Tune Up Your Spirit!
It’s amazing how recognizable the voice of the flesh is. Not only do we know the flavor of ice cream we are craving, but we can distinguish which brand fits the fancy of our flesh. A waitress can ask us what soda we prefer or what salad dressing suits our taste and we can tell them within a moment. We know what favorite TV shows we prefer to watch and can instantly decide what toppings we want on our pizza. But when asked if our lifestyle is pleasing to God, we stammer for words. Ask a person what God’s preference is for your habits and they don’t know what to say. Ask a person who God prefers for your friendships or where to live or where to work or where to go to church. People are clueless. Imagine if people were as proficient in spiritual things as they are in natural things. It should be as easy to discern God’s will in our lives as it is deciding what we would like for lunch.
People have practiced their whole life listening and obeying the voice of their flesh and they never learned to understand the voice of God in their spirit. This is why there are so many people who think nothing of skipping church. This is why there are so many Christians who think nothing of getting drunk. This is why many believers think it’s acceptable to have premarital sex. They never listened for God’s voice in their heart; they only followed their flesh. This is the difference between being “religious” and truly being spiritual. Religious people seek to ease their conscience with rituals. Spiritual people seek to please God.
People need to understand they are a spiritual being before they are a physical being. When you live a life that pleases only the flesh it means you are living a life that never pleases your spirit. Your spirit is hungry to know God. Your heart desires to be in fellowship with your Maker and Father through Jesus Christ. Your spirit was made for the purpose of pleasing Him. And when you please the flesh your spirit is antagonized.
Galatians 5:24 is our spiritual tune up. It says, “And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” The Bible says to crucify the flesh. Looking at the lives of modern Christians you would think that it said to “pacify” the flesh. You would think that it says to “satisfy” the flesh. No! It says crucify! Christians are making peace with the very substance that the Bible says to wage war against: The flesh. Believers are satisfying the one thing that was to remain unsatisfied in Christ: The flesh.
1 Corinthians 9:27 tells us to “bring the body under subjection” so we don’t appear to be counterfeit to the lost world around us. When a person lives to please their flesh they will lose out on the greatest honor that God bestows upon His people: The ability to influence lives into the Kingdom of God. If you have never won a soul to Christ, check up on what your flesh has been doing.
Pastor Tim
Family Church Jamestown is a non-denominational church located in Chautauqua County in Jamestown between Lakewood and Busti NY. The senior pastor of Family Church is Pastor Tim Stahlman a native to the Jamestown, NY area.
