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From: BookWorm ~~"/
Date: 04 Nov 1999
Time: 07:18:58
Remote Name: 208.161.28.113
=============== Just Say Draino ===============
I love fresh baked bread. One of my favorites is good `ol fashioned home-made white bread, fresh from the oven, cooled just enough to handle without seriously burning my hands. There have been times, in my heavier years, when I've actually sat down and polished off a loaf all by myself, and there are times today when I'd like to. If I did stuff myself full of white bread, the worst that could happen is that I'd gain 25 pounds and have indigestion. Sharon shares my love for homemade white bread, but if she sat down and ate even a bite, it would be a whole different story. You see, Sharon is allergic to wheat and its by-products. For her, that tasty loaf of bread would produce a potentially life-threatening allergic reaction.
I recall a day a few months ago, when Sharon and I were preparing for dinner guests. The intoxicating aroma of fresh-baked homemade rolls filled our kitchen, mingled with the delightful smells of roast beef and all the trimmings. As she was taking the rolls out of the oven, Sharon looked at them longingly and said, "You know, I could just stand here and eat that whole pan of rolls. I want them, and I want them bad." My reply was, "Well, you could do that. I could go eat a can of Draino, but I'm not going to do it." We both burst out laughing, and the deadly temptation passed. Ever since that day, when I see Sharon being tempted by some other wheat- laden poison-in-disguise, I just say "Draino," we laugh, and temptation takes a hike.
Temptation is a funny thing. If you let it catch you unaware, it can bypass rationality and good sense and spoon-feed Draino to the most committed of believers. Nobody -- not even those big- time "supersaints" -- is immune from it. In fact, in my experience it's those who think they have grown beyond temptation who are most likely to be found face-down in a spiritual mud puddle. Even the great Apostle Paul recognized that he could stumble along the way:
"but I discipline my body and make it my slave, so that, after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified." (1 Cor 9:27, NASB)
There are those who say that this verse (taken out-of-context) supports their position that even Paul could "lose his salvation" by stumbling into sin. When considered in context, however, Paul isn't saying anything at all about salvation in this passage. The Greek word Paul used that is translated "disqualified" carries with it an implication of being disapproved or rejected. In Paul's context, it refers to compromising his effectiveness as a believer. In the previous verses, Paul compares our ongoing walk as believers to running a race, comparing the discipline necessary to be a winning athlete to the discipline necessary to being a growing, effective follower of Jesus. Paul knew that even he, a great leader and effective minister of the Gospel, could be tripped and rendered ineffective by caving in to temptation.
The problem with temptation is that it never presents us with the whole truth. It whispers in a man's ear "Oh, it's not such a big deal to have an affair. Everyone's doing it." Temptation never mentions the fractured trust and broken hearts that result. Temptation says "Oh, go ahead, it's fun to get drunk." It never mentions the hangover you'll have the next morning, or how sluggish you'll be at work. Temptation whispered in Sharon's ear, "Boy, look at those luscious rolls. Why not eat a few? You know you love them, and you'd still have enough for company." Temptation never mentioned the hives, wheezing, or digestive problems that would have resulted.
Temptation feeds itself on your weakness. That's why, as Paul says, we need to discipline ourselves to avoid being compromised by sin. Christ's redemptive work on the cross is a "done deal," finished and complete. Discipline and self-control add absolutely nothing to your salvation. Discipline and self-control do, however, add to your sanctification, the growing process of becoming more like Christ and less like your old self. That spiritual growth process is a cooperative venture -- if you cooperate with the Holy Spirit, you'll grow spiritually. That's what discipline and self-control are all about.
The next time temptation climbs up on your shoulder and tries to make you stumble, Just say "Draino!"
D.
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