When the Lord saved our souls he left the body unchanged and still able to sin and follow its lusts. ( Romans 7: 17-25). Our Lord Jesus, the second Adam had to come in the flesh (Without the sin nature) in order to identify with us when he offered himself as a ransom for our sins. When we are saved the Holy Spirit begins his warfare against the flesh with its pride and ego, then we are humbled by the Lord’s correction and are able to experience his presence through prayer, as God resists the proud but gives Grace to the humble.
Therefore humble yourselves under the mighty hand of God, that He may exalt you at the proper time, 1-Peter 5:6 NASB.
In the Book of Romans believers are told that “Willful” sinning can bring weakness, sickness and the body may be put to sleep, death. (The soul goes to be at home with the Lord, it was saved for all Eternity by the ransom paid by Jesus on the cross! The only thing that may be lost is any Rewards given at the Lord’s Judgment of our works done in the flesh for Him.)
So letting your sinful nature control your mind leads to death. But letting the Spirit control your mind leads to life and peace. Romans 8:6 NLT.
For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will. Romans 8:7
For if you live by its dictates, you will die. But if through the power of the Spirit you put to death the deeds of your sinful nature, you will live. Romans 8:13 NLT.
Remember that in our struggle against sin that comes through the flesh is that the key is not yielding or embracing the sin willfully. Paul was not judged or chastened because he hated the sin which caused him great frustration when he committed it. The Lord has promised that after we have suffered awhile (Humbled through various trails, some fiery) He will strengthen and establish us. After you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you 1-Peter 5:10 NASB The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. May the grace of our Lord Jesus be with you Romans 16:10 NLT. The battle is the Lord’s through His Holy Spirit who is our comforter, greater is He who is in us than he who is in the world-Satan.
Don’t give up in your battle with sin! Indeed, there is not a righteous man on earth who continually does good and who never sins. Ecclesiastes 7:20 NASB.
In our struggle against sin, the Lord pities us knowing our frame, that we are dust. His promise to David was He would never stop loving him but when he embraced sin, he would be punished. It is the same for us believers today! David wrote Psalm 119 in which he describes God’s punishment for his sin of adultery, murder and disobedience to the Lord. His son born out of wedlock was taken by the Lord, (To Heaven) many in his Kingdom turned against him. Swimming in your bed shows a man with no rest, no peace. In Psalm 119 David said when he confessed his sin God forgave him. Then David said; “When I went astray you punished me but now I keep your word”. What grace the Lord showed to him even calling him; “A man after my own heart”, the Lord thinks the same about us, He sees His Son in us and loves us because we love Jesus!
Consider this, when the Lord rose from the dead, he displayed his new body to the Apostles, he ate a fish and honeycomb before them. He wanted them and us to understand that we will not be spirits floating around Heaven playing Harps! The body Jesus displayed will be ours also, exactly the same, we will be able to eat or not with our senses of taste, smell expanded beyond what we can imagine. You will be able to be somewhere by just willing it, as Jesus demonstrated personally! Sounds weird? The word of God declares it; Dear friends, we are already God’s children, but he has not yet shown us what we will be like when Christ appears. But we do know that we will be like him, for we will see him as he really is 1-John 3:2 NLT. Having the same incorruptible body!
When we believers reign with Christ on earth in his 1000 year reign, Jesus said that he, with believers will enjoy the marriage supper of the Lamb and drink the new wine with him. This is literal, we will be able to enjoy the crops of the earth, the fruit of the vine, never ever subject to death or sin.
This is our sure hope for our saved souls and weak bodies. That is what the Scriptures mean when they say, “No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined what God has prepared for those who love him.” 1-Corinthians 2:9 NLT.
My purpose in writing this blog is to exhort believers in their struggle against the sin that so easily besets us. (Unbelief)
Author Ken
January 15, 2013