Scripture to Read: Romans 8:5
This week, we get to closely examine the battlefield all Christians live in every day of our lives. The battle we face each day is between our flesh and the Holy Spirit living in us. When we surrendered to Christ as Lord, our “old man” was crucified with Christ, as we learned in Romans 6. But prior to us surrendering to Christ, our “old man” was in charge of us. The devil had full reign of our lives by way of our “old man” (2 Corinthians 4:3–4, 2 Timothy 2:26), and we were being held in captivity and did not know it. Now that we belong to Christ, we have life and are brand new because His Holy Spirit lives in us (2 Corinthians 5:17, Colossians 3:4). The problem is that we still live in an earthly shell which God calls the “flesh.” Our flesh will not die until we die physically; our flesh always has and always will hunger for the stuff of this world. God tells us in 1 John 2:16 that the world tempts our flesh through “the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the boastful pride of life.” The enemy does not have anything else to offer our flesh, but the sad news is that our flesh hungers for these three things all the time. As we read Romans 8:5, God makes it clear that the battle between our flesh and His Holy Spirit in us starts in our minds. We’ll unpack more as we walk through this week.
Challenge & Application
What did God teach you today about the “old man,” your flesh, and His Holy Spirit?
What is one way you know you can start to prepare yourself for the battlefield you walk into each day?
Don’t forget to pray using the A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, Supplication) method!