M-G: 12.30.12 // An Outbreak of Ugly

Have you ever noticed that many believers have a difficult time getting out from under their letters of learning, titles, position, accumulations, age, or pride, preventing them from being genuine, humble, vulnerable (the proverbial, letting their hair down), and approachable? Every day, for some, is a spiritual Halloween hiding behind some kind of mask or disguising or deceiving themselves in a world of shaky props. They may be enjoying their treats, but getting tricked by the flesh, the world, and the devil. They usually share the same hang-ups as the worldly crowd, displaying feelings of superiority or self-righteousness; genuine fellowship is nigh impossible with these folks.

I love something Dr. Chuck Swindoll said while addressing the faculty, staff, and student body in a chapel service years ago in a famous evangelical seminary. Paraphrasing, he said, “I don’t care how much theological training you have; how many degrees you have or will have. Your sin nature is as ugly as it was the day you were born again.” I didn’t hear any audible “amens,” and if someone was taking notes, I didn't observe it in this video. 

We can in our own minds consider ourselves as some super stain glass saints with penetrating insight into the Word, quote the OT and NT frontward, sideward, and backward in the original languages or in English, German, and French, be a well-respected authority in theological circles and revered and loved by others, but it doesn’t change the flesh or sin nature one iota. The flesh is nothing but spiritually ugly and troublesome to all who possess the new nature!

Now, this is not limited to preachers and teachers of the Word; so whether you are a doctor, lawyer, supreme court justice, president, senator, congressman, psychologist, policeman, office worker, banker, entrepreneur, millionaire, billionaire, teacher, professor, soldier, archaeologist, scientist, CEO, COO, CFO, CIO, plumber, student, carpenter, electrician, engineer, factory worker, service worker, software developer, investor, mathematician, artist, stay at home mom or dad, or whatever or whoever you might be, if you know the Lord, you are struggling with your sinful nature! We are not sinners because we sin, but sin because we are sinners born with a sinful nature in total opposition to God, and it loves to have its way (Psa 51:5; Rom 5:12).

There is no way our sinful nature can be tamed or domesticated; it’s a wild beast with the potential for the wildest of appetites and expressions to the day we die. Just when we think we got “it” under control, bam, there's an outbreak of ugly making a scene. I have always likened our sinful nature to a coiled spring that has been compressed. As soon as there is the slightest release of pressure, it rears its head, like a jack-in-a-box, if not careful. To ignore or try to forget our old sinful nature exists is perilous to our testimony and career; toying with the crank is equally dangerous, I might add.

If we ever get to feeling “high and mighty,” in or out of the church, this is just a reflection of the Adamic nature, not the nature of the second Adam (Christ). I am here to tell you the ugly has already sprung out of the box! That second look that descends into lust, that evil thought of envy or revenge, and that unkind word that slipped out are some other reminders that even though the penalty of sin has been removed in regeneration, our sinful nature is still with us in all of its gory. One of the elements of Christlikeness is humility; Jesus humbled Himself to become like us (clothed in the flesh), yet without sin, to give us victory over the flesh and to save us from sin’s lethal sting – spiritual death, or separation from God for all eternity.   

It’s too bad we don’t have a spiritual CDC (Center for Disease Control) to address the outbreak of ugliness by believers all over the world. Come to think of it, we do have One; He is called the Holy Spirit, but He only works through our obedience to limit the outbreaks of ugly in our life (Gal 5:16, 25) He’s the only One who can help us effectively deal with our sin nature until it is destroyed when we are ultimately glorified (cf. 1 Cor 15:52). One thing is for sure; if we rely on our sin nature to police itself, an outbreak of ugly is in the wind, and it takes many forms but never this one – Christlikeness. Wouldn’t this make for a great New Year’s resolution before God, being humble and looking pretty (Christ-like)! <><