Dig Deep
Colossians 3:5
Pastor Ryan
Part of Uproot—Killing the Desires of Residual Sin
July 13, 2022

Colossians 3:5 | Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry.

• Recap

// Mortification >> putting to death the things that are ungodly within us
// Immorality (porneia) >> sexual immorality
// Impurity >> uncleanness in thought, word, and deed and could specifically refer to sexual sin.. This term is a broader term than “porneia” which we studied last week.
// Passion >> an inward emotion aroused by some external object

•As we continue our journey through these sins, we must remember that the goal of our study is not just to

these specific sins that Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, identifies. We want to ultimately understand the process of these sins and every other sin.
• If we want to grow in holiness, we must deal with sins rather than sins. I am not just looking to stop specific actions, but I want to understand why I choose those actions, why I respond in that way in that situation. For this to happen, I must dig deep.

We are to Desire

• Creation >> Having desire is part of what it means to be made in the

and likeness of God. God has desires. This word for desire means having passion towards something. It is a different word referring to the natural, legitimate and necessary God-given desires which can be fulfilled in a God-honoring way.
• Fall >> Evil is just spoiled and misdirected (C.S. Lewis). Those who do evil aren’t creating something unique, they are distorting something that God created for good. When sin corrupted humanity’s hearts and minds, the capacity for passionate desire for good as a means of experiencing and exalting God was turned away from our connection with God and turned toward selfish fulfillment.
• Redemption >> The old is passed away (2 Corinthians 5:10). Our bondage to sinful desire has been . Now, we must pursue Jesus with redeemed desires, knowing that those desires will ultimately only bring true satisfaction when we fulfill them in God-honoring ways. What God commands (Psalm 37:4), He supplies the strength to fulfill it (Ezekiel 36:25-27).

Mortifying Residual Desires

• We were created to desire, but our sin nature gave opportunity to our hearts and minds to turn that desire towards evil things. Through our union with Christ, the Spirit has broken us free from the

of our sin nature and given us new desires and a refreshed conscience and spiritual community to recognize our tendency towards evil desires.
• So the mortification/sanctification process consists of:

// Recognizing residual evil desires that need to be mortified
// Remind ourselves of our new nature and believing the truth that there is no life, fullness, or lasting satisfaction there.
// Refocusing on godly desires and looking to fulfill them according to God’s design and purpose.

• What this looks like (applied situations of pornography/sexual immorality an relational maniupation)

Do we truly believe that God is at work, that His timing is perfect, and that His ways are better than our ways. Will we trust Him? Will we believe His promises? This is the key to mortification.