Hey Y’all; We are always thrilled when folks quote verses to make their case! To those who quote James 5: 12 (do not swear by heaven or earth) to discourage promising God we will not sin, permit me to share some other verses that will help us understand what James was commanding. Let’s start in the Old Testament. Adam made a marriage vow before God in the garden (Genesis 2: 23,24). Most of us have taken a vow before God and man to stay faithful to our spouses until death do us part. The Mosaic covenant is a vow to God to obey His statutes (Exodus 19-24). Further, we see multiple vows prescribed in the Old Testament (Leviticus 27; Numbers 6). Paul took two Nazarite vows (Acts 18,21). There is no indication he was sinning. With that in mind, James could not be saying we can never make a promise/vow to the Lord. James was simply commanding the first century believers to not follow the pattern of Jewish people who constantly made casual and flippant vows, “I swear by heaven and earth I will be there by noon.” This is what Jesus was warning in Matthew 5: 34-37. We are to be people of our word, and casual vows should not be necessary. Conclusion: Rash, trite, and unnecessary vows are forbidden. Earnest vows made to the Lord are not sinful and should be kept. Feel free to respond, and I triple pinky promise to respond. Wait, sorry. Scrap that last vow. - Todd Friel
Hey Todd. Thanks for engaging with our comments. I agree with all you said here. The point of my original post was just to remind people how hard it can be sometimes to make and keep a genuine vow, when our sinful flesh is always trying to trip us up. Earnest vows to God are certainly not sinful. However, as a general practice, I think vows should be taken with the certainty of being able to keep them, and should not be taken with merely the hope of being able to keep them. In practice, making vows to God may help many people. But I want to caution those who make vows just to get extra motivation to avoid sin. Imagine your resistance to sin goes from 60% to 70% after making a vow. That looks like a good thing at first, but 70% is no guarantee of purity. So when you sin again, you will be guilty of both the sin and the broken vow. In conclusion, I completely agree with you. But the practicality of the situation calls for serious contemplation before making vows to God. God bless.
Thank you for opening up commmets. Thank you for your content. Thank you for engaging on here. Comment section can be a blessing and a curse, thank you for giving it a try.
These guys close the comments on videos they know they will get schooled on, lol it’s mockers with little knowledge like these youtubers who are found by there own knowledge 🤣 but to think there isn’t an Origin when looking around, I mean .. you have to be blind 🤣😂
The method of promising God that I'll never commit 'that sin' again is one which I've used many times. For some people in some circumstances, it is certainly a powerful method, as Todd says. However, as your brother in Christ, I must warn of two dangers. First, remember what Jesus said in Matthew 5:33-37, "Do not take an oath at all, ... Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil." So before making any special promises, examine yourself for evil, in light of Jesus' words. Second, be very careful about promising to never again fall to your addictive sins. The addict's mindset is not easily broken. So if you sin again, and promise God again, and sin again, and promise God again, and sin again, you will eventually end up worse than when you started because you will see yourself as a liar. Rather, when dealing with addictive sins, don't make promises to God that you know you won't keep. Instead, petition God every single day in prayer, morning and night, to give you strength and clarity to stand strong. Keep the Word in your mind at all times. When temptation comes, thank God for helping you resist.
Anyone who makes a promise to not sin has done what Israel did at Sinai, in saying “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do” Exo 19:8 In saying "we will do it" they, therefore, bound themselves to an oath of salvation by works. It is the faith of Jesus which saves, those who choose to serve the Lord must do so by His faith. The Jews of old misunderstood this point. Notice Romans 9:31-32. “But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.” These all served the Lord, but they did it not by faith, and we know that whatever is not of faith is sin. [Romans 14:23].
I too wouldn’t make an oath because scriptures say that those who swear something in the name of the Lord, the Lord will require it of them (I’m counting making a promise to God as the same thing). If you end up resisting that sin because you promised God and fear the consequences of breaking that promise, it really seems like you’re relying on your self to overcome this, it doesn’t seem like it will help your faith or cause you to grow spiritually. Once you’ve set your heart and mind on something, you really will desire it and all the more earnestly and desperately you will plead with God for strength
I’m looking at it in a different light at this point in time, although maybe a month ago I would have agreed with you and the replies to this, as someone who has struggled for many years with multiple addictive sins. If you make a promise to God that you fully KNOW that you are utterly incapable of keeping by your own strength, the power and glory of actually keeping the promise is all from God. Every step you take in resistance and surrender to Him is giving Him glory not you… We all need His grace to overcome but we also need to recognize that sin is death… He came, lived, and gave His perfect life to set us free, not to keep us stuck. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” - this is a promise… not another command. He gives His Spirit to be our helper… The Holy Spirit is Holy and does not sin. He gives us His perfect word so that we know which way to go… He is not glorified by us being stuck in sin. He did everything to set us free. Make that promise that you can’t fulfill, knowing that He is the faithful one that will see it through and praise Him all the way as you watch. This has been my breakthrough process that He has been leading me through. I prayed “help me to be more like you, Jesus” And I heard a voice in my chest, “There Is None Like Me. There Will Never Be Another Like Me. And I Am With You.” He is more powerful than any sin. He wants you to be set free. He is willing and able to make it happen with or without your help, but yes making this promise and truly meaning it is really telling God that you desire what He desires above all things and it is powerful. 🎉🔥🙌🏼 Our God truly is a Great God.. God bless you all 🙏🏼💗
@@jessszabo5049 Appeal to the scriptures. We must walk by faith, not by sight. The passage that came to mind after reading over your comment a few times was Ecclesiastes 5:2-7 which reads: Think before you speak, and don't make any rash promises to God. He is in heaven and you are on earth, so don't say any more than you have to. The more you worry, the more likely you are to have bad dreams, and the more you talk, the more likely you are to say something foolish. So when you make a promise to God, keep it as quickly as possible. He has no use for a fool. Do what you promise to do. _Better not to promise at all than to make a promise and not keep it._ Don't let your own words lead you into sin, so that you have to tell God's priest that you didn't mean it. Why make God angry with you? Why let him destroy what you have worked for? No matter how much you dream, how much useless work you do, or how much you talk, you must still stand in awe of God. So, my question to you is...what if you mess up? You can always backslide. After all, you are fallible and God is not. He isn't capable of breaking promises because he's perfect and doesn't make mistakes. Deuteronomy 23:21-23 puts it quite well, also when it states: “When you make a promise to the Lord your God, don’t be slow to pay everything you promised. The Lord your God will demand that you pay it. You will sin if you don’t pay what you promised." If you don’t make a promise, you are not sinning. But you must do what you say you will do. If you choose to make a promise to the Lord your God, you must do what you promised. But honestly, Lord Jesus says it best in Matthew 5:33-37, where he says clearly: Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: Not by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. I like His explanation best because he simplifies it in the most sobering of ways. I've heard many a believer in Christ make a promise to God and follow it up by saying something like, '...you do that for me, and I'll do _this_ for you coming through...' as if they are on such grandiose terms with God that they could strike a deal with Him. It is vanity and unbiblical, which is ultimately evil. Avoid such oaths and you will avoid disappointing yourself, others and incurring God's wrath for failing to meet the high standards you've set that you were unable to reach. I believe the lesson here, instead, is if you're going to promise something at all, make it a small thing --- a short term goal and preferably to yourself that you can actually attain. Start small, for you are small. This way, you aren't potentially setting yourself up for [a huge] failure. I hope this helps.
@@Corrinthian_ thanks for your thoughtful response. Does the Bible not also have many verses speaking against fornication, sexual immorality, gluttony, drunkenness? And does not Jesus Himself also speak on these things? Doesn’t it also say “Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect”? You say but we are under grace, and yes I agree. We are under grace if we fall short in sin and we are also under the same grace when/if we fail to fulfill our promises. Scriptures that you provided, to me, say that you should try as hard as you can to honor your promises to God. It’s showing respect to God. It gives fuel to your walk. Like Todd said, calling it a promise that you can’t keep from the beginning is giving yourself an “out” to sin. We’re supposed to take our promises seriously and we are also to take our sin seriously. When you knowit’s a promise you can’t keep, but you intend on trying your hardest to keep it anyway, you will have no choice but to count on His help and you can rely on His strength.. we walk by faith in Him not sight of our circumstances but we can expect to be set free from sin because it’s what He came to do for us. Trying your actual best to keep the promise is where reverence and fear of the Lord comes in. Yes He is gracious… but He will not be mocked. He sees your heart, if you are lukewarm in your promises, and you intend not to keep them, then I guess better not to make them… but an honest heart that desires to please the Lord will not make Him angry if you slip up. He knows we are weak and fallible but He wants us to turn to Him, lean on Him and if you are doing that then you will not fail. He is trustworthy and able. Yes even “our best” Is filthy rags to Him, but then just not try at all? This is an extreme example but…. A person who molests children and “can’t help themselves” should just keep on going and doing that… just whatever you do, “don’t make a promise you can’t keep???” You don’t think that’s what the gospel is, do you? To make such a promise is simply a response to receiving the undeserved gift of grace… And it’s the appropriate response. None of us deserve a second chance or even 100th chance that He freely gives us over and over in His infinite mercy and patience… all I might have are filthy rags of imperfect “righteousness” but I’ll offer what I have and offer everything I have and I’m not going to worry about it being perfect or not, I’m relying on Him either way at the end of the day… He’s the one giving me the strength to try the 101st time. My promise to Him is my response to His grace…. Knowing full well that the scales are totally uneven… that even if by His grace and mercy I’m actually able to one day fulfill these promises, I still don’t deserve Him… I can never deserve Him. Making the promise, is putting yourself in full agreement with God’s standard in an area of your life that you are falling short. I’m a glutton and porn addict… I made a promise to God to no longer do those things. This isn’t because I think I’m so strong to resist. I know for a fact that I am not at all. This is the only response I have…. Everything else that “allows” me to continue in these practices are literally killing me, mind body and soul… “oh don’t worry, there’s grace if you eat too much cake when you are 80 lbs overweight with chronic health problems” “Oh everyone has urges, there’s grace for your porn addiction that you leave your child unattended to go feed” Really?? When the truly loving response is “do everything you possibly can to turn away and stop these things and lean on the strength of God and expect complete and total victory over the devil and all his schemes” I made this promise a little over a month ago and it has changed everything. I stopped making excuses. I stopped trying to justify. I took ownership and am making progress for the first time in my 6 year Christian walk. But it’s only with His help and that part can’t be emphasized enough… if you’re making it about you, your strength etc it’s from the wrong place.. but sometimes you do need to get serious about these things that are seriously affecting you and there’s just no way around that. Sin isn’t a game.
Seeing this made me rejoice in the lord a lil bit not gunna lie. I struggle with this thought all the time I’ve seen the evil and disgusting things in the world and in people a good amount before he came into my life. I’ve come to the conclusion he wants us to feel this way so we are dead to this world. no hopes, nothing you want to accomplish for yourself because you realize it’s all worthless and there’s no point because this system of living will burn YOU JUST WANT TO GO HOME. But think about it then you have no ties to this world that is passing away and can give yourself to his work 100 times better than you could before. Sorry, what you said is dear to my heart
Can you imagine, the absence of sin is the most thrilling thing about heaven, aside from walking with Jesus. I am fed up with sin, wherever you go, whatever electronic device you turn on, it's all sin, sin, endless sin. Blessings..🙏
That's interesting... What you said has definitely got me thinking.... I have always thought of fighting my sin and thought "I'll stop doing it" and then "I know I screwed up Lord, but I promise I'm gonna slowly stop, I can't quit all at once it's hard" and something the Lord has been working with me on for YEARS is TRUSTING Him and giving it to Him and not trying to fight it myself. He took up our sin so it's pointless to fight it ourself, let alone we can't do it alone. Its always been a tendency for us to fight it when we don't need to and to just give it to God and turn away. I'm gonna need the Lords guidance on how to go about it the right way
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”Ephesians 2:8-9“for ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” Romans 10:13
Never heard that but I suppose you may be correct. God help us. Obviously we cannot win fighting it. We can only look for the way of escape as the Lord promised us.
Thank you for sharing this pastor Todd. I’ve recently returned to Christ as a backslider and repented of my sins but still have one that many would not consider to be one. But to me, it is. For once in my life I am truly cognizant of who Jesus Christ is and the great gift of salvation for those of us who the son of God has been revealed. Now our lord Jesus Christ is dealing with me as one of his rather than an infidel. I now know who I have believed in and am certain that he will continue to imbue me with the wisdom, knowledge and strength to overcome the obstacles that beset me through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
My oldest son died a few weeks ago, and I feel closer to God than ever before. The only thing is I keep becoming more aware of my flesh, and that is painful in itself. Coupled with grieving, it became a sanctification microwave oven. I can't even begin to explain how painful the process is on top of fresh grief. But God is holy. Too much in my life was flesh. Romans 8:28 says we know all things work for good for those who love God. So, this entire season of my journey is Father filtered. I know He is good and am devouring His Word, but this video was very timely for me. Thank you, Wretched team!
This right here is some of the greatest advice. Doing exactly this God overcame my addiction to porn, hardcore drugs, and smoking. Promise and begging/pleading with God to keep it for you.
Thank you Todd. I never thought of repentance in this light. And to be honest I couldn't in good conscience promise "not to sin". But,I did make a wholehearted promise to work more diligently to abstain from those sins,and to His grace. It wasn't until recently that I came to the truth that sanctification is a synergistic act. God provides me the grace and the means not to sin. And, I act in faith and love. -That's the way I understood it, anyway. Keep more subjects like this coming.
Thank you mr. Friel for this video it was very enlightening. I am about to do as you instructed and may God help all the Christians who are battling personal sins.
I was praying in the morning for God to show me the way on how to deal with sin. And I opened TH-cam and this video came on my recommendation now either it's super huge coincidence or it's Jesus stuff.
No such thing as coincidence, or luck...bad or good, or even fate or destiny. We were given free will to choose our life " paths". You opening this video, just as I did also is the LORD'S way of talking to us. To save us from ourselves. Hence, choice and the freedom to make good or bad choices. This video really hit home with me because of my struggle with alcohol. It's just what I needed at just the right time with just the right " words" to open my eyes to " choose once and for all" to STOP my choosing to continually make the bad choice of drinking. If we as Christians have our eyes open, free from sin and its distractions and of putting us into " brain fogs" from alcohol, pornogrophy, drugs, etc. And walk in clearness of mind, HE will have signs, words of encouragement, and people to help us with our daily struggles. I thank JESUS for the knowledge and understanding I learned as a young child from my then church. Now, I will fall, for sure...but I WILL NOT RUN INTO SITUATIONS THAT WILL.MAKE ME TRIP ANY LONGER. I now have a " Weapon" in my arsenal to defeat the enemy in his war against my salvation!! One of many of course. I pray for you and YOUR struggles as I do for all who " CHOOSE " the " RIGHT PATH TO GLORY". Amen.
The biggest sin is unbelieve! Many believe in God! But believing God, now that’s hard to do! Everyday I study, study in the word! I started today with a sermon by John MacArthur, followed by reading/studying Ezekiel, followed by study, of Romans 8! Oh how He speaks when I am in the word! My Bible is far better then any great movie, I’ve ever watched! It has no ending!
This video helped me turn everything around and finally have lasting victory over a sin in my life. Thank you Todd, and praise be to God for His love and mercy!
Perhaps I am not completely understanding what you're saying Todd. But I am not comfortable making promises to anyone, let alone God the Father that I am sure I cannot keep. I love you brother, but I am not sure I fully agree with you on this one. 30 And Jesus *said to him, “Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.” 31 But Peter kept saying insistently, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all were saying the same thing also. ~Mark 14:30-32~ Immediately a rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had made the remark to him, “Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And he began to weep. ~Mark 14:72~
Dears Brothers, please pray for me. I have been struggling on and off with masterbation for years. I’ve gone entire seasons without smartphones or laptops, I’ve laid before the Lord for countless hours, Ive told other believers in my life so that I can be held accountable, in spite of all this I’m still failing. It’s like a healthy diet I won’t stay committed to. I might for a week, or weeks or a month be eating good, then I crave junk, buy a pack of donuts, eat two of them, then out of guilt and conviction I trash the rest get back on my diet, wash repeat. I’m ashamed and disgusted in my failure and have a hard time accepting that when I repent I’m forgiven. I feel nasty, unworthy and defiled. Though I know those kinds of thoughts are not from the Lord, they are still messing me up. I’m under attack, I’m failing my King, I keep grieving His Spirit and I need my Brothers to pray for me.
Praying for you, brother. Besides prayer and asking the Lord for strength, commitment to resist our sins is definitely the most powerful thing we can do. There's a lot of good practical/natural wisdom out there to help you drop bad habits (in this case; sin). One helpful thing that I learned through a Bible study was; in order to stop a bad habit, you need to replace it with a good habit. For example, if I suddenly got the urge to [insert bad habit], instead, I would get up and do the dishes, or do some laundry; anything to get my focus off of the temptation. In the moment, it can be very hard to resist temptation, and I'm not perfect at it. However, I've learned that self control is like a muscle that needs to be trained. The more you exercise it, the easier it will get to push away from the temptation. Fasting is a great exercise for self control, too. I would also encourage you to listen to other people's tesimonies about masturbation, and how they got over it. I personally struggled with mastubation for my whole life, and even tried to stop before I was saved. The shame us men feel after doing such a thing is evidence that it is wrong. I think the shame and guilt was what really caused me to stop. However, I still mess up unfortunately. When I am fully awake and fully conscious, I never do it. But sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, the temptation is so strong and I'm also barely conscious; almost like I'm sleepwalking. You aren't alone brother. Many of us are fighting this particular sin. Thank you for being transparent with your struggles.
There are a few things tripping you up here. 1) You're being too hard on yourself when you fail 2) You're not giving yourself enough encouragement when you succeed 3) you're probably giving yourself yoo much credit when you succeed- rely on God's strength A couple of other things that are helpful: learn about Theology of the Body and St. Ignatius' of Loyola's 14 rules for spiritual discernment. "But! *gasp* those people are Catholic!!" Yes. And they're also 100% right about stuff that other Christians have no answers at all for, right or wrong. Well, and being too commited to reformed theology can have a bad effect, too. If you're wrong about free will (Todd Friel is), then you won't make use of your own free will correctly. Changing what you want to what God wants and changing what you love to what God loves is hard work that isn't simply a matter of sitting back, twiddling your thumbs, and hoping God has predestined you. You have to seek God, and God will reward you when you seek him. But again, it isn't about you and it doesn't depend on you. Unless you're relying on his strength to help you seek him, you're gonna keep failing. And if you understand that he loves you in spite of that, it won't discourage you. Check out Theology of the Body Institute on TH-cam. You're falling victim to the "stoic" mindset and it's not ever gonna work for you. If you're going to find lasting success, then you need to learn to think about your body and other people's bodies the way God does, and to pray earnestly and extremely honestly. Don't be a stoic, don't be an addict. There's a middle way that neither condemns what God has made holy (that is, your body), nor makes holy what is profane (sexual sin). You won't get there if you're in despair. You have to learn about how great God's love is for you personally and in your specific situation.
I took your advice at the end of this video and walked down by the spring in the woods. Calling on the Lord for forgiveness and confessing many sins, I know that the Lord will help me to remember those promises of not doing them ever again! The Lord has been faithful and merciful, and i’m the most wretched of them all! Oh that there will be victory, and let that victory be to the glory of God, for apart from Him, i can do nothing!
You are very funny but still give pertinent & insightful knowledge. I like your unique Christian approach, very refreshing how you are not pretending in your presentation.
Just made the prayer and asked God to forgive my “whack a mole” sins. I made the promise not to do it again and asked Him to empower me to keep that promise. Praise Jesus for his mercy and grace for allowing me to live long enough to repent and not let me die in my sin.
Lord, I’m sorry for just apologizing. I am sorry, I promise with your strength to never commit that sin again. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. With God all things are possible. I lay this sin at your feet.
Making a promise to God is a very serious thing. Todd may be right about the repentance thing. But I don't encourage anyone to take his dangerous advice on making a vow. You can get victory without making a vow/promise. I did. It's just a heart thing. I just got really sick and tired of the sin, hated it and how it made me abuse God's grace and hurt God. I wanted from the very bottom of my heart to forever be done with it and cried out to God on my knees for help. He heard and delivered me instantly. Something I struggled with for many years, and cried for help with for many years, was gone instantly just like that. Because that day I truly repented from the heart and didn't keep excuses at the back of my mind like I used to. I decided from the bottom of my heart to obey and follow Jesus in all areas of my life, no turning back. And I knew it would be a costly decision but I still made it. And that was the day I was truly born-again and tasted God's power to save from sin. I had still worried about going back, but the worry this time was different because it was immediately quenched with the word of God in Phil 1:6 KJB. I didn't save myself from that sin, instead God did when my heart was truly repentant of it. And it's only by His grace and the conviction of His holy Spirit that I was enabled to repent like that. After all I had tried to repent in my own strength for many years but was never able to and kept going back. I don't recall if I've ever repented that deeply ever since either, even though I've repented of many other things since in a much looser definition of the term. I've just naturally turned from many other things I used to do since then as I continued my walk in the faith. And I've never again gone back to that sin ever since that day and it's been a few years since. Even though I've been tempted in like manner as I used to. And there were many difficult times afterwards where I found it was still extremely hard to resist that sin, yet I was still able to find victory. Always. Every single time since that day. Sometimes just by calling on the Lord Jesus Christ for help or quoting some scripture from the King James Bible, God's holy and perfect word. Or both. Victory every single time. He never failed me and never will. He's proved His word to be true every time I choose to take it seriously enough and 100% believe it. He helped me make up my mind to never turn back without making any single promise. I just gave up on going back to that hell hole spiral of sin and decided to trust in His promises in His word instead. Definitely not in my own promise, but in His. In the old testament, making such promises to God was fairly common. But from the many examples in the old testament, we can also see that man's ability to keep such promises to God is insufficient. So when Jesus shows up in the new testament, He actually discourages us from making such promises. In Mat 5:33-37 KJB, it reads, "Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: 34. But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne: 35. Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King. 36. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. 37. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. " God doesn't want us making such vows/promises anymore. Instead he wants our yes and no to be as good as a promise. In the same way God's every word, including the yes and no's, (2Cor 1:17-20, 1Th 2:13 KJB) are also as good as a promise we can trust in. Also, even the old testament has warnings regarding making any suchlike promise, Ecc 5:4-5 KJB, "When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for [he hath] no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. 5. Better [is it] that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay." Deu 23:21-22 KJB, "When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee. 22. But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee." You have no guarantee you'll even be here tomorrow and yet you want to make promises to the eternal God? I really hoping anyone considering Todd's advice in this video would reconsider that part even though the brother probably meant it in good faith. Thanks for reading to anyone who read it all to the end. I pray this edifies someone out there. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen. 🙏❤️
That's awesome you mentioned Omaha! That's where I'm from. Spent around 27 years or so in total living there. I always wonder if other people know of that city. I do know many do, but still curious about others.
I am reluctant to make promises i can't keep. It would be lying after all. Then again, just like it isn't me pulling the weight of salvation, neither is it me keeping such a promise. HE is doing it, and He can do what I cannot.
Update; Todd, I'm gonna hug you if I ever see you. Since my last comment, I changed my mind and decided to make a promise to God, not just a promise to try, but not to do t. And, though it has only been a few days, you were correct in saying that "the promise has power. I have not just been renewing my promise every morning, but every time that particular temptation comes to mine. And, then I begin praying His word to Him. In turn, preaching it to myself. I've shed a lot of tears. But, most have been of joy. Thanks, brother Todd.
I started praying "lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil". I will admit, I have always been a bit confused by this wording, but I have seen such improvement since using this prayer. I believe total deliverance is soon to come. I would love to see you do a video explaining this part of the Lord's prayer.
The path of the righteous are ordered by God. When we are His, and if we ask Him to direct our ways, then in line with that scripture He is able to steer us away from temptations and even to deliver us from troubles (evils) that are lying in wait to befall us. God bless.
Because I am a sinner to the bone I can not promise God anything. Promises are broke and that would just add to my sin. I try to remember that Christ suffered and died for the sin I was about to do. That's heart breaking!
G'day, Pastor Friel! What comes to mind is "the sin that so easily entangles" from Hebrews 12:1; also, Paul's confession of doing the evil that he doesn't want to do in Romans 7:19.
Romans 7:14-20 “We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”
He is absolutely right. I always stop myself from promises and just say ill try really hard not to do it again. Thank you for this message father Lord 🙏
Thank you brother Todd, for this HUGE spiritual message. Finally, a method which actually works! I pray for God, to bestow you with the grace to heal more people.
Thank you for the triple double dog dare for my commitment in resisting my whack-a-mole sin. You don’t even know how much I really appreciate you spelling this out for me brother. This is empowering and I can see that the other sins that God has saved me from also required that same level of commitment in the past. What a powerful reminder. Thank you for the encouragement and for the triple double dog dare. May God be gracious to empower all of us who come to Him and commit ourselves to walking the straight and narrow path and putting off the old man and putting on the new man in Christ so that we no longer walk in the wrong direction.
Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. DO NOT BE DECEIVED BROTHERS. Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. James 1:13-18
The whack a mole sin I have isn't big per se, except it's the last addiction I have and I can't seem to stop it. I quit all the others cold turkey, but you can't quit this sin like that, and the only thing that is "big" about it is ME. I have a food addiction. I have an addictive personality, so one would expect that THAT stronghold would be the last to go and the hardest to beat. So I'm doing the same thing I did for all my other sins: confess, ask for forgiveness, ask for strength to turn and repent of it. Every day, every meal. If I could just stop eating completely, throw out or give away all my food and never buy any again, it wouldn't be so difficult. I'm also working on remembering the, die to self or, "deny yourself" way of thinking and trying to remember that I have a choice to stop. It's hard to remember when you're in it. I mean, while you're eating. I won't promise God anything any more because I used to do that when I was younger and I always broke my promises and now I can't even remember what they were so I could make it right. But I'll try your way. It's not like my way has been working... I mean for this particular sin, not all the others. I am more committed to God now than I was when I was young. But if I find myself at the end of a binge and then realize what I've done, I'm referring God to you.
The key is to acknowledge that it is wrong, and in light of God’s grace to make the choice to go in the proper direction and pray and rely on the power and grace of God to enable and strengthen you forward and through temptation
Todd, my brother in Christ, I caught this video earlier today, and it's sincerely been on my heart since then. But it sounds like you're saying to many Christians who sincerely want to be free from their fleshly pull to sin, to please God, (myself included) that it's as simple as "hey, have your ever tried NOT sinning; huh, yeah, boom you're fixed!". And I'm struggling to find a biblical basis for that. Yes we are told to repent and believe in Christ (turning from unbelief to belief), and we are told to confess our sins. But what is Romans 7:14-25 all about, with Paul in agony over his sin in so many of his letters, did he simply not know about "repentance, boom you're fixed!"? I struggle with a besetting sin common to man, and I hate it, I hate it, I hate it, and yet I find myself from time to time, pulled back toward it. I don't have all the answers, but sincerely, my heart is for God, I am bought and paid for by His Son, and the desire of my heart is to please Him; but I still find myself stumbling to sin in my walk. With all that in mind, in direct response to this video, I'm left with three options. 1. I'm not genuinely saved, and if that's true, weep for me because apart from trusting in Christ, I have no idea how to be. 2. There is some gnostic component to repentance that either isn't readily available, or is completely unknown to me. 3. That the one who is faithful to complete the good work He started in me, is still at work in me. (here's praying its #3).
The Lord's example is what helped me. The same way Jesus resisted temptation is how we also resist. His word promises that if we resist the devil, he will flee from us PERIOD But you HAVE TO STAY IN AND KNOW THE WORD! The Lord showed me that I was: 1. Listening to sermons about the Bible 2. Listening to podcasts about the Bible 3. Consuming TH-cam about the Bible 4. Reading books about the Bible. But I WASN'T ACTUALLY READING MY BIBLE. This shouldn't be so. Everyone has enough time to read at least one book of the New Testament a day. Most of the books take an hour and a half or less. You'll be done with the New Testament in less than 30 days. Do that for 6 months. You're life will completely change. "Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double minded." - James 4:8
I’m glad the Lord convicted you on doing Christian things but not reading the actual word of God. I see that as a great reason so many get hooked into false teaching. They think they know God’s word spending a lot of time doing God things but because they don’t diligently read it, they are fooled by preachers who quote a lot of scripture but are taking it out of context or twisting it. We have to be Bereans, it’s really that simple. Blessings to you🙏
I didnt know that I could tell God I promise!! I thought using the word PROMISE was being arrogant toward God, but now that I can i know my repentece will be sincere. Not saying im not sincere with repenting but understanding with how repentence is with promise is more clear. ( deep sigh) thank u
This is great, thank you... I know that cycle, and am so relieved and blessed to be out of that for many many years. Christ did deliver me - oh what victory! and P.S. being from Canada, I want to drive out of the freezing weather right now! 😉
Lee-Lee, praise God! We are delighted to hear of deliverance from sin through Christ. And maybe now would be a good time to head for the Gulf of Mexico!! Thanks for watching. - Ethan from Wretched
He also says James 5:12, KJV: But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.... Todd made a mistake by saying to make a promise.
@@Nodeelite that means don't take vows on things you don't have control of. It isn't referring to explicitives. It refers to saying something like "I swear/vow upon/by ____..." and christ is saying don't do this, instead just make sure you follow through on what you say. So a hypothetical example of what christ is saying not to do is "I swear upon heaven that I will till all of our fields today!" You are making a vow on something you don't have the ability or right to swear upon (in this case you are also promising something you can't guarantee will be a successful task as it is something that is a big job in a small amount of time and it is therefore potentially worse as a result.) What christ is saying you should do is say something like "hey, I'll go till the field" and then you go and till the field. That way you aren't committing blasphemy or some other sin and your yes's and no's are more meaningful. It's like the normally calm and collected person raising their voice against something bad, it has more meaning because it is not cheapened by constant/lesser use.
@@leessa65 that is what it means. The other person doesn't know what they're talking about. The term 'swearing' in the new sense is explitives the old sense is to make vow or an official promise. This scripture (based on the context) is in the old sense.
It is about being honest with God and yourself. You know your half-hearted attempts that you think are wholehearted attempts to stop sinning are in reality weak because you enjoy the sin and deep down you don’t want to give it up. Once you realize that, you can decide whether you are going to repent or stay in your sin. I speak from personal experience.
No amount of self determination can help you stop. You can’t fight the flesh with the flesh. You need to lean on the power of the Spirit of Life that was in Christ Jesus to do it (Romans 8:2). This has to be a moment by moment thing. Don’t reason with a temptation - flee from it as soon as it begins.
Hang on this is only half the help. Abide in Jesus. Prayer, delight and enjoyment in Christ. This is only possible by wholly trust in the blood of Jesus. The scripture says walk according to the Spirit and you will not gratify the sinful nature. We often try harder thinking that once we have our "act together", then we can come to Jesus. COME BOLDLY to the throne of grace that you may receive mercy and find grace to help in your time of need. Read Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund . It is supremely helpful.
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us
I am not sure how you promise to not get annoyed with people. I struggle with that a lot. It is not even something I sit and think, "Oh, I am going to get annoyed that I told them three times how to do something, but they did it wrong, and now I have to fix it." Things go bad, and I instantly get annoyed. I do not fly off the handle and yell and punch things, but I get so frustrated in my heart. I am unsure how to promise God I will never get frustrated again. I know that it is many sins in that one sin. I know it is pride because I would not have screwed it up. It is selfishness because I don't want to take the time to do it myself. It is anger at someone else. It is mean thoughts that pop into my mind to say. I know all this is sin, but it happens in a flash and is not something I sit and contemplate and then decide to do it.
You don't have to promise not to get annoyed. You can commit to asking God to help you see people the way He does and LOVE them the way he does. It comes out automatically cuz your mind needs renewal. Look for verses about what God says about other people and forgiveness and meditate on them. Sometimes for me, with stuff like this it helps to, as soon I'm convicted, repent to God immediately and in humility seek forgiveness from anyone I sinned against. Like if I'm short with someone cuz I was annoyed or if I am distant to OWN it and ask the person to forgive me. Over time God will catch me while I'm in the middle of being a jerk and correct me and eventually He will check me as I'm headed in that direction. As I keep seeking him He even gives empathy and sympathy for others so my response isn't as callous as it was to begin with. Just ask Him to give you His heart for people and commit to doing it His way when you fail. It will shift.
@@brandi5326 my dad was a pastor and passed away from Covid in September 2021. I sold my home and moved my family in to my moms house to take care of her. That has been a hard struggle and has pushed me in many ways. It is a lot of stress and at times my cup runneth over. I confess it right away and also ask forgiveness of the person I may have been short with. It just seems like in recent months there is more frustration than not. I am all for repenting but not sure I would promise God. I did that one time in life where I promised God about something and I broke that promise. I struggled with that for a long, long time. Thank you for your kind words.
@@randyalanjones Oh I see. So you're really in a pressure cooker of a situation and it's squeezing you in a way that's making stuff come out of you that you don't like. I understand that too. I have had a similar situation (not in terms of similar circumstances, just that the fire was turned up soooo much that I was reacting in ways I DID NOT LIKE). It's really tough. I'm really sorry for what you're going through. The one thing I know though is, as brutal as it is, it's also an opportunity to really lean into God and have him reveal himself to you even more intimately than ever before. I'll keep you in my prayers. Sorry if I misunderstood or misinterpreted your intent in your original post though. Keep standing in faith
@@brandi5326 I have prayed for God not to change others around me but change me. I know I have the nasty heart and struggle with the pressure cooker as you say. You said nothing wrong and your advice was good. Thank you for your response.
Theologically, I agree that repentance is vital to victory over persistent sin. However, I believe well-meaning teachers, preachers, churches, believers etc., give the false impression that it's easy to stop an addiction or other chronic sin issue by simply saying a prayer and trying harder. Repentance is not a simple word. It is an on-going process led by the Holy Spirit that involves much more than a one-time prayer. Salvation is once, for all, but sanctification is a lifetime process. Sure, I can make an earnest promise to God to "never do it again." But as Rom. 12:1 says, I am a "living sacrifice," which means that my prayer of commitment can be genuine and heart-felt today, and completely forgotten on another day. A living sacrifice doesn't stay on the alter! I think we also confuse forgiveness and healing by making them synonymous. I can sincerely repent and be completely forgiven by God (1 John 1:9), but that doesn't mean I'm healed from all the underlying issues that consistently lead me to sin. James 5:16 says, "Confess your sins to each other so that you may be healed." When I confess my sins to God, He forgives me. When I confess my sins to others, He heals me. Healing isn't an instant event; it's a process led by the Holy Spirit that involves connection with others - a few trusted, safe believers. So, I agree that repentance is the start and is key to eventually achieving victory over sin. But total victory and freedom is a process that takes time, and work involving confession, self-examination and connection to other people. The opposite of addiction is connection - to God, self, and others.
Remember, sin no longer has any effect over us. We have the Holy Spirit living in is. A repetitive, ongoing sin is the result of giving that sin strength over us.
I love the roadtrip illustration! My only question is: How do we make the distinction between promising God that we won’t commit that “whack-a-mole sin” again and what Jesus said about oaths (Matthew 5:33-37)?
“If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.” Num 30:2 Anyone who makes a promise to not sin has done what Israel did at Sinai, in saying “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do” Exo 19:8 In saying "we will do it" they, therefore, bound themselves to an oath of salvation by works. It is the faith of Jesus which saves, those who choose to serve the Lord must do so by His faith. The Jews of old misunderstood this point. Notice Romans 9:31-32. “But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.” These all served the Lord, but they did it not by faith, and we know that whatever is not of faith is sin. [Romans 14:23].
Had to rewatch this video after God exposed a pattern of sin I was committing where I was not consistent with my church attendance and Bible reading (I was having an idol in my life and I was making excuses) I repented of it and now I’m making progress to not do this sin again as it doesn’t honor God!
I want to stop smoking. But I do not dare promise it to thee Lord I never Promise Him anything because I Nam affride ki cannot keep it. I am so sad about it.
Jesus said, “Let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil” Making promises is probably a bad idea because when or if you fail the condemnation you feel is surely worse…making a vow to God is not good advice, why didn’t Todd use the scripture to back his claim? Or is this his own idea? I mean the Lord tells us not too…..by the end of the week many people will learn that it’s a bad idea to make a Vow to the Lord and will be many tears..
Sometimes a support group or counseling can help. Maybe there is a heart wound and the person is reaching to causing them to sin. Maybe they have childhood trauma or something that needs to be talked about before they can find freedom from sin. Habitual sin just doesn't come from nowhere in all cases. The person may need to forgive themselves or others to heal and stop sinning habitually or compulsively. Sometimes the 1 Step program of repentance requires the support of the 12 step program to actually work.
Good lessons, up until the "I promise not to do it again" part. Were making such promises helpful, wouldn't there be a lot of incredible, nearly sinless people walking around? I think a lot of us have promised, I know I have, and still fell again and again. We promise and fall, which is much the kind of struggle Paul describes in Romans 6-8. Repentance is important, and I myself found accountability to a brother super helpful.
Paul says in Romans "I will to do what I do not do and do what I will not to do." This indicates that sin is still present in his mortal body and that he still falls short. What's the solution? "Lord take me away from this wretched body." Now Paul is not advocating for intentionally sinning but showing that even though we will not to sin we still fall short because sin is in our mortal body and it is sin that does it and not us.
1 John 1:8 New American Standard Bible 8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us. By Todd's logic, he has stopped sinning, or he still hasn't repented.
Wrong assumption. Read the verse above that. 1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." How can we be cleansed from ALL sin and then have 1 John 1:8 be speaking about those who have been cleansed from all sin? 🤔? Also consider John 8:33 where this mindset was also related to what we read in 1 John 1:8 John 8:33 "They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?" You can have freedom in Christ today, my friend.
@@RAGEFORDAYS I'm neither a believer in entire sanctification (Weslyan idea) or "Lordship salvation" (backdoor version of works salvation), but I agree with you. John loved to use hyperbole and apparent contradictions. He filled his gospel and his epistles with that kind of language (which he may have learned from Jesus, depending on where your translators placed the quotation marks and red ink). See John 3:16 and the whole paragraph it's in. God came to save, God did not come to condemn, but they are already condemned because they have not believed. The passages that inspire heavy debate in John - No man will come to me unless he is drawn, I will draw all men to myself, Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no life in you, unless you're born from above you will neither see nor enter the Kingdom of God... all of this stuff is hyperbolic language that isn't intended to spark debates over soteriology or sacrements, but to illustrate a point.
@@RAGEFORDAYS i make no assumptions, besides the fact u/Todd/and I have sinned since coming to Christ. So maybe we shouldn't pretend we don't sin, it gives the wrong impression to ppl that need salvation.
James 5:12, KJV: But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
I think God takes promises really seriously so I don't think it's wise to make promises about this. Ecclesiastes 5:5 It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it.
Yeah, Friel's advice is really bad. I'll tell you something that works: pray. Pray honestly. Pray more. Don't give up. Not for weeks or months or years. God listens to you when you pray. But don't be surprised if he answers your prayers in a way you never saw coming! And don't be surprised if, when he answers your prayers, he takes away your treasures and forces you to learn that you need to have treasure in heaven, instead.
Accountability to a person who you look up to helps. Talk about with him like a brother and ask him to hold you accountable. Has helped me a lot. Keeps me from hiding sin.
@@kenmeyertwo I started being accountability partners with someone with the same issue, like mutual accountability. It has somewhat helped but not quite... more often than not we just say "hey I did it again" replied by "that sucks" and nothing really changes.
My personal experience, at least in the case of LUST, is that "fighting" and "trying harder for the Lord" has failed so hard. I speak this out because there are so many Christian men (and quite a few Christian women) who struggle with this, and HATE it. They HATE their sin as I have, and are broken because inside deep down inside, if they honestly ask themselves (i'm looking at you) if they are going to commit the same sin again despite hating it, the answer is yes. Flee sexual immorality! Don't "stand up" to it. Don't "fight" it. RUUUNN! Acknowledge your own weakness before God and ask Him to fight for you. I suck. I sin. I hate it. I fall short. "Winning" 60% percent of the time is not winning. Please take all this temptation away and fight for me, because I am weak, and I need Your strength to go ahead of me. See 1 Corinthians 6:18, 2 Corinthians 12:7-9 Your experience might be different. This is what I have found. I hope this helped someone.
6 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. 5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord. 12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace. From Slaves of Sin to Slaves of God 15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness. 20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
For those struggling with porn... You must tell your pastor or another spiritual leader. You need to be disciplined. You've gotta lay it all out there and get help from a Godly man to hold you accountable. You can pretend to try one your own all you want, but all you're doing is hiding your shame. Man up by humbling yourself and get help
But don't we like Paul need that thorn to remind us that we cannot do it. You cannot promise that because it is a promise you will never keep, If by chance I keep my promise then it is I who did it and not God. A promise is a reliance on self not God. You should never make a promise to God. Choose a different word. When you break that promise again and again you will feel defeated because YOU cannot keep such a promise. THOUGHTS ANYONE??????
I agree. Sometimes, we need that thorn in our side to pray and lean on him daily. It humbles us not to rely on our own power and strength but his grace daily. Also, sin reveals our heart and what condition it's in, and overcoming it is a journey, a process. Instead of promising to God, make it a habit to read the Bible and pray every day. Be disciplined about that first and fill your life with godly things, and slowly, he will change your heart. Repentance is key, but making a promise to the Most High when we are struggling in the flesh, in my opinion, is not a wise thing to do.
Hey Y’all;
We are always thrilled when folks quote verses to make their case! To those who quote James 5: 12 (do not swear by heaven or earth) to discourage promising God we will not sin, permit me to share some other verses that will help us understand what James was commanding.
Let’s start in the Old Testament.
Adam made a marriage vow before God in the garden (Genesis 2: 23,24). Most of us have taken a vow before God and man to stay faithful to our spouses until death do us part. The Mosaic covenant is a vow to God to obey His statutes (Exodus 19-24). Further, we see multiple vows prescribed in the Old Testament (Leviticus 27; Numbers 6).
Paul took two Nazarite vows (Acts 18,21). There is no indication he was sinning.
With that in mind, James could not be saying we can never make a promise/vow to the Lord. James was simply commanding the first century believers to not follow the pattern of Jewish people who constantly made casual and flippant vows, “I swear by heaven and earth I will be there by noon.” This is what Jesus was warning in Matthew 5: 34-37. We are to be people of our word, and casual vows should not be necessary.
Conclusion: Rash, trite, and unnecessary vows are forbidden. Earnest vows made to the Lord are not sinful and should be kept.
Feel free to respond, and I triple pinky promise to respond.
Wait, sorry. Scrap that last vow.
- Todd Friel
Ecclesiastes 5:5 It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it.
dont swear by anything at all ever
Hey Todd. Thanks for engaging with our comments. I agree with all you said here. The point of my original post was just to remind people how hard it can be sometimes to make and keep a genuine vow, when our sinful flesh is always trying to trip us up. Earnest vows to God are certainly not sinful. However, as a general practice, I think vows should be taken with the certainty of being able to keep them, and should not be taken with merely the hope of being able to keep them. In practice, making vows to God may help many people. But I want to caution those who make vows just to get extra motivation to avoid sin. Imagine your resistance to sin goes from 60% to 70% after making a vow. That looks like a good thing at first, but 70% is no guarantee of purity. So when you sin again, you will be guilty of both the sin and the broken vow.
In conclusion, I completely agree with you. But the practicality of the situation calls for serious contemplation before making vows to God.
God bless.
Thank you for opening up commmets. Thank you for your content. Thank you for engaging on here. Comment section can be a blessing and a curse, thank you for giving it a try.
These guys close the comments on videos they know they will get schooled on, lol it’s mockers with little knowledge like these youtubers who are found by there own knowledge 🤣 but to think there isn’t an Origin when looking around, I mean .. you have to be blind 🤣😂
The method of promising God that I'll never commit 'that sin' again is one which I've used many times. For some people in some circumstances, it is certainly a powerful method, as Todd says. However, as your brother in Christ, I must warn of two dangers. First, remember what Jesus said in Matthew 5:33-37, "Do not take an oath at all, ... Let what you say be simply 'Yes' or 'No'; anything more than this comes from evil." So before making any special promises, examine yourself for evil, in light of Jesus' words. Second, be very careful about promising to never again fall to your addictive sins. The addict's mindset is not easily broken. So if you sin again, and promise God again, and sin again, and promise God again, and sin again, you will eventually end up worse than when you started because you will see yourself as a liar. Rather, when dealing with addictive sins, don't make promises to God that you know you won't keep. Instead, petition God every single day in prayer, morning and night, to give you strength and clarity to stand strong. Keep the Word in your mind at all times. When temptation comes, thank God for helping you resist.
Anyone who makes a promise to not sin has done what Israel did at Sinai, in saying “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do” Exo 19:8
In saying "we will do it" they, therefore, bound themselves to an oath of salvation by works.
It is the faith of Jesus which saves, those who choose to serve the Lord must do so by His faith.
The Jews of old misunderstood this point. Notice Romans 9:31-32.
“But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.”
These all served the Lord, but they did it not by faith, and we know that whatever is not of faith is sin. [Romans 14:23].
I too wouldn’t make an oath because scriptures say that those who swear something in the name of the Lord, the Lord will require it of them (I’m counting making a promise to God as the same thing).
If you end up resisting that sin because you promised God and fear the consequences of breaking that promise, it really seems like you’re relying on your self to overcome this, it doesn’t seem like it will help your faith or cause you to grow spiritually.
Once you’ve set your heart and mind on something, you really will desire it and all the more earnestly and desperately you will plead with God for strength
I’m looking at it in a different light at this point in time, although maybe a month ago I would have agreed with you and the replies to this, as someone who has struggled for many years with multiple addictive sins. If you make a promise to God that you fully KNOW that you are utterly incapable of keeping by your own strength, the power and glory of actually keeping the promise is all from God. Every step you take in resistance and surrender to Him is giving Him glory not you…
We all need His grace to overcome but we also need to recognize that sin is death… He came, lived, and gave His perfect life to set us free, not to keep us stuck. “If you love me, you will keep my commandments” - this is a promise… not another command. He gives His Spirit to be our helper… The Holy Spirit is Holy and does not sin. He gives us His perfect word so that we know which way to go… He is not glorified by us being stuck in sin. He did everything to set us free. Make that promise that you can’t fulfill, knowing that He is the faithful one that will see it through and praise Him all the way as you watch. This has been my breakthrough process that He has been leading me through. I prayed “help me to be more like you, Jesus” And I heard a voice in my chest, “There Is None Like Me. There Will Never Be Another Like Me. And I Am With You.”
He is more powerful than any sin. He wants you to be set free. He is willing and able to make it happen with or without your help, but yes making this promise and truly meaning it is really telling God that you desire what He desires above all things and it is powerful. 🎉🔥🙌🏼
Our God truly is a Great God.. God bless you all 🙏🏼💗
@@jessszabo5049 Appeal to the scriptures.
We must walk by faith, not by sight.
The passage that came to mind after reading over your comment a few times was Ecclesiastes 5:2-7 which reads:
Think before you speak, and don't make any rash promises to God.
He is in heaven and you are on earth, so don't say any more than you have to.
The more you worry, the more likely you are to have bad dreams, and the more you talk, the more likely you are to say something foolish.
So when you make a promise to God, keep it as quickly as possible.
He has no use for a fool.
Do what you promise to do.
_Better not to promise at all than to make a promise and not keep it._
Don't let your own words lead you into sin, so that you have to tell God's priest that you didn't mean it.
Why make God angry with you?
Why let him destroy what you have worked for?
No matter how much you dream, how much useless work you do, or how much you talk, you must still stand in awe of God.
So, my question to you is...what if you mess up?
You can always backslide.
After all, you are fallible and God is not.
He isn't capable of breaking promises because he's perfect and doesn't make mistakes.
Deuteronomy 23:21-23 puts it quite well, also when it states:
“When you make a promise to the Lord your God, don’t be slow to pay everything you promised.
The Lord your God will demand that you pay it.
You will sin if you don’t pay what you promised."
If you don’t make a promise, you are not sinning.
But you must do what you say you will do.
If you choose to make a promise to the Lord your God, you must do what you promised.
But honestly, Lord Jesus says it best in Matthew 5:33-37, where he says clearly:
Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne:
Not by the earth; for it is his footstool:
neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.
I like His explanation best because he simplifies it in the most sobering of ways.
I've heard many a believer in Christ make a promise to God and follow it up by saying something like, '...you do that for me, and I'll do _this_ for you coming through...' as if they are on such grandiose terms with God that they could strike a deal with Him.
It is vanity and unbiblical, which is ultimately evil.
Avoid such oaths and you will avoid disappointing yourself, others and incurring God's wrath for failing to meet the high standards you've set that you were unable to reach.
I believe the lesson here, instead, is if you're going to promise something at all, make it a small thing --- a short term goal and preferably to yourself that you can actually attain.
Start small, for you are small.
This way, you aren't potentially setting yourself up for [a huge] failure.
I hope this helps.
@@Corrinthian_ thanks for your thoughtful response. Does the Bible not also have many verses speaking against fornication, sexual immorality, gluttony, drunkenness? And does not Jesus Himself also speak on these things? Doesn’t it also say “Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect”?
You say but we are under grace, and yes I agree. We are under grace if we fall short in sin and we are also under the same grace when/if we fail to fulfill our promises. Scriptures that you provided, to me, say that you should try as hard as you can to honor your promises to God. It’s showing respect to God. It gives fuel to your walk. Like Todd said, calling it a promise that you can’t keep from the beginning is giving yourself an “out” to sin. We’re supposed to take our promises seriously and we are also to take our sin seriously. When you knowit’s a promise you can’t keep, but you intend on trying your hardest to keep it anyway, you will have no choice but to count on His help and you can rely on His strength.. we walk by faith in Him not sight of our circumstances but we can expect to be set free from sin because it’s what He came to do for us. Trying your actual best to keep the promise is where reverence and fear of the Lord comes in. Yes He is gracious… but He will not be mocked. He sees your heart, if you are lukewarm in your promises, and you intend not to keep them, then I guess better not to make them… but an honest heart that desires to please the Lord will not make Him angry if you slip up. He knows we are weak and fallible but He wants us to turn to Him, lean on Him and if you are doing that then you will not fail. He is trustworthy and able. Yes even “our best” Is filthy rags to Him, but then just not try at all? This is an extreme example but…. A person who molests children and “can’t help themselves” should just keep on going and doing that… just whatever you do, “don’t make a promise you can’t keep???” You don’t think that’s what the gospel is, do you? To make such a promise is simply a response to receiving the undeserved gift of grace… And it’s the appropriate response. None of us deserve a second chance or even 100th chance that He freely gives us over and over in His infinite mercy and patience… all I might have are filthy rags of imperfect “righteousness” but I’ll offer what I have and offer everything I have and I’m not going to worry about it being perfect or not, I’m relying on Him either way at the end of the day… He’s the one giving me the strength to try the 101st time. My promise to Him is my response to His grace…. Knowing full well that the scales are totally uneven… that even if by His grace and mercy I’m actually able to one day fulfill these promises, I still don’t deserve Him… I can never deserve Him. Making the promise, is putting yourself in full agreement with God’s standard in an area of your life that you are falling short. I’m a glutton and porn addict… I made a promise to God to no longer do those things. This isn’t because I think I’m so strong to resist. I know for a fact that I am not at all. This is the only response I have…. Everything else that “allows” me to continue in these practices are literally killing me, mind body and soul…
“oh don’t worry, there’s grace if you eat too much cake when you are 80 lbs overweight with chronic health problems”
“Oh everyone has urges, there’s grace for your porn addiction that you leave your child unattended to go feed”
Really??
When the truly loving response is “do everything you possibly can to turn away and stop these things and lean on the strength of God and expect complete and total victory over the devil and all his schemes”
I made this promise a little over a month ago and it has changed everything. I stopped making excuses. I stopped trying to justify. I took ownership and am making progress for the first time in my 6 year Christian walk. But it’s only with His help and that part can’t be emphasized enough… if you’re making it about you, your strength etc it’s from the wrong place.. but sometimes you do need to get serious about these things that are seriously affecting you and there’s just no way around that. Sin isn’t a game.
I just want to be out of this wicked world already
Seeing this made me rejoice in the lord a lil bit not gunna lie. I struggle with this thought all the time I’ve seen the evil and disgusting things in the world and in people a good amount before he came into my life. I’ve come to the conclusion he wants us to feel this way so we are dead to this world. no hopes, nothing you want to accomplish for yourself because you realize it’s all worthless and there’s no point because this system of living will burn YOU JUST WANT TO GO HOME. But think about it then you have no ties to this world that is passing away and can give yourself to his work 100 times better than you could before. Sorry, what you said is dear to my heart
Can you imagine, the absence of sin is the most thrilling thing about heaven, aside from walking with Jesus.
I am fed up with sin, wherever you go, whatever electronic device you turn on, it's all sin, sin, endless sin.
Blessings..🙏
amen
I feel ya. I think the same sometimes. We must strive to be faithful until we see him... what a glorious day.
I just want everyone to open their hearts to christ already
This is so tremendously helpful because so many of us as Christians don’t think to turn from our sin but instead to fight it. Thank you for this!
I'm waiting for my bluetooth to connect, so I can hear the video, but your comment makes so much sense. Really looking forward to this now!
That's interesting... What you said has definitely got me thinking.... I have always thought of fighting my sin and thought "I'll stop doing it" and then "I know I screwed up Lord, but I promise I'm gonna slowly stop, I can't quit all at once it's hard" and something the Lord has been working with me on for YEARS is TRUSTING Him and giving it to Him and not trying to fight it myself. He took up our sin so it's pointless to fight it ourself, let alone we can't do it alone. Its always been a tendency for us to fight it when we don't need to and to just give it to God and turn away. I'm gonna need the Lords guidance on how to go about it the right way
“For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”Ephesians 2:8-9“for ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” Romans 10:13
Never heard that but I suppose you may be correct. God help us. Obviously we cannot win fighting it. We can only look for the way of escape as the Lord promised us.
Thank you for sharing this pastor Todd. I’ve recently returned to Christ as a backslider and repented of my sins but still have one that many would not consider to be one. But to me, it is. For once in my life I am truly cognizant of who Jesus Christ is and the great gift of salvation for those of us who the son of God has been revealed.
Now our lord Jesus Christ is dealing with me as one of his rather than an infidel. I now know who I have believed in and am certain that he will continue to imbue me with the wisdom, knowledge and strength to overcome the obstacles that beset me through the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
My oldest son died a few weeks ago, and I feel closer to God than ever before. The only thing is I keep becoming more aware of my flesh, and that is painful in itself. Coupled with grieving, it became a sanctification microwave oven. I can't even begin to explain how painful the process is on top of fresh grief. But God is holy. Too much in my life was flesh. Romans 8:28 says we know all things work for good for those who love God. So, this entire season of my journey is Father filtered. I know He is good and am devouring His Word, but this video was very timely for me. Thank you, Wretched team!
Lord have mercy on you and be with you in his comfort. 🙏
@Mary MM amen, thank you sister.
This right here is some of the greatest advice. Doing exactly this God overcame my addiction to porn, hardcore drugs, and smoking. Promise and begging/pleading with God to keep it for you.
Praise God!
- Ethan from Wretched
One key that's helped me in theology, and in everyday practice is knowing God grants repentance. Praying I ask God to grant me what He commands.
Amen, James!
- Ethan from Wretched
That's the heart of Psalm 119.
Thank you Todd. I never thought of repentance in this light. And to be honest I couldn't in good conscience promise "not to sin". But,I did make a wholehearted promise to work more diligently to abstain from those sins,and to His grace. It wasn't until recently that I came to the truth that sanctification is a synergistic act. God provides me the grace and the means not to sin. And, I act in faith and love. -That's the way I understood it, anyway. Keep more subjects like this coming.
After being saved, some sins immediately stopped having power over me but others remained. The struggle is real. Thanks for the video Todd!
So true
Why can't you stop them all? If you love Jesus
Thank you mr. Friel for this video it was very enlightening. I am about to do as you instructed and may God help all the Christians who are battling personal sins.
I was praying in the morning for God to show me the way on how to deal with sin. And I opened TH-cam and this video came on my recommendation now either it's super huge coincidence or it's Jesus stuff.
No such thing as coincidence, or luck...bad or good, or even fate or destiny. We were given free will to choose our life " paths". You opening this video, just as I did also is the LORD'S way of talking to us. To save us from ourselves. Hence, choice and the freedom to make good or bad choices. This video really hit home with me because of my struggle with alcohol. It's just what I needed at just the right time with just the right " words" to open my eyes to " choose once and for all" to STOP my choosing to continually make the bad choice of drinking. If we as Christians have our eyes open, free from sin and its distractions and of putting us into " brain fogs" from alcohol, pornogrophy, drugs, etc. And walk in clearness of mind, HE will have signs, words of encouragement, and people to help us with our daily struggles. I thank JESUS for the knowledge and understanding I learned as a young child from my then church. Now, I will fall, for sure...but I WILL NOT RUN INTO SITUATIONS THAT WILL.MAKE ME TRIP ANY LONGER. I now have a " Weapon" in my arsenal to defeat the enemy in his war against my salvation!! One of many of course. I pray for you and YOUR struggles as I do for all who " CHOOSE " the " RIGHT PATH TO GLORY". Amen.
Rohit, we hope this video encouraged you!
- Ethan from Wretched
@@mr.billhillerich thank you for such a amazing story. I loved it ❤️
@@WretchedNetwork Love your content guys. Keep it up. ❤️
The biggest sin is unbelieve!
Many believe in God!
But believing God, now that’s hard to do!
Everyday I study, study in the word!
I started today with a sermon by John MacArthur, followed by reading/studying Ezekiel, followed by study, of Romans 8!
Oh how He speaks when I am in the word!
My Bible is far better then any great movie, I’ve ever watched!
It has no ending!
This video helped me turn everything around and finally have lasting victory over a sin in my life. Thank you Todd, and praise be to God for His love and mercy!
Amen! We are in this together, brothers and sisters. Commit yourself to Him and He will strengthen you!
Fantastic encouragement Todd! TRUTH 🙌🏻
Thanks for watching, y'all!!
- Ethan from Wretched
Wretched is one of the very few that constantly preaches to the christian that hasn't mortified their sin. Sincerely, thank you.
Thank you so much for watching! We hope this can encourage you!
- Ethan from Wretched
Praise God for Truth....
Thank you Sir
Thank you Todd for telling it like it is. I wish I'd found you along time ago. Please keep fighting the good fight.
"For I will declare my iniquity; I will be in anguish over my sin." ~ Psalm 38:18
Perhaps I am not completely understanding what you're saying Todd. But I am not comfortable making promises to anyone, let alone God the Father that I am sure I cannot keep. I love you brother, but I am not sure I fully agree with you on this one.
30 And Jesus *said to him, “Truly I say to you, that this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.” 31 But Peter kept saying insistently, “Even if I have to die with You, I will not deny You!” And they all were saying the same thing also. ~Mark 14:30-32~
Immediately a rooster crowed a second time. And Peter remembered how Jesus had made the remark to him, “Before a rooster crows twice, you will deny Me three times.” And he began to weep. ~Mark 14:72~
Dears Brothers, please pray for me. I have been struggling on and off with masterbation for years. I’ve gone entire seasons without smartphones or laptops, I’ve laid before the Lord for countless hours, Ive told other believers in my life so that I can be held accountable, in spite of all this I’m still failing. It’s like a healthy diet I won’t stay committed to. I might for a week, or weeks or a month be eating good, then I crave junk, buy a pack of donuts, eat two of them, then out of guilt and conviction I trash the rest get back on my diet, wash repeat. I’m ashamed and disgusted in my failure and have a hard time accepting that when I repent I’m forgiven. I feel nasty, unworthy and defiled. Though I know those kinds of thoughts are not from the Lord, they are still messing me up. I’m under attack, I’m failing my King, I keep grieving His Spirit and I need my Brothers to pray for me.
Praying for you, brother. Besides prayer and asking the Lord for strength, commitment to resist our sins is definitely the most powerful thing we can do. There's a lot of good practical/natural wisdom out there to help you drop bad habits (in this case; sin). One helpful thing that I learned through a Bible study was; in order to stop a bad habit, you need to replace it with a good habit. For example, if I suddenly got the urge to [insert bad habit], instead, I would get up and do the dishes, or do some laundry; anything to get my focus off of the temptation. In the moment, it can be very hard to resist temptation, and I'm not perfect at it. However, I've learned that self control is like a muscle that needs to be trained. The more you exercise it, the easier it will get to push away from the temptation. Fasting is a great exercise for self control, too.
I would also encourage you to listen to other people's tesimonies about masturbation, and how they got over it. I personally struggled with mastubation for my whole life, and even tried to stop before I was saved. The shame us men feel after doing such a thing is evidence that it is wrong. I think the shame and guilt was what really caused me to stop. However, I still mess up unfortunately. When I am fully awake and fully conscious, I never do it. But sometimes when I wake up in the middle of the night, the temptation is so strong and I'm also barely conscious; almost like I'm sleepwalking. You aren't alone brother. Many of us are fighting this particular sin. Thank you for being transparent with your struggles.
@@threewyze Likewise brother, grace and peace with you this morning.
There are a few things tripping you up here.
1) You're being too hard on yourself when you fail
2) You're not giving yourself enough encouragement when you succeed
3) you're probably giving yourself yoo much credit when you succeed- rely on God's strength
A couple of other things that are helpful: learn about Theology of the Body and St. Ignatius' of Loyola's 14 rules for spiritual discernment. "But! *gasp* those people are Catholic!!" Yes. And they're also 100% right about stuff that other Christians have no answers at all for, right or wrong.
Well, and being too commited to reformed theology can have a bad effect, too. If you're wrong about free will (Todd Friel is), then you won't make use of your own free will correctly. Changing what you want to what God wants and changing what you love to what God loves is hard work that isn't simply a matter of sitting back, twiddling your thumbs, and hoping God has predestined you. You have to seek God, and God will reward you when you seek him.
But again, it isn't about you and it doesn't depend on you. Unless you're relying on his strength to help you seek him, you're gonna keep failing. And if you understand that he loves you in spite of that, it won't discourage you.
Check out Theology of the Body Institute on TH-cam. You're falling victim to the "stoic" mindset and it's not ever gonna work for you. If you're going to find lasting success, then you need to learn to think about your body and other people's bodies the way God does, and to pray earnestly and extremely honestly. Don't be a stoic, don't be an addict. There's a middle way that neither condemns what God has made holy (that is, your body), nor makes holy what is profane (sexual sin). You won't get there if you're in despair. You have to learn about how great God's love is for you personally and in your specific situation.
I took your advice at the end of this video and walked down by the spring in the woods. Calling on the Lord for forgiveness and confessing many sins, I know that the Lord will help me to remember those promises of not doing them ever again!
The Lord has been faithful and merciful, and i’m the most wretched of them all!
Oh that there will be victory, and let that victory be to the glory of God, for apart from Him, i can do nothing!
You are very funny but still give pertinent & insightful knowledge. I like your unique Christian approach, very refreshing how you are not pretending in your presentation.
Just made the prayer and asked God to forgive my “whack a mole” sins. I made the promise not to do it again and asked Him to empower me to keep that promise. Praise Jesus for his mercy and grace for allowing me to live long enough to repent and not let me die in my sin.
I hope you understand salvation is by faith in the gospel.
Very compelling way to view something I have struggled with. I prayed and promised. Thanks for the guidance Todd.
Lord, I’m sorry for just apologizing. I am sorry, I promise with your strength to never commit that sin again. I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. With God all things are possible. I lay this sin at your feet.
🙏 in JESUS name amen.
Thank you Lord for this video
Making a promise to God is a very serious thing. Todd may be right about the repentance thing. But I don't encourage anyone to take his dangerous advice on making a vow. You can get victory without making a vow/promise. I did. It's just a heart thing. I just got really sick and tired of the sin, hated it and how it made me abuse God's grace and hurt God. I wanted from the very bottom of my heart to forever be done with it and cried out to God on my knees for help. He heard and delivered me instantly.
Something I struggled with for many years, and cried for help with for many years, was gone instantly just like that. Because that day I truly repented from the heart and didn't keep excuses at the back of my mind like I used to. I decided from the bottom of my heart to obey and follow Jesus in all areas of my life, no turning back. And I knew it would be a costly decision but I still made it. And that was the day I was truly born-again and tasted God's power to save from sin. I had still worried about going back, but the worry this time was different because it was immediately quenched with the word of God in Phil 1:6 KJB. I didn't save myself from that sin, instead God did when my heart was truly repentant of it.
And it's only by His grace and the conviction of His holy Spirit that I was enabled to repent like that. After all I had tried to repent in my own strength for many years but was never able to and kept going back. I don't recall if I've ever repented that deeply ever since either, even though I've repented of many other things since in a much looser definition of the term. I've just naturally turned from many other things I used to do since then as I continued my walk in the faith.
And I've never again gone back to that sin ever since that day and it's been a few years since. Even though I've been tempted in like manner as I used to. And there were many difficult times afterwards where I found it was still extremely hard to resist that sin, yet I was still able to find victory. Always. Every single time since that day. Sometimes just by calling on the Lord Jesus Christ for help or quoting some scripture from the King James Bible, God's holy and perfect word. Or both. Victory every single time. He never failed me and never will. He's proved His word to be true every time I choose to take it seriously enough and 100% believe it.
He helped me make up my mind to never turn back without making any single promise. I just gave up on going back to that hell hole spiral of sin and decided to trust in His promises in His word instead. Definitely not in my own promise, but in His.
In the old testament, making such promises to God was fairly common. But from the many examples in the old testament, we can also see that man's ability to keep such promises to God is insufficient. So when Jesus shows up in the new testament, He actually discourages us from making such promises. In Mat 5:33-37 KJB, it reads,
"Again, ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths:
34. But I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God’s throne:
35. Nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.
36. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black.
37. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil. "
God doesn't want us making such vows/promises anymore. Instead he wants our yes and no to be as good as a promise. In the same way God's every word, including the yes and no's, (2Cor 1:17-20, 1Th 2:13 KJB) are also as good as a promise we can trust in.
Also, even the old testament has warnings regarding making any suchlike promise,
Ecc 5:4-5 KJB, "When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for [he hath] no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed.
5. Better [is it] that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay."
Deu 23:21-22 KJB, "When thou shalt vow a vow unto the LORD thy God, thou shalt not slack to pay it: for the LORD thy God will surely require it of thee; and it would be sin in thee.
22. But if thou shalt forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee."
You have no guarantee you'll even be here tomorrow and yet you want to make promises to the eternal God? I really hoping anyone considering Todd's advice in this video would reconsider that part even though the brother probably meant it in good faith. Thanks for reading to anyone who read it all to the end. I pray this edifies someone out there. Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity. Amen. 🙏❤️
What an amazing testimony to God's faithfulness! Thank you for sharing. May our loving Abba keep you strong until the glorious day you see Him.
Thank you, Todd. I just did this - my mind resisted more than I expected. But, I believe this, and I have renounced my ‘habit’ sin.
So glad to hear that, Jack - praise God! Thanks for watching!
- Ethan from Wretched
That's awesome you mentioned Omaha! That's where I'm from. Spent around 27 years or so in total living there. I always wonder if other people know of that city. I do know many do, but still curious about others.
I am reluctant to make promises i can't keep. It would be lying after all. Then again, just like it isn't me pulling the weight of salvation, neither is it me keeping such a promise. HE is doing it, and He can do what I cannot.
Update; Todd, I'm gonna hug you if I ever see you. Since my last comment, I changed my mind and decided to make a promise to God, not just a promise to try, but not to do t. And, though it has only been a few days, you were correct in saying that "the promise has power. I have not just been renewing my promise every morning, but every time that particular temptation comes to mine. And, then I begin praying His word to Him. In turn, preaching it to myself. I've shed a lot of tears. But, most have been of joy. Thanks, brother Todd.
I will say that Ecclesiastes 5:4-7 puts the fear of God into my heart in regards to making promises
I started praying "lead me not into temptation, but deliver me from evil". I will admit, I have always been a bit confused by this wording, but I have seen such improvement since using this prayer. I believe total deliverance is soon to come. I would love to see you do a video explaining this part of the Lord's prayer.
The path of the righteous are ordered by God. When we are His, and if we ask Him to direct our ways, then in line with that scripture He is able to steer us away from temptations and even to deliver us from troubles (evils) that are lying in wait to befall us. God bless.
Because I am a sinner to the bone I can not promise God anything. Promises are broke and that would just add to my sin. I try to remember that Christ suffered and died for the sin I was about to do. That's heart breaking!
Wow!! I can honestly say I "get it" now!!! Thank you!! Much needed advice!
G'day, Pastor Friel! What comes to mind is "the sin that so easily entangles" from Hebrews 12:1; also, Paul's confession of doing the evil that he doesn't want to do in Romans 7:19.
Romans 7:14-20 “We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do-this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.”
He is absolutely right. I always stop myself from promises and just say ill try really hard not to do it again. Thank you for this message father Lord 🙏
Wish I could be with all of you.
Yes you keep whacking it and it keeps coming back.
Thank you brother Todd, for this HUGE spiritual message.
Finally, a method which actually works!
I pray for God, to bestow you with the grace to heal more
people.
Thank you for the triple double dog dare for my commitment in resisting my whack-a-mole sin. You don’t even know how much I really appreciate you spelling this out for me brother. This is empowering and I can see that the other sins that God has saved me from also required that same level of commitment in the past. What a powerful reminder. Thank you for the encouragement and for the triple double dog dare. May God be gracious to empower all of us who come to Him and commit ourselves to walking the straight and narrow path and putting off the old man and putting on the new man in Christ so that we no longer walk in the wrong direction.
Let no one say when he is tempted, "I am being tempted by God," for God cannot be tempted with evil, and he himself tempts no one. But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death. DO NOT BE DECEIVED BROTHERS. Every good gift and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. James 1:13-18
This is a very helpful and earnest video. I can no longer make provision for the flesh.
Best video yet. 👌
The whack a mole sin I have isn't big per se, except it's the last addiction I have and I can't seem to stop it. I quit all the others cold turkey, but you can't quit this sin like that, and the only thing that is "big" about it is ME. I have a food addiction. I have an addictive personality, so one would expect that THAT stronghold would be the last to go and the hardest to beat. So I'm doing the same thing I did for all my other sins: confess, ask for forgiveness, ask for strength to turn and repent of it. Every day, every meal. If I could just stop eating completely, throw out or give away all my food and never buy any again, it wouldn't be so difficult. I'm also working on remembering the, die to self or, "deny yourself" way of thinking and trying to remember that I have a choice to stop. It's hard to remember when you're in it. I mean, while you're eating. I won't promise God anything any more because I used to do that when I was younger and I always broke my promises and now I can't even remember what they were so I could make it right. But I'll try your way. It's not like my way has been working... I mean for this particular sin, not all the others. I am more committed to God now than I was when I was young. But if I find myself at the end of a binge and then realize what I've done, I'm referring God to you.
To add to that...make sure we are desperately preaching the gospel to ourselves.
The key is to acknowledge that it is wrong, and in light of God’s grace to make the choice to go in the proper direction and pray and rely on the power and grace of God to enable and strengthen you forward and through temptation
Todd, my brother in Christ, I caught this video earlier today, and it's sincerely been on my heart since then. But it sounds like you're saying to many Christians who sincerely want to be free from their fleshly pull to sin, to please God, (myself included) that it's as simple as "hey, have your ever tried NOT sinning; huh, yeah, boom you're fixed!". And I'm struggling to find a biblical basis for that. Yes we are told to repent and believe in Christ (turning from unbelief to belief), and we are told to confess our sins. But what is Romans 7:14-25 all about, with Paul in agony over his sin in so many of his letters, did he simply not know about "repentance, boom you're fixed!"? I struggle with a besetting sin common to man, and I hate it, I hate it, I hate it, and yet I find myself from time to time, pulled back toward it. I don't have all the answers, but sincerely, my heart is for God, I am bought and paid for by His Son, and the desire of my heart is to please Him; but I still find myself stumbling to sin in my walk. With all that in mind, in direct response to this video, I'm left with three options. 1. I'm not genuinely saved, and if that's true, weep for me because apart from trusting in Christ, I have no idea how to be. 2. There is some gnostic component to repentance that either isn't readily available, or is completely unknown to me. 3. That the one who is faithful to complete the good work He started in me, is still at work in me. (here's praying its #3).
The Lord's example is what helped me.
The same way Jesus resisted temptation is how we also resist.
His word promises that if we resist the devil, he will flee from us PERIOD
But you HAVE TO STAY IN AND KNOW THE WORD!
The Lord showed me that I was:
1. Listening to sermons about the Bible
2. Listening to podcasts about the Bible
3. Consuming TH-cam about the Bible
4. Reading books about the Bible.
But I WASN'T ACTUALLY READING MY BIBLE.
This shouldn't be so.
Everyone has enough time to read at least one book of the New Testament a day.
Most of the books take an hour and a half or less.
You'll be done with the New Testament in less than 30 days.
Do that for 6 months. You're life will completely change.
"Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double minded." - James 4:8
I’m glad the Lord convicted you on doing Christian things but not reading the actual word of God. I see that as a great reason so many get hooked into false teaching. They think they know God’s word spending a lot of time doing God things but because they don’t diligently read it, they are fooled by preachers who quote a lot of scripture but are taking it out of context or twisting it. We have to be Bereans, it’s really that simple. Blessings to you🙏
@@Savedbygrace22 Exactly! Amen!
Hopeful. Thank you.
Thanks!
Will be incorporating this from today, and let you know how it goes
I didnt know that I could tell God I promise!! I thought using the word PROMISE was being arrogant toward God, but now that I can i know my repentece will be sincere. Not saying im not sincere with repenting but understanding with how repentence is with promise is more clear. ( deep sigh) thank u
This is great, thank you... I know that cycle, and am so relieved and blessed to be out of that for many many years. Christ did deliver me - oh what victory! and P.S. being from Canada, I want to drive out of the freezing weather right now! 😉
Lee-Lee, praise God! We are delighted to hear of deliverance from sin through Christ. And maybe now would be a good time to head for the Gulf of Mexico!! Thanks for watching.
- Ethan from Wretched
@@WretchedNetwork even Florida would be fine haha 😀
Lust and gluttony are the biggest sins in this country, lust is so powerful that God himself tells us to flee from it. Literally ignore it
He also says James 5:12, KJV: But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.... Todd made a mistake by saying to make a promise.
@@Nodeelite that means don't take vows on things you don't have control of. It isn't referring to explicitives. It refers to saying something like "I swear/vow upon/by ____..." and christ is saying don't do this, instead just make sure you follow through on what you say. So a hypothetical example of what christ is saying not to do is "I swear upon heaven that I will till all of our fields today!" You are making a vow on something you don't have the ability or right to swear upon (in this case you are also promising something you can't guarantee will be a successful task as it is something that is a big job in a small amount of time and it is therefore potentially worse as a result.) What christ is saying you should do is say something like "hey, I'll go till the field" and then you go and till the field. That way you aren't committing blasphemy or some other sin and your yes's and no's are more meaningful. It's like the normally calm and collected person raising their voice against something bad, it has more meaning because it is not cheapened by constant/lesser use.
I thought it referred to "swearing" ...not to swear to do this or that...for yea to be yea and nay to be nay.
@@leessa65 that is what it means. The other person doesn't know what they're talking about. The term 'swearing' in the new sense is explitives the old sense is to make vow or an official promise. This scripture (based on the context) is in the old sense.
Flee=/=ignore. U were right the first time. Joseph had to flee Potifer's wife, and he still ended up in jail, but at least he was faithful to God.
Well said.
He’s Serious he said he TRIPLE DOUBLE DOG DARES YOU! ❤🎉love to God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit
Good advice but sin pertaining to personality flaws takes good ole fashioned long term self discipline.
Absolutely true!
- Ethan from Wretched
Save me Jesus
It is about being honest with God and yourself. You know your half-hearted attempts that you think are wholehearted attempts to stop sinning are in reality weak because you enjoy the sin and deep down you don’t want to give it up. Once you realize that, you can decide whether you are going to repent or stay in your sin. I speak from personal experience.
No amount of self determination can help you stop. You can’t fight the flesh with the flesh. You need to lean on the power of the Spirit of Life that was in Christ Jesus to do it (Romans 8:2). This has to be a moment by moment thing. Don’t reason with a temptation - flee from it as soon as it begins.
Hang on this is only half the help. Abide in Jesus. Prayer, delight and enjoyment in Christ. This is only possible by wholly trust in the blood of Jesus. The scripture says walk according to the Spirit and you will not gratify the sinful nature. We often try harder thinking that once we have our "act together", then we can come to Jesus. COME BOLDLY to the throne of grace that you may receive mercy and find grace to help in your time of need. Read Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortlund . It is supremely helpful.
Whackamole
Goes great on tostadas and burritos and piled high on nachos.
The weird part is - I always assumed that stuff was made out of avocados.
Therefore we also, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us
I am not sure how you promise to not get annoyed with people. I struggle with that a lot. It is not even something I sit and think, "Oh, I am going to get annoyed that I told them three times how to do something, but they did it wrong, and now I have to fix it." Things go bad, and I instantly get annoyed. I do not fly off the handle and yell and punch things, but I get so frustrated in my heart. I am unsure how to promise God I will never get frustrated again. I know that it is many sins in that one sin. I know it is pride because I would not have screwed it up. It is selfishness because I don't want to take the time to do it myself. It is anger at someone else. It is mean thoughts that pop into my mind to say. I know all this is sin, but it happens in a flash and is not something I sit and contemplate and then decide to do it.
You don't have to promise not to get annoyed. You can commit to asking God to help you see people the way He does and LOVE them the way he does. It comes out automatically cuz your mind needs renewal. Look for verses about what God says about other people and forgiveness and meditate on them. Sometimes for me, with stuff like this it helps to, as soon I'm convicted, repent to God immediately and in humility seek forgiveness from anyone I sinned against. Like if I'm short with someone cuz I was annoyed or if I am distant to OWN it and ask the person to forgive me. Over time God will catch me while I'm in the middle of being a jerk and correct me and eventually He will check me as I'm headed in that direction. As I keep seeking him He even gives empathy and sympathy for others so my response isn't as callous as it was to begin with. Just ask Him to give you His heart for people and commit to doing it His way when you fail. It will shift.
@@brandi5326 my dad was a pastor and passed away from Covid in September 2021. I sold my home and moved my family in to my moms house to take care of her. That has been a hard struggle and has pushed me in many ways. It is a lot of stress and at times my cup runneth over. I confess it right away and also ask forgiveness of the person I may have been short with. It just seems like in recent months there is more frustration than not. I am all for repenting but not sure I would promise God. I did that one time in life where I promised God about something and I broke that promise. I struggled with that for a long, long time. Thank you for your kind words.
@@randyalanjones Oh I see. So you're really in a pressure cooker of a situation and it's squeezing you in a way that's making stuff come out of you that you don't like. I understand that too. I have had a similar situation (not in terms of similar circumstances, just that the fire was turned up soooo much that I was reacting in ways I DID NOT LIKE). It's really tough. I'm really sorry for what you're going through. The one thing I know though is, as brutal as it is, it's also an opportunity to really lean into God and have him reveal himself to you even more intimately than ever before. I'll keep you in my prayers. Sorry if I misunderstood or misinterpreted your intent in your original post though. Keep standing in faith
@@brandi5326 I have prayed for God not to change others around me but change me. I know I have the nasty heart and struggle with the pressure cooker as you say. You said nothing wrong and your advice was good. Thank you for your response.
@@randyalanjones You're welcome. Thanks for sharing your story and your thoughts with me 💜
What a great analogy on how to turn from sin! Now when I'm in the car I'll be thinking, "Am I going in the right direction?!" Haha :-)
We love to hear that!! Thanks so much for watching!
- Ethan from Wretched
Theologically, I agree that repentance is vital to victory over persistent sin. However, I believe well-meaning teachers, preachers, churches, believers etc., give the false impression that it's easy to stop an addiction or other chronic sin issue by simply saying a prayer and trying harder. Repentance is not a simple word. It is an on-going process led by the Holy Spirit that involves much more than a one-time prayer. Salvation is once, for all, but sanctification is a lifetime process. Sure, I can make an earnest promise to God to "never do it again." But as Rom. 12:1 says, I am a "living sacrifice," which means that my prayer of commitment can be genuine and heart-felt today, and completely forgotten on another day. A living sacrifice doesn't stay on the alter! I think we also confuse forgiveness and healing by making them synonymous. I can sincerely repent and be completely forgiven by God (1 John 1:9), but that doesn't mean I'm healed from all the underlying issues that consistently lead me to sin. James 5:16 says, "Confess your sins to each other so that you may be healed." When I confess my sins to God, He forgives me. When I confess my sins to others, He heals me. Healing isn't an instant event; it's a process led by the Holy Spirit that involves connection with others - a few trusted, safe believers. So, I agree that repentance is the start and is key to eventually achieving victory over sin. But total victory and freedom is a process that takes time, and work involving confession, self-examination and connection to other people. The opposite of addiction is connection - to God, self, and others.
Remember, sin no longer has any effect over us. We have the Holy Spirit living in is. A repetitive, ongoing sin is the result of giving that sin strength over us.
I love the roadtrip illustration!
My only question is: How do we make the distinction between promising God that we won’t commit that “whack-a-mole sin” again and what Jesus said about oaths (Matthew 5:33-37)?
dont swear when you promise
@@Vitamortis. Aren’t those two words synonymous?
@@vinniebasile9404 i thought swearing an oath is like making a vow, while promise is just like promising.. idk how to put into words
“If a man vow a vow unto the LORD, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.” Num 30:2
Anyone who makes a promise to not sin has done what Israel did at Sinai, in saying “All that the LORD hath spoken we will do” Exo 19:8
In saying "we will do it" they, therefore, bound themselves to an oath of salvation by works.
It is the faith of Jesus which saves, those who choose to serve the Lord must do so by His faith.
The Jews of old misunderstood this point. Notice Romans 9:31-32.
“But Israel, which followed after the law of righteousness, hath not attained to the law of righteousness. Wherefore? Because they sought it not by faith, but as it were by the works of the law.”
These all served the Lord, but they did it not by faith, and we know that whatever is not of faith is sin. [Romans 14:23].
Had to rewatch this video after God exposed a pattern of sin I was committing where I was not consistent with my church attendance and Bible reading (I was having an idol in my life and I was making excuses) I repented of it and now I’m making progress to not do this sin again as it doesn’t honor God!
I want to stop smoking. But I do not dare promise it to thee Lord I never
Promise Him anything because I Nam affride ki cannot keep it. I am so sad about it.
Yes you don't have to promise but instead ask Jesus for help to save you.
I choose God! ✝️
Jesus said, “Let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil” Making promises is probably a bad idea because when or if you fail the condemnation you feel is surely worse…making a vow to God is not good advice, why didn’t Todd use the scripture to back his claim? Or is this his own idea? I mean the Lord tells us not too…..by the end of the week many people will learn that it’s a bad idea to make a Vow to the Lord and will be many tears..
Sometimes a support group or counseling can help. Maybe there is a heart wound and the person is reaching to causing them to sin.
Maybe they have childhood trauma or something that needs to be talked about before they can find freedom from sin. Habitual sin just doesn't come from nowhere in all cases. The person may need to forgive themselves or others to heal and stop sinning habitually or compulsively.
Sometimes the 1 Step program of repentance requires the support of the 12 step program to actually work.
Good lessons, up until the "I promise not to do it again" part. Were making such promises helpful, wouldn't there be a lot of incredible, nearly sinless people walking around? I think a lot of us have promised, I know I have, and still fell again and again. We promise and fall, which is much the kind of struggle Paul describes in Romans 6-8. Repentance is important, and I myself found accountability to a brother super helpful.
I feel like this video was made specifically for me.
I was about to do what he said, but then he had to hit me with that double-dog dare. Dagum it Friel!
Paul says in Romans "I will to do what I do not do and do what I will not to do." This indicates that sin is still present in his mortal body and that he still falls short. What's the solution? "Lord take me away from this wretched body."
Now Paul is not advocating for intentionally sinning but showing that even though we will not to sin we still fall short because sin is in our mortal body and it is sin that does it and not us.
After I repented. I ask God to change my heart. THAT worked for me.
You still have sin you deal with. We all do.
For me it's procrastination and excessive watching social media videos.
Why does Hebrews 12:1-2 say we all have the sin that besets us? Some of us struggle all the time and its a ongoing battle.
1 John 1:8
New American Standard Bible
8 If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.
By Todd's logic, he has stopped sinning, or he still hasn't repented.
Wrong assumption. Read the verse above that.
1 John 1:7
"But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."
How can we be cleansed from ALL sin and then have 1 John 1:8 be speaking about those who have been cleansed from all sin? 🤔? Also consider John 8:33 where this mindset was also related to what we read in 1 John 1:8
John 8:33
"They answered him, We be Abraham's seed, and were never in bondage to any man: how sayest thou, Ye shall be made free?"
You can have freedom in Christ today, my friend.
@@RAGEFORDAYS I'm neither a believer in entire sanctification (Weslyan idea) or "Lordship salvation" (backdoor version of works salvation), but I agree with you. John loved to use hyperbole and apparent contradictions. He filled his gospel and his epistles with that kind of language (which he may have learned from Jesus, depending on where your translators placed the quotation marks and red ink). See John 3:16 and the whole paragraph it's in. God came to save, God did not come to condemn, but they are already condemned because they have not believed.
The passages that inspire heavy debate in John - No man will come to me unless he is drawn, I will draw all men to myself, Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no life in you, unless you're born from above you will neither see nor enter the Kingdom of God... all of this stuff is hyperbolic language that isn't intended to spark debates over soteriology or sacrements, but to illustrate a point.
@@RAGEFORDAYS i make no assumptions, besides the fact u/Todd/and I have sinned since coming to Christ. So maybe we shouldn't pretend we don't sin, it gives the wrong impression to ppl that need salvation.
@@josephbrandenburg4373 amen, yet many miss the point(s).
Thank you
Ask God to cause you to love what He loves, and hate what He hates.
Amen.
Todd can we go on that trip that would be great
I did what the man in the video told me!
James 5:12, KJV: But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven, neither by the earth, neither by any other oath: but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay; lest ye fall into condemnation.
I pray Pslam 19
I think God takes promises really seriously so I don't think it's wise to make promises about this.
Ecclesiastes 5:5 It is better not to promise anything than to promise something and not do it.
I am sry I may be wrong on this but doesnt the bibble command us to never promise something?
My metaphorical car has been going in circles around Nebraska.
Yeah I mean ive tried that, ive said I promise to never do it again.
And yet it happens.
I dont know what to do.
Yeah, Friel's advice is really bad.
I'll tell you something that works: pray. Pray honestly. Pray more. Don't give up. Not for weeks or months or years. God listens to you when you pray.
But don't be surprised if he answers your prayers in a way you never saw coming! And don't be surprised if, when he answers your prayers, he takes away your treasures and forces you to learn that you need to have treasure in heaven, instead.
Accountability to a person who you look up to helps. Talk about with him like a brother and ask him to hold you accountable. Has helped me a lot. Keeps me from hiding sin.
@@kenmeyertwo I started being accountability partners with someone with the same issue, like mutual accountability. It has somewhat helped but not quite... more often than not we just say "hey I did it again" replied by "that sucks" and nothing really changes.
My personal experience, at least in the case of LUST, is that "fighting" and "trying harder for the Lord" has failed so hard. I speak this out because there are so many Christian men (and quite a few Christian women) who struggle with this, and HATE it. They HATE their sin as I have, and are broken because inside deep down inside, if they honestly ask themselves (i'm looking at you) if they are going to commit the same sin again despite hating it, the answer is yes.
Flee sexual immorality! Don't "stand up" to it. Don't "fight" it. RUUUNN! Acknowledge your own weakness before God and ask Him to fight for you. I suck. I sin. I hate it. I fall short. "Winning" 60% percent of the time is not winning. Please take all this temptation away and fight for me, because I am weak, and I need Your strength to go ahead of me.
See 1 Corinthians 6:18, 2 Corinthians 12:7-9
Your experience might be different. This is what I have found. I hope this helped someone.
6 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? 3 Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.
5 For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, 6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin. 7 For he who has died has been freed from sin. 8 Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, 9 knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, dies no more. Death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. 11 Likewise you also, reckon yourselves to be dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
12 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in its lusts. 13 And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. 14 For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.
From Slaves of Sin to Slaves of God
15 What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not! 16 Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? 17 But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered. 18 And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness. 19 I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves of uncleanness, and of lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves of righteousness for holiness.
20 For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. 21 What fruit did you have then in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. 22 But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
For those struggling with porn...
You must tell your pastor or another spiritual leader. You need to be disciplined. You've gotta lay it all out there and get help from a Godly man to hold you accountable. You can pretend to try one your own all you want, but all you're doing is hiding your shame. Man up by humbling yourself and get help
I have always hated my life because of my sin nature
God wants you to have joy.
But don't we like Paul need that thorn to remind us that we cannot do it. You cannot promise that because it is a promise you will never keep, If by chance I keep my promise then it is I who did it and not God. A promise is a reliance on self not God. You should never make a promise to God. Choose a different word. When you break that promise again and again you will feel defeated because YOU cannot keep such a promise. THOUGHTS ANYONE??????
I agree. Sometimes, we need that thorn in our side to pray and lean on him daily. It humbles us not to rely on our own power and strength but his grace daily. Also, sin reveals our heart and what condition it's in, and overcoming it is a journey, a process.
Instead of promising to God, make it a habit to read the Bible and pray every day. Be disciplined about that first and fill your life with godly things, and slowly, he will change your heart. Repentance is key, but making a promise to the Most High when we are struggling in the flesh, in my opinion, is not a wise thing to do.