Paul the apostle has been
thorough as he shared with the Galatian church members about the
difference between the manifestations of the flesh and the fruit of
the Spirit. He told them about the war that is between the spirit and
the flesh, and he has guided them toward walking and being led by the
Spirit of God so they would not fulfill the desires of the flesh. In
chapter five and verse twenty-four Paul continues his discourse about
the way they are to defeat the flesh. He wrote:
And they that are
Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Paul
begins, “And they that are Christ's...” Paul draws a
distinction between those who have received Jesus Christ as their
personal Savior, and those who have not. There is a significant
difference between the way a person conducts themselves when they
know Jesus Christ and when they do not. Those who receive Jesus as
their personal Savior are His, they belong to Him, and they have
given their lives over to His control. Jesus is Lord of their lives,
and now their behavior is governed by God Himself.
Paul
continues, “...have crucified the flesh with the affections and
lusts.” By being in a relationship with Jesus, those who
believe in Jesus “put to death” the affections and lusts of the
flesh. In Paul's words, they crucify those desires. It isn't that the
flesh nature does not still reside, however, there is an effort, a
care, and a concern to not fulfill those fleshly desires within. When
the passions within a person who does not have a relationship with
Jesus arise, there is every effort to fulfill them. When the passions
arrive in a person that knows Jesus as Savior, there is every effort
to put away that desire and not fulfill it at all.
The
challenge in Paul's words is to belong to Christ. This is not
possible without knowing Jesus Christ as our Savior. We must align
ourselves with Him if there is to be any victory at all against
fleshly desires. We must fall so deeply in love with Jesus Christ
that every time a fleshly desire arises within us, we put it to
death. We crucify it. This takes a work of God's Spirit dwelling
within us, and when we have His power to defeat the works of the
flesh, those desires will fall to the grave every time. May our
meditation today be about aligning ourselves with Jesus Christ, and
may we all receive His power to walk after His Spirit and put to
death the desires of our flesh.
Next time Paul will challenge us in the way we live, so read ahead,
and let us join together then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look for
the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation
to Generation” in all major
bookstore
sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to
e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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