Remember Who You Are

Text: Romans 6:12-23

The problem with problems, is they have a life of their own.  You can deal with them all you like, but unless there is a major change in what is producing the problems, you will never be free of them.

 

About five or six years ago, the town of Houston, Georgia, was experiencing this exact issue.  A man named John Xee lived there; he was well-known – he grew up there, and went to school there.  He still lived in the neighborhood into which he was born. 

 

You might be thinking, “Well, so what?  We have a town like that.”

 

The problem with John Xee is that he’s a drug dealer – he built a business on selling poison to people that he knows.

 

The law had a hard time stopping John because he had a close circle of friends and customers in the home neighborhood.  The police would arrest John, prosecute him, and send him to prison – after which he would go back to town and pick up right where he left off.  He knew his way around the community, and the community knew him.

 

It doesn’t matter where you go:  in every place, it seems that you’re never at a loss for knowing someone in your town who isn’t living right and everyone knows it – and nothing is done about it because of the relationships that exist between that person and the rest of the community.  Sound familiar?

 

So what can be done?  Keep in mind what I said about problems: unless there’s a major change in what produces the problems, you will never be free of them.

 

In the case of John Xee, the district attorney of Houston County, Georgia banished him; it’s the good, old-fashioned remedy that’s been around for a thousand years or more.

 

Banishment began in ancient Rome as a method of punishment by sending people back to their countries so that they could not enjoy the fruits of Rome. Over time it evolved to mean the king would banish a person from the castle (and hence its protection).

 

If you’re thinking, “That’s illegal!  They can’t do that!” you’re wrong (at least for the state of Georgia).  The Georgia Supreme Court has held that banishment is appropriate and legal, but that someone cannot be banished from Georgia, only from a specific county.

 

What does banishment accomplish? In the case of John Xee, it means that he’ll no longer have “community standing” to protect him, and he won’t have customers.  And, because of the “business” he’s in, he’ll have a hard time starting up again in a place where other “business owners” are already operating.

 

For better or for worse, the option has become a popular alternative to jail.  Many defendants prefer to leave town instead of take jail time, and get a fresh start.

 

Wouldn’t it be great if we could banish sin from our lives like this?

 

Sin is very much like having a problem person in town that we won’t do anything about – something we know, and have learned to live with.  Many times, we’ve grown so comfortable with it that we almost welcome it as a sign that everything’s normal.  Sin knows its way around the community that is our body, mind and spirit - and the community knows this sin as well.

 

It would be great if we could take all of the sins that plague us and ship them off to the next town!  We’d be very different persons!

 

But, we know it’s not that way.  Over history, there are some very famous examples of persons who have tried fleeing their sins.  St. Jerome, for example, thought that by fleeing to the desert he could leave the dancing girls of Rome. He found, however, that even in the desert he had a problem with the dancing girls of Rome.

 

So what are we to do?

 

Let’s turn to today’s scripture, and hear what the Apostle Paul has to say:

 

• Become in practice what you already are to God: dead to sin.  Paul puts it this way, “Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness.” (Romans 6:13a TNIV)  Since YOU belong to God, YOU must use your body for righteous purposes.
• Choose to use your body and soul for God’s purposes. Paul says, “…offer every part of yourself to him (God) as an instrument of righteousness.” (Romans 6:13b TNIV)
• Decide to do this BEFORE you’re locked in a battle with temptation.  It’s pointless to whine about temptation, because it will always be with us.  This is why we need to simply be ready for it before it comes – so that when sin comes knocking, no one’s answering.
• Remember your relationship with God.  By remembering that God has saved us from sin to do good, we act accordingly instead of continuing a relationship with sin that will only lead to our ultimate damnation.    Keep in mind Ezekiel 18:4 — “The one who sins is the one who will die.”  Serve God, not your fallen nature.

 

Writer, John Alexander, once said something about sin[1] that sounds quirky, but really makes sense when you think about it: 

 

“Sin is the best news there is, because with sin there’s a way out. You can’t repent of confusion or psychological flaws inflicted by your parents - you’re stuck with them. But you can repent of sin. Sin and repentance are the only grounds for hope and joy, the grounds for reconciled, joyful relationships.”

 

If you like words that are short and sweet to help you remember important things, give this a try:  the three simple rules of being Methodist – or any sort of Christian: 

 

• Do No Harm
• Do Good
• Stay in Love with God

 

 

Remember who you are.  Remember to use your body and your life for good and not evil.  Exercise good choices, and remember your relationship with God.  The choice is yours.

 

Sources Consulted:

 

“Banned in Georgia,” Homiletics, June 2002

Ancient Commentary on Christian Scripture, Vol. NT-6 (IVP, 1998)

Morris, Leon. The Epistle to the Romans (Eerdmans, 1988)

TNIV Study Bible (Zondervan, 2006)

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[1] John Alexander, quoted in Student Leadership Journal, Fall 2000, 23.