When wickedness comes, so does contempt, and with shame comes disgrace (Proverbs 18:3).

It's a vicious cycle, but undeniable.  Sin leads to a sense of disconnection from God and from one's own self.  A sense of disconnection from God and one's self leads to feelings of self-loathing, shame, and disgrace.  And feelings self-loathing, shame, and disgrace lead to more poor choices and sin.  And then the cycle starts all over again...

One of the clearest biblical examples of this downward spiral is the story of Amnon and Tamar, recorded in 2 Samuel chapter 13.  Amnon lusts after his half-sister, Tamar.  He becomes completely obsessed about her, and eventually he devises a plan to get her.  He pretends to be sick and asks for Tamar to come and bring him some food -- and when he gets her alone in his bedroom, he grabs her and says, "Come to bed with me, my sister."  Tamar responds, as you might expect:  "Don't, my brother!  Don't force me.  Such a thing should not be done in Israel!  Don't do this wicked thing.  What about me?  Where could I get rid of my disgrace?  And what about you?  You would be like one of the wicked fools in Israel."  She implores Amnon to just try to talk to the king, to try to arrange a proper marriage.  But Amnon refuses to listen to Tamar, and he uses his superior physical strength to rape her.  Yet after this horrible sexual assault, Amnon does not feel satisfied or fulfilled.  On the contrary, he's filled with contempt.  Amnon actually hates Tamar with an intense hatred.  In fact, he hates her more than he had ever loved her.  So he commands her to immediately get out of his bed and out of his life.  Tamar again tries to plead with him, "No!  Sending me away would be a greater wrong than what you have already done to me."  But Amnon refuses to listen to her and sends her away, instructing his servants to "Get this woman out of here and bolt the door after her!"  Over time the situation degenerates further to family infighting and fratricide that eventually leads to the break-up of the entire Kingdom.  And it all goes to show that wickedness creates an insidious downward spiral that creates a broad path of destruction across multiple lives.

I've noticed these pattern in my own life as well -- maybe not quite to the extent of Amnon and Tamar, but still... Sometimes, I will make a wrong choice.  I will sin against somebody.  But rather than feel remorse, I will feel stronger in my contempt towards the person whom I have wronged.  The vicious cycle starts up, same as it always has throughout history, and it can be months, years, or lifetimes later before the damages are restored.  Sin is serious stuff, powerful stuff with vast consequences.

But sin doesn't have to have the last word.  Yes, there are powerful forces at work within our bodies, as the Apostle Paul reiterated in Romans chapter 7, and these powerful forces are waging war with our consciences and making us prisoners to sin.  We often feel compelled to cry out:  "What a wretched man I am!  Who will rescue me from this body of death?"  And the answer to this question is supplied immediately after the question:  "Thanks be to God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!"  Jesus played the part of a sin offering, cleansing the slate and allowing us a fresh start, free from the law of sin and death.  If you ever feel caught in the vicious cycle of sin, as described in Proverbs 18:3 -- that seemingly inescapable downward spiral -- then I would highly recommend a reading of Romans chapters 6, 7, and 8.  It's a difficult process, breaking out of that cycle, that spiral, but there is hope in Jesus.