My shoulder was killing me. Ordinarily, I would simply pop an Advil and call it a day, but the pain was intensifying, and Advil wasn’t curing the root cause of the problem. I assumed my pain was associated with a torn rotator cuff. Years earlier, a huge wave body slammed me into the beach, and I landed on my shoulder. Also, my time playing “blow-out” with my son may have messed up my shoulder. Blow-out is a game with the football where we attempt to throw the ball as hard and far as possible until our arm “blows- out.” It was not the smartest game in the world, but fun.
Root Cause of the Pain
In addition to the pain, I began having fevers, and I was tired most of the time. Something was off; something was wrong. Since I did not have a family physician at age 35, I began attending urgent cares around Cincinnati to find answers. Their solution, invariably, was to ask questions and prescribe pain pills. While I appreciated the sentiment, I was not a junky and did not want pain pills; I wanted to have the problem fixed. This led me to find a family Doctor.
The family Doctor ran a litany of tests, including a CAT scan and MRI. These tests revealed the root cause of the pain: a softball-sized tumor lodged between my heart and right lung. I wanted answers, but not that one. But the root cause had been revealed, and I was soon on the road to recovery. How can a tumor in the mediastinum cause shoulder pain? It’s called referred pain. Sometimes, pain originating in one area can radiate into another. Isn’t this true in our spiritual life as well?
Root Cause of the Sin
I was sharing the gospel in downtown Louisville the other day [https://youtu.be/U9IT5Z_gJGk] and met a man named Jason. He admitted to me that he was addicted to alcohol, pornography, and food and wanted desperately to know the way out. He said he prayed over and over, and he could not find victory. I encouraged him to surrender to Him completely and that Jesus was the only answer. And true victory could only be found in filling his life with the Word of God, prayer, accountability, and godly fellowship. I exposed the root cause of his lack of victory as a lack of commitment. He claimed to have faith but had no works to back his faith. Per James 2:26, “Faith without works is dead.”
Trying to cure an addiction without addressing the root cause is like applying a bandage to an artery tear. The addiction is the symptom; the actual issue is a spiritual condition known as “sin.” Whether people would admit it or not, most are addicted to selfish and sinful pursuits. Pornography, sports, Netflix, video games, drinking, food, smoking, movies, TV, a spouse, a girlfriend/boyfriend, politics, etc. You name it; almost anything in this life can become an addiction. Another word for addiction is “idol,” and idolatry is a damnable sin.
Root Cause: Flesh
James 1:14-15 teaches us that every man is tempted when he is “drawn away of his own lust and enticed. And when lust has conceived, it brings forth sin; and sin, when it is finished, brings forth death.” When you let your guard down and indulge in your flesh, sin will be the inevitable result. This all stems from walking in the flesh. Paul mentioned in Romans 8 that a man is condemned if he walks after the flesh. Verse 5 says, “For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace…. They that are in the flesh cannot please God.”
Since a fleshly man abides in death and cannot please God, it would be important to learn what it means to walk after the flesh. “Flesh” in Greek is “Sarx,” which implies “human nature.” Walking after your human nature is death and inhibits your ability to please the Lord. Why? The answer to that question has been debated for centuries. While both sides of the argument have merit, I must confess that my experience with 8 grandchildren and 5 children has proven to me, without a doubt, that all children are inherently selfish. Are they accountable as babies and infants? No. But soon enough, they inevitably reveal their selfish and sinful nature through fights, quarrels, and temper tantrums. They are the apodeme and caricature of walking in the flesh.
Unless a baby is corrected, they will never learn to control their fleshly, sinful urges. We have so many spoiled and undisciplined sinners in today’s world, partially due to poor parenting. A man who continues to walk in his childish, selfish, and fleshly urges abides in sin. This, my friend, is the root cause of all sin. As mentioned earlier in James 1, being drawn away in your own lust conceives sin and death. What is the answer?
The Answer
Paul gives us the answer in Romans 8:13; “Through the Spirit… mortify the deeds of the body,” and you will live. James also teaches us in chapter 2 that “faith, if it doesn’t have works, is dead.” This is something you must do. Galatians 5:23 states that self-control is a fruit of walking in the Spirit. Yes, you must control yourself through walking with Christ. You must put on the mind of Christ. You must put on the full armor of God. You must think on the things of the Lord. You must hide the Word in your heart so that you may not sin against the Lord. You must make the Lord your shepherd. [I’ll list all these scriptures below.]
Friend, when you truly make Jesus your Lord and eliminate the idols in your life, everything you do is guided by Him. Everything you desire or do is governed by the Word of God. What you wear, listen to, watch, where you go, and what you think becomes ruled by the Word (and the God thereof). Worldly pursuits become vain ideas. Sports, games, money, and fame all lose their luster.
1 John 2:15 Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.
1 Peter 1:13 Wherefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober, and hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought unto you at the revelation of Jesus Christ
Ephesians 6:11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil
Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.
Psalms 119:11 Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
1 Peter 2:25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
How about you? Is your life guided by the Holy Spirit or the spirit of the world? If you look like the world, act like the world, and think like the world, you, my friend, are worldly. Repent and turn to Jesus today. Make Him the Lord of your life.
