The Sequence of Sin

 

Addiction always has its roots in sin, and that sin in turn springs up from our own lustful, selfish desires. This is the idea that we have been looking at in James 1 over the last few posts. There is a process that sin always follows. We sometimes feel like we just stumble into it, or it just happened, like a meteor falling from the sky. But if we learn to pay attention, we will see that it happens gradually, step-by-step.

The medieval Christian thinker Thomas a Kempis digs deeper into the ideas we saw from James and offers us some useful insight into the process that sin takes: "First there cometh into mind a bare thought of evil, then a strong imagination thereof, afterwards delight, and evil motion, and then consent. And so little by little our wicked enemy getteth complete entrance for that he is not resisted at the beginning."

First, we have the "bare thought of evil."  The world, the flesh and the devil will all send images, thoughts, and ideas into our minds. We usually cannot help or avoid these attacks. This is like seeing a billboard as we drive down the road, advertising a movie. Or like an ad popping up when we check our email. We don't want it, we don't invite it, but there it is. These bare thoughts are not sin in and of themselves, they are just the first glimpse.

Next is the "strong imagination thereof," this isn't just a glimpse, this is a gaze. This is looking up information about the movie or watching the trailer. We indulge the thought, we encourage it, playing with it like a puppy. Our mind becomes increasingly preoccupied with the sinful ideas. We imagine ourselves following through, engaging in the uncleanness. We imagine the porn, fornication, theft, or hurling the insults or our fists.

"Afterwards delight" - we take pleasure in the unclean thoughts that are going through our hearts and minds. We want more. We are watching the full-length film and enjoying it. It is hard to draw a line where we actually step into sin, but the Bible makes it clear that there are sins that occur in the heart and mind. Covetousness is condemned in the Ten Commandments, and that occurs exclusively in the heart and mind. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus not only condemned adultery and murder, but also harboring lust and hatred in our hearts. At some point, if we allow those unclean thoughts to run around in our minds for too long, we have crossed the line into sin.

If we delight in those thoughts long enough, inevitably we will end up carrying out the deed. The contemplation may take minutes, or it may take years, but eventually, if we think it, it will become a reality. This is what "evil motion" is referring to. This is not just harboring the thought but following through with action. It is not just lust in the heart, it is fornication or adultery. It is not just greed, but theft. It is not just hatred; it is insults and violence.

If we carefully examine our hearts and minds we will see this gradual progression from initial thought, to delight and to deed. It may take some time and many attempts to see these patterns, but they are always there.

When a Kempis says, "consent" I am not entirely sure what he is talking about, but what I believe it means is that we think that our behavior is good and acceptable. It is one thing to steal, and then feel pangs of guilt and never do it again. It is another thing to believe that we are entitled to steal, to think we deserve it, and perhaps even construct rationalizations that make us think and believe that stealing is actually a good thing.

This is a common trap for addicts, we build up excuses and rationalizations that allow us to continue in the addiction without feelings of guilt or remorse. Or if we feel remorse, we come up with excuses to quench those feelings. We tell ourselves that we deserve to act out and are entitled to our behaviors.

When we consent to these behaviors the sin quickly becomes a habit, and in time becomes engrained into our character. Many times, these sins become addictions. Once our character begins to be shaped by our sin in this way, we are well on our way on the pathway of destruction. When we can sin frequently without guilt or remorse, we will find more and more death spreading through our lives.

Satan does not gain control of our lives in one fell swoop, but rather little by little, as a Kempis notes. He does not kick the door in and suddenly wreak havoc. He knocks gently and calls to us, he has the perfect sales pitch, he knows what we want to hear. He lures us and seduces us, and we happily open the door and let him inside. Step by step, ever so gradually he makes himself at home and before we know it, he is raiding the fridge, rummaging through our medicine cabinet, and sleeping in our bed. Getting him out of our lives then becomes much, much more complicated and difficult. Satan must be resisted at the first, at the initial knock. Those first thoughts must be taken captive and discarded. We must keep the door closed and locked or we may find ourselves captive to sin.