Sunday Sermon – September 4, 2011. "The Cycle of Sin"

Psalm 107 (NKJV)

1 Oh, give thanks to the LORD, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever.
2 Let the redeemed of the LORD say so,
Whom He has redeemed from the hand of the enemy,
3 And gathered out of the lands,
From the east and from the west,
From the north and from the south.

4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way;
They found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them.
6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He delivered them out of their distresses.
7 And He led them forth by the right way,
That they might go to a city for a dwelling place.
8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
9 For He satisfies the longing soul,
And fills the hungry soul with goodness.

10 Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Bound in affliction and irons—
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God,
And despised the counsel of the Most High,
12 Therefore He brought down their heart with labor;
They fell down, and there was none to help.
13 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He saved them out of their distresses.
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And broke their chains in pieces.
15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
16 For He has broken the gates of bronze,
And cut the bars of iron in two.

17 Fools, because of their transgression,
And because of their iniquities, were afflicted.
18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food,
And they drew near to the gates of death.
19 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He saved them out of their distresses.
20 He sent His word and healed them,
And delivered them from their destructions.
21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And declare His works with rejoicing.

23 Those who go down to the sea in ships,
Who do business on great waters,
24 They see the works of the LORD,
And His wonders in the deep.
25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind,
Which lifts up the waves of the sea.
26 They mount up to the heavens,
They go down again to the depths;
Their soul melts because of trouble.
27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man,
And are at their wits’ end.
28 Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He brings them out of their distresses.
29 He calms the storm,
So that its waves are still.
30 Then they are glad because they are quiet;
So He guides them to their desired haven.
31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people,
And praise Him in the company of the elders.

33 He turns rivers into a wilderness,
And the watersprings into dry ground;
34 A fruitful land into barrenness,
For the wickedness of those who dwell in it.
35 He turns a wilderness into pools of water,
And dry land into watersprings.
36 There He makes the hungry dwell,
That they may establish a city for a dwelling place,
37 And sow fields and plant vineyards,
That they may yield a fruitful harvest.
38 He also blesses them, and they multiply greatly;
And He does not let their cattle decrease.

39 When they are diminished and brought low
Through oppression, affliction, and sorrow,
40 He pours contempt on princes,
And causes them to wander in the wilderness where there is no way;
41 Yet He sets the poor on high, far from affliction,
And makes their families like a flock.
42 The righteous see it and rejoice,
And all iniquity stops its mouth.

43 Whoever is wise will observe these things,
And they will understand the lovingkindness of the LORD.

This Psalm spoke to me when I recently read it. It recounts the experiences of a people who sinned, and cried out for the deliverance of The Lord.

The psalmist begins by thanking The Lord for His mercy and redemption

The Psalmist then tells about a people who lost their way.

He then goes on to describe how these people cried out for deliverance, and how The Lord delivered them.

The next verses speak about how we need to continually thank Him for His awesome deliverance. It also speaks about how God will deliver.

In the 4 sections of this Psalm, the same pattern is followed. I've broken these out into groups with all 4 sections of this Psalm so you can see the pattern:

The Sin:
Section (1)
4 They wandered in the wilderness in a desolate way;
They found no city to dwell in.
5 Hungry and thirsty,
Their soul fainted in them.

Section (2)
10 Those who sat in darkness and in the shadow of death,
Bound in affliction and irons—
11 Because they rebelled against the words of God,
And despised the counsel of the Most High,
12 Therefore He brought down their heart with labor;
They fell down, and there was none to help.

Section (3)
17 Fools, because of their transgression,
And because of their iniquities, were afflicted.
18 Their soul abhorred all manner of food,
And they drew near to the gates of death.

Section (4)
23 Those who go down to the sea in ships,
Who do business on great waters,
24 They see the works of the LORD,
And His wonders in the deep.
25 For He commands and raises the stormy wind,
Which lifts up the waves of the sea.
26 They mount up to the heavens,
They go down again to the depths;
Their soul melts because of trouble.
27 They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man,
And are at their wits’ end.

The Repentance and Prayer of The People:
Section (1)
6 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He delivered them out of their distresses.

Section (2)
13 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He saved them out of their distresses.

Section (3)
19 Then they cried out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He saved them out of their distresses.

Section (4)
28 Then they cry out to the LORD in their trouble,
And He brings them out of their distresses.

How God Responded to the People:
Section (1)
7 And He led them forth by the right way,
That they might go to a city for a dwelling place.

Section (2)
14 He brought them out of darkness and the shadow of death,
And broke their chains in pieces.

Section (3)
20 He sent His word and healed them,
And delivered them from their destructions.

Section (4)
29 He calms the storm,
So that its waves are still.
30 Then they are glad because they are quiet;
So He guides them to their desired haven.

Thanking God. Praising Him and Glorifying Him:
Section (1)
8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
9 For He satisfies the longing soul,
And fills the hungry soul with goodness.

Section (2)
15 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
16 For He has broken the gates of bronze,
And cut the bars of iron in two.

Section (3)
21 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
22 Let them sacrifice the sacrifices of thanksgiving,
And declare His works with rejoicing.

Section (4)
31 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness,
And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
32 Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people,
And praise Him in the company of the elders.

Once I looked at the Psalm in this manner, it occurred to me that this is typical in the walk of a believer. There are four distinct stages I would like to discuss:

-The Sin
-Repentance and Crying Out to The Lord for Deliverance
God's Response
Thanksgiving and Praise to The Lord for His Deliverance

First we sin. We suffer the consequences of those sins, until we can no longer bear the burden.

Once we've had enough, we repent of our sins, and cry out to The Lord for deliverance. We've simply gotten to the point where we can no longer deal with the penalty for our sins, and we cry out for forgiveness.

After a time (this is totally up to God), He will respond to our prayers. He may deliver us, He may ask us to wait. God looks at our hearts, then He responds.

After God's deliverance occurs, we need to thank Him. We need to praise Him, and make sure that God, and God alone gets the glory.

My question to you is this: Is this how your life sounds? Constantly falling back into sin, crying out for forgiveness, waiting on God, then thanking Him for answering your prayers? Then you start the cycle all over and over and over again until it seems like you're living in the movie "Groundhog Day".

Brothers and Sisters, we need to surrender ALL to Jesus. We need to soak ourselves in The Word of God. We need to study it, until through The Holy Spirit, He speaks to us. We need to be in the world, but NOT of the world. If we let Satan gain a foothold in our lives, we're in deep trouble. All the devil needs is one small opening in the door for him to get into your life. It may be a drink of alcohol. It may be a small taste of drugs. It may be sex outside of marriage. It may be a quick glimpse of pornography on the internet, or on TV. It may be demonic rock or rap music. It may be unforgiveness, jealousy, pride, gossip, or any "works of the flesh" specifically listed in Galatians 5:19-21. All it takes is one small opening for the enemy to get his foot into the door of your life.

If you're stuck in this "sin cycle", surrender all to Jesus right now. James 4:7-10 states:

7So be subject to God. Resist the devil [stand firm against him], and he will flee from you.
8Come close to God and He will come close to you. [Recognize that you are] sinners, get your soiled hands clean; [realize that you have been disloyal] wavering individuals with divided interests, and purify your hearts [of your spiritual adultery].
9[As you draw near to God] be deeply penitent and grieve, even weep [over your disloyalty]. Let your laughter be turned to grief and your mirth to dejection and heartfelt shame [for your sins].
10Humble yourselves [feeling very insignificant] in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you [He will lift you up and make your lives significant]. James 4:7-10 (Amplified Bible)

Satan is a liar. He knows that he loses in the end, and will make every effort to get us stuck in an endless sin cycle. We need to take a giant step back and see the deliverance of The Lord. Let God win these battles for us! We cannot possibly win in our own flesh. After all, the battle does belong to Him!

Amen?