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OLD HABITS DIE HARD

By Lara Tovmassian Leave a Comment

Photo Credit: JohnONolan @ Flickr (CC)

“As he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct” (1 Peter 1:15). As believers, we often misread this verse. We replace the word ‘holy’ with the word ‘perfect’ and throw our hands up in defeat. C.S. Lewis says “Every Christian is to become a little Christ. The whole purpose of becoming a Christian is simply nothing else.” This notion, although true, can be incredibly daunting when taken seriously. The assumption is that if I am to be a “little Christ,” I need to be perfect. If I am a Christian now, why do I still make mistakes? Why am I not perfect?

The sanctification that we experience as Christians is a gradual transition, not an immediate shift. I was raised in a Christian household with my father serving as a pastor and my mother as a nursery school teacher’s assistant at a local church. My lifestyle since birth had been formed around the church; therefore, as I have grown older, I have found that many of my intuitions are consistent with Christian morality.

Having Christian ethics engrained in my mind and on my heart during the early formative years of my life has prepared me to approach adulthood with a Christian perspective. If I had not grown up in the church however, my Christian experience would be much different. Instead of intuitively accepting Christian morals, it would be much more difficult to reconcile my background and upbringing with my newfound faith. Even within a Christian upbringing, I have struggled through the process of sanctification with just as many failures and mistakes as the next person.

Paul’s letter to the Romans outlines three main parts of the sanctification process. The first step in sanctification is allowing Christ to destroy sin’s dominion in our lives. In Romans 6: 12-14, Paul writes “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.” This is a crucial point in the Christian walk, but I can guarantee you that this act of humbly presenting yourself to God will be necessary throughout your Christian walk. According to Paul, we are living sacrifices; as living sacrifices, we will constantly be trying to crawl off of the altar on which Christ has called us to surrender (Rom 12:1-2). Destroying sin’s dominion in our lives requires discipline, prayer and patience. As fallible humans, there will inevitably be moments when we fall into sin and Christ has grace with us in these moments. After realizing that we have disobeyed God however, we must humbly present ourselves to him and acknowledge our own brokenness with repentant hearts. Christ does not expect us to be perfectly sanctified the instant we accept him as our Savior. Rather, his justification prepares us for the process of sanctification, in which he will challenge, forgive, and grow us.

Christ does not expect us to be perfectly sanctified the instant we accept him as our Savior. Rather, his justification prepares us for the process of sanctification, in which he will challenge, forgive, and grow us.

The second aspect of sanctification is the struggle against sin. In Romans 7:18-19, Paul describes the spiritual crisis that is characteristic of the sanctification process. He writes “For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing.” Here, Paul is describing the tension that develops within a Christian as he grows in his faith. He is saying ‘I know what I should be doing and I want to do what I should be doing, but I am doing what I shouldn’t be doing.‘ Although it would be easy to reach this point in your faith and feel as though you are not living correctly, this tension can be an indicator of the Holy Spirit growing you in discernment and wisdom. Think back to before you were a believer. Did you feel bad for doing what you knew was wrong? Were you uneasy at the thought that you were disobeying God? If your answer is no, then take heart; the Lord is developing a spirit of discernment in you. It should come as no surprise that the struggle against sin will be difficult. Strive for full obedience while accepting grace in the midst of your own depravity.

Abidance with the Holy Spirit is the third aspect of sanctification outlined in Romans. The presence of the Holy Spirit will guide and direct you in your actions and decisions. The indwelling Spirit of God will encourage us in righteousness and convict us of our wrongdoings. Romans 8:11 reads, “If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.” As we grow in our faith, we become more sensitive to the promptings of the Holy Spirit who gives us life and dwells within us.

God’s desire to sanctify us is evidence of his love for us. He loves us enough to transform our hearts of stone into hearts of flesh that we may experience the salvation of his son Jesus. In the midst of rebuke, transformation, and challenges, God is merciful in drawing us to himself.

OLD HABITS DIE HARD - New Identity Magazine

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Our striving to be like Jesus or do his work on ou Our striving to be like Jesus or do his work on our own is in vain. We can never hope to achieve the same level that Jesus was on while we are still here on Earth. We’re like little kids, struggling just to walk. But that’s why Jesus gave us an example of redeemed followers in the form of the Apostles, who were his close group of students here on Earth. He chose a group of broken, sinful men, and ultimately shaped them into the group responsible for continuing his ministry here on Earth. ⁠
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✍🏽: Tim VanDeWalker in "Running By Example" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"Do your little bit of good where you are; it's th "Do your little bit of good where you are; it's those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world." –Desmond Tutu
The Bible tells us to live in the world, but not t The Bible tells us to live in the world, but not to become like it. The New Living Translation puts it this way, “Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think” (Rom. 12:2a). Some have interpreted this as an instruction to reject anything that isn’t explicitly Christian. But I don’t think that’s what this verse is getting at. I think it means much more.⁠
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✍🏽: Lindsey Beharry in "Choosing Wisely" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
If you desire to serve, seek to form groups withou If you desire to serve, seek to form groups without age distinction. Maybe you want to form a group in your church. Avoid just inviting members from your age group. Seek out people older and younger than you to invite to meet together. Find that person who sits alone and talk to her or him. Instead of a focus on building groups that have the same characteristics to “relate” with one another, you center your discussion in the work of Christ. He will bring the group together. ⁠
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✍🏽: Russell Almand in "Community and Age Diversity" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"If we put our faith in temporal things, they will "If we put our faith in temporal things, they will inevitably let us down. They were never meant to be enough for us. Not alone. When Barnum finally does hit bottom, he recognizes that his heart has been led astray, fooled into thinking that fame or fortune could satisfy him."⁠
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✍🏽: @slimkeman in "The Greatest Showman" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"Porn. We are only now beginning to realize the ex "Porn. We are only now beginning to realize the extent of its effects on the brain, relationships, and society at a time when sexually explicit content is just a click away. Christians have recognized pornography’s negative impact for decades, yet it is still often considered a “male” problem within the Church. This can leave women who struggle with porn addiction feeling isolated and alone. The organization SheRecovery (formerly Dirty Girls Ministries) aims to change that and has become a resource for women with porn addiction. You can read more about their ministry at the link in our bio. ⁠
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✍🏽: Lisa Gagnon in "Dirty Girls Ministries" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"The presence of my sin reminds me of my great nee "The presence of my sin reminds me of my great need for grace, and good works are the outpouring of a grateful heart; being a good child is not a means of earning the favor of God."⁠
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"As Christians, we identify ourselves not only by "As Christians, we identify ourselves not only by how we handle our daily lives, much like those around us, but also by an added component: our faith. How we pray and worship and spend time with our fellow followers provides additional meaning to our lives."⁠
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Often I picture Jesus telling us to love others an Often I picture Jesus telling us to love others and not to judge. I forget that when he said, “Come follow me,” he wasn’t just inviting us to a strict set of rules but to a real and exciting life whether you turn out to be a pastor, a doctor, designer or simply “Dad.” Sometimes I forget one of his main messages was that he came to give us a better life than we could ever dream of—life to the fullest. Jesus wasn’t locking us down to a vocation or job title. It’s as if he was saying, “Real, vibrant life is available to you now. Following me, loving me and living like me is your real calling…the rest is just there to aid you in following, loving and living.”⁠
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✍🏽: Wendy Van Eyck in "Living For A Purpose" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
Like Morpheus, I want to “show you how deep the Like Morpheus, I want to “show you how deep the rabbit hole goes.” There is yet another parallel between the Christian story and The Matrix, simultaneously the most foundational and the most captivating. It’s that something which is missing, something which is not quite right with the world. You can’t quite put your finger on it, but you know that it’s there. At the outset of the first film, Neo is searching for it. Trinity asserts that “it’s the question that drives us.” Morpheus claims that “you can see it when you look out your window or when you turn on your television. You can feel it when you go to work, when you go to church, when you pay your taxes.” The question is: What if I’ve only ever scratched the surface of all that life has to offer? What if there is a deeper, truer current of reality, ever-present behind all of my life’s experiences, to which I might awaken at any moment?⁠
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✍🏽: @slimkeman in "Tumbling Down The Rabbit Hole" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"I’ve always been intrigued by Augustine because "I’ve always been intrigued by Augustine because we all struggle with temptations to sin. And we all struggle to live in a way that honors God. Like Augustine we all feel the tug of our past sins that say, 'Don’t you want to enjoy us?' And Augustine’s story relates to Galatians 5:16-26 where Paul tells us about how the Christian life is like a walk. In a way, walking is a metaphor for the Christian life." ⁠
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✍🏽: @the_christopherscott in "In Step With the Spirit" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
"The Holy Spirit empowers us for Christ-like livin "The Holy Spirit empowers us for Christ-like living, and for serving others." Where in your life or in what ways has the Spirit enabled you this week? We'd love to hear, tell us in the comments below!⁠
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✍🏽: @the_christopherscott  in "In Step With the Spirit" | Continue reading at newidentitymagazine.com⁠ by visiting the link in our bio and tapping on the image.⁠
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