Tuesday, February 10, 2015

What little flesh works are controlling you?

Gal 5:19  Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal 5:20  Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Gal 5:21  Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.
Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Gal 5:26  Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Works of the flesh.
Works of the Spirit.

We know, come on, we're not dense, we're really not.
We know when the works of the flesh are working in us.
In the days of Noah, all but Noah were living in the works of the flesh. In Sodom and Gomorrah all were living in the works of the flesh, God could not even find ten people living in the Spirit.  And we know that in the last days God will be hard pressed to find any living in the Spirit as well.  Knowing this shouldn't we be more aware of where our flesh works are active in our lives?  Satan will tempt us with the lusts of the flesh all the time. Even something as simple as irritation has it's roots in Satan. Of course satan doesn't want us recognize the tiny works of the flesh. He loves as those tiny very deceptive works of the flesh rear up and become common place in our lives. We let them. Why do we let them? We let them because we've been taught to believe they are just part of normal, every day, acceptable life, things we can't help and shouldn't even try to change. We are going to be irritated end of story so stop fussing over irritation and just call it part of life. Satan then gets the stain of that irritation to remain upon us because we fail to call it the sin that it is and repent of it, asking for forgiveness.

Sure, most Christians will agree adultery, fornication, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, and murders are wrong and works of the flesh, but do most agree strife, envying, drunkenness, reveling and the like are works of the flesh? We call strife in our lives stressful but label it normal. We call envying normal as well because everyone falls victim to wanting more and better, nicer, and when they don't have it and see others with it, they envy them wishing they had it as well.

We excuse sin and therefore it remains.  We can't afford to believe sin is just our normal acceptable life, forgetting that Satan is egging us on to sin every single day of our lives. If Satan can push a button to even irritate us in the tiniest way, he is pleased. 

God forgive us for calling sin good, forgive us for excusing the sin in our lives!

Please help us to recognize ALL the sin in our lives. Help us to recognize the works of the flesh for what they are even the tiniest of flesh works that we have grown so incredibly used to in our lives they've become what we've labeled our personalities.  I'm not saying that we don't have various defects in our personalities that go beyond our encouraging.  What I mean is, I've seen tiny  babies with tempers, young toddlers with flares of unjustified anger, and this isn't LEARNED behavior for them, they have been born with this anger, this work of the flesh is a part of them and it only seems to grow with them. Age will help them handle their anger if they have loving parents guiding them, and they will prayerfully grow into young adults that have given their lives to Christ and allow Him to live in them through the Spirit.  We are born with our flesh nature striving to take over. God will guide us if we let Him. That anger WE are born with, that tendency to be selfish, the callousness we've developed, the unloving heart, the jealousy we've embraced can be given to our SAVIOR, and given to Him over and over and over again all the time as we are shown all those flesh works in ourselves.

Gal 5:22  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
Gal 5:23  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.
Gal 5:24  And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Gal 5:25  If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Gal 5:26  Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Do we have these fruits of the Spirit within us?
Are we loving, joyous, peaceful, long suffering, gentle, good, faithful, meek, temperate?

Do we crucify our FLESH?
Do we crucify our AFFECTIONS and LUSTS?

WE must live in the Spirit- WALKING IN THE SPIRIT.

We truly must not long for glory that is in vain, and all glory that is NOT of God, is in vain. We must not provoke one another, we must not envy one another, please LORD, please bless us and keep us in the Spirit, only by YOUR grace, YOUR love, please! Help us, we would be YOURS and only YOURS.

All in YOUR LOVE!

By our Savior, Jesus Christ, our LORD now and forever!


Amen. 

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