The Special of the Day… From the Orange Moon Cafe…
"When I Would Do Good"
The Apostle Paul acknowledged that a "law of sin" dwelt in his earthly members and faculties inherited from Adam, in contrast to "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" that indwelt his innermost spiritual being (Romans 7:23-25; 8:2). This led Paul to confess…
"I find them a law that when I would do good, evil is present with me" (Romans 7:21).
The Apostle declared that even in his best moments, fleshly sensations and inclinations could be present. The same is true for every believer. The law of sin will remain in our flesh until death, or until we receive our glorified bodies upon Christ's return (I Corinthians 15:51-54). Thus, even as we trust and obey God, notions and emotions of the flesh may be present.
Suppose, for example, the Lord leads us to act in sincere and loving sacrifice for someone in need. We know Him to be responsible for the motivation, guidance, and enabling, and that apart from Him, we would not be walking in love toward the needy. We even prayerfully acknowledge, "All glory to You, Lord!" Still, however, wayward thoughts and feelings may arise in our flesh, tempting us to some form of pride, as if we ourselves are a cut above others, or have somehow by our own holiness done the good deed. Do these notions and emotions indicate insincerity and that we have succumbed to the temptation of pride? Not necessarily. Again, no less than Paul confessed, "When I would do good, evil is present with me." Certainly, such fleshly sensibilities can lead to sin if not addressed. How do we do so?
First, we acknowledge that our initial disposition of giving all glory to God constitutes the truest desire of our Christ-indwelt heart.
"God hath sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying Abba Father… I delight in the law of God after the inward man" (Galatians 4:6; Romans 7:22).
We give thanks that fleshly promptings do not alter the spiritual constitution of our hearts, as formed and fueled by the Holy Spirit who actively dwells therein. "It is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of His good pleasure" (Philippians 2:13). We then address the challenge of our flesh and its present disposition to "lust against the spirit" (Galatians 5:17). The wayward thoughts and feelings of the flesh are real and must be confronted. They do not, however, nullify the greater reality of our spirits, wherein we desire to honor the Lord Jesus alone for our sacrificial actions, to the degree of "delight."
This leads to an action so decisive that Paul referred to it in terms of killing, as enabled by the Holy Spirit:
"Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify (put to death) the deeds of the body, ye shall live" (Romans 8:12-13).
As we affirm by faith the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in our spirits, motivating our inward desire - "delight" - to glorify God, we put to death the fleshly inclinations to honor ourselves. We choose by faith to live in accordance with the truth of Christ's motivating and enabling presence within us, giving all glory to God and affirming the absurdity of fleshly impulses to the contrary. Again, "when I would do good, evil is present with me." Or, in terms of our present illustration, when we desire in spirit to give all glory to God, the law of sin in our flesh may nevertheless foment contrary sensibilities. We determine to live by the former through the leading and enabling of the Holy Spirit, putting to death the control and influence of the latter. The Apostle stated this dynamic protocol of grace through faith in his Romans 8 treatise on life in the Spirit. We close in its blessed light of hope and the privileged responsibility to live, and indeed, to kill…
"Ye are not in the flesh, but in the spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of His. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of Him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, He that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by His Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify (kill) the deeds of the body, ye shall live."
(Romans 8:9-13)
Weekly Memory Verse
The law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.
(Romans 8:2)
7563
No comments:
Post a Comment