Trying to tame sin rather than killing it is as silly as people making pets out of predatory animals.
I once read an article with the headline, “Pennsylvania Woman Killed by Pet Bear.” This woman had raised a black bear named Teddy from cubhood, and for nine years, there were no incidents. But then, one day, as she was cleaning his cage, the bear mauled her.
Some of the neighbors acted surprised. One said, “She was a good person; we just thought she had a strange hobby.” I don’t doubt the woman was a good person. But it doesn’t matter whether you’ve named your pet bear Teddy or not—my kids are not coming over to hang out. Because bear taming is not just an unusual hobby like stamp collecting. And sooner or later, bears do what bears do.
Just like sin will do what sin does.
As a Christian, you have to acknowledge the predatory nature of sin, which means you also have to be continually fighting back.
But, as the Apostle Paul says, it’s only by the Spirit you can hope to do this: “If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live” (Romans 8:13 CSB).
Many people feel defeated by sin because they’ve been trying to fight the impulses of sin through the powers of the flesh. You have to fight in the power of the Spirit.
How exactly do you fight sin in the Spirit rather than in the flesh? Here are five steps that fighting sin in the Spirit always entails: