Galatians 5:16 -18 (NKJV) I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The flesh is the sum of our appetites, desires, wishes, and needs whose purpose is the satisfaction of self. It is everything in our life that wants to live independently from God and does not bow to God. The flesh is a part of our being that has gotten used to living a life of sin, being seduced by the world, and reluctant to submit to the Lordship of Christ. All of us are imperfect and will have to deal with this part of our being until we go to heaven. However, if we can manage the flesh in our lives, we will experience peace, love, joy, and victory.
The flesh is part of the soul in the makeup of our tripartite being. The tripartite being is made up of the spirit, soul, and body. Although Jesus has enabled us to walk in the Spirit, the key to having that victory is in our decision making. Before we accepted Christ into our lives, we were so used to doing what we wanted and whenever we wanted that our natural reaction is to respond in the flesh rather than choosing to walk in the Spirit.
After we have received Christ, people who haven’t seen us for a long time should see a difference in us. If not, something is wrong. It means that we have not dealt with the flesh daily because if we are allowing God to mould us daily, there should be a change in our character and temperaments for the better. In fact, some of our marital or inter-personal relationship challenges can be easily resolved if we could reign in the flesh and choose to walk in humility, love and extend grace.
Nonetheless, there will be a struggle between the flesh and the Spirit of God in us. Living the consecrated life or walking in holiness is a lifelong process until we get to heaven. There is a constant fight or tussle over the decisions that we must make daily of whether to yield to the Spirit of God or to continue to yield to the old master of our lives. However, if we are serious about sanctification, we need to learn to live from the inside out, because simply trying to change our behaviour by using the 10 commandments, the law and statutes is doomed to fail as religion cannot change a person from outside in. Instead, we need to live through the new creation and empowerment of the Holy Spirit. Our inferior habits will change progressively as we grow from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity. Sanctification is a process and a continuous choice to yield to the Spirit rather than to the flesh.
Sermon Series: The Make-up of Man (Part 2)
成圣是一个过程
加拉太书5:16 -18 我说，你们当顺着圣灵而行，就不放纵肉体的情欲了。 因为情欲和圣灵相争，圣灵和情欲相争，这两个是彼此相敌，使你们不能做所愿意做的。 但你们若被圣灵引导，就不在律法以下。
血气是欲望、情欲、愿望和需求的总和，其目的是满足自我。它是我们生命中想要独立于神的一切，不向神低头。血气是我们的一部分，已经习惯了罪恶的生活，被世界所诱惑，不愿意顺服基督的主权。我们所有人都是不完美的，在我们去天堂之前，我们都必须面对我们这一部分的存在。然而，如果我们能管理我们生命中的血气，我们就会经历到和平、仁爱、喜乐和得胜。
在构成我们的三个部分中，肉体的情欲是魂的一部分。三个构成部分是灵、魂和体。虽然耶稣使我们能行在圣灵中，但取得胜利的关键在于我们的决定。在我们接受基督进入我们的生命之前，我们是如此习惯于随心所欲以至于我们的自然反应是随从血气，而不是选择在灵里行走。
在我们接受基督后，若有人很久没见我们，他们应该看到我们的不同。不然那就有问题了，这意味着我们没有每天对付我们的血气。因为如果我们允许神每天塑造我们，我们的品格和性情就应该有更好的变化。事实上，如果我们能制服血气，选择行在谦卑，仁爱中并施与恩慈，我们的婚姻或人际关系中的挑战可以很容易地解决。
然而，我们的血气和内住在我们里面的圣灵之间会有一场争战。过分别为圣的生活或行在圣洁中是一生的过程，直到我们进入天堂。这是一场持续的争战和斗争，我们每天都必须做出决定，是顺服于圣灵还是继续屈服于老我。然而，如果我们认真对待成圣，那么我们需要学会由内而外的生活，因为仅仅试图用十诫，律法和法规来改变我们的行为是注定要失败的，因为宗教不能从外到内改变一个人。相反，我们需要通过新造的人和圣灵的能力来生活。 当我们从属灵的婴孩长大成熟时，我们的劣等习惯会逐渐改变。成圣是一个过程和一个持续的选择，降服于圣灵而不是肉体。
讲章系列：人的构成 (第二部分）
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