Not by Strength Or By Might But By The Spirit

My Utmost For His Highest

The inescapable spiritual need each of us has is the need to sign the death certificate of our sin nature. I must take my emotional opinions and intellectual beliefs and be willing to turn them into a moral verdict against the nature of sin; that is, against any claim I have to my right to myself…..“. . . it is no longer I who live . . . .” My individuality remains, but my primary motivation for living and the nature that rules me are radically changed. I have the same human body, but the old satanic right to myself has been destroyed….“. . . and the life which I now live in the flesh,” not the life which I long to live or even pray that I live, but the life I now live in my mortal flesh-the life which others can see, “I live by faith in the Son of God . . . .” This faith was not Paul’s own faith in Jesus Christ, but the faith the Son God had given to him   CHAMBERS

I think that a mistake so many of make as we walk in this new life is trying to think our way through it.  God has given us a new life in Christ .. 2 Corinthians 5:17 .. but we still trust in the ‘old way’ of doing things.  I know that I am sinning .. I am just not trying hard enough … that is why I continue to do the things I don’t want to do .. Paul addresses that in Romans 7 ..

^“14 We know that the law is spiritual; but I am unspiritual, sold as a slave to sin. ¹⁵ I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. ¹⁶ And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. ¹⁷ As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. ¹⁸ For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature.^[c] For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. ¹⁹ For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. ²⁰ Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.

²¹ So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. ²² For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; ²³ but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. ²⁴ What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? ²⁵ Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

Does that sound like your life?  It sure sounds like mine.  Notice Paul does not say, he just tried harder and one day .. he was able to not sin .. he just decided he was not going to sin any more.  Well, if it was that easy .. Jesus didn’t have to die for us, we only had to just tried harder.  But you know that doesn’t work, don’t you?  At least it has never worked for me.  We are delivered through Jesus Christ … and we continue to be delivered through Him.  Someone once said that “sin keeps you from the Word and the Word keeps you from sin’.  Jesus said come to me all you that are weary and heavy laden and I will give you rest.  Matthew 11:28 … Let your light shine today

Bondye Beni Ou (God Bless You)