As Christians, we know we are at war with the devil and the system of his world. But today I wanted to focus on our third adversary.
This adversary is usually more responsible for our sins and disobedience than the other two. And this adversary is ever-present. All you have to do is look in the mirror to find this adversary.
That's right, I'm talking about the flesh. As in the old Pogo cartoon, we have met the enemy... and he is us.
See if you can identify with the Apostle Paul as he wrote this in Romans 7:15-20:
"For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me."
Sound familiar? If all you ever read in the Bible was this, it would be very depressing.
Have you ever been caught up in a seemingly endless cycle of temptation, then sin, then confession, then repentance, then obedience, then temptation, then sin, then confession, then repentance, then obedience, then temptation, then sin, and so on? I have!
And here's how we know the problem comes from within: The apostle James writes in James 1:14-15:
"But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed. Then, when desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death." (emphasis mine)
Even when people know they are involved in wrongdoing but can't stop, most think it is because of a lack of will power. They think that if they just try harder the next time they are tempted, they can stop before they sin (do wrong).
I made that mistake. It is essentially the sin of pride, because I was trying to do a work relying on my own power in the flesh rather than in God's. It was doomed to eventual failure because it ignored the root of the problem.
You see, we don't become sinners because we sin. We sin because we are sinners! The sin problem is deeply rooted in our nature. Trying to stop sinning through will power is like expecting a leopard to change its spots. Successfully overcoming things like lifelong addictions or besetting sins requires a radical change, and statistics show that the odds are against success.
I agree that with men it may be impossible. But God says that with Him all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). And that includes change!
There is a God who is sovereign over ALL. By all, I mean all the factors that "experts" point to as reasons for low success rates. Poverty, family dysfunction, heredity, chemistry, social conditioning, peer pressure, environmental toxins, the list goes on. I'm not saying that these factors don't exist or don't make change more difficult. I'm saying that to believe we have no hope at all is to believe a LIE!
There is hope, but from a source outside of ourselves. That source of hope is God through Jesus Christ, and His Spirit which the Bible calls the Helper (John 14:16).
Even as a believer, I need to call upon Him to help me so I can resist temptation. Because only when I am freed from my mortal body will I be free from the presence of sin and the temptations that result from it. Until then, I have freedom from sin only to the extent that I rely on the Helper.
From the Apostle Paul in Romans 8:1:
"There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit."
The words in bold are left out of some older manuscripts, but I believe the manuscripts that include them are the most accurate. I believe this not only from my own research into the history of these manuscripts, but also out of my own personal experience. It wasn't until I began to seek help from His Spirit that I began to walk in it.
Walking in the Spirit simply means walking in obedience to the Spirit by relying on Him to strengthen us in times of temptation. That is one reason the Spirit is called the Helper.
On this topic I produced two songs, one of which you will be hearing soon. It is a snapshot of where I found myself then. I was deep in the valley. And make no mistake about it, it was painful. You will probably hear some pain in the music.
Denying yourself is always painful. I would say the amount of pain I experienced was directly proportional to the subsequent exhilaration I experienced from walking in the Spirit. Part of that exhilaration came from understanding, perhaps for the first time in my life, how I was no longer deceived and controlled by the lie I had believed that lasting change was impossible. Sure, I had thought, it was possible for others to change, but not for me. Or so I had believed until I had a breakthrough and God opened my eyes.
The other lie I had believed was that I loved God. I had to admit I really didn't love Him as much as I said I did. Because Jesus said, "If you love Me, keep My commandments." (John 14:15). God looks at the heart, and to Him what we do is no more important than why we do it. I had to admit that my obedience was often motivated not by love, but by fear of judgment.
So I had to confess that to Him. Honesty is the basis for any good relationship, right? And then I had to ask Him to give me a love for Him. Our faith in Him is a gift (Ephesians 2:8), so why wouldn't our love for Him be a gift as well? (1 John 4:19)
And He answered my prayer.
I will not lie and say that my love for Him is what it should be. But I will say that after going through the valley with Him, our relationship has never been the same. When changing your life requires submission to Him, obedience motivated by love is the only kind that will be lasting. I have learned that He does not desire obedience motivated by the fear of punishment. (1 John 4:18)
What a sobering thought it is to realize that apart from Him giving us the ability to believe Him and to love Him, not only would we not have a right motivation to keep His Word, we might not even be saved!
Friend, I don't know in what particular way you need help from the Helper today. But it really doesn't matter, because the biblical principles are the same. The Helper is there to comfort and strengthen you and give you the ability to Keep His Word (also known as grace).
This is true if you belong to Jesus. And if you're willing to take Him at His Word allow Him to help you surrender your will to His will.
All scripture passages from NKJV