Our Most Common Battle

Understand from the start that this is me speaking in the moment.  Honestly, I have not properly prepared, yet this is something that we as Christ followers know all too well.  If not, you will.

I believe in the devil and his lying schemes which attempt to get us to fall off track and take our eyes off of Jesus.  But the enemy has one great ally that works in his favor quite often; our flesh.  Yes the enemy “prowls around like a roaring lion seeking those he may devour,” but we are also “drawn away and enticed by our own evil desires.”  This, my friend, is our flesh at work.  It is a constant reminder, that while we are Christians and are born of the Spirit of God, we will forever be entangled in this battle.

The good news is that the battle is already won.  Jesus overcame the world and conquered sin, death and the grave with His shed blood on the Cross.  So we, though we fail to grasp the revelation, already walk in victory.  But that never takes this battle away completely.  Paul said, “So I find this law at work: when I want to do good, evil is right there with me.  For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work withing my members.  What a wretched man I am!” Romans 7:21-24.  Paul himself admits that he struggled with some sort of fleshly sin.  There has been great debate over the centuries as to what exactly it was, but why should that even matter?  To me, it proves that while Paul was an amazing man of God and was used by Him to turn the world upside down, he was still just a man.

In today’s world, I see that the battles of the flesh are more and more.  And not only that, everyone deals with this battle differently.  I, for one, deal with this battle everyday.  My flesh and my mind are my greatest enemies.  I am weak.  But in my weakness, He is made strong. 

Joyce Meyer has stated that in order to win the battle of the flesh, you have to stop feeding it.  Our flesh is a hungry beast.  And every time we feed it, it becomes stronger and more difficult to overcome.  It eats away at our soul and causes us to forget who we are in Christ.  We lose confidence, stop praying, we feel worthless, hopeless and defeated.  The enemy has won, and never had to do anything.

Deep inside every true Christian is a yearning to let go and surrender all that grieves the Holy Spirit of God.  We don’t want to sin, but we do anyway.  Something deep inside draws us away.  Some use it as a coping mechanism, some are simply attracted to it for some reason, while others are addicted and can’t help it.  No matter which you may fall under, there is one great hope, “Therefor, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” Romans 8:1.  This simply means that, while we may slip up, while we may sin (wilfully or not), while we may give in to the flesh at times, we don’t have to live condemned.  Thank you, Jesus.

But remember, that’s where the enemy will jump in.  Right after you have given in and reality takes over he jumps in your mind firing his flaming arrows of lies.  “Look at you.  You call yourself a Christian?  God will never forgive you now.  You went too far this time.  You have fallen from grace.”  DO NOT LISTEN!!!  Get up, dust yourself off.  Seek God’s grace and forgiveness and continue on.  You are a mighty child of God and are loved far more than you could ever imagine.  Keep figting the great fight of faith.  Eventually, when you prove faithful, those desires of the flesh will fade, the Holy Spirit will strengthen within you, and you will learn what it means to walk in victory.  The battle is already won.  Don’t let Christ’s sacrifice be for nothing.

Well, I’m not sure where all of that came from, or whether it makes sense.  But I know that I want be one who walks closely with God regardless of my flesh.  I want everything that Christ died for me to have.  Though this battle with my flesh may go on until the end of my days, I know that God is greater than my mistakes and weaknesses.  I pray God, make me who You created me to be.  See past my sin and flesh, see my heart and spirit.

**I wrote this blog 6 years ago to the day.  It happened to pop up in my Facebook memories.  It’s interesting to go back and see things like this.  Though this post may not be 100% theologically correct, it is exactly where I was at the time.  And my hope is that these lessons from the past have taken root and changed me for the better.  Please feel free to share and comment.