When you submit to the Holy Spirit's work of sanctification, a spiritual fight against the old nature intensifies ... For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. (Galatians 5:17)
Paul was no stranger to that 'war within' ... For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. (Romans 7:18-19)
As you mature spiritually, your walk of faith is characterized by two insatiable desires ... Abhor what is evil; cling to what is good. (Romans 12:9)
They are two sides of the same coin, mutually dependent on one another. Your grip on 'good' is tenuous if you don’t learn to hate 'evil'.
- The more intimately you know God, the more you'll hate anything that threatens that relationship.
- The more you understand the consequences of sin, the more you'll hate that it lurks in your own heart.
- The more you desire to honor Christ as Lord, the more you'll hate that which disables and perverts your ability to do so.
- The more you look at the blood-stained cross of Calvary, the more you'll hate what caused it.
When an acute awareness of sin's corrupting influence comes to your heart and mind, you may shudder at its presence in your life. But what you do with that knowledge is key ...
Spurgeon - If I hate sin because of the punishment, I have not repented of it; I merely regret that God is just.
A sure sign that you're on the right track: You'll detest the impurity that lies within and engage in the battle to defeat it.
But not alone ...
In desperation, you may cry out ... O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? (Romans 7:24)
The answer ... I thank God - through Jesus Christ our Lord! (Romans 7:25)
No comments:
Post a Comment