That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit is spirit.
- John 3:6, NKJV
Christians are born again of God’s Spirit.
We are new creatures in Christ Jesus and have a new master, and sin is no longer our master, and we are familiar with the struggle of sin and sinning.
But is fighting against sin the way to win the battle? No.
Most of us struggle not to sin. But the sin struggle is not the actual battle.
Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves, slaves, to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death or of obedience leading to righteousness? (Romans 6:16, NKJV)
The struggle is not to “not sin” but to do the right thing.
The battle is to remember that you have a new master - righteousness.
The victory is yielding to our new master – righteousness. This flesh/spirit battle is not just about sin, but who will you serve?
So that as sin reigned in death, even so, grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. (Romans 5:21, KNJV)
We appropriate the victory when we deny the flesh and yield to the Holy Spirit.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, help us to yield to your Holy Spirit and honor your word. And when we feel overwhelmed, draw us to run to your throne where we find grace. Father, we know your grace empowers us to overcome our proclivity to sin and accesses the power of your Spirit.
Blessings,
Thomas