110 Pound Sin

My sister’s boyfriend bought her a Weimaraner puppy for Valentines Day this year. This puppy started out weighing around five pounds and was small enough to be held in two hands. No matter how hard he tried, there was no way he could overpower anyone. Now, around two and a half months later, this dog—who is still considered a puppy—is just under fifty pounds and can easily walk my sister instead of her walking him. It won’t be long before my sister’s dog, whose name is ironically Maverick, will weigh in excess of 110 pounds.

About a month and half after my sister received Maverick, he had become such a handful that she knew it was time for him to realize she was in charge, not him. To do this, my sister enrolled Maverick in obedience classes so she could learn how to control him. After a couple of weeks of obedience classes, Maverick had definitely improved. He would sit when asked to and he would even shake your hand. However, there were still many times when Maverick chose to ignore my sister’s commands. Because of this, my sister has continued Maverick’s obedience classes so that one day he will be an obedient dog.

The experience that my sister has had with Maverick is similar to the experience many of us have with sin. When a certain sin is new to us, it is easy for us to turn our backs on it. But, if we continue to fall into this sin, it becomes bigger and bigger until we finally cannot escape it.

Sadly, it is human nature to continue on sinning instead of being obedient to God (Psalm 51:5). As Christians, when we find ourselves about to fall into a sin that has a hold on us, we must put ourselves through obedience classes. What do I mean by that? I mean that we need to meditate on the word of God (which will show us what is expected of us as Christians and how to live) and allow the Holy Spirit to help us overcome our unruly sins (Psalm 139:23-24). This must be a constant practice (Joshua 1:8) so that we will become better and better at defending ourselves from sin.

Do you find yourself constantly committing the same sin over and over again? Have you put yourself through obedience classes? It is crucial that we all realize that the fight against sin cannot be won by ourselves alone. We must utilize the power of the Holy Spirit within us (Ephesians 3:20) and allow Him to train us to be more obedient. If we wait too long to do so though, the sins that were once only five pound sins will become 110 pound sins and they will “walk us” instead of us controlling them. Throughout your day, take time to put yourself through obedience classes and allow the Holy Spirit to teach you (John 14:26) how to show your sin who’s boss.