people talk! We can be doing exemplary work - people talk about how we must be "brown-nosing". We can care less about the task at hand, but are dedicated to another project with even greater demands - people talk about how we never seem to invest ourselves. We can plug away with consistent effort, but it is in quiet and solitude - people talk about how we just never go above and beyond. No matter what we do, people talk! If this is the case, wouldn't it be wise to give them something worth talking about? Lives echoing the Word of God are certainly something worth talking about! It makes people uncomfortable sometimes, but this is because there is conviction in observing a man or woman of God living by what they preach! It is far better the get the reputation of living by the Word than any other reputation we could obtain! The "news of our faith" should attract the attention of those who are looking for a good story!

When our lives are aligned with the Word, they do the preaching! There is more said in one right action than in a thousand words! Look how quickly someone will "pick holes" in our "stated" faith when there is very little to no action which aligns with the statements we are making. I think God calls us to be living examples of the Word - simply because people associate with other people. They need to see the Word "acted out" in order to see how it can impact a life.  "Dead idols" abound. We have things from our pasts - dead idols - taking up valuable room in our memories, tugging at our hearts, and finagling their way into our present day actions, attitudes, and memories. Isn't it time to let go of them once and for all? What is a dead idol? It is something which anchors us to the past, takes our attention away from the one true God, or inhabits our minds with taunting or tempting thoughts of the enjoyment of past sins.

Dead idols need to be deserted - like old cars in a junkyard. The only good purpose they have is in their being destroyed once and for all! They no longer serve us - we no longer serve them! It is time we understood this principle. It is time to let them go. Look up "junk" and you will find it is something regarded as worthless, meaningless, or contemptible. Guess what? The "dead idols" of our past are just worthless junk cluttering up our minds, messing with our emotions, and putting unnecessary temptation in our way today. Junk 'em! In contrast, we are asked to hold one thing before us - God himself. No more "dead idols" which only serve to rob our energies. So, what is it you need to leave in the "junkyard" of the past? It is time! Just sayin!