DISCERNING OURSELVES
The dialogue between my flesh and spirit often takes place in less than a second. The first and loudest voice is usually my flesh speaking. It is bold and demanding. It does not like to be denied. If I wait, my spirit will usually offer an alternative response. My spirit is quieter, always calmly suggesting a response that would please the Lord.
To prevent my flesh from influencing me, I remind myself that those desires do not define me. I am a spirit being who loves God and loves spiritual things. This helps me distinguish between what comes from my fallen nature and what comes from my new nature. If I don’t do this, and I wrongly conclude that my heart is the source of sinful desires, then I lose confidence in approaching God in prayer or being used by Him.
I always have a choice about which part of me I will listen to. Sin, or the sinful nature, which used to have control over me, has been made powerless because of Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. However, I can still choose to yield to it, acting on its sinful impulses, which are constantly trying to regain control. This struggle with my flesh will not cease until the day I die.
Most of my marital conflicts come from yielding to my flesh. I believe this is what Paul was talking about when he said that, if we marry, we will have trouble in the flesh.
Most of our church splits come about because someone’s flesh wants what they want more than they want what God wants.
Most of our children’s tantrums and demands for attention come from their unchecked carnal nature. They come with a fully developed old man, who is only selfish.
Our propensity toward spiritual extremes comes from our flesh masquerading as the Holy Spirit. Our flesh is a glutton for affection, affirmation, and attention.
A lot of our anger is just frustrated flesh. Often what we call righteous indignation is our flesh all dressed up in a suit. Most of our fears come from our flesh. Both pride and prejudice are innate impulses of our fallen nature.
Most of what we think of as a spiritual wound is our offended flesh. This occurs when our flesh feels rejected and unaffirmed or is responding to not being allowed to do whatever it wants. There is no healing that can help it, no amount of counseling or medication that can fix it. Our flesh must die. There is no limit on how much time our flesh will take up in counseling, rehearsing past hurts and injustices, and looking for pity. Self-pity comes when our fallen nature feels that it has not gotten enough of pity from others, so we heap it upon ourselves.
Let’s explore these conclusions in more depth. I am submitting to you in these notes what I have learned as I have tried to discern myself, tried understand what part of me is going to be the driving influence in my life. Anytime I have shared candidly about my struggle with my flesh, it has helped those I am discipling to get the upper hand in the battle we are all engaged in. I trust this study will help you as you try to discern yourself.