My Struggle with my sin Every Christian struggles with sin’s power. Every Christian has a desire to please God. My sin struggle is not primarily with Satan; it’s a spiritual struggle within me (Ephesians 6:12-18). Some sins are more obvious while others are more hidden (1 Corinthians 7:1; 1 Timothy 5:24).

Two equally evil types of sin 1 Timothy 5:24 (ESV) The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 2 Corinthians 7:1 (NIV) Therefore, since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God. The Two Prodigal Sons – Younger brother sins – External, Blatant sins Older brother sins – Internal secret sins, Self-righteousness

Sins of our “spirit” "The sins of the flesh are bad, but they are the least bad of all sins. All the worst pleasures are purely spiritual: the pleasure of putting other people in the wrong, of bossing and patronizing and spoiling sport, and back-biting, the pleasures of power, of hatred. … a cold, self-righteous prig who goes regularly to church may be far nearer to hell than a prostitute. But, of course, it is better to be neither." C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity

Our options – To live like a believer or not Romans 8:5-12 Life in the Flesh (The Unbeliever) Life in the Spirit (The Believer’s Potential) The mind is set on self (5)   The mind is set on the Spirit (5) Leads to death – eternal, physical and miserable (6) Leads to life in heaven and life now that’s filled with peace (6) Hostile to God (7) Will not submit to God (7) Cannot please God (8)  But we have the indwelling Holy Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead (9-11)! So we are not obligated to obey our sinful nature! Relying on the Spirit, we can “put to death” the deeds of the Flesh