week of 10/19/11 3rd recorded HighQuest Romans 8:7-14

The passage I read was Romans 8:7-14

You can find that passage here:

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:7-14&version=NIV

The verse that most stood out to me:

¹⁰But if Christ is in you, then even though your body is subject to death because of sin, the Spirit gives life because of righteousness.

¹⁴ For those who are led by the Spirit of God are the children of God.

As I reflect:

Ah yes, the age old issue of crucifying the flesh; causing ones mind and body to bend to the will of spirit. Why is it soooo hard to tell the body what to do? We tell our hand and arm to reach for and grab tooth brush and tooth paste and proceed to brush our teeth with no issues controlling our body whatsoever. Why then is it not just as easy to tell our eyes not to look upon that which corrupts our heart? Why is it difficult to sacrifice what we have come to enjoy in the secular world as to be sanctified? Shouldn’t this be just as easy as when we tell our body to brush our teeth? Paul answers these questions saying that our mind is governed by our flesh and that our flesh is hostile to God. That’s the NIV, but in the KJV it is said in this way, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.” Wow! “Enmity” against God… Can you imagine that? Here we are trying to have a relationship with and live in a way that is pleasing to God whom our mind and body have animosity with. Enmity is shortly defined as a typically mutual hatred or ill will and it’s found to be synonymous with animosity, antagonism, bitterness, bad blood, and several other words we would never want to describe any portion of our relationship to Christ. So our problem is that God has given us physical as well as spiritual laws by which we ought to in faith abide by and yet our body and mind used to do so are in a state of hostility to His will for us. Sounds like an impossible way to be successful at serving our Most High God doesn’t it? Thankfully, we have a not so secret weapon that helps us wage war; will power against will power in this battle.

Paul explains that we as believers are no longer in that realm where flesh is victorious, but we are now primarily able to be guided by the Spirit of God that lives in us. This concept is one of personal identity as we once were identified as the bodies and minds that encompassed who we were as a person, but now we are identified by our spiritual change having began a journey of new creation within our spiritual selves. In other words (as I believe Paul once stated), if my body sins it is not I who sins but my body. For I do not chose that which is carnal any longer. Taking that a step further here, we see we don’t even have an obligation to allow that. We can live instead according to the Spirit of God, being led by Him and overcoming the desires of the body for misdeeds. This is a good news to any who have wondered what that next step in personal transformation may hold for them. God never intended to save us from only part of ourselves. Instead, He does intend for us to put forth effort so that in our will to overcome the body we may see His wonderful glory as He multiplies our efforts and grants us victory in His Holy Spirit. You see, at this part of our transformation, we have learned that we cannot do it alone and now we desire to be obedient, faithfully step forward in our attempts to do so, and rely on His Spirit in us to empower that forward step for victory.

My response to the Lord:

Lord, I pray for all believers who are adopted by you, may you not allow a single one of us to fall stagnant in growth. Instead Lord, I chose to faithfully believe in your word that the work you have begun, you will complete within each of us. My God, your Spirit empower and guide us in this constant battle against our flesh and against a world of carnal thinking. May we be ever increasing in victories giving you all the glory. In the name of Yeshua I pray. Amen.