If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it. (Genesis 4:7)
God told Cain that “sin was crouching at your door” and admonished him to “master it.” How can you/I avoid falling prey to sin?
A quick clarification on terms: a “door” is a way in and out of a place. “Your door” implies it’s to a place you own (or rent) such as a home. By definition, sin is “missing the target”-in other words being off of God’s will; disobedience.
Fundamentally the ability to be separate from God’s will traces back to the “Fall” and the enemy’s trickery. It is important to note that often we sin without the enemy’s direct involvement because we are already conditioned to do so. He plays a passive role in all sin but not necessarily an active one. At the same time he is active in seeking our distance from the will of the Father.
The enemy is there, always, waiting to catch you unaware no matter which way you are headed. The enemy is at the door between you and the world. As I look around and process my surroundings, the enemy is there. As I retreat within to my own thoughts, memories, feelings, etc. the enemy is there. He is crouching, trying to remain unseen and hiding behind many “normal” things. A thief does not place a fake bush in the middle of a walkway to find cover before surprising passerby’s. He uses the natural and normal surroundings to mask his presence. Our spiritual enemy does the same. Sin is in essence the spirit of the enemy. As God is Love, the enemy is Sin.
As humans we cannot “master” the enemy himself-Christ did that for us in the resurrection. The Bible says we do not fight against flesh and blood but against principalities and darkness (Ephesians. 6:12) God says “if you don’t do what is right, sin is at your door”. This gives us the key to mastering it. The Lord, not society, tradition, rules, etc, purely and ultimately defines what is “right”. It is having one’s heart in line with Gods. God judges the heart (1 Samuel. 16:7) and that is the wellspring from which all else comes (Proverbs. 4:23). That is the “door” that disobedience lurks around. We must guard our hearts!
Practically that is done by being watchful over the senses, which are the gateway to our heart; what we see, hear, touch, taste and think. We must submit all things to the written Word and our prayerful conversations with the Father. That is the key to mastering ourselves, and thus living in the reality that He has mastered the enemy. God has mastered the enemy-we must master sin through our obedience. It is to this reality that Christ called us when He said we must deny ourselves and pick up our cross daily to follow Him (Luke 9:23)
Good blog and very true. It is hard to be on guard constantly watching for the enemy but that's why we should give it to God. He will not let the enemy thru to us but we have to be strong in our faith!
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