Yesterday we had a heady discussion of sin and holiness, and one of the marks of holiness being a swift dealing with sin. Today I want to emphasize the “swiftness”. We are not to dwell on our failures, instead we are to follow the instruction of Paul to the church in Philippi:

Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is worthy of respect, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if something is excellent or praiseworthy, think about these things. And what you learned and received and heard and saw in me, do these things. And the God of peace will be with you. –Philippians 4.8-.9

Notice first that there is no mention of sin or uncleanliness in this passage, only those things that bring us joy. There is no joy in sin. Oh there may be momentary pleasure, but the longer we condone it the longer it weakens us. Listen to the words of David concerning his greatest sin, “When I refused to confess my sin, my whole body wasted away, while I groaned in pain all day long” (Psalm 32.3). Is it any wonder Paul doesn’t instruct us to think on our sins?

Notice also that Paul does not instruct us to spend time day dreaming about how we wish things were. Only a few verses after those quoted above the apostle declares, “I have learned the secret of contentment, whether I go satisfied or hungry, have plenty or nothing” (Philippians 4.12). What is that secret? See the passage above. Instead of daydreaming about our obsessions, think on your one true obsession Jesus the Messiah. He alone is all these things, lovely, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy.

Please note that this does not mean we cannot have dreams. We can and should aspire to something better. It is in our nature to do so. We are fallen creatures and we long for the better world God first created for us. Those longings should inspire us to charity, yes, but also to be the best we can be in whatever we find ourselves doing. We may not always succeed, we may not always want what God wants for us, and sometimes what we hope to achieve will be fulfilled by someone else but we are always to keep striving for all things that lovely, commendable, excellent and praiseworthy.

In one of the accounts I read of a possessed man, the exorcist instructed him to think the name of Jesus when he felt the demon attempting to take control. “Spell his name, J-E-S-U-S, in your mind over and over” he said. This brought the man temporary reprieve and bought him the time needed to be freed from his adversary. For the believer the same is true. Sing the songs you learned in your youth whenever you are feeling oppressed or down. Recall memorized Bible verses. Think about the kingdom and the King we serve. Think about the times God has intervened in your life. Think about your victories in life, and especially those you won for God. These kinds of thought strengthen the inner being and through that strength we will find victory over our struggles.

This concludes our series on oppression. Again, if you have any questions or thoughts about what you have read feel free to contact me directly through email or by joining our discussion group on facebook. I look forward to next week where we will deal with issues of identity and freedom.