Opposition

Posted: Wednesday, November 17, 2010 by Morgan in
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I was watching some preaching by Mark Driscoll the other day, and something he said really jumped out at me. When discussing spiritual warfare, he says this: ..."the Bible gives us three categories of opposition: the world, the flesh, and the devil." That got me thinking about the nature of sin and how we as Christians are have died to sin but still struggle with it.


For now, I want to focus on the flesh.

Though Satan and the world are not to be overlooked as categories of opposition to us as Christians, God has been teaching me about the flesh as it relates to sin in the past few weeks. The flesh is the source of sin that is always with us. We can remove ourselves from the world, we can conquer Satan by the power of the Holy Spirit, but we cannot escape from the flesh as long as we live. And that's why I think it's so important to understand.

It all started by taking a friend's advice and praying that God would convict me of sin. I have been praying not for simply guilt or intellectual understanding of sin, but for true, meaningful conviction so that I might truly appreciate what Jesus Christ did for me on the cross and so that I might love Him more. And God has been faithful. It hasn't been difficult for Him to show me what sin really is...there's plenty of it in my life.

Here's what I learned: sin, fundamentally, causes a separation from God. It is an act of utter rebellion, it is a slap in the face to God who sent Jesus Christ as a sacrifice for sin. I have felt a very real sort of barrier between God and me when I am in sin. It is something I have felt before but had never really thought twice about it because it was constant. Somehow it's different now. I can see clearly the barrier and exactly what is causing it: sin, and specifically sin of the flesh.

But haven't we died to the flesh and sin? Romans 6:6-7 says this:
We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.
What the heck? If this is true, why do we as Christians still sin? We died to it when we placed our trust in Jesus Christ and accepted his sacrifice for us in faith, right? Yes, but Paul goes on in Romans 7:21-24:
So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
The key is that we are still literally and physically living in the flesh. Paul says that our physical bodies are the sources of sin of the flesh. I am now beginning to see my body as an enemy of my soul. Through the power of the Spirit, I am seeking to kill my flesh daily. Romans 8:13 says
For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
That is the answer. We must kill our flesh daily. It's quite a daunting task, since the flesh is filled with distracting and sinful desires, emotions, and appetites. Practically, I came to the realization that if I can't understand and control my simple desire for food or sleep, how will I ever be able to understand and control the desire of lust or an appetite for pride? Now I realize that it's easy to exercise self-control and be physically disciplined for the wrong reasons, but I am praying that God will continue to change my heart so that I am not focused on myself in this pursuit of putting the flesh to death, but that I am focused on drawing closer to Him in the process.

All this talk about constantly living with sin in the flesh can be depressing and hopeless, and it would be if not for verses like Romans 8:37-39. I find great hope in this promise.

"No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord." Romans 8:37-39

Wonder and Beauty

Posted: Saturday, November 13, 2010 by Morgan in
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My life is pretty much planned out and I think I'm getting complacent. I don't rely on God for everything. I'm thankful for the great things He has put in my life and I am blessed beyond measure, but things aren't really hard. Here's the plan: I'm going to finish college, get a good job, get married, have a family, make lots of money and give it away. I'm in the "finish college" stage right now and just can't wait to be done with it. I long for the future. There is this something that I'm looking forward to, but I can't really put my finger on what it is. I've been told that longing is for heaven, but that answer doesn't satisfy me and the fact that it doesn't satisfy me bothers me.


I've been learning about and struggling with my relationship with God. No matter what specific problem I'm working through, the basic issue is the role of faith and works in sanctification. I know that I have been saved solely by God's grace through faith in Jesus Christ and His atonement through his death and resurrection. I know that I have not been saved because of anything I've done in my own strength. But I also know I'm supposed to display the fruit of the spirit and that I am to become more and more like Christ. I know I'm supposed to do that in God's strength, but I don't know how. The only way I know to do what is expected of me is to do it myself. I don't know how to trust in God anymore. The most frustrating thing is that I did it all last summer, so I should be able to keep on doing it. John Wesley struggled with this issue his entire life. I'm struggling with it right now and I want some kind of conclusion.

Basically I'm not content. I wish for the future, but I'm living in the present. And the present is missing something.

And I think that something is wonder and beauty.

As an engineering student, nothing is wondrous to me. Nothing. I'm being taught how everything fits into a system, everything is explained to me, everything makes sense (eventually). The only thing that even comes close to wonder is an equation that makes an engineering problem easier. And beauty is....not really something we think about very much. The closest we come to beauty is adding the "aesthetically pleasing" category into a design project. There is almost nothing that brings these two things in my life.

The answer that presented itself almost immediately was to find a girlfriend. Since that solution came from my mom and my best friend simultaneously, I'm having a hard time figuring out whether it is a serious solution or not. Apparently girls are wondrous and beautiful, and since I need both of those things, a girl is the perfect solution. That's the logic at least. But if you look at it in the way I just described, it's a super selfish solution. A relationship based on my needs is based on the wrong thing and is not going to work. And I don't have time for one. Let's find a different solution.

Somehow the answer is God, but I can't figure out how. I don't really see beauty or wonder in God. I just don't. Sorry. I know He is, but I can't see it. I'm sick of knowing things without those things having any real meaning, but I don't know how to make them meaningful. I can't. I just have to trust in God, which I've established that I don't know how to do.

It's a great place to be.

"As a father shows compassion to his children, so the LORD shows compassion to those who fear him. For he knows our frame; he remembers that we are dust." Psalm 103:13-14