Playing tug of war

There are things appealing to my flesh that I reach out and grab without even thinking, doing what is natural, without a thought about whether it is right or wrong. That's what it means to carry out the desires of the flesh. Each time that I default to doing what is natural to me, I am choosing not to walk by the Spirit.

Indulging in the flesh will trip us up and lead us away from walking in the Spirit.

Here are a few ideas of what our flesh finds very appealing.

romance,

fantasies,

fame,

scandal,

conspiracies,

suspicion,

revenge,

binging on comfort foods,

cutting myself down,

being right,

criticism,

quitting,

depression,

anxiety,

inflicting pain on myself or others,

looking sexy or appealing,

controversy,

panic,

being offended,

pornography,

power,

control,

winning,

getting more,

money,

temper tantrums,

pity parties,

gossip fests,

outburst of anger,

deceiving others,

lying,

complaining,

holding a grudge,

finding fault,

dividing friends,

making enemies,

celebrity status

These are powerfully alluring to your flesh and oddly satisfying as well. They are flesh pleasers.

Why is there a natural inclination in me to exclude others? It would be so easy to give into that. Why must it be so hard to love difficult people? It is so much easier to hate them.

"For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do." Galatians 5:17 ESV

I read the words "to keep you from doing the things you want to do" and I think to myself, what is it that I want to do? I see myself wanting to do good, trying to be godly, but then, I complain that it is too hard and prefer to take the easy way out. My desires seem to be playing "tug of war" with each other. I'm not sure on whose side I am, for which side I am pulling. How can I tell which desire is the flesh and which desire is the Spirit?

Maybe this will help.

Flesh: desires to be glorified, seeks self-satisfaction.

Spirit: desires to glorify God, seeks self-sacrifice.

The Spirit keeps a tight pull when I am on His team. But if I let myself go, give in to my desires, my impulses, the flesh begins to win immediately. Is the Spirit so weak that I can never seem to have victory? Of course not, that can't be true, "seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness." (2 Peter 1:3) In the Spirit, we've been given all that we need to live the godly life. So then, why am I so often defeated? Why doesn't the Spirit just take over and conquer my weakness?

"Therefore justice is far from us, and righteousness does not overtake us; we hope for light, and behold darkness, and for brightness but we walk in gloom. We grope for the wall like the blind; we grope like those who have no eyes; we stumble at noon as in the twilight among those in full vigor, we are like dead men." Isaiah 59:9-10

How ironic that we live like that, when we have no reason to!

"for my people have committed two evils: they have forsaken Me the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns that can hold no water." Jeremiah 2:13

What's wrong with us! Why do we behave so insanely? We have the real thing, the best that exists, but we prefer to be satisfied with what we can do for ourselves, with what this world offers, even though it fails miserably and does not satisfy. We can't seem to shake that nagging feeling that if I could just do this or have that, my life would be better. Just the other day the thought breezed into my mind saying "if I was just thin, I'd be happy". Bunk and hogwash! Why is it that the grass always looks greener on the other side? If I have Christ and He is all I need, why do I continue to feel that I'm not good enough, that I need more to be happy?

"O wretched man that I am, who will deliver me from this body of death?" Romans 7:24

I truly hope by now that you have begun to see how weak your flesh is. I hope you can say that your flesh deceives you and cannot be trusted.