rumble with the rhino

"If a rhinoceros were to enter this restaurant now, there is no denying he would have great power here," Chesterton remarked at one point. "But I should be the first to rise and assure him that he had no authority whatever."
- G.K. Chesterton

I have been reading the Enemy Within by Kris Lundgaard (basically a modern retelling of John Owen's The Mortification of Sin ) lately and found this quote in there. My first thought was "why did Chesterton have to pick on the rhino?" But then as I kept reading I realized that this was a perfect (well maybe not perfect) picture of sin in the life of a believer. We are no longer slaves to sin (Romans 6:6) but that does not mean that sin cannot touch us any longer. Sin, in fact, can still make powerful inroads into our lives (Gal 4:8-9), crushing any spiritual fruit God plants in us before it blooms. So what is the difference between a believer and an unbeliever in the light of the power of sin, you may ask. Two things.

1. NO CONDEMNATION (Romans 8:1)
   

Christ payed the punishment for our sins. Therefore we do not have to fear the eternal punishment we deserve. But does that mean we can submit ourselves to the whip of our old slavemaster while here on earth?

2. THE WEAPONS TO KILL ( Romans 8:12-13)

The rhino is in our bedroom. And the rhino is pissed. Does the rhino have the power to make himself a nice John-kabob? You bet. But just like old G.K. we must stand up to that angry horned mammalian and show him the door. Or better yet. Make a nice taxidermy monument to hang above the mantel piece. How do we fight this rhino? Maybe Chesterton could go hand to-horn with the beast (i hear he was somewhat of a rhino himself) but personally, I need the help of the Holy Spirit. God has given us the resources we need to fight sin. And He has given us the reason. It just comes down to whether we will fight or not. Every day. Every night. For the rest of your life. Is it worth it? I think so (Romans 8:16).
Of course you could always just be turned into rhino dung if you'd rather.


Please pray for the strength to perservere to the end.

p.s. No rhinoceroses (rhinoceri?) were harmed in the creation of this post. This site does not endorse causing physical harm in anyway to animals, wild or domestic, unless under extreme durress and defending your own well-being or the well-being of another human. I apologize for any distress or psychological damage suffered by any rhino's who may have read the post or had it read to them

vaya con Dios
j.r.f.