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Life Dominating Patterns of Sin · Reformed Thinking

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Reformed thinking. Welcome to the Deep Dive, the
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show where we take your sources and really try to distill the
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most compelling Nuggets of understanding.
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Today we're diving into a topic that's, well, vital for anyone
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seeking growth. We're talking about
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distinguishing patterns of sin, particularly those that seem to
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control, you know, major parts of our lives.
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So our mission for this deep dive is to understand what these
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patterns are, these persistent ones, how to recognize them,
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and, crucially, how the ways we approach them differ between
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biblical truth and, well, other perspectives out there.
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We'll unpack the reasons behind these patterns and what it all
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means for believers in Christ. Yeah, and it's fascinating,
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isn't it? How often we might maybe
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unknowingly, let certain habits shape our lives much more than
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we realize. This deep dive should help us
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see that. You know, while some
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observations about how people behave can be true, insightful,
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even the why behind it and how you actually deal with it,
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that's fundamentally different depending on where you're
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getting your wisdom. We're really going to consider
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what it means to be truly free from these patterns, not just
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sort of managing them on the surface.
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Right. So when the scripture talks
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about laying aside every weight and sin, it's not just a nice
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poetic image, is it? It sounds like there's a a clear
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distinction being made, especially about these
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persistent patterns, what we're calling life dominating sins.
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To really get this, maybe we should lay a foundation from
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Hebrews chapter 12, verses 1 and 2.
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That's the part urging believers to lay aside every weight and
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sin which clings so closely. This passage, it actually holds
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a special place for me. Partly for the spiritual wisdom,
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sure, but also there's this personal memory.
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I've got this video on my phone. It's one of those totally
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spontaneous moments, you know, the kind you really cherish
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looking back on. I pulled into my driveway one
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day and my oldest son, for some reason, I still don't know why,
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he was standing in the doorway, jeans, no shirt.
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And he's quoting Hebrews 12 verses 1 and 2 with all these,
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like, dramatic hand motions. When he gets to the phrase sin
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that clings so closely, he does this whole big theatrical thing,
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like something was physically stuck to him trying to shake off
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this invisible robe or something.
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It always makes me chuckle because you know, no shirt, but
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it definitely makes that phrase stick in your mind.
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Clings so closely. That's a great picture,
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actually, and it highlights the distinction the verse makes.
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So when it says lay aside every weight and sin which clings so
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closely, it's drawing a clear line, just like you said, a
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weight, well, that's something not necessarily sinful in
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itself. Think about those ancient
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runners prepping for a race. They wore hardly anything,
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right? Just enough to be decent to
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avoid any extra drag. So a weight in this spiritual
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sense is anything that might slow you down or hinder your
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progress, even if it isn't morally wrong.
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OK, so like maybe over committing even to good things?
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Exactly. Over committing to non sinful
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activities can definitely be a weight.
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You might spend so much time on hobbies or maybe even church
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stuff, Things that are good in themselves, but they end up
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distracting you from, say, your time with God or core spiritual
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growth. Your interest might be fine, but
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if they preoccupy you so much that you become spiritually
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sluggish, well, they're acting as a weight, not sin, but they
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make the race harder. Got it.
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So that's the weight. But then there's the other part
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sin, which clings so closely. Right.
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And this one, the Scripture is clear, is inherently sinful.
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The literal Greek for clings so closely is interesting.
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It's like standing well around. Yeah.
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It gives this idea of something you're tangled up in, something
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that besets you, wraps itself around.
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You like that garment your son was trying to shake off?
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Precisely. It's that sin that often feels
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unique to you, maybe the one you're particularly quick to
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fall into, almost like a default.
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Yeah, I like your analogy about the kid and the cup near the
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edge of the table. You slide it back, they take a
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sip, put it right back on the edge, always about to fall.
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That's the image. It's constantly present, easily
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accessible, ready to trip you up.
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A recurring temptation leading to repeated failure.
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So building on that picture, we can sort of formally describe a
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life dominating sin. Think of it as an enslavement to
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a particular sin resulting from habitual submission to its
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control, instead of being led by the Holy Spirit, impacting
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multiple areas of 1's life. Habitual submission.
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That sounds key. It is.
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We're talking about sinful habits repeated so often so
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frequently, that they're now messing things up in multiple
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significant areas of life. This isn't just a one off
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mistake or a rare slip up. And you mentioned this idea of a
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pet sin. What's that about?
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Well, a pet sin isn't just when you fall into sometimes.
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It could be when you kind of tolerate, maybe make excuses for
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it, or even cling to it because it gives you some perceived
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comfort or meet some deep desire even though you know it's wrong.
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So you might willingly practice it, maybe justifying it like oh
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it's not that bad or everyone does this.
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Right. Or, on the flip side, it could
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be a thing you've fought against to really battle tooth and nail,
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but it just keeps coming back. It constantly draws you back
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into its control, leaving you feeling sort of helpless.
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Either way, whether tolerated or fought against, it's the
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consistent habitual nature that defines it.
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And the other part of that definition impacting multiple
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areas, that seems critical too. Absolutely critical life
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dominating sin isn't isolated. It's not like a single angry
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outburst that just effects that one moment.
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It's not confined to just say your work life.
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It permeates. It negatively influences various
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aspects of your existence. Like a dye seeping into
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everything that's. A good way to put it.
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It colors your relationships, your finances, your spiritual
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walk, maybe even your physical health, your emotional state.
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This broad systemic impact is what really sets it apart from
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just occasional sins. It's not just a bad habit, it
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feels like a controlling force. OK, so this helps clarify the
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difference between, say, an occasional slip and a real life
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dominating pattern. It's about the scope, the
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pervasiveness. And the persistence, yeah.
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Let's take an example. Maybe laziness.
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We all have those moments, right?
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After a long day, you just want to crash on the couch, maybe
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skip the gym once, put off cleaning.
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That's occasional laziness. That's not really what we're
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talking about here, is it? No, not as a life dominating
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sin. What we mean is a pattern of
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laziness, one that actively affects your home life, your
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work, your church involvement, your relationships.
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This persistent pattern might lead to losing a job, missing
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deadlines, no initiative, or maybe your house is constantly a
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wreck, causing stress for everyone.
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Finances might spiral because you're too disengaged to manage
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things. See how it moves from an
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occasional feeling to a controlling influence hitting
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crucial areas. Yeah.
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Definitely. Or what about the desire for
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control? Some people just like a clean
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house, right? Prefer order.
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Nothing wrong with that preference itself.
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Correct, but a life dominating desire for control shows up much
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broader. Not just in wanting a clean
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house, but in your relationships.
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It looks like constantly trying to dictate what others do,
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demanding things your way, getting angry or upset if people
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don't conform. Manipulating situations to get
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what you want. Exactly that desire spills over
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and dictates how you interact with your spouse, kids,
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colleagues, everyone becomes a controlling force and how you
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engage with the world. OK, one more maybe Shyness.
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Sure. A shy person might serve in the
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church hesitantly, feel awkward in fellowship.
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That's a personal struggle, maybe a disposition.
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It becomes life dominating when that shyness is used as an
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excuse for everything, a barrier to obedience and growth.
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So they might blame shyness for not getting involved, not
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serving, not doing the one another commands.
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Right. Instead, they might withdraw,
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isolate themselves, maybe get lost in solitary hobbies, using
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shyness as the reason for spiritual and relational
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isolation. In all these examples, you see
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how an occasional struggle can morph into an enslavement that
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really impacts multiple vital areas of life.
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It shapes decisions, hinders spiritual health.
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So if someone listening is thinking, OK, how do I know if
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this is me? What are the signs, the
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indicators of this kind of enslavement?
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Well, there's several key indicators.
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First, it appears to have control over you.
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You might feel unable to overcome it.
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Maybe you'd use words like totally entangled, like you're
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caught. Like that fly in the web.
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Or you find yourself easily falling prey to specific
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temptations, almost predictably, yet feel powerless to stop it.
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That sense of helplessness is a big one.
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OK, what else? Second, there's the continual,
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repeated practice over a long time.
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It's not just a blip, it's a persistent pattern, a habit you
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keep falling back into. And interestingly, people can
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get quite well skilled at their particular sin.
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Skilled. How so?
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Developing intricate ways to justify it, elaborate methods
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for hiding it, clever rationalizations for why it's
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not really a problem. OK, what's third?
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3rd, you might find yourself going easy on yourself when it
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comes to that specific sin. It's kind of a paradox.
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You might strongly oppose other sins, maybe even judge others
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for them, but for the one that easily entangles you, you adopt
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A more relaxed, forgiving attitude.
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Like saying oh it's just a work in progress or God understands
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without really fighting it. Exactly.
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Think of someone super strict about, say, their diet, but they
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like gossip or a critical spirit run wild in their talk without
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much conviction or effort to change.
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Right, makes sense. Indicator 4. 4th is blaming
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other people, attributing your sin or your failure to stop it
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to someone else. You know I wouldn't be so angry
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if it wasn't for my spouse or my boss.
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Makes me this way. It's shifts responsibility off
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your own heart and choices. Denying your own part in it.
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Precisely 5th there's denial, hiding, or deflection.
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Denial isn't always total. It might be partial, like yeah,
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I struggle, but it's not as much as I used to, or it's not as bad
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as what they do. Comparing yourself to others.
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Right, or people might actively hide the sin, conceal how bad it
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is, or constantly deflect if someone confronts them about it,
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change the subject, make a joke, anything to avoid exposure.
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OK, and #6? 6th Watch for defensive
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reactions when confronted. If the sin is gently pointed
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out, the reaction might be defensive.
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I can stop any time I want, or it's not a problem.
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Or maybe feigning surprise. Oh I never thought about that.
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Even if deep down they know it's there.
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Or just changing the subject quickly.
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Trying to dodge it. Yep, and finally #7 which we
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keep coming back to. Because it's central.
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It affects many, maybe even all areas of your life.
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It's not isolated. It permeates and negatively
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impacts nearly every facet of your existence.
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No areas left untouched. You mentioned a wheel diagram
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before, maybe we can talk through that.
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It sounds like a helpful way to visualize how pervasive one sin
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can be. Absolutely.
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Imagine a wheel at the hub. The center is the life
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dominating sin. Let's stick with laziness as our
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example, then. Spokes radiate out to all these
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different areas of life. OK, so laziness at the hub.
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How does that affect, say, work and school?
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Well, obviously it hinders productivity, stifles
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initiative, diminishes diligence, deadlines, missed
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projects, unfinished responsibilities, neglected,
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poor performance, maybe even losing a job.
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Right. What about physical stuff?
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Exercise, Nutrition. Sleep.
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Laziness often means neglecting physical well-being, opting for
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ease over discipline, skipping workouts, choosing unhealthy
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fast food, Sacrificing sleep for entertainment leaves you tired,
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unwell. In marriage.
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It could show up as a lack of initiative in fulfilling your
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role, household chores, communication, maybe even
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intimacy a spouse might feel. I always have to ask.
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They never just do it. What about integrity?
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Does laziness affect? That indirectly, maybe a lack of
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discipline, which is part of laziness, can erode integrity
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over time. It makes it easier to cut
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corners. Maybe be a bit dishonest.
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And personal finance, as you mentioned, lazy purchases.
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Definitely, yeah. Laziness often leads to not
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bothering to find better deals. Just buying what's easiest or
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quickest online click buy now leads to overspending debt,
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choosing immediate ease over stewardship.
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OK, raising children. Can mean being reactive instead
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of proactive. Passive discipline because
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consistency takes effort. Maybe just sending kids to their
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room because you're too tired for thoughtful engagement.
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Wow. Friendships.
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Church Relationships. Laziness can cause withdrawal.
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Neglecting community, failing to engage, serve others, avoiding
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fellowship leads to isolation. And even your personal walk with
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God, Bible study, prayer. Yes, laziness can mean
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neglecting time in the word, inconsistent prayer, avoiding
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opportunities to share your faith.
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So that wheel really shows it, doesn't it?
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One sin at the center, touching everything.
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It really does illustrate how a single dominant pattern can
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create widespread dysfunction. So let's list some of these
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common life dominating sins. We've used laziness and control,
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but what else comes up often? Well, the list is pretty
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extensive and practical. Things like alcohol and drug
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abuse are obvious ones. Pornography certainly often
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leads to isolation, deception, disordered eating, withholding
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food, purging, or overeating, which is essentially gluttony
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that can absolutely dominate thoughts and actions.
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Smoking. Prescription drug abuse.
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Yes, both. Prescription drug abuse is a
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huge growing problem that quickly enslaves.
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Then there's overspending or hoarding.
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And that's not just physical junk in our society.
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It's easy online purchases. Click click buy now,
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rationalizing. Oh, I'll return it, but you
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never do. Gaming hobbies taking over?
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Yeah, gaming or even just overindulgence in hobbies are
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fun to the point where a dominates sleep, work, your
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thought life displacing real responsibilities, laziness as
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we've covered, and excessive desire for control, extreme
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shyness when it prevents engagement and serving God.
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Pessimism. Complaining.
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Yes, that could become an entrenched pattern.
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Always seeing the negative impacting mood, relationships,
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homosexuality and really any form of lust or sexual
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immorality. Excessive use of TV, social
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media, dominating time and thought.
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A constant distraction. And then those works of the
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flesh from Galatians 5. Exactly.
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Things like anger, fits of anger, jealousy, rivalries,
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dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, Paul
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listies is patterns that should not characterize A believer's
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life. They show a heart still
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enslaved. I remember counseling a man
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years ago. He wasn't from our church.
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His church was a bit, well, milk fed, let's say.
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So I encouraged him to come to some teaching we were doing on
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this very topic, life dominating sins.
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A few days later, I met with him and his girlfriend.
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I asked him, So what did you think?
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He just looked at me, eyes wide, and said, we looked at each
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other in the car afterwards and we were like, yeah, I have all
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of those. My eyes got wide, too.
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He started listing them off. Alcohol, drugs, porn.
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I had to stop him. Whoa.
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Those were just examples. Yeah, we laughed, but for him it
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was really eye opening. He hadn't even recognized some
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things as sin, like his habitual cursing.
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No thought about edifying words, just how he spoke.
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That really shows something important, doesn't it?
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How kind and gracious God is? He knows all the sins were
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involved in, even the ones we haven't recognized yet.
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You overcome one or two, feel like you're growing, and then
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God patiently reveals another area that needs attention, maybe
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one that's been there all along. Yeah, His kindness leads us to
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repentance, step by step. It's not overwhelming all at
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once. Which leads to another vital
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point, just trying to manage the outward behavior when dealing
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with these sins, it's really ineffective in the long run.
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It's like that analogy of squeezing a water balloon.
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Squeeze it here. And it just bulges out somewhere
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else. You might suppress the sin in
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one area, make it seem like it's gone, but because the underlying
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heart issue isn't addressed, the problem just pops up somewhere
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else, maybe in a different form. The water, the core issue, is
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still there. So true, lasting change means
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getting to the root cause, not just the surface symptoms.
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Exactly. Which brings us to the crucial
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why we need to shift from just asking what the sin is to asking
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why it's so tempting for me. What underlying desires are
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driving this? These are the root desires, the
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idols of the heart. That's right, they fuel these
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life dominating sins. For instance, some people
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idolize peace at all costs. They prioritize avoiding
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conflict or discomfort above everything, even God's will.
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And that leads to. Well it can lead to anger when
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their peace is disturbed or just giving up when things get hard.
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It might even Dr. hoarding or overworking, trying to build a
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false sense of security, thinking if I have enough then
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I'll have peace instead of trusting God.
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OK. What other root idols?
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Comfort is a big one, often linked directly to overeating,
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excessive entertainment, anything that gives immediate,
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fleeting ease and avoids discomfort.
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The desire for control, not just in one area, but one in control
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over everything, drives manipulation, anxiety, and
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inability to trust God's sovereignty.
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Happiness as an idol. Yes, wanting it so badly that
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everything gets filtered through that lens leads to
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disappointment, sin, when happiness is intermediate, a
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constant chase for pleasure. Perfectionism or success is
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another major one, often rooted in fear of man.
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That overwhelming desire to look good, get approval drives
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performance for human applause, not God's glory.
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What about things like cleanliness or order?
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That can become an idol too, desiring it so much you're
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willing to sin to get it, or sin if you don't get it.
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Obsessive tidiness may be angry outbursts when things are out of
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place. Then there's independence,
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Oregon self governance, A rebellious spirit unwilling to
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submit to authority, the person who does the opposite of what's
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asked just to assert autonomy. And just plain pleasure or ease.
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Right, seeking immediate gratification at the expense of
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what's right, godly, or truly beneficial long term.
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So the biblical difference is huge here.
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The world focuses on maybe temporal happiness through
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managing behavior. Right, getting a good life now.
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Well, God is concerned with our hearts.
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He wants us to love Him with our whole heart, soul, mind,
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strength. He desires our actions to flow
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from a heart that truly wants to please Him and live for His
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glory. It's not just what we do, but
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why and for whom. The biblical solution always
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goes to the heart. OK, this next point.
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It might surprise some listeners and it needs careful handling.
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Can a believer, someone truly in Christ, actually be controlled
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by a life dominating sin? Yeah, this is where it gets
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really interesting and we need some nuance.
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Paul in Romans 6, verses 12 to 14 teaches that for a believer
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sin will have no dominion over you.
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Now dominion there means inherent kingly power, automatic
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authority. So because we're united with
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Christ, sin doesn't automatically rule us anymore.
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Its ultimate power is broken. Exactly.
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We're freed from its final condemning power.
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However, Paul immediately follows up with an instruction.
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Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body to make you
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obey its passions. Let not sin reign.
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OK, so it's lost its automatic rule, its dominion, but it can
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still reign if we let it. Precisely.
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It clarifies that while sin's automatic kingship is broken, it
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still has active influence, and it wields whatever influence we
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give to it. The command let not sin reign
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means don't allow sin to be king in your body.
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Don't obey its desires. Don't willingly put yourself
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under its control. So the answer to Can believers
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be controlled by sin? Is yes, if you let it rain
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through habitual submission. Yes, by habitually giving in, or
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by willingly placing yourself under its control.
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Every time you choose to practice a sin, you are in that
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moment letting it dictate your actions.
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Think of that tug of war analogy between the flesh and the
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spirit. Your flesh, your sinful nature,
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just defaults to giving in. It wants the easy path, like
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letting that cup fall off the table.
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Without intentional act of resistance, you'll lose that tug
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of war. And sometimes we don't just
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passively let go, we actively pull on the flesh's side, right,
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Pursuing sin. We do, and when you do that,
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it's very easy to fall. The point is, believers are
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called to actively fight, to present ourselves to God for
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righteousness. Because sin's dominion is
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broken. We don't have to let it control
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us. OK, So what does this mean then,
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for claiming wholehearted submission to Christ?
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Well, it means that if a believer is enslaved to a
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particular sin, they can't legitimately claim to be
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wholeheartedly submitting to the Lord Jesus Christ.
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It's the difference between saying I surrender all and maybe
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I surrender most there. Shouldn't be any pet sins.
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We tolerate areas off limits to Christ's lordship.
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No, every single pet sin should be actively sought recognized as
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an enemies who are walk with God are pursuit of holiness the
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Christian life. You look at positives like
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second Peter one or Psalm 119. It's an active pursuit of
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righteousness, not just avoiding bad stuff.
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A striving towards Christlikeness.
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Yes, Peter says, make every effort to supplement your faith
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with virtue, godliness, brotherly affection, love.
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It's an upward path fueled by faith.
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And Psalm 119 hammers home seeking God with your whole
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heart, guarding your way by his word.
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That implies no area of life is off limits to serving and
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worshiping Christ. True surrender means fighting
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every sin, especially these dominating patterns, bringing
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every thought captive. This raises a tough question,
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though a sobering one. If someone persistently
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practices a life dominating sin, does that give reason to
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question their salvation? It does raise that question, and
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we need to approach it carefully.
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But seriously, if someone persistently practices such a
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sin, there is reason to examine the genuineness of their
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salvation. Yeah, I'll be clear.
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This isn't salvation by works, right?
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We're saved by grace through faith alone.
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Absolutely not. Salvation by works.
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We're saved by grace, race, but persistent, unrepentant
21:20
indulgence in sin. A continuous, willing submission
21:23
to it may indicate a lack of true surrender to Christ as
21:26
Lord. It might be evidence that
21:28
genuine regeneration, dying to sin and being made alive to God
21:32
hasn't actually happened. So the Bible encourages self
21:34
examination. It does 2nd Corinthians 13.5
21:37
examine yourselves to see whether or not you're in the
21:39
faith and Galatians 5 after listing those works of the
21:42
flesh. Immorality, anger, divisions,
21:45
drunkenness says those who do such things as a pattern of life
21:48
will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
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So while grace is paramount, a life consistently marked by
21:54
unrepentant, dominating sin should prompt serious self
21:56
reflection about the reality of 1's faith and surrender to
21:59
Christ. OK, but there's good news here
22:01
too, right? For the believer who is
22:03
genuinely saved but struggling. Oh, absolutely.
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Here's the significant optimism for believers.
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Despite our own inability to break free on our own, God's
22:11
grace, mercy, and goodness have been provided for you as a
22:14
sincere believer to overcome any sin completely and potentially
22:18
quickly. So it's not just about coping or
22:20
managing it forever. No, it's about truly overcoming
22:24
it, breaking its grip entirely through the power of the Holy
22:27
Spirit. God sent the Holy Spirit into
22:29
your life to make you obey because you would not do it
22:32
without Him. The Spirit empowers us for new
22:35
life, for righteousness. Romans 6.22 says when believers
22:41
submit to God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification.
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Sanctification, that ongoing process of becoming more like
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Christ. Exactly.
22:49
God's setting us apart, transforming us, and He's
22:52
promised to keep doing that until the day of Christ Jesus.
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The future is bright for believers.
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We don't have to stay stuck. But it requires effort on our
23:00
part, too, a determined pursuit. Yes, it means we have to deny
23:04
yourself, pick up your cross and follow after Jesus Christ.
23:08
This isn't just a one time thing, it's a moment by moment
23:10
choice. Identify the temptation, confess
23:12
it as sin, and immediately pivot your will and actions towards
23:15
Christ. Like we're calling scripture,
23:18
choosing a different action, getting accountability, praying
23:21
right then and there. All of those actively relying on
23:24
the Lord. When we do that, what felt
23:26
impossible becomes possible through His strength.
23:30
It's a daily submission, A genuine pursuit of Him in
23:33
everything. OK, let's shift gears a bit.
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Let's look at how the world man's view tends to deal with
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these kinds of problems. Right.
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And what's interesting here is how God's common grace factors
23:44
in. Common grace is God's kindness
23:46
to everyone, believers and unbelievers alike.
23:49
It means even unsaved people, like secular psychologists or
23:52
counselors, can observe things accurately.
23:54
They can see and describe behaviors, defiance,
23:56
hyperactivity, anxiety, obsessive patterns.
23:59
To deny they can observe anything true would be denying
24:02
common grace. OK, so they can observe some
24:04
true things, but. But because the spiritual
24:07
blindness caused by sin, they cannot accurately explain why
24:10
these problems exist or offer a true spiritual diagnosis and a
24:14
spiritual solution. Romans one talks about how even
24:17
knowing God through creation, people became futile in their
24:20
thinking. Their hearts were darkened
24:21
because they suppress the truth in unrighteousness.
24:24
And Satan blinds minds too, right?
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Second Corinthians 4. Exactly.
24:28
Satan has blinded the minds of unbelievers to keep them from
24:32
seeing the light of the gospel. So their observations, while
24:36
maybe accurate on the surface, are limited by a worldview that
24:39
leaves out God. Their diagnosis will inevitably
24:43
be at odds with God's diagnosis because they start from a
24:46
different foundation. And their treatments won't
24:48
include things like denying self, trusting Christ, yielding
24:52
to the Spirit. No, and crucially, their goal
24:55
won't be living for God's glory. It'll usually be about temporal
24:58
happiness, symptom management, just functioning better in this
25:01
life, not eternal transformation or relationship with God.
25:05
And because of that different foundation, man often comes up
25:08
with explanations that shift responsibility away from
25:11
personal sin. That's a common thread.
25:13
One way is attributing things like homosexuality or addiction
25:16
primarily to genetic predisposition or biology.
25:20
The implication is you can't help it, therefore you're not
25:23
really responsible. It downplays personal choice and
25:26
dwelling sin. We're calling things diseases
25:28
that need medical treatment, like depression, fear, substance
25:31
abuse. Yes.
25:32
While Physiology can play a role and medical help might be needed
25:36
for some aspects, labeling what are often deep spiritual
25:39
struggles as purely medical can miss the root issue.
25:42
What about the personality type excuse?
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That's just how I am. I'm an angry person.
25:47
Right or I'm just blunt. I love Stephen Hoarders line on
25:50
this. Sometimes you need to repent
25:51
from your personality. If your natural bent leads to
25:54
sin, you can't just excuse it as who you are.
25:57
You need change. And explaining things away is
25:59
low self esteem. That seems common.
26:01
Very common trying to explain anorexia, bulimia, adultery,
26:06
violence, even murder as just expressions of low self esteem.
26:10
The idea being, feel better about yourself and the sin will
26:12
vanish. And finally, blaming childhood
26:15
treatment or trauma. Yes, attributing current
26:18
enslavement solely to past treatment or seeing behavior as
26:21
just revenge for past wrongs. While past experiences shape us
26:25
deeply and need compassion, these explanations often fail to
26:28
fully account for current personal choice, responsibility,
26:31
and the heart issues driving the sin now.
26:33
So, given those kinds of explanations, it follows that
26:37
man's ways of dealing with sin apart from God's truth are
26:40
often, well, inadequate. Inadequate for true lasting
26:45
transformation? Yes.
26:46
First, they fundamentally leave God out of the solution unless
26:50
maybe some vague faith, even faith in a doorknob as one
26:54
program notoriously suggested, helps achieve the desired
26:57
outcome. God isn't central.
26:59
It's about self alliance, coping skills, external fixes.
27:03
Second, they often ignore the heart right?
27:05
Focusing on managing behavior. Exactly, it's just squeezing the
27:08
water balloon again. If you don't deal with the root
27:10
desires, the problem just shows up somewhere else because the
27:13
heart hasn't changed. 3rd medicating what might be
27:15
spiritual problems. Right.
27:17
Incorrectly diagnosing spiritual struggles as purely medical can
27:21
offer temporary relief sometimes, but often leads to
27:24
false hope or despair if the meds don't fix the deeper issue.
27:27
4th you mentioned they might borrow biblical terms but empty
27:29
them like confession or forgiveness.
27:32
Yes, they might use words like confession, forgiveness,
27:36
fellowship, but only for horizontal reasons.
27:38
Person to person aiming for temporal happiness or social
27:42
adjustment, they usually lead out the crucial gospel elements.
27:46
God's holiness, our offense against Him, the sinfulness of
27:49
the behavior, deserving judgment, Christ's atonement,
27:52
the perspective of eternity, genuine heart, repentance, full
27:55
trust in Christ, reliance on the Spirit to overcome sin and live
27:59
for God's glory. Those are typically missing.
28:02
And 5th, relying on professional centers over the church.
28:06
There's often an emphasis on secular credentials and training
28:08
as the primary source of help, rather than seeing the church as
28:12
God's ordained instrument and the authoritative source of
28:14
wisdom. And finally, using their books
28:17
over his book. Right, prioritizing modern
28:19
theories, diagnostic manuals like the DSM over the Bible as
28:23
the ultimate source for understanding and solving human
28:25
problems. You know that point about their
28:27
books instead of his book? It makes me think of that movie.
28:30
What about Bob? Yeah.
28:31
Remember the scene where Doctor Marvin the psychologist is
28:34
talking to Bob? He goes to his bookshelf filled
28:36
with identical yellow books, pulls one off and declares there
28:40
is a groundbreaking new book. And of course, it's his own
28:44
book. Baby steps.
28:45
He's even leaning on a statue of his own head.
28:47
It's funny, but it makes the point well, relying solely on
28:51
human wisdom, even your own, instead of God's revealed truth.
28:55
And maybe a caution for us too. Even as believers who say we
28:59
believe the Bible is sufficient, sometimes we can still fall into
29:03
going to books about the Bible or other resources before we
29:06
actually go to the Bible itself. That's a really important
29:09
caution. Good Christian books and
29:11
resources are valuable, absolutely, but our first
29:14
instinct should always be God's Word directly.
29:17
It's the ultimate authority, the living source for understanding
29:20
and overcoming these deep patterns.
29:23
OK, so as we wrap up this deep dive, let's just quickly recap
29:26
the essentials we've seen. A life dominating sin isn't just
29:30
an occasional slip, it's a pattern of enslavement affecting
29:33
many areas of life. We talked about how to spot it,
29:36
It's control, persistence, blaming, denial, and how it
29:40
stems from deeper heart issues, not just outward actions.
29:43
Right. And for believers, we saw that
29:45
while sin's dominion is broken, it can still gain control if we
29:48
let it reign through habitual submission.
29:50
And looking at the bigger picture.
29:51
It seems clear that man, apart from God's truth, really can't
29:55
truly understand or overcome sin.
29:57
Spiritual blindness, suppressing truth, a flawed foundation, it
30:01
all gets in the way. But for you, the believer in
30:03
Christ, there's real optimism, real hope.
30:06
God's design isn't for us to just cope or manage sin forever.
30:09
His will is for you to fight it. Yield to Him, moving that upward
30:13
spiral of maturity in Christ. Because God promises to sanctify
30:16
us and the Holy Spirit empowers us to overcome any sin.
30:19
Any sin, it's not about managing, it's about triumphing
30:22
through His grace. So the final thought for you
30:24
listening what does this all mean for you right now?
30:27
If God's faithfulness makes complete freedom of present
30:30
possibility, what pet sin might you be tolerating, maybe without
30:34
even realizing it? What are you now compelled to
30:37
surrender to Him? Think about how understanding
30:39
those hidden heart desires could change your path, starting
30:42
today, towards a life more fully surrendered to Christ.
30:45
We really trust this deep dive has given you some fresh
30:47
understanding and practical guidance.
30:49
Until our next deep dive, keep pursuing wisdom and growing in
30:53
truth.