We kill sin when we pray against it.
“Who will deliver me from this body of death? Thanks be to God through our Lord Jesus Christ!” (Rom. 7:24-25) Killing sin is a spiritual business in that it requires the aid of the Holy Spirit to be successful. If we line up on the battlefield against sin under our power, defeat is usually certain. But if we prayerfully go to battle by praying often (daily, hourly, minute-by-minute when needs be!), we line up behind Christ and His Spirit. We march toward a certain victory when we fight on our knees.
We kill sin when we pursue the opposite.
“Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” (Phil. 4:8) Sin is parasitic, always feeding on something good and producing something bad through it. Were it not for the good and beautiful, sin couldn’t even exist. So part of killing sin is finding those things that sin is perverting and pursuing those with all our energies. Those who steal need to work hard. Those who lust need to love their husband or wife (present or future). Those who enjoy violence need to pursue the knowledge of the Prince of Peace.
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Much more could be said. (If you’d like to read great work on this topic, you can’t do better than John Owen on the mortification of sin.) But hopefully this is enough for a simple and clear reminder.
