8 Roadblocks to Victory Over Habitual Sin- Part 1

They say old habits die hard, and if you’ve ever struggled with addiction you know that to be true.  Whether it’s cigarettes, wine, meth, or a piping hot pizza, breaking your dependence on a substance that pleases your flesh is excruciating. We are our own worst enemy and sabotage our progress by setting up roadblocks to victory over habitual sin.

Success over sin struggles is possible but not often painless. Jesus is willing and able to deliver us from those strongholds, but we must be willing to do our part, and recognize and remove the roadblocks to victory over habitual sin.

8 Roadblocks to Victory Over Habitual Sin

1. Lack of true repentance – 2 Corinthians 7:9-11 – Repentance is a change of mind and heart that leads to a change of direction and results in a changed life.  It’s not a feeling of guilt or simply being sorry for your sin.  Repentance is agreeing with God that it’s vile and turning away from it.  To have victory over habitual sin, we have to repent of it.

Without true biblical repentance, we’ll return to those habitual sins because our heart hasn’t been broken over it.

A Psalm of Repentance

Psalm 51 is David’s Psalm of repentance after his sin of adultery with Bathsheba.  Begging for mercy from God, he was crushed by the weight of his sin.  David asked for cleansing and restoration so he could be reconciled to God.

When we are stuck in a cycle of sin, we must cry out to the Lord with a broken and contrite heart like David did. God hears those prayers, and restores us, because He is merciful and compassionate.

Psalm 51:17~ The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit: a broken and a contrite heart, O God, thou wilt not despise.

2. Lack of fear of the Lord– Proverbs 16:6 – This is the verse that I memorized to help me quit smoking years ago.  Cigarettes were my go-to instead of the Lord, and an idol in my life. After ignoring the Holy Spirit for months, I finally repented of that sin of idolatry. Through prayer and applying the scripture, (and LOTS of gum) the Lord freed me from this stronghold.

I learned to fear the Lord, to reverence Him and respect Him, through obeying His word.

Without a healthy fear of the Lord, we walk in rebellion.

Proverbs 9:10~ The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.

God is Holy

3. Lack of understanding of God’s holiness- Psalm 47:8 – Holiness is said to be the Lord’s supreme attribute above all others. Isaiah 6:3 says that God is holy, holy, holy.  No other attribute of God is listed three times in a row like that.  Holy means that God is sacred, divine, majestic, and pure.  

Without a proper understanding of God’s holiness, there’s no urgency to repent of the sin that stains us and separates us from Him. We will continue to cover and justify our sin and attempt to bring God down on our level.

Praying for a better understanding of His holiness and reading through the Old Testament will help remove this roadblock to victory over habitual sin.

1 Thessalonians 4:7~ For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness.

4. Lack of relationship with Christ – John 15:1-11 – Apart from Christ we can do nothing, but in Him, we can do anything, and that includes getting victory over habitual sin.  If we’re not spending quality time with Jesus praying, praising Him, and putting in the scriptures, we are setting ourselves up for failure.  Any progress we make will just be of our own self-efforts and short-lived.

Galatians 5:16~ This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

To Be Continued…

Those are the first four roadblocks to victory over habitual sin, and I’ll give you the remaining four in my next post.  In the meantime, I hope you will examine your heart, recognize the roadblocks you have in your life, repent, reverence the Lord, and restore fellowship with Jesus.

You may not battle addiction to alcohol, drugs, or pornography. It may be gossip and envy or pride and covetousness that you just can’t seem to shake.  Maybe you’re hooked on social media, or you’re just apathetic and indifferent to the things of God.  Regardless of the habitual sin, there is victory in Jesus!

1Peter 2:11~ Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

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