The Prophetic Telegraph - No.37
Flesh & Spirit
In this paper we shall
investigate what the Bible says about FLESH and SPIRIT, the great contrast of
Scripture, the Old Man and the New Man,
The word FLESH is a
doctrinal word. It is used to define the Old Man, the Adamic Man, the Old
Nature that we inherit from Adam, with which we are born, and which is the
'inheritance' of the world-pool of humanity.
Furthermore, we learn that
at birth we are IN THE FLESH. This expression is important, and should be used
definitively. "When we were IN THE FLESH sinful passions which
were by the law worked in our members to bring forth fruit unto death"
(Rom.7:5)
The Holy Spirit of God
brings us to the point where we seek a new life, a life of faith in the Son of
God, and when this occurs we are said to be IN THE SPIRIT. Again, this is
definitive. "But you are not IN THE FLESH but IN THE SPIRIT, if
so be that the Spirit of God dwells in you." (Rem. 8:9)
We are told that "those
who are IN THE FLESH cannot please God". (Rom.8:8) But those
who are IN THE SPIRIT may begin to please God, because "without
faith it is impossible to please God"(Heb11:6) and those who
are IN THE SPIRIT have set their feet upon a roadway of faith.
The Evangelical Churches
labour the point of being "born again".. Of course, this is factual
and Scriptural. But the understanding they have of this new birth is often
faulty. The NEW BIRTH experience begins when we kneel at the foot of the cross
for the first time, and ends when we have our new bodies. It is not a single
act made during a commitment prayer. Jesus taught that men should sit down and
'count the cost' of their commitment, lest having started on this road they
should find that they do not possess sufficient funds to finish their 'tower'.
To 'take up one's cross' is a very costly process, not to be lightly entered
upon. "Easy believism" has become a way of life in the churches, and
has therefore greatly expanded the ranks of the modern charismatic movement in
particular. There is much teaching today, erroneous teaching, which offers 'new
converts' a way of life that is based on riches, authority, triumphalism, and
'kingdom now' theology. If they were to read the Bible a little more, they
would find that such characteristics are an integral part of
Churches may have many
aims. They have many teachings. Such teachings are greatly diversified. But
there is one teaching, and one only, which undergirds all others in the Bible.
It is this. We are born in the flesh. We begin in the spirit, and for the rest
of our Christian lives have the duty to "put to death" the flesh in
us. This is our purpose, our battle, our agonising prayer, our mission. It is
not a self-centred purpose, because it is God's work in us, but if we miss the
point of it, all our theology, all our work for the Lord will ultimately be
found wanting.
In terms of doctrine, the
point is this. Although we are no longer IN THE FLESH yet the flesh is still in
us! Now Jesus was also born in the flesh. But He was sinless, and his flesh was
at all times under complete control. His earthly life was totally subject to
His Father's will. This is why He said (in John 6) that we need to "eat
His flesh". We need to follow His example "in the flesh", and
that example led Him to
In real practical terms
this may be interpreted as follows. When we start the life of faith, we make a
step of faith, which is equivalent to obedience. Then through our Christian
walk we need to learn obedience at every point. As we proceed to do this, we
find that there is a negative principle at work in us which objects to these
steps of obedience. This is the "flesh" still working in us. At each
stage then, we need to break down this resistance to obedience, and therefore
"crucify" yet another aspect of the workings of the flesh. Through
years of experience under the good hands of God, we are brought to these
"cross roads" many many times. The effect is cumulative and
strengthening. Each time we "overcome" we add strength to the New
Nature, the "spirit", and our obedience becomes the more complete.
Jesus said, "Be ye perfect, even as your heavenly Father is
perfect." At all times we should allow God's hand upon us to
bring us nearer and nearer to this state of spiritual perfection. We do not
have any way of knowing how much progress has been made, and this is a good
thing. It cannot lead to complacency or pride.
Many believers look upon
the act of "breaking bread together" as the central act of true
Christian fellowship. We do not doubt this. We have a very special place for
such fellowship in our own group. But there's a two-fold importance in this act
of fellowship. In the first place we honour our Lord's death on our behalf. But
in the second place we should be emphasising this "eating of His
flesh" in our own lives. What is the use, if in the end, we ONLY partake
to honour our Lord? We give glory to Jesus, but preclude ourselves from
spiritual progress. Our Lord has a deep desire to bring "many
sons to glory", but how can He if we do not allow Him to have
the Lordship in our lives? How can we be glorified, if we retain the
"flesh"? What right do we have to His word, "Well
done, thou good and faithful servant", if we have not pursued
the pathway to total obedience? How can the Lord use us in His kingdom, if we
have not reached the point where He only has to say the word, and we can wholly
respond with "Yes, Lord, it shall be done according to your
word"? Total obedience is equal to the total crucifixion of the
flesh. This is the "end of the Lord" for all
His children. And He exercises much patience with us until He reaches His goal.
Now, this process of "putting
to death the flesh" is one which we all find most difficult.
Paul tells us from his own experience that "the flesh and the
spirit lust against one another".(Gal.5:17) It is not just
the flesh that refuses to obey. We also find that the spirit refuses to give
in! It is total warfare! Our lives become a battleground! We sense within us
this on-going struggle for supremacy, and many times we tire of it and cry out
with Paul, "Who shall deliver me from this body of death?"
(Rom.7:24) We get sick and tired of the way in which we so often fail, and need
to come to the Master for cleansing. But we have been warned of this, and told to
be strong in His strength, and "overcome". To each of the churches in
Revelation 2-3, the Master promises great blessings to the
"overcomers", but how many Christians understand what they should
overcome? Some think it means having great battles with the occult, and casting
out demons. Others think it means the overcoming of the world, and establishing
a little rule of law and order in our local community, to displace the
tendencies to obscenity and crime. Yet others think that it means getting many
converts at the local outreach meetings. But all these things, though good in
themselves, do not constitute "overcoming" as the Master meant it.
Of what value is it if a
believer gains the whole world for Christ, and yet disallows the Master's hand
of refining on his own life? Shall such an one come before the Lord in that day
and say "Lord, I have done all this for you in your name!"
And sadly the Lord will have to confess that He knows him not. Why doesn't He
know him? Because the Lord, on looking at him, cannot see His own likeness
within him. .There is no mirror image of recognition. There has been no "changing
from glory to glory according to the Christ-image" as Paul
puts it in 2 Cor.3:18.
No, the real meaning of
"overcoming" is the overcoming of one's own flesh, one's own
rebellious nature, the stamping out of all rebellious ways, and the
establishing of the New Man, which Paul tells us we need to "put
on" like a new coat. All our labour for the Lord is but a
stewardship bound upon us as servants, and if we are honest with ourselves we
shall agree with Jesus that no matter how much we have "done", we
shall say "We are unprofitable servants. We have only done that
which was our duty to do." (Luke 17:10) Let us not look for
rewards for our work, our ministry, our preaching, our management of marriage
and family, or any such things. The Lord is looking for the growth of
obedience. Each time He sees this, He is overjoyed, and snatches it away from
us, to keep it safe in heavenly places. Jesus called it, "laying
up treasure in heaven". Paul knew that the "good
deposit" would be kept for him against that day. (Matt.6:20,
2 Tim.1:12) As a result we are always kept in the state of being "poor
in the spirit", so that the sin of pride will not ruin what
the Lord is achieving. (Matt.5:3, the first of the beatitudes.)
Let us see the Scriptural
process by which God achieves His ends in us. It would seem that there seven
steps in a continuous cycle, almost like an octave on the piano keyboard scale.
1.
LAW. This is
God's starting point. Paul tells us that God's Law is His schoolmaster.
(Gal.3:24) The purpose of the Law is "to bring us to
Christ". How important then is the Law. If it "brings us
to Christ" how we should value it! How important it must be! No wonder the
Devil brings his right-hand man into world affairs, known as "the
man of lawlessness". At all costs, he must eliminate anything
that will "bring us to Christ". But Paul says that the law is holy,
and the commandment is holy and just and good. But then he has to declare,
sadly, that in the flesh we are sold under sin, and find that this "holy
and good thing" is both schoolmaster and executioner! Yes, in
the flesh, the law can only bring death. But to the one who seeks Cod, it is
the first instrument to life and sanctification. Let us see how it leads to the
second step.
2.
CONSCIENCE.
Knowledge of the Law activates our "moral indicator" known as the
conscience. Our past history of unbelief often has a tragic effect on this
vital "organ". Sometimes it is "evil"
(Heb.10:22), otherwise "defiled" (Tit.1:15)
or even in the worst of cases, "cauterised"
(1 Tim.4:2) But even so, we cannot always "kick against the
pricks" of our conscience, and it does wonders for us. It is
like one of the many "gate mechanisms" in modern computers, which
direct the signal according to the information received. After our first
encounter with the Lord, our conscience should begin to develop, becoming "good"
(1 Tim.1:5, 1 Pet.3:16), and "pure" (1
Tim.3:9) and "purged from dead works" (Heb.9:14)
What then is the purpose of the conscience? It is to warn us of the moral
nature of our thoughts and actions. It says to us, in effect, "That
thought is contrary to God's laws. It is sinful." Or it says, "You
have just broken one of God's commandments. You have committed sin." On
the other hand, if the action is right in God's sight, then the conscience will
say nothing, but bring us a sense of peace with God.
3.
KNOWLEDGE OF SIN.
The result of the workings of conscience is mental awareness. The mind is
alerted, and we are given the trigger to act on it. "By law is
the knowledge of sin." (Rom.3:20) Once this knowledge is ours
we are morally bound to act in accordance with it. There are two ways open to
us. We may resist it, in which case the Old Man wins, and we plunge into a
deeper mess than before. Or, which is far better, we acknowledge it, and seek
the Saviour.
4.
BROUGHT TO CHRIST. Here is the best place! The schoolmaster has brought us to Christ. The
conscience has done its job. Our mind has been made fully aware of the
implications, and a choice has been made for the better. We come to
Christ as a sinner, one in need of cleansing. Godly sorrow is produced, and we
kneel at the foot of the cross.
5.
REPENTANCE.
The godly sorrow has produced repentance. Now this word means literally to turn
about and walk in the opposite direction. So that having obtained cleansing
from the Lord, we now despise the act that grew into sin, and set our will like
flint against any repetition of the act. And because of the spirit of the Lord,
the new man, dwelling in us, we have the ability to stand fast. This is the
meaning of repentance. It is not just being sorry for what we have done. It is
not remorse. It is a resolve to "change course". That which was
beforehand an act of DISOBEDIENCE now becomes a desire to be OBEDIENT. And so
what has happened is that -
6.
PART OF THE FLESH IS PUT TO DEATH. Yes! We have been "through the
cross" and crucifixion has taken place. We shall have to come this way
again, many times. But never fear. It is God's chosen pathway. Paul tells us to
"put to death therefore your members which are upon earth,
fornication, uncleanness, lust, evil desire, covetousness, which is
idolatry" (Col.3:5) As a result of all this we find that -
7.
THE SPIRIT IS STRENGTHENED. Indeed this is true. Every time a child of God goes through this
process, there is a strengthening of the New Man, and because of this
strengthening, there is a greater ability to overcome the next time round. And
so this leads us right back to where we came in.
8.
(and 1. again) THE LAW. In our daily walk we should have God's laws ever before us as a guide.
Without them, we can never become mature in the spirit. They are God's great
gift to His people. They represent His own character. They are like fences,
moral fences, beyond which the Lord does not exist. On one side of the fence is
written "Thou shalt" or "Thou
shalt not" as the case may be. On the other side of the fence
is darkness. It is beyond the Lord's character. However, if someone should leap
over the fence and commit sin, and LOOK BACK, he will see writing on the
reverse side of the fence! It says, "If we confess our sins, He
is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness." (1 Jn.1:9) But if we jump the fence, and
keep our eyes AWAY from the fence, then we are indeed in darkness. But even
though God does not exist on the other side of that fence, He has ways of
calling sinners, and that "still small voice" is constantly insisting
that his creatures should turn round and see the way back home. How great is
our God, and worthy to be praised. [This teaching was amplified in PT 15,
"The Fence Breakers".]
Here then is the cycle of
events that is likely to continue through our lives, as the Lord brings us
first to this situation and then that, in order to bring us to the place of
total obedience to Him. It is His work. He started it off, and He will bring
it to completion in the day of Christ. (Phil.1:6) We cannot
actually perform this work ourselves, in our own strength, even if we should
see the necessity of it. First we should YIELD to the voice of the Son of God,
as He engineers our circumstances, to bring us to the cross-roads, and then
STRIVE TO BE OBEDIENT, in the power of God's renewed spirit within us.
"I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." (Phil.4:13)
We have learned that "the
flesh profits nothing." (John 6:63) It is the spirit that
gives us life. And God is pouring out His spirit upon all flesh. (Acts
In the next paper, we shall
look at these truths from another angle, that of the two cities mentioned in
this paper,