The Flesh and the Spirit
Romans 8:11-13 God raised Jesus from death. And if God’s Spirit lives in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. Yes, God is the one who raised Christ from death, and he will raise you to life through his Spirit living in you. So, my brothers and sisters, we must not be ruled by our sinful selves. We must not live the way our sinful selves want. If you use your lives to do what your sinful selves want, you will die spiritually. But if you use the Spirit’s help to stop doing the wrong things you do with your body, you will have true life.
It’s easy to feel guilty about the struggle we each have in dealing with the sin in our lives. Because somehow we imagine that we’re the only ones going through this struggle. That everyone out there has it all sorted!
Sin is an ever-present reality in the life of every believer. In Romans Chapter 7, the Apostle Paul tells us of the war that’s going on inside him between the Spirit and his flesh.
“I know the right thing to do, I want to do it, I just can’t,” he writes.
Thank you, Paul, for being so honest, because it’s a battle that we each face. There’s no one out there who lives their life on some super-spiritual, holy-roller plane, who has it all worked out. If Paul didn’t, then you and I certainly don’t.
But when we put our trust in Jesus, even though we’re rotting to death in our sin, the Holy Spirit brings new life. It’s a process. It happens over time. Just the way God intended.
Romans 8:11-13 God raised Jesus from death. And if God’s Spirit lives in you, he will also give life to your bodies that die. Yes, God is the one who raised Christ from death, and he will raise you to life through his Spirit living in you. So, my brothers and sisters, we must not be ruled by our sinful selves. We must not live the way our sinful selves want. If you use your lives to do what your sinful selves want, you will die spiritually. But if you use the Spirit’s help to stop doing the wrong things you do with your body, you will have true life.
Working harder isn’t going to help you overcome sin. Relying on God the Holy Spirit will.
That’s God’s Word. Fresh … for you … today.
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