“For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature.
They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.” – Galatians 5:17
There are two natures within every believer. There is a sinful nature we received at the moment of conception (Rom 5:12, 17, 19). Because of this sinful nature, mankind has a tendency toward evil and sin (Ps 14:1-3; Jer17:9; Mk 7:21-22; Eph 2:1-3). At salvation we are given a spiritual nature and God sends the Holy Spirit to live in you (Jn 3:3, 5-6; Rom 8:9; 2 Cor 1:22). So now in the believer there are two opposing forces: the sinful nature (also called the flesh) and the Spirit. Galatians 5:17 sums up the situation well,
“For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.”
Paul writes of this battle in Romans 7:21-23,
“So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God's law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.”
So how do these to natures win over each other? Scripture seems to indicate that there is a battle taking place in the believer’s mind for which nature will win. Let’s look at some scriptures to back this up.
“Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace; the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God' s law, nor can it do so. Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God. You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.” – Rom 8:5-10
So how are we to battle the sinful nature? It is by the Spirit. We must decide what to set our mind upon. If we choose to set our mind on the sinful desires our body and soul will follow and soon sin will manifest itself. If we choose to set our mind on what the Spirit desires then our body and soul will follow and the fruit of the Spirit will result. Note the difference in Galatians 5:19 & 22: one is “works of the flesh” (KJV) or “acts of the sinful nature” (NIV), the other is the fruit of the Spirit. “The flesh produces the works; the Spirit produces the fruit. The one requires self-effort; the other no effort of the flesh. The one is the product of the factory [works]; the other is of the garden [abiding]. The one is dead; the other is alive. The one is flesh; the other of the Spirit.”1 Our job is to decide to follow the Spirit. His job is to produce the fruit.
“So I say live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Gal 5:16
“Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live, because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.” Rom 8:12-14
“In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus. Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.” Rom 6:11-12
“…I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires which war against your soul” 1 Peter 2:11
“You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.” Eph 4:22-24
“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Rom 12:2a
So here we are with our minds right in the middle of these two opposing forces, the sinful nature and the Holy Spirit. What are we to do? We must, by the Spirit, put to dead the misdeeds of the flesh (Rom 8:13). We must crucify the sinful nature and desires as Gal 5:24-25 tells us, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.” I believe that what we focus on consumes us. Garbage in; garbage out. If we continually fill our minds with Scripture and good thoughts (Phil 4:8), then choosing to follow the Spirit becomes easier and easier. It is like exercising a muscle, what first was hard and excruciating, with practice, becomes easy. Let us get into the habit of following where the Spirit leads and mortifying our flesh. The more we do it the easier it gets. However, the converse is true as well. If we neglect to exercise, we can become unfit and exercise becomes harder. The same is true in our walk with God. The more often we choose to follow the Spirit the more spiritually fit we become and the easier it is to make the proper choice the next time the sinful nature and its desires and passions clamor for attention. Get out the sword of the Spirit and slay the ugly beast! Paul puts this whole idea very well in Gal 6:7-9,
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become wary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.”
Rick Renner translates one of our key verses like this, “Make the path of the Spirit the place where you habitually live and walk. Become so comfortable on this spiritual path that you learn to leisurely and peacefully stroll along in that realm. Living your life in this Spirit realm is the best way to guarantee that your will not allow the yearnings of your flesh to creep out and fulfill themselves.”2
Footnotes
1 Duffield, Guy P., and N. M. Van Cleave. Foundations of Pentecostal Theology. Los Angeles: L.I.F.E. Bible College, 1983. 294. Print.
2 Renner, Rick. "How Would You Like To ‘Take a Stroll’ In the Spirit Today." Sparkling Gems from the Greek: 365 Greek Word Studies for Every Day of the Year to Sharpen Your Understanding of God's Word. Tulsa, OK: Teach All Nations, 2003. 490. Print.
References
All Scriptures not specified are quoted from the NIV. New International Version. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2003.
