The Gospel According to Hulk

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"I don't want to control it, I want to get rid of it."

That's a line from the movie I saw last night - The Hulk. And he couldn't be more right.

Sermons are preached, books are written, videos are made - all with one goal in mind: to give us power over the things that consume us. These well-intentioned ideas are killing us off, one by one. Because we can't get to a place where we will ever have control over the thoughts that lead to the actions that lead to the spiritual deaths that are prevalent in our churches. (James 1) The frustration of failure that results from this mindset causes depression and defection from the faith. It's not simply a case of mind over matter, of willing yourself to victory.

We spend way too much time developing coping mechanisms. I don't want to learn how to cope with the hindering sins in my life - I want them eradicated. Gone. That's what Christ offers. Complete victory through annihilation, not a crutch that we can lean on so that we can survive. Settling for anything less is a denial of the power of the The Cross - which was a complete destruction of the power of sin, not simply a means of controlling it.

As usual, the Hulk is right. I don't want to control the beast within me, I want to get rid of it. Read Romans 6 and see if you don't find the same answer I found. Victory through annihilation.