"Spiderman 3"

Watched "Spiderman 3" with Joy last Saturday. Gotta confess that it was quite an interesting and enjoyable show ..... well, all shows are enjoyable - very enjoyable - when you watch it with someone you love. :)

Anyway, there were two scenes from the show that seems to be stuck in my mind - thus my writing of this blog. The first was that of Spiderman putting on the dark suit (dunno what else to call it) and somewhat enjoying its hold on him - of course with him seemingly oblivious to what was actually happening. The other scene that is etched in my memory is that of Spiderman, upon realizing what the dark suit was doing to him, making a deliberate choice and effort to put off / tear off the dark suit that seemed to have cleaved itself around him.

As i meditated on these two scenes, i realized that it relates so very well to our struggle with sin. No doubt, we Christians have been washed and set free from sin by our Lord Jesus Christ - but our battle with sin does not end there and then. It is a very real, very fierce battle that all of us - even the most holy ones - have to face daily - at least until the return of our Lord Jesus Christ. Anyone who claims otherwise just needs to flip to the first epistle of John and read verses 8 and 10 of chapter 1:

"If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us." (v.8)

"If we claim we have not sinned, we make Him out to be a liar and His Word has no place in our lives." (v.10)

If one is still not convinced of the reality of our battle with sin, let him also look to the apostle Paul's struggle with sin in Romans 7: 19-20 - "For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, 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."

So, yes ... the battle wages on - a real, ongoing battle. Temptations are indeed very much an inevitable part of life. Having said that, however, we need to realize that it's actually just a matter of us appropriating the victory over sin that Christ has wrought for us on the Cross of Calvary - for, by the work of Jesus on the Cross, we are now free to live our lives free from the bondages of sin. And that's precisely what the apostle Paul urged us to do in Romans 6: 11 when he said, "In the same way, consider yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus" - for that's what we are and should be. And in verses 12-14, he clearly shows us the choice / responsibility on our part of not letting sin reign in our lives. The words, "do not" clearly indicates the conscious choice that we can and have to make ............

"Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer the parts of your body to sin, as instruments of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God, as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer the parts of your body to him as instruments of righteousness. For sin shall not be your master, because you are not under law, but under grace." (Romans 6: 12-14)

Indeed, sin can seem so pleasurable, so enjoyable - but its end is destruction - along with those who persist in it. It's just like a deadly poison coated with appealing sugary stuff that seeks to tempt and deceive us. Oh, what a warning this should be for us all to watch our lives closely and not to hesitate in ridding ourselves of all sin.

In the movie, we can see Spiderman enjoying his new-found 'prowess' (when he put on the dark suit) ... and although he seemed to know that it wasn't right, he persisted in it - and by so doing, he allowed the dark suit (symbolic of sin) cleave deeper into the very fibre of his being - and soon found himself subject to its mastery. And what is true of the dark suit to Spidey is also true of sin to the Christian. The verse that sprang to my mind was that of Romans 6: 16 (NKJV - since this was the one i memorized a few years back) - "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?" Indeed, how true it is - Spiderman found himself more and more a slave to the dark suit that he had put on. Likewise for us as well, if we are not careful, we may find ourselves ensnared by sin - and worse still, to allow sin to gain mastery over our lives. The lesson, i guess, is simple: Be quick to rid ourselves of all sin!!! Resist the devil and he will flee from us!!!

Of course, like all action-hero movies, it all ends well. Spiderman somehow awoke to his senses - and there, at the steeple of the church (hmm ... a mere coincidence?), he took responsibility and made a deliberate choice to rid himself of the dark suit (i.e. sin) that was so easily entangling him (see Hebrews 12: 1). As the scene shows, it was not an easy thing to do - for he had allowed it to sink deep into his being. But nonetheless, Spiderman prevailed ... and stripped off the dark suit (i.e. sin / 'old self').

This is precisely what we Christians are to do daily - as Ephesians 4: 22-24 puts it so aptly- "You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitudes of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." We are to, like what Spiderman did at the steeple of the church, to consciously put off our old sinful self - and to put on our new self - created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness. And the great news is this: In Christ, we can - for we have the victory in Him!!! We will prevail in our battle with sin - for sin shall not have dominion over us!!! Amen!!! :)

Funnily enough, as i was writing, yet another scene popped into my mind - and with this scene i conclude. This was the incident where Spiderman had rescued the photographer from the dark suit that had gained mastery over him. One can see the power and lure of sin over one's life from this episode - the photographer, in spite of being separated from the suit by Spiderman, found it more desirable and pleasurable than anything else (symbolic of sin having a foothold on our desires and lives) - and as a result of his love for the dark suit (i.e. sin), he rushed in to be with it ........... only to be utterly destroyed along with it. And how true it is - all sin ends in destruction - along with all who persist / cleave on to it. Let us remember that and take heed.

Oh, let us realize the power of sin over our lives!!! Let us understand the enormity and severity of sin!!! Let us understand sin's dreadful end - and let it compel us to be ever watchful in preventing sin from creeping into our very lives!!! Let's be quick to repent of any known sin - and not let it gain mastery over our very lives. Let's look to Christ and His saving work on the Cross - and find our victory in Him!!! Amen!!! :)