NO CATERING
TO THE FLESH!
Scripture Reading--Romans 13:14
"But put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ,
and make not provisions for the flesh,
to fulfil the lusts thereof"
( emphasis added ).
We build an "ark" of protection for our families so we can rise above the flood tide of evil that threatens to destroy us. Like Noah, we must be willing to go to any extreme against evil. We've already looked at the devil, the darkness, and the world, and at how compelling their influences are on the Christian family. What we're considering today is what we always have with us---the flesh. Wherever we go, we take our biggest problem right along with us, and the flesh wants to control us.
The flesh is the part of us that always asserts itself against our spiritual nature. The flesh and the Spirit are forever at war ( Gal. 5;17 ). Because of our flesh, we say and do unkind things to others. Because of our flesh, we are jealous, resentful, and bitter toward others. Because of our flesh, we crave satisfaction from pleasures that are morally wrong. The flesh causes rebellion, but Galatians 5:16b provides the solution. "Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." Ephesians 5:18 commands us to "be filled with the Spirit." First Thessalonians 5:19 says, "Quench not the spirit," and Ephesians 4:30a says, "And grieve not the holy Spirit of God." Our only protection against catering to the flesh and being controlled by it is to live each day in the power of God's Spirit.
If you're a gardener, you understand that you will harvest whatever you plant. That's the principle Galatians 6:7-8 teaches. Before you finish your family worship, read those verses and see what God is saying about sowing and reaping and about the flesh and the Spirit. though we continually battle the flesh, we will always find our victory in Jesus Christ ( Rom. 7:24-25 ).
ASSIGNMENT: Read Galatians 5:19-23. Compare the works of the flesh to the fruit of the Spirit.
--Jack Palmer--
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