Wasting Away In Sin

Introduction

I want to begin, as we have just concluded an excellent series of lessons with Bruce Reeves from Conway, Arkansas. I want to begin. Actually, both of these sermons today were somewhat inspired by Bruce’s words. And I want to begin with something he was saying in his first lesson. Well, actually, his last lesson on Sunday night, when he was talking about seeing the real temptations and looking at the series of Jesus’ temptations. It was an excellent lesson, something unique on that text that I had not heard before. But he made a couple of points at the very beginning that really wowed me. And just as a reminder and as a launching point for this lesson, and for some of you who were not here to hear that lesson on Sunday night, I wanted to repeat those two profound points because they are indeed that profound to me.

And the first one is this.

That’s a great point. And our ability to overcome temptation begins and ends with our confidence in God. I thought that was spectacular. I think you only spent maybe 30 seconds or a minute on that. But those two points alone were spectacular and important. And so I wanted to emphasize them again to you. And then on Wednesday night, he looked even further at Psalm 51 and David’s confession of his sin in regard to Bathsheba. And he made some important points there about that text that we’ll review again tonight. How that one must respond when they find themselves in transgression. But I want to go this morning, not to the more familiar Psalm 51, and that lengthy confession over his transgression with Bathsheba. But I want to go earlier to a penitent psalm written by David in Psalm 32.

And I want to use this psalm as the launching point for the lesson this morning. Psalm 32 and verse 1. How blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. You know, that’s really what we’re after. That’s what we want to accomplish in our association here with one another, in the work and worship that we do in this place and the teaching that is done.

For their transgressions to be covered. How blessed is such a man, he says. How blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity. That’s a beatitude that’s important. The man is blessed to whom the one the Lord does not hold his sins to his account. And in whose spirit there is no deceit. This is the kind of attitude that would be brought out in one whose transgressions are covered. He says in verse 3 When I kept silent about my sin, my body wasted away. Through my groaning all day long. This could have been true of his sin with Bathsheba. And may well have been another psalm that he wrote about that transgression. But whatever the sin is to which he refers, he says, I kept silent about it, my body wasted away in it, and I was groaning all day long.

1. My Body Wasted Away

He says, For day and night thy hand was heavy upon me. My vitality was drained away, and that is what sin will do. My vitality was drained away as with the fever heat of summer. I acknowledged my sin to thee. David comes clean. And my iniquity I did not hide. I said, I will confess my transgressions to the Lord. And thou didst forgive the guilt of my sin. Therefore, let everyone who is godly pray to thee in a time when thou mayst be found. I want to focus on the phrase in verse 3. My body wasted away.

When experienced by a man who characteristically had a heart for God and a knowledge of his will. This is spoken by a man who is encountering godly sorrow, who is experiencing deep contrition for his sin. He recognizes the damage that is being done by sin. That is where so many falter. Not just in the commission of sin itself, but a failure to realize the damage that is incurred, the damage that is done when we transgress. And that is true prior to our obedience to the Lord, but that is also true post obedience to the Lord in baptism. When we have arisen to walk in newness of life and choose again to transgress, as believers do, stumbling in many ways, James 3 and verse 1. John has to write these things, encouraging the brethren that they sin not, 1 John 2 and verse 1.

But if any man sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, he goes on to say. One act of sin, and listen to me, young people.

And it doesn’t matter what the transgression is. One occasion of rebellion against God involves dramatic consequences. Yes, just eating a single piece of fruit. As we see in the first sin in Genesis chapter 3. It would be helpful in the moment of temptation. As Jesus understood, the great damage that is done when we transgress against the Lord. The devastating effect that sin brings, just a single sin on my part. And on the part of every person that has ever lived. Just one would necessitate the death of Jesus on the cross. To fix the problem. Even if in your life to this point you had only committed one sin, just one. To fix that problem in relation to the justice and perfection of God, it would still require the death of Jesus at Calvary.

Just for one. Not to mention the potential consequences that come from the partaking of sin in a single act. A lifelong pattern could be developed of opposition and rebellion to God from which you might never recover. Thus we are warned about the deceitfulness of sin in Hebrews 3 and verse 13. Sin entices us and brings us in, and we think I can recover. And yes, you can.

First in initial obedience to the Lord, and then when we repent and turn, as David does in Psalm 32, from the commission of a particular transgression. But that doesn’t always happen.

2. When We Commit a Sin, Nothing Happens

Sometimes people don’t apply the God given fix. The wonderful fix that it is. Sometimes that single act of sin, unbeknownst to the one who commits it, leads to a lifelong series of transgressions from which they never ever recover. And I’ll tell you one of the things that I think puts us to sleep. Where the commission of sin is concerned. We need to take our sin seriously. When we commit a sin, nothing happens. There’s no lightning bolt from heaven. Perhaps that would help, but I don’t know about you. I don’t really want to be fried like a crispy critter. When I have committed a sin. In fact, I’ve been on a golf course many times when I see lightning about, I want out of there. That’s one of the most common places that people get struck by lightning is on a golf course because you’re wielding a metal stick.

Lightning rod, here I am. I see lightning, I don’t care if it’s 10 miles away. I’m out of there. I don’t want to experience that. I’ve known of some golfers that have been struck several times and survived it, Retief Gooson being one of them. I don’t want to experience that. But suppose that upon the commission of a single sin, lightning, okay, maybe it doesn’t strike you, but it hits the tree near you. That would get our attention, wouldn’t it? But we sin and nothing else. There’s no neon lights by the sin that we’ve committed when we’ve actually given in to the lust and become deceived, as James 1 talks about. There’s no neon light that flashes that says, sin, with all of its ramifications, and potential damage.

No hurting or any visible sign of God’s displeasure. Got away with that. You know, that’s really the idea later in Psalm 50. Where the psalmist is really the psalm is written by Asap or Asaph, as Bruce said. Maybe that’s the right way to pronounce it. Aeth writes about those in transgression and their attitudes, and he speaks to the wicked specifically in verse 16 and talks about how that they hate discipline and they cast his words, they cast God’s words behind their back. I mean, they are openly in rebellion. They hate God’s righteous commands. And when they see a thief, oh, they’re more than happy with that, verse 18. They associate with adulterers.

And then this in verse 21. He says, These things you have done, and I have kept silent. I didn’t reward you with punishment right on the spot. I did not cast down lightning bolts saying, You better watch out, or I’m going to judge you. There wasn’t anything visible. And so they thought, you thought that I was just like you. Because nothing happened as a result of our sin. Hey, God must approve of this. God must approve of me. Nothing bad happened. And I’ll tell you something else when you practice sin. Not only does nothing bad happen, in fact, something pleasurable might result. The passing pleasures of sin, Hebrews 11 and verse 25, that Moses chose not to take, but rather chose to endure ill treatment with the people of God.

I do feel something. In fact, it’s pleasurable and enjoyable. But I want to assure you, the feeling is only temporary. As God says, I will reprove you. And that’s what the practitioner of sin needs to understand. That’s why David was wasting away in his sin. That’s why he was groaning in his spirit all day long. Because God will reprove the matter. And state the case in order before your eyes. Now consider this, the ESV says, and I like this. Mark this. You who forget God, lest I tear you in pieces, and there be none to deliver. Maybe not any flashing neon lights, maybe not any lightning bolts from heaven when we commit sin, but understand God tallies it. And if you don’t turn from it, I will tear you into pieces.

And there is none to deliver.

3. What Is Lost in Sin Is Far Greater

What is lost in sin is far greater than what is gained. And what is gained is far less and inferior to what God offers. And what David understood in Psalm 32 is what we must understand is that sin always in shackles us and imprisons us. It’s off to jail. Incarceration. It’s an ambush against ourselves. The wise writer says in Proverbs chapter 1 and verse 18. And so I take you now to 1 Corinthians chapter 6. Where Paul is talking about the impact of sin and suggesting that he is going to be mastered by God alone. And really the entire context of verses 12 through 20 relates to the point.

The one who joins himself to a harlot is one spirit with her.

4. Do Not Envy the Position or Pleasure of the Sinner

Spirit has you as an abode, as a residence. Thus, your body is to be a place or thing dedicated to holiness, because God resides in holiness. And so I want to make two observations about sin and sin being on our account. And then the lesson will be yours this morning. The first observation is do not ever envy the position or the pleasure of the sinner. I think we can find ourselves there at times. And the reason why we should not envy the position or the pleasure of the sinner is because the position is precarious and the pleasure is always temporary. And I want to make two observations or two passages that illustrate this truth. One is found in the New Testament, if you’ll keep your finger in the Psalms, we’re coming back there in Romans 6, verses 21 through 23.

And really, the entire context of Romans 6 deals with this as he’s talking about what baptism into Christ means. It’s the putting away of an old sinful lifestyle, an old body of sin, and it’s rising to walk in newness of life. And he says, don’t go on presenting the members of your body to unrighteousness. And so when he comes to the conclusion of this, he says in verse 21, therefore, what benefit were you then deriving from the things of which you are now ashamed? Because of your decision to obey the Lord, what benefit was coming from that former lifestyle? Why would you be tempted to go back to that? Again, my body is wasting away in sin. Why would you want to choose that? He says, for the outcome of those things is death.

There’s more at stake than we realize. He says the outcome of such a pattern or course that begins with a single misstep. The outcome of those things is death. But now, having been freed from sin, there’s the concept of being incarcerated, imprisoned, and shackled by sin. Having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit. Now that’s where benefit is. First, sanctification. Somehow God can claim me and put me to use as a vessel of honor, Paul would say to the Thessalonians.

And the outcome. Not the outcome of sin, that’s death. But the outcome of this sanctification is eternal life. If you think I mention Romans 6, 21 and 22 a lot, there’s a reason. That’s important stuff. And then the conclusion that we’re probably more familiar with when he says in verse 23, for the wasteless sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life through Jesus our Lord. The other passage. It’s back in the Psalms. In Psalm 73. And if you think I mention this one a lot, it’s because I do. This is the Psalm of Asaph. As it is, as Bruce described, a psalm of disorientation. And a psalm of new orientation. All in one. Disoriented because he begins with an affirmation that he knows to be true in verse 1.

He says, Surely God is good to Israel, to those who are pure in heart. That’s his orientation. Actually, it has all three things that Bruce talked about. That’s his orientation. Surely God is good to Israel. You know, God is good. We just sang that this morning. An elementary fundamental truth about God. But then he looks at his life circumstances, and he gets disoriented. He says, But things seem to not be matching up here because it is incongruous. The righteous are suffering, and the wicked have the world by the faith. And when I saw the prosperity of the wicked, my feet almost slipped. And he comes to the conclusion of it.

He’s not going to leave it here because if he stops at verse 14 with his lament about the prosperity of the wicked and the suffering and the less ideal conditions of the righteous, he would have betrayed his generation. But he says, let me tell you what happened. I came to the sanctuary of God, that is, where things are focused on God and doing his will, and it all began to make sense. That’s what made sense of what seemed to be incongruous with the truth that I knew that surely God is good to Israel. And I want to tell you, I’ve experienced that in my life. This is what makes sense to me. Sitting on my recliner at home when I’m tired. And watching the same storyline and drama after drama, or watching sporting event after sporting event, or whatever it is that you want to do.

This is what makes sense. This is where I figure it out. And he says, let me tell you about the wicked. They’re destroyed in a moment. Their position is precarious. The pleasure is only temporary. When God awakes, he will despise their form. Let me tell you something. If you reside in sin presently, you don’t want that. You don’t want God to look upon you and despise your form. They’re destroyed in the moment. They’re utterly swept away by sudden terrors in verse 19. He says, when I was embittered and I was pierced within, then I was senseless and arrogant. I was like a beast before thee. In this reasoning I had about the wicked, I was like a beast. But I’ve got it figured out. Nevertheless, I am continually with thee.

Whom have I in heaven but thee? And I, besides thee, I desire nothing on the earth. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart. That sort of sounds like the rock of my heart, doesn’t it? Yes, it should. God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever. Verse 28, but as for me, the nearness of God is my good, and I have made the Lord God my refuge that I may tell of all thy works. You know, sometimes, because of our circumstances, we may be tempted to think. This righteousness business is just, it’s not paying off for me. I’m going to cast off the shackles of restraint. And I’m going to live my own way. More on that momentarily.

I’m going to cast off those shackles and live my own way. But what Paul tells us in Romans 6 is that you’ve just enslaved yourself to another master, and it’s not for the better. It’s for the worse. Yes, slaves of Christ, but understand if you’re not his slave, that you’re a slave of unrighteousness and controlled by that, and the end result of that is death. You’re not better off. And I completely understand that sometimes we get tired in the midst of spiritual pursuit. I get it. This isn’t like watching TV like I mentioned before, where you can just let it happen to you. You know, you sit there and the drama is hopefully well told, and you sit there and you let the show happen to you, and you experience a momentary thrill if the story’s decent.

Or if you’re watching the movie and the spectacular effects that are going on, and that just sort of happens to you. And so you sit back and let it happen. Some people approach worship that day. Let’s sit back and let it happen. Maybe the preacher will be spectacular enough, or the song service will be thrilling enough that I’ll get something out of it. That’s not the way this works. This isn’t like watching television or playing a game on your favorite electronic device. This is about the dedication of your mind to God. And I understand as we invest ourselves in worship and give it the zeal and the diligence that it is due, that sometimes it will seem like a great expenditure. But you have to think about where it’s all going and what you receive in the process.

The wicked who have engaged in other things today are not better off.

5. Let It Go

And I can say that without one smidgen of doubt. As I come to the final point, I could not help but think of the song that is taking the world by storm. In fact, Disney’s movie Frozen has taken the world by storm. That is.

Don’t get me started about Mulan. But these songs are incredible. and the song to me that steals the whole show is Olaf’s song about summer in summer. Doing whatever snow does in summer. I love that. Yeah. Try that around here, Olaf. But Elsa, one of the main characters in the story, is struggling with her devastating and hard to control icy powers. And if you haven’t watched the movie, you’re not going to get what I’m saying. But she can’t control these powers, and then on a very unfortunate occasion, those powers cause damage, and she finally says, I’m tired of holding that in, and so she runs off into isolation, and everything’s frozen as a result of her powers. And she sings this song, Let It Go, and it’s boy.

Once you start saying, it’s going to be hard for me to read the words without singing it. It gets in your brain and it hurts. She has failed to harness her icy powers. She says, I couldn’t keep it in. Heaven knows I tried. Don’t let them in, don’t let them see. Be the good girl. You always have to be concealed. Don’t feel. See, you’re singing it. Don’t let them know. Well, now they know. It’s out. She has these ice powers. And then the chorus that you can’t get out of your mind. Let it go, let it go. Can’t hold it back anymore. Let it go, let it go. Turn away and slam the door. I don’t care what they’re going to say. Let the storm rage on.

And then this cute little phrase: the storm never bothered me anyway. It’s time to see what I can do. Test the limits. Break through. No right, no wrong, no rules for me. I’m free. Let it go, let it go. I am one with the wind and sky. Let it go, let it go. You’ll never see me cry. Here I stand, and here I’ll stay. Let the storm rage on. My power flurries through the air into the ground. My soul is spiraling, and I had to put this part in frozen fractals all around. Show me another song that says frozen fractals. I’m never going back. The past is the past. Let it go, let it go. And I’ll rise like the break of dawn. Let it go, let it go.

That perfect girl is gone. Here I stand in the light of day. Let the storm rage on. The cold never bothered me anyway. You know, the more I listen to that song, and I’ve listened to it about 50 times or more. I have mixed feelings about it. There’s a negative aspect of that song. That suggests that I’m not the perfect girl and I’m just going to go with it. And it doesn’t matter who it bothers or what it means, so the whole world is now frozen. No rules. No right. No wrong. I’m free. Let it go. And that’s just the attitude of some people today. I’m going to do what I want to do, and I don’t care what anybody else says about it. That’s the way I’m going to do it.

And you just need to accept it. That is the modern mentality. So that part of it. That cry of independence from standards and rules. Listen, if we reject God’s rules, we’re not free. That’s been the point of this lesson. We’re not really free. We’re just in shackled to something inferior. But there’s a positive side to this song as well. If we would apply it to the putting away of evil in our lives, letting it go. And putting what is immorally bad away from our circumstances. Let it go and don’t look back. That’s a positive way to look at. As we rise like the break of dawn, turn away and slam the door. Be firm in your choice to serve the Lord. I’m never going back. The past is the past.

Here I stand and here I’ll stay in the light of day. And then let the storm rage on. Whatever it means, whatever the cost, regardless of the difficulty, I’ve chosen the right and best way to live. And the payoff is extraordinary. As the psalmist would say in Psalm 84 and verse 10, I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. Come clean and live a transparent life before God. Let it go. And that’s what Paul was saying in 2 Corinthians chapter 1 about his ministry when he says to the Corinthians, for our proud confidence is this, the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom, but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world.

Conclusion

And he wasn’t going back. We have conducted ourselves in the world and especially toward you. And he says the same in the parallel passage of chapter 4 and verse 2, when he says, We have renounced the things hidden because of shame, not walking in craftiness or adulterating the word of God, but by manifest by the manifestation of truth, commending ourselves to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. That’s really the call of it all. Come clean and live a transparent life before God and before men. And that begins by being washed in the blood of the Lamb. Can we assist you this morning? In being buried with him, rising to walk in newness of life, leaving the futile and vain and destructive results of sin unto a life of purpose, productivity, purity, and hope.

Why would you waste away in sin any longer? If you’re subject to the call of the gospel, won’t you respond now as we stand and sing?