Reading: Lesson 12 - What’s the solution for sin?
Among those shadowy brides he is always adored, always the perfect lover; no demand is made on his unselfishness, no mortification ever imposed on his vanity. In the end, they become merely the medium through which he increasingly adores himself. . . . After all, almost the main work of life is to come out of our selves, out of the little dark prison we are all born in. Masturbation is to be avoided as all things are to be avoided which retard this process. The danger is that of coming to love the prison.”
Personal Letter From C. S. Lewis to Keith Masson (found in The Collected Letters of C.S. Lewis, Volume 3)
What’s the solution for sin?
Not behavior modification but heart transformation
Conversion: faith and repentance
Not repression but crucifixion
The ongoing need for the gospel
Sanctification: empowering grace of the Spirit
The fruit of the Spirit
Means of grace
Chastity
Integrity of the person: myself & others
Apprenticeship in self-mastery training in human freedom
A long & difficult work
A cultural effort