10/26/2020
We can sin in so many ways, but none as easily, and completely as by the sins of our flesh. These sins are so natural to us, and fit closely with similar inclinations that we have received as gifts from God. It is in this way that we can find ourselves fooled by Satan, and caught up in them. The desire to make love to your spouse is a close cousin to your sinful desire to commit adultery. The need to protect your family isn’t too far removed from such things as jealousy, fits of anger, or even murder. We walk a fine line when it comes to our flesh, and that line is no broader than the width of our faith.
“Beloved, I urge you as sojourners and exiles to abstain from the passions of the flesh, which wage war against your soul.”
1 Peter 2:11 ESV
So, though sin comes in many forms, none are more personal and alluring than those which are sins of the flesh. They are mentioned over and over again in the Bible because these are common sins that every man, or woman, can be drawn into... these are the sins that don’t require wealth, power, or great faith, to make them tempting. The least of us are tempted by them, and they trip us up equally.
“Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
Galatians 5:19-21 ESV
David was king when he saw Bathsheba bathing on the rooftop. He most certainly used his position as the king to call her to him, but it was his lust as a man that caused him to sin. In this story we see David the king succumbing to the same sin that many common men, some being his subjects, had previously given into over the course of time. You see, the sins of the flesh require nothing more of us than that we be human. From the greatest to the least, we are all tempted by them, and all of us are equally predisposed to fall victim to them.
“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”
Romans 3:23 ESV
So king David gave into the sins of his flesh, and when we look back further we find that another sinner, a farmer, fell to his fleshly temptations as well... Cain fell victim to jealousy regarding Abel’s offering to God, and it festered in him until he eventually took his brother’s life. He wasn’t a king, or a wealthy man, just a farmer. Let’s listen as God warns him to take control over his flesh...
“but for Cain and his offering he had no regard. So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. The Lord said to Cain, “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is contrary to you, but you must rule over it.””
Genesis 4:5-7 ESV
We are no different than king David, or Cain the farmer. Our flesh is just as theirs was, and our temptation equally as great. So how are we to resist our own desires? First we need to admit our weakness, and the inability we have to control our desires...
“For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh. For I have the desire to do what is right, but not the ability to carry it out.”
Romans 7:18 ESV
Then we must strive to become Christ-like. We should agonize over our temptations, and strengthen ourselves in prayer. We should seek God’s help through prayers that are so intense that they come without words, bring us to tears, or cause us to sweat blood as the prayer at Gethsemane did Jesus.
“And being in agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground.”
Luke 22:44 ESV
Are you tempted by some fleshly sin today, and are you attempting to face it alone? Well, drop to your knees, and seek God in prayer. Ask that he send an Angel to strengthen you, and His Holy Spirit to guide you as He shows you an escape from your temptation.
Prayer:
Father, thank you for all the blessings we realize in our bodies, but Lord we find that many of these are so basic, and intensely ingrained in us that we become easy targets for Satan as he attempts to turn your blessings into sins by lying to us. Help us Father to maintain our faithfulness as we seek you in not only our spiritual needs, but our flesh as well. Holy, Holy, Holy, are you our God who has given us both Spirit, and flesh and then blessed us in each. We praise you for the gift of marriage, for allowing us to become one flesh, and the mystery you have spoken of in this regard. Have mercy on us Father, and lead us through Jesus Christ to resist the sins of the flesh. Hear our prayers Lord as we plead for understanding, strength, and an escape from Satan as he plies us with his lies. Keep us righteous in our behavior Father, and should we stumble lead us to you in contrition, and prayer, where the blood of Jesus will wash us clean and make us worthy of your forgiveness, and eternally welcome before you!
“The night is far gone; the day is at hand. So then let us cast off the works of darkness and put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and sensuality, not in quarreling and jealousy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to gratify its desires.”
Romans 13:12-14 ESV
Rich Forbes