How do I overcome stubborn sins?

Jacob Black said:

I'm trying to become a born again Christian but I can't let certain aspects of my old personality go.

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Either you are one or you are not one.

Do you know The Four Spiritual Laws?

Jacob Black said:

I'm trying to become a born again Christian but I can't let certain aspects of my old personality go.

I've overcome a lot of sins with the help of Jesus Christ which I was continuously practicing such as watching inappropriate contentography, taking the Lord's name in vain, lying, blaming others instead of myself etc. but I'm still struggling with a lot of stubborn sins that I cannot overcome at the moment.

For example: I've been trying to overcome my eating disorder for years now and I can't stop to idolize my self-image. My diseased personality wants to become as thin as possible or as muscular as possible while at the same time trying to eat as little as possible. It is also trying to manipulate my faith with thoughts such as ''You can't eat more or God will think that you're a glutton!'' I want to become healthy again while trusting Jesus Christ but it is very hard because I can't just eliminate these thoughts. They just pop in or masquerade as something else so I don't notice it.

Another problem that I'm currently struggling with is that I can still be prideful, selfish, stubborn and jealous. My sinful self wants to please God with its good works but I know my good works are like filthy rags to him (Isaiah 64:4). I hate these moments that I can become furious from the inside when I see other people performing better than me or when I can't achieve certain things.

The only thing I want right now is salvation. Trusting in Jesus Christ alone who died for my sins and not my good works or looking. These sins make me doubt that I'm a real Christian at all and I feel more like a goat from the Parable of the Sheep and Goats found in Matthew 25 or someone who will say ''Lord, Lord!''

How can I overcome these sinful thoughts and rebellion from within? And how do I let the Holy Spirit in my heart and renew my mind to obey Christ while at the same time trusting in him alone for my salvation?

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are you feeling conviction for anything meantioned above ? if not you have not reached salvation status yet when we pray the sinners prayer it has to be done with a sincere heart , upon salvation Jesus and the holyspirit come into your heart and and then convictions start you start feeling bad when you mess up ... when i became saved i realized its a growing process ive heard some came up from the altar being stripped of all sins at once and in a way we do (our past sins ) and yes i know the bible says behold all things become new and they do ... and you shouldnt compare your self to others were all growing thru mercy and grace at differant levels and paces *** now i will say this from my salvation experience upon recieving Christ i went from accepting sin to hating sin and not wanting to offend my heavenly father it just came natural ... now God knows were gunna mess up from time to time thats why we have an advocate with the Father that advocate is Jesus so we can repent and turn away from sin

1 John 1:8 King James Version (KJV)
8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
Romans 3:23 King James Version (KJV)
23 For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;
now i must clairify something right here these scriptures DO NOT GIVE US PERMISSION TO SIN FREELY AND THINK WERE GUNNA MAKE IT INTO HEAVEN ***
we should compare our lives to the life of Jesus as our example not look at the lives of others as far as a guide on how were to live our lives ... and you becoming frustrated is from self condemnation.... we have to have a personal relationship with Christ , live for him put him number 1 in our daily lives study his words go to church and be taught thru the preaching of the word of God and obey him and the scriptures ... as far as if you are saved and have stubbourn sin you must pray and ask God to take it from you but you also have to be willing to turn it loose and leave it in his hands and get determined to not do that sin again and if you accidently do mess up his mercy and grace covers you so you can repent ... everyday is a new day in Christ with new starting points always make sure you repent from known and unknown sins including unforgiveness daily before bed ... right now you need to do a self check and ask your self if you are saved if not message me and ill lead you thru the sinners prayer and you gotta relax in the love of God to do not look at him as a God whos gunna crush you everytime you mess up ... his love is unfailing and his mercies are new everyday if you have anymore question just reply i'll watch the thread for any further questions

You still have a conflict of interest that you need to settle by truly repenting towards God. When self is died to and Christ's reign is welcomed in one's heart then the sins that are still having dominion over you will not any longer. Eat and order your appearance to please the Lord. Confess that if God gave you what you deserved you would get hell. Thank Him that He has provided a way for you to escape His wrath through Christ and that you are getting better than you deserve just to be alive and to receive an opportunity to enter into His grace and be redeemed from your sins. No one who does this in truth could possibly be jealous of another person nor be obsessed with their self-image. Turn your heart and your whole being to the Lord; forsake any and all claims of Him owing you anything good, because He sure does not. Cease to do evil and learn to do well because the Lord made you, He owns you rightfully, and Christ died to redeem you to Himself. Work good in His eyes in surrender to Him- those are the works you need because they are the exercise of a living faith. Renounce all hopes of making God your debtor, condemn all work done with such a motive, and forsake all boasting before the Lord. Those are the self-righteous works which are truly filthy rags before Him. Don't confuse the latter works with the former. They are a universe apart and the Bible rebukes the latter and insists upon the former. Understand the distinction, fear God, and walk in the light of God's Word regarding each. Christ gives the Holy Spirit to all them that obey Him and petition Him in contrite, persistent acknowledgement of their need.

"31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him." (Acts 5:31-32)

"5 So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. 7 Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared; 8 Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered; 9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec." (Hebrews 5:5-10)

Good news is posting this shows you, at least it seems, want to change and may feel some guilt about not changing. Which means its a step in a good direction.

To be honest change for some is not overnight. And for some there may be certain issues they struggle with forever. Now hear me when I say, this is NOT an excuse to continue to sin or be like "Oh well, its gonna happen!". You should always fight to change, even if it takes a long time. The minute you stop trying to change something means you have sort of given up.

I was raised a christian and let Jesus in my heart at 8 or 9 I believe. I truly believed, never doubted His existence or what He did. However as I grew I learned some nasty habits. Especially because of mom who had rage issues. I even went as far as taking Gods name in vain sometimes. But I was so mad at the world (for being sick and just learning that from my mom) that I didn't notice the hole I had gone down.

Eventually I did realize it (thanks to this forum) and made changes. I used to swear MANY times a day online and off. Now I never really swear. Maybe 2-3 times a year, usually when upset. Not happy given 2-3 it still to many. I used to watch inappropriate content all day, now it does pop up its head on rare occasions but usually I can get rid of the urge.

I used to worry about every little thing, constantly. Now I don't really. I have faith in God no matter what happens.

I could go on but you get my drift. The more I read my bible, the more I pray, the more I do devotions, go to church...etc. The more I notice I stay on a better path because Gods Word is reminding me all the time. So when I even have a guilty feeling, I know its the Holy Spirit saying "Be careful what you are doing. This is not acting like Jesus!".

NothingIsImpossible said:

Good news is posting this shows you, at least it seems, want to change and may feel some guilt about not changing. Which means its a step in a good direction.

To be honest change for some is not overnight. And for some there may be certain issues they struggle with forever. Now hear me when I say, this is NOT an excuse to continue to sin or be like "Oh well, its gonna happen!". You should always fight to change, even if it takes a long time. The minute you stop trying to change something means you have sort of given up.

I was raised a christian and let Jesus in my heart at 8 or 9 I believe. I truly believed, never doubted His existence or what He did. However as I grew I learned some nasty habits. Especially because of mom who had rage issues. I even went as far as taking Gods name in vain sometimes. But I was so mad at the world (for being sick and just learning that from my mom) that I didn't notice the hole I had gone down.

Eventually I did realize it (thanks to this forum) and made changes. I used to swear MANY times a day online and off. Now I never really swear. Maybe 2-3 times a year, usually when upset. Not happy given 2-3 it still to many. I used to watch inappropriate content all day, now it does pop up its head on rare occasions but usually I can get rid of the urge.

I used to worry about every little thing, constantly. Now I don't really. I have faith in God no matter what happens.

I could go on but you get my drift. The more I read my bible, the more I pray, the more I do devotions, go to church...etc. The more I notice I stay on a better path because Gods Word is reminding me all the time. So when I even have a guilty feeling, I know its the Holy Spirit saying "Be careful what you are doing. This is not acting like Jesus!".

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your point is right on , on this subject ... wow you summed it up quickly i took the long way around lol you simplfy things easy ....

Jacob Black said:

I'm trying to become a born again Christian but I can't let certain aspects of my old personality go.

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You can not do it on your own. You need the Holy Spirit. When you are ready to restore the relationship with your Lord Jesus Christ of Nazareth, He will fill you with His Holy Spirit. You will be guided by The Comforter after your regeneration. You will be part of the Body of Christ, The Kingdom of God where Jesus Christ of Nazareth is our King. He only accepts sinners, which is all of us. So no need to try to be born again you can be born again right now as you are.
Blessings

Jacob Black said:

I'm trying to become a born again Christian but I can't let certain aspects of my old personality go.

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Here’s my 2 cents…First off, stop trying to become born again and take responsibility for your own health. The fact that you acknowledge you have sin in your life and have opportunities to make improvements to your life is the first step. Good job overcoming the things you have! With the Lords help all things are possible!

How can a man be born again when he is old? Can he enter the second time into his mothers womb and be born? (John 3:4), meaning how can anyone to do something to be saved? We know from the next verse… a man must be born of water and of the Spirit…” (John 3:5). The water is the water of the gospel (Eph 5:26). It is through His word that the Holy Spirit works. Salvation is found in the pages of the Bible. When you “try” to do something you are doing the work and with regards to being born again or saved this does not result from our works (Eph 2:9).

What you can do is put yourself in the correct environment as much as possible. This is reading the bible, studying it, listening to it, singing psalms and of course praying to God letting Him know your desire to be saved but that His will be done for you. It’s important, I think, we remain very humble and do not demand, try to negotiate or expect anything from God. I like to think of it like showing up everyday and putting the study time in even when it seems things are not changing. Now if God makes a change in your life you must not think it was because you spent that entire time showing up. That was God already working in you, drawing you. Of course if you throw the towel in that’s all your doing….Like the old wax on wax off thing (Karate Kid, 1984) …you think your just working and not learning or making progress but in reality the teacher is conditioning you. What you’ll find is a developing habit and desire to learn more and your love for His word will grow.

We each need to have self-discipline and take responsibility for our life. We control what we do and how we do it. Yes unexpected things happen but we choose how to react. If you want to be healthy, eat right most of the time and exercise,consistently. A good workout does wonders in helping to get through frustrations and other harmful emotions as well. Lot’s of information and help out there. If it’s a medical thing see a doc and follow his advice.

What you put into your mind (TV, movies, books, internet…) will influence your decisions if you spend a lot of time with it. So, ask yourself, is it God glorifying? If not maybe don’t spend a lot of time doing it. Put “good” helpful things into your mind and develop mental toughness that will improve self discipline and help build a life you desire that can best serve Christ .

Remember, God has His own timetable for each of us and He will not diverge from the plan. Life is tough in this cursed world; thankfully God gave us his word we can read anytime, we can talk with other Christians, pray and wait on the Lord while working really hard on our own self-improvement, which will ultimately glorify God.