Three Enemies Every Christian Faces – Part 3

“And you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of  this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body.” Ephesians 2:1-3a

The Puritan author and theologian John Owen understood the battle of the flesh and the sin that so easily entangles. Owens pens the following in his classic work, Overcoming Sin and Temptation, “Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.” Owens provides two helpful insights about the third enemy Christians face, which is the flesh.

First, notice the progressive nature of the battle against the flesh, which must be waged daily. Sin does not stop, slow down, or pause at any given time in a believer’s life. Your sinful flesh doesn’t care if you had a bad day. It will not give you the benefit of the doubt, and it doesn’t care if you are tired, exhausted, moody, anxious, hectic, frantic, or busy. The flesh doesn’t consider your latest health scare or the relational problems you are experiencing at home, work, or school. Our flesh never takes a day off, and it will not yield on its own. Therefore, Owens encourages the believer to never cease from the work of “mortification” or putting to death the sinful desires of our hearts. Secondly, Owens draws our attention to the desired outcome of the flesh, our death. Sin is so invasive that it will not stop until it fulfills its mission, bringing the soul and body to the grave. James understood this truth when he wrote the following, “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:14-15). James and Owens pull no punches, be killing sin, or it will be killing you. How do you fight the natural inclinations of your heart? How do you fight against your flesh instead of allowing sin to rule your heart? Let’s examine three ways together.

Understand the battle begins in the mind.

In my early days as a Christian, I made the mistake of viewing everything as behavior-based. I had many opportunities for temptation and often gave in to that temptation. For example, I wanted a good grade, so I cheated. I wanted to be liked, so I gossiped. I wanted to alter the truth about a situation, so I lied. The list could go on and on, and I am sure you have your list of mistakes and failures, too. When I tried to change, my solution was to stay away from the temptations which led me to sin. So, when I was tempted to give in to the flesh, I fled from sin just like Joseph fled from Potiphar’s wife in Genesis 39:12. But often, my blueprint for escaping the flesh didn’t work. Temptation came too fast, and because I was not ready for it, I would end up being swept away by sinful and fleshly desires. But by God’s grace, I have found a better way.

We have to head off sin at the pass, meaning we must deal with sin before it works into our actions and behaviors. The battle begins in the mind, and if the battle for the mind is lost, the hands and actions will soon give way. Paul writes the following in 2 Corinthians 10:5, “We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” The wise Christian readies his mind to take captive every thought hostile to God and drags those thoughts to the cross of Christ and crucifies them in obedience to Christ. An obedient mind leads to an obedient life. So, in our thought life, we should follow the instructions of Paul in Philippians 4:8, “Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” We don’t stand a chance against the daily war with the flesh when our minds are full of wrong thoughts and desires. The answer is to fill our minds with the honorable, just, pure, and wondrous things of the kingdom of God. When our mind is full of the kingdom, it is tough for sinful thoughts to gain a foothold.

Learn to walk in the Spirit.

The Apostle Paul gives the believer an excellent strategy for the battle against the flesh, “But I say walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).  If you are intimately acquainted with the Spirit, sin has difficulty finding room to grow in your heart. From many, the problem is we don’t know the Spirit well. In the book Forgotten God, Francis Chan writes,

It is easy to use the phrase “God’s will for my life” as an excuse for inaction or even disobedience. … My hope is that instead of searching for “God’s will for my life” each of us would learn to seek hard after “the Spirit’s leading in my life today.” May we learn to pray for an open and willing heart, to surrender to the Spirit’s leading with that friend, child, spouse, circumstance, or decision in our lives right now.

Chan is on to something here. Often, we are after what is best for our life because we are consumed with ourselves. We think about ourselves more than anyone else. Since we are prone to think about our lives and what is best for us, we are in danger of making terrible choices. We will forsake the teachings of Christ and his commands and choose something we know is against his will if we believe the end will justify the means. So, what do we do? We must live by the Spirit, grow to love the Spirit, and learn to surrender to the ways of the Spirit. Most mornings, I pray this prayer, “God help me surrender my life to your Holy Spirit because I am going to mess up when left to my way.” Get to know the Holy Spirit not as a force but as a person of the divine Godhead. Speak to him, listen to his promptings and submit to his will. He will lead you to Christ.

Remember, you are weak, but He is strong.

Some of my favorite and the most encouraging words in the Scripture come from the gospel of Matthew, “Watch and pray that you may not enter into temptation. The spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak” (Matthew 26:41). God is no more potent in your life than when you take the humble posture of prayer. Prayer doesn’t draw crowds of people. Prayer doesn’t break into the list of the “Top Ten Ways to Grow Your Church.” So often, it is not a strategy used to defeat the Devil. Yet, prayer is the most effective discipline we can engage in regarding the war for our allegiance to Christ.

I leave you with these words from George Muller, a great man of God and avid prayer warrior, “The joy which answers to prayer give, cannot be described; and the impetus which they afford to the spiritual life is exceedingly great.” When we live by our understanding, we are weak. But, when we turn to the Lord in prayer, we find a good, ready, and sure strength. So, go, find a place, a quiet place and fight the good fight of faith against the world, the enemy, and the flesh—on your knees.