Jeanie Martin Ministries

“THIS MEANS WAR!”

Two natures, one soul. One nature resides within the heart of man. The second nature resides on the outside of man. The nature of love resides internally, while the lust of the flesh resides on the outside of man, visible for all to see. Two different natures battling for possession of one soul.

Solution: “Free your mind and the rest will follow. The Kingdom of Heaven is within.”

The flesh is antagonistic against the Spirit. The flesh wars against the spirit because the desires of the flesh are contrary to those of the Spirit of God; (Galatians 5:17), and the battle takes place from within.

After we’re born into the world, the flesh (man’s nature) begins to rule. This happens because we live in a fallen world and sin is our nature. We take on the very nature of Adam after the fall. We naturally inherited his sin nature which is the consequence of the sin that he committed against God. Adam rebelled against God’s will, and the entire universe has been affected. We didn’t do anything to cause this to happen, it was the single act of one man, Adam, that God passed down a sentence for his disobedience. Now sin reigns in man’s mortal body.

Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people because all sinned; (Romans 5:12).

To be sure, sin was in the world before the law was given, but sin is not charged against anyone’s account where there is no law. Nevertheless, death reigned from the time of Adam to the time of Moses, even over those who did not sin by breaking a command, as did Adam, who is a pattern of the one to come; (Roman. 5:13-14 NIV).

After we’ve accepted Jesus as our Lord and Savior and have received salvation in the name of Jesus Christ, we also receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. His indwelling presence takes up residence within every born-again believer; (John 14:16-17). He is the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Truth.

After our confession is made and we’re endowed with the Holy Spirit, the spiritual battle begins on the inside of that person. A battle is raging within the believer because the flesh wants to continue to rule over that person’s being. Henceforth, the conflict between dual natures. The battle contends for the control of that being. I reiterate we had nothing to do with the beginning act of sin, neither did we get a choice of being born or not to be born into this world. You entered into the world clothed in flesh. The only way to win this war is to choose sides.

“Whom will you serve? ” ; (Joshua 24:15).

You enter the fight the minute you decided to crucify (deny) your flesh of its natural ways and habits. These are the ways of the world which you were once subjected to. As a born-again believer, you have made the decision to no longer give in to the dictates of the flesh and its worldly desires. No longer should you desire to gratify the lust of the flesh, nor to live like this god-forsaken world. Your new desire as a Christian should be to live holy, and this is accomplished through the Holy Spirit.

“For it is written, Be ye holy, for I am holy” ; (1st Peter 1:16).

Living holy is a decision that you have to make, and it has to settle in your mind. The mind is the battlefield, it’s the place where the flesh wars against the spirit of a man. But, because we are human we sometimes make mistakes and make wrong choices.

Well, what happens after we’ve made a mistake and have chosen to do the wrong thing?

The answers to this question and all of life’s situations are found in the Bible. The Bible is a book of instructions that provides life principles and reveals God’s viewpoints to successful living. The Bible is a guidebook filled with road maps to guide and help you to navigate through the conundrums in life. There isn’t a situation or a question that pertains to living or dying that the Bible does not address or have an answer for.

As soon as you start reading the Bible your eyes become open to the spirit realm. Your thoughts become elevated, selfish desires leave and wholesome godly living begins to take root on the inside of you. You should develop a hunger and an unquenchable thirst for knowledge, and gain a deeper understanding of life. Your desire should be to know more about God and His Word (the Bible). You should desire to have a close relationship with God, our Father.

Now that you’re a follower of Jesus, and you’re empowered with the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit, you should have a desire to know more of how this information will help to equip you for the spiritual battle ahead, and for prosperous living. The more you study the Bible and decide to follow the commands and instructions, the more the flesh is being crucified. This happens spiritually through the progressive work of the Holy Spirit.

Well, I’ve shared a wealth of information at this point. This is part 1 of 2. Part 2 will cover warfare strategies, disciplining the flesh, and the Holy Spirits’ role in all of this. I will also share a few daily tips for prosperous living. Stay tuned.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Resources: The Holy Bible, Parallel Bible; Bible Hub.com; “Free Your Mind”, by EnVogue; Photo Credit: Google Images