October 29, 2019 FLESH OR SPIRIT
Romans 8: 7-9, 12-13 “because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” “So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
I encourage you to read the entire chapter of Romans 8 as we get into the subject for today. I would say that the linch-pin, or certainly a crucial truth of the entire New Testament we must understand if we are to live the Christian life as God designed, is that of dying to self. It’s clear that one who has trusted Christ as Savior, can choose to live according to their own ways and not according to the ways of God. In the scriptures, we often find the word ‘flesh,’ which is a reference our old nature, the part of us who desires and/or chooses to live according to what our ‘self’ wants as opposed to living according to the Spirit of God in us-that is the battleground. God has made us new creations and has given us a new nature and we can now live out of that new nature; to live out of our newness is not automatic, but is a choice we make to yield to the Spirit within us. Ephesians 4:30 tells us: “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” We may view as dying to self as something that will rob us of life, or we may view it as something difficult to do. The good news is that once we discover our true identity-- that God has given us a new heart, a new mind and a new spirit—it becomes our hearts desire to walk in the ways of the Lord, to live as new creatures. We are instructed in Ephesians 4:22-24 to “put off the old self” and to “put on the new self.” We have the power to lay aside the old self-who we use to be, and we have the power to put on the new self; we are not under obligation to live according to the flesh. The verse also tells us that if we are living in the flesh, we “must die,”---that is, die to self. What does all of this mean practically for us? It simply means that when the Spirit prompts us to do a certain thing, to respond a certain way, to do the things that are pleasing to the Lord, to do what the scriptures teach-we do it! Our flesh may resist doing such, but at that moment make the choice to follow the leading of the Spirit. The Holy Spirt gives us the power to put to death the deeds of the body-we can put to death wrong thoughts, wrong actions and any other thing about our life that does not please the Lord; and when we do, we find abundant life. Let us see that we are not a ‘body with a spirit’, but a ‘spirit with a body.’ It is all rather simple; we choose to walk according to our flesh, or we choose to walk according to the Spirit; the choice we make has huge implications.
Galatians 5:16, 24-25 “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh.” “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:8-10 “For at one time you were in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”
Blessings, Buddy
October 29, 2019 FLESH OR SPIRIT
Romans 8: 7-9, 12-13 “because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so; and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.” “So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh-for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
I encourage you to read the entire chapter of Romans 8 as we get into the subject for today. I would say that the linch-pin, or certainly a crucial truth of the entire New Testament we must understand if we are to live the Christian life as God designed, is that of dying to self. It’s clear that one who has trusted Christ as Savior, can choose to live according to their own ways and not according to the ways of God. In the scriptures, we often find the word ‘flesh,’ which is a reference our old nature, the part of us who desires and/or chooses to live according to what our ‘self’ wants as opposed to living according to the Spirit of God in us-that is the battleground. God has made us new creations and has given us a new nature and we can now live out of that new nature; to live out of our newness is not automatic, but is a choice we make to yield to the Spirit within us. Ephesians 4:30 tells us: “Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” We may view as dying to self as something that will rob us of life, or we may view it as something difficult to do. The good news is that once we discover our true identity-- that God has given us a new heart, a new mind and a new spirit—it becomes our hearts desire to walk in the ways of the Lord, to live as new creatures. We are instructed in Ephesians 4:22-24 to “put off the old self” and to “put on the new self.” We have the power to lay aside the old self-who we use to be, and we have the power to put on the new self; we are not under obligation to live according to the flesh. The verse also tells us that if we are living in the flesh, we “must die,”---that is, die to self. What does all of this mean practically for us? It simply means that when the Spirit prompts us to do a certain thing, to respond a certain way, to do the things that are pleasing to the Lord, to do what the scriptures teach-we do it! Our flesh may resist doing such, but at that moment make the choice to follow the leading of the Spirit. The Holy Spirt gives us the power to put to death the deeds of the body-we can put to death wrong thoughts, wrong actions and any other thing about our life that does not please the Lord; and when we do, we find abundant life. Let us see that we are not a ‘body with a spirit’, but a ‘spirit with a body.’ It is all rather simple; we choose to walk according to our flesh, or we choose to walk according to the Spirit; the choice we make has huge implications.
Galatians 5:16, 24-25 “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh.” “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.”
Ephesians 5:8-10 “For at one time you were in darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.”
Blessings, Buddy
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