Category: sanctification

Self-Destructive Tendencies

Carl Pollard

Ever watched one of those early 2000s spy movies? The hero’s rocking a sharp suit, dodging lasers, and busting into the villain’s lair. Henchmen are tripping over themselves, alarms blaring, and some dude smacks a big red button. A voice booms, “Five minutes to self-destruction!” The place randomly catches fire, the hero tosses bad guys like ragdolls, and at one second, he dives out, explosion blazing behind him. He walks away without a scratch. Y’all seen that movie? Probably had Tom Cruise in it. But let’s be real, I’ve never seen a self-destruct button in my house, my car, or anywhere. Who’s rigging their stuff to explode? We’re wired to protect what’s ours. If someone’s torching their own life, we’re calling for help. That ain’t normal.

But spiritually? We smash that self-destruct button like our lives depend on it. Proverbs 14:12 warns, “There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way to death.” When we pick our path over God’s, we’re not just stumbling, we’re setting off a spiritual explosion. Let’s dive into Romans 7 and Judges 9 to see how self-destructive tendencies wreck us and how Jesus pulls us from the rubble. This isn’t a movie; it’s real life, real struggles, and we need God’s Word to guide us.

In Romans 7:15-25, Paul speaks from the heart and says, “I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do.” Paul, the super-apostle, admits, “I’m a mess!” He wants holiness but keeps sabotaging himself. By verse 24, he’s crying, “What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” Do you feel what Paul is describing? You want to stop snapping at your spouse, but you lose it. You want to quit that addiction, but you’re back at it by Friday. You want to pray, but you’re scrolling till 2 a.m. That’s self-destruction. And it’s not just big sins, but quiet ways we undermine God’s plan. It’s the bitterness we nurse, the pride we carry, the shame we let define us.

Last week, a friend of mine showed me a fresh cashew—a fruit with the nut hanging off. He warned that the oil in the shell is poison; it burns, itches, can even kill. Before he finished, I rubbed it on my arm. Why? No clue. Now I’ve got a chemical burn. That’s self-destruction in a nutshell (catch that?).

Judges 9 is a trainwreck. After Gideon’s victory, Israel ditches God for Baal. They “didn’t remember” God. This is not amnesia, but willful rebellion. Abimelech, Gideon’s son, manipulates Shechem, slaughters his 70 brothers, and becomes king. It ends in chaos—a millstone crushes his skull. Israel’s story is ours when we reject God for pride, lust, or that screen. Every choice is life or death.

So how do we stop? Romans 7:25: “Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Jesus took our wounds to the cross, rose to break sin’s chains, and offers freedom. John 10:10 promises life to the full. Repent (Psalm 139:23-24). Renew your mind with Scripture (Romans 12:2). Surrender to the Spirit (Galatians 5:16). Self-destruction doesn’t own you. Romans 8:1 declares, “There is now no condemnation for those who in Christ Jesus.” Jesus is your deliverer. No more self-destruct buttons. If you’re hiding sin, break free today. Christ offers forgiveness and salvation. Let go of those vices that are keeping you from a life of sanctification!

A Notch On A Wrench And A Stigma For The Savior

Neal Pollard

Tim Gean has a 5/8 wrench that belonged to his dad, who is now deceased. He and his dad overhauled several cars together. His father owned that wrench for decades. Tim had his hands on that wrench countless times through the years. Several times, Tim was in a garage with his dad and his dad’s brother. They would sometimes argue over to whom a tool belonged. Finally, Tim’s dad decided to resolve this problem. He put a notch on his wrench. If you saw it in a yard sale, you would ask why that notch was there. But, Tim knows. It identified it as clearly belonging to his father.

Did you know that what was true of Tim’s father’s wrench is true of you and me? It certainly was true of the apostle Paul, who wrote, “From now on let no one cause trouble for me, for I bear on my body the brand-marks of Jesus” (Gal. 6:17). “Brand-marks” is from the Greek word “stigma,” “to undergo experiences which mark one as the slave of some master” (Louw-Nida 808). Arndt, Danker, and Bauer adds, “Paul is most likely alluding to the wounds and scars which he received in the service of Jesus” (945). Whether literal, physical persecution or some other sort of experience that comes which serving Jesus, people should be able to look at us and know that we have been with Jesus (Acts 4:13). 

Christians are sanctified people, people who give personal dedication to the interests of God (BDAG 10). Using the analogy of slavery, Paul writes, “But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in sanctification, and the outcome, eternal life” (Rom. 6:22). When we surrender our lives and will to Him, having been baptized into His Son (Rom. 6:1-6), we become “a people for God’s own possession” (1 Pet. 2:9). From that point forward, we have a new purpose. We are “proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Pet. 2:9).  We bear His mark, and others will know we belong to Him. What a source of joy and pride, to know that we are the Father’s and He uses us to accomplish His purpose!

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