Hope In The Battle
With the mind I serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.
Romans 7:25
Since Christians are called to obedience and the new nature longs to obey, what do you do when you are tempted to disobey? For one thing, you have the power of the Holy Spirit in you (Rom 8:2), who enables you to do the will of God. But Paul also describes the reality of our ongoing battle with the flesh in Romans 7. He says, “I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind” (Rom 7:23).
The sin principle in our humanness wars against our desire to obey. Every Christian fights that battle. Your humanness wars against the new creation that delights in the law of God. What gives us hope is that the longer we fight the battle, the more victorious we will be. So thank the Lord for continuing His work to deliver you and give you victory each day from sin.
MacArthur, J. (2001). Truth for today : A daily touch of God's grace (Page 285). Nashville, Tenn.: J. Countryman.
Lessons Learned: Although we, who are in Christ, are new creations (2 Cor 5:17), we still live in carnal, sinful, bodies of flesh. With our minds we follow the Holy Spirit and strive towards righteousness, but our bodies still lean towards temptation and sin. When we were justified, our eternal souls were redeemed and freed from the ultimate penalty of death and separation from God. However, our mortal bodies, which inhabit this world of sin, are like jars of clay (2 Cor 4:7), unworthy vessels, fragile and weak. During our lifetimes, as we undergo sanctification, there is a constant battle between our spiritual inner beings and our sinful outer nature (Rom 7:14-23). Only when we reach final glorification will we be completely free of sin, but in the meantime, with the power of the Holy Spirit and Christ in us, we will strive against sin's power and towards God's righteousness.
Applications: Continually strive against sin and towards righteousness. Allow the Holy Spirit to work in you, to sanctify you, to empower you to grow spiritually. As we continue to battle against sin, we know that we can put to death our sinful nature, if Christ is in us (Rom 8:10). Let us set our minds on serving God and obeying Him. "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires" (Rom 8:5).
Prayer Subjects: Pray for a mind set on serving God's will. Pray for strength and perseverance in the battle against sin. Pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to enable me to grow spiritually and to learn to obey and fulfill God's law.
Listen to this entry
Romans 7:25
Since Christians are called to obedience and the new nature longs to obey, what do you do when you are tempted to disobey? For one thing, you have the power of the Holy Spirit in you (Rom 8:2), who enables you to do the will of God. But Paul also describes the reality of our ongoing battle with the flesh in Romans 7. He says, “I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind” (Rom 7:23).
The sin principle in our humanness wars against our desire to obey. Every Christian fights that battle. Your humanness wars against the new creation that delights in the law of God. What gives us hope is that the longer we fight the battle, the more victorious we will be. So thank the Lord for continuing His work to deliver you and give you victory each day from sin.
MacArthur, J. (2001). Truth for today : A daily touch of God's grace (Page 285). Nashville, Tenn.: J. Countryman.
Lessons Learned: Although we, who are in Christ, are new creations (2 Cor 5:17), we still live in carnal, sinful, bodies of flesh. With our minds we follow the Holy Spirit and strive towards righteousness, but our bodies still lean towards temptation and sin. When we were justified, our eternal souls were redeemed and freed from the ultimate penalty of death and separation from God. However, our mortal bodies, which inhabit this world of sin, are like jars of clay (2 Cor 4:7), unworthy vessels, fragile and weak. During our lifetimes, as we undergo sanctification, there is a constant battle between our spiritual inner beings and our sinful outer nature (Rom 7:14-23). Only when we reach final glorification will we be completely free of sin, but in the meantime, with the power of the Holy Spirit and Christ in us, we will strive against sin's power and towards God's righteousness.
Applications: Continually strive against sin and towards righteousness. Allow the Holy Spirit to work in you, to sanctify you, to empower you to grow spiritually. As we continue to battle against sin, we know that we can put to death our sinful nature, if Christ is in us (Rom 8:10). Let us set our minds on serving God and obeying Him. "Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires" (Rom 8:5).
Prayer Subjects: Pray for a mind set on serving God's will. Pray for strength and perseverance in the battle against sin. Pray for the power of the Holy Spirit to enable me to grow spiritually and to learn to obey and fulfill God's law.
Listen to this entry
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