Sin: Stop, Drop And ROLL
As a little girl, I remember when the firefighters would come to the school. They'd bring their big truck, sound the siren and show us all the parts of their uniform. And then they'd teach us all how to Stop, Drop and Roll. If you ever caught on fire, you'd stop moving, drop to the ground and roll around until the fire was extinguished.
As serious as they were about Stop, Drop and Roll, I assumed there would be more opportunities in life to use it. That's the mental process of an elementary school student. To this day I've never caught myself on fire, but I still know what to do.
Now, as a grown up, we can still use this time-tested philosophy in our spiritual life. Sin is a day-by-day, sometimes hour-by-hour battle. If we practice Stop, Drop and ROLL with our sin, we can put up a fight against the enemy that would like to see us destroy ourselves.
Stop: When sin enters our lives, we need to come to a dead stop. Continuing in the direction we're going is a dangerous journey when we're aware of the sin we're committing. God cannot look upon sin, so we're tearing apart our relationship with the Lord when we do things that He hates.
I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgets the iniquity of my sin. Selah. Psalm 32:5
Stopping and acknowledging our sin is the first step toward repairing that relationship and living a life dedicated to God.
Drop: Picture your sin as a hot pan on the stove. If you pick it up, it burns. It leaves a mark. Your natural instinct is to drop it as quickly as possible so the pain will go away. The same applies to your sin.
On a certain sabbath day, Jesus walked by the pool at Bethesda and saw the lame man waiting to enter the healing waters. Instead of helping him to the side of the pool, Jesus tells the man to take up his bed and walk. Immediately the man was made whole, taking his bed with him as he walked away.
Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. John 5:14
If the Lord Jesus Himself tells someone to sin no more, it's a command - not a suggestion. He knows the pain sin causes in our lives and the lives of those around us. We need to drop that sin like it's white hot and refuse to pick it back up.
ROLL: Rely On the Lord's Leading. It's not "if we sin," it's "when." We are sinful creatures, but our sin doesn't define us. We are daughters of the King, and as such, we have access to the strength of the Lord to move on after we've sinned.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin ... Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Psalm 51:1-2, 10-13
By relying on the Lord, we can find strength in temptation, cleansing from our sin, mercy in difficult times and the lessons learned to keep others from committing the same sins. On our own we are nothing, but staying in step with God will protect us and keep us in the days to come.
You'll never Stop, Drop and ROLL the same way again.
As serious as they were about Stop, Drop and Roll, I assumed there would be more opportunities in life to use it. That's the mental process of an elementary school student. To this day I've never caught myself on fire, but I still know what to do.
Now, as a grown up, we can still use this time-tested philosophy in our spiritual life. Sin is a day-by-day, sometimes hour-by-hour battle. If we practice Stop, Drop and ROLL with our sin, we can put up a fight against the enemy that would like to see us destroy ourselves.
Stop: When sin enters our lives, we need to come to a dead stop. Continuing in the direction we're going is a dangerous journey when we're aware of the sin we're committing. God cannot look upon sin, so we're tearing apart our relationship with the Lord when we do things that He hates.
I acknowledged my sin unto thee, and mine iniquity have I not hid. I said, I will confess my transgressions unto the LORD; and thou forgets the iniquity of my sin. Selah. Psalm 32:5
Stopping and acknowledging our sin is the first step toward repairing that relationship and living a life dedicated to God.
Drop: Picture your sin as a hot pan on the stove. If you pick it up, it burns. It leaves a mark. Your natural instinct is to drop it as quickly as possible so the pain will go away. The same applies to your sin.
On a certain sabbath day, Jesus walked by the pool at Bethesda and saw the lame man waiting to enter the healing waters. Instead of helping him to the side of the pool, Jesus tells the man to take up his bed and walk. Immediately the man was made whole, taking his bed with him as he walked away.
Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee. John 5:14
If the Lord Jesus Himself tells someone to sin no more, it's a command - not a suggestion. He knows the pain sin causes in our lives and the lives of those around us. We need to drop that sin like it's white hot and refuse to pick it back up.
ROLL: Rely On the Lord's Leading. It's not "if we sin," it's "when." We are sinful creatures, but our sin doesn't define us. We are daughters of the King, and as such, we have access to the strength of the Lord to move on after we've sinned.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to thy lovingkindness: according unto the multitude of thy tender mercies blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin ... Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from thy presence; and take not thy holy spirit from me. Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Psalm 51:1-2, 10-13
By relying on the Lord, we can find strength in temptation, cleansing from our sin, mercy in difficult times and the lessons learned to keep others from committing the same sins. On our own we are nothing, but staying in step with God will protect us and keep us in the days to come.
You'll never Stop, Drop and ROLL the same way again.
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