Temptation (post 1) - Like a city without walls

Like a city whose walls are broken down is a man who lacks self-control. Proverbs 25:28

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Galatians 5:22-23

For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Peter 1:6-8

Is there such a thing as primary and secondary sins? We know that we “lose” our joy when we are in sin (Psalm 32 and 51), so this is a good indicator that we need to confess something. But lacking joy is a sin too! Which comes first?

The verse in Proverbs is talking about something that is a Fruit of the Spirit like joy or peace. If we have it, we are protected from sin and foolishness. If we don’t, we are both in sin and vulnerable for greater sin.

When we think about sins that need confessing, we focus on the obvious ones. Loosing our temper, laziness, breaking a law or envying things that we shouldn’t are some that come to mind. They need to be confessed, but remember that these are generally preceded by a lack of thankfulness, joy and love. If you sense a lack of these, confess them before you get into bigger trouble. Remember that sin progresses from bad to worse (Psalm 19:12-13).