Every one of our sinful actions has a suicidal power on the faculties that put that action forth. When you sin with the mind, that sin shrivels the rationality. When you sin with the heart or the emotions, that sin shrivels the emotions. When you sin with the will, that sin destroys and dissolves your willpower and your self-control. Sin is the suicidal action of the self against itself. Sin destroys freedom because sin is an enslaving power.
Interpretation
Sin has a destructive impact on our mental, emotional, and willpower faculties, ultimately leading to a loss of freedom.
In this quote, Timothy Keller discusses how engaging in sinful actions negatively affects various aspects of our being. He argues that when we sin mentally, emotionally, or through our will, we diminish rationality, emotions, and self-control, respectively. Therefore, Keller portrays sin not merely as a moral failing but as a self-destructive act that leads to spiritual and emotional enslavement, stripping individuals of their freedom and agency.
In practice
During a discussion about morality, one might quote this to emphasize the consequences of actions.
Falling in love in a Christian way is to say,'I am excited about your future and I want to be part of getting you there. I'm signing up for the journey with you. Would you sign up for the journey to my true self with me? It's going to be hard but I want to get there.
Only in Jesus Christ do we see how the untamable, infinite God can become a baby and a loving Savior. On the cross we see how both the love and the holiness of God can be fulfilled at once.
All human problems are ultimately symptoms, and our separation from God is the cause.
While your character flaws may have created mild problems for other people, they will create major problems for your spouse and your marriage.
To be loved but not known is comforting but superficial. To be known and not loved is our greatest fear. But to be fully known and truly loved is, well, a lot like being loved by God. It is what we need more than anything. It liberates us from pretense, humbles us out of our self-righteousness, and fortifies us for any difficulty life can throw at us.
God's Kingdom is "present in its beginnings, but still future in its fullness. This guards us from an under-realized eschatology (expecting no change now) and an over-realized eschatology (expecting all change now). In this stage, we embrace the reality that while we're not yet what we will be, we're also no longer what we used to be.
The sum of all is, if we would most truly enjoy the gift of Heaven, let us become a virtuous people; then shall we both deserve and enjoy it. While on the other hand, if we are universally vicious and debauched in our manners, though the form of our Constitution carries the face of the most exalted freedom, we shall in reality be the most abject slaves.
Guns go home with the soldiers, but landmines are designed to kill - mindlessly, out of control, for years.
The only secret people keep is immortality.
If we care about the average working American, then Wal-Mart matters. A lot.
Never take over the world to tamper with it. Those who want to tamper with it are not fit to take over the world.
The more dignity is widely and freely available in a society, the less people want to be famous.
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