Lesson 6: This is War Soldier, Time to Fight!
Question 2
The third foundational principle of freedom is “Warring against the flesh”, and today I want to look with you at how to win this battle against our lusts and passions. In the previous lesson, we saw that we are to consult the Lord when going into battle, like Jehoshaphat did when faced with a vast army more powerful than himself (2 Chronicles 20:1-29), and in this lesson, we are going to consult Him in His Word to learn how to fight our own battle!
The Cross: God's Way to Fight
As we approach this topic, let’s remember that God’s ways are not like man’s. As Christians, we learn how to fight by looking at the cross of Jesus Christ! When we come to the cross and meditate on it, we not only learn how to fight, but we are given the spiritual strength, the power to actually fight to the death! When we look at the cross, we not only see that we are forgiven of sin, but we also learn how to fight sin. This is your calling, soldier!
Yes, the cross teaches us all we need to know about how to win this battle over pornography and sexual impurity of all kinds. So let’s look at it together.
For years I had learned to make peace with my own lusts by simply surrendering to them. I just gave up to my enemies and wallowed in my sin. It was like I walked out into the battlefield and yelled: “Here I am, take me as your prisoner!” What an absolutely horrible thing to do as a Christian soldier!
God has now trained me for battle and has taught me how to make war against my lusts.
Blessed be the Lord, my rock, who trains my hands for war, and my fingers for battle.
Psalm 144:1
I want Him to do this for you as well. This is war, soldier, it’s time to fight!
As we look at the cross we see our General in battle winning the war over sin and Satan.
And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.
Colossians 2:15
Do you see that phrase, “triumphing over them by the cross?” That is exactly how you and I get the victory, too.
What does that mean? It means we win, not by trying but by dying. We win, not through the world’s teaching of addiction and recovery, but through the gospel’s teaching of crucifixion and resurrection.
For the remainder of our time together today I want us to examine and think about the application of just one verse:
For if you live according to the flesh, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.
Romans 8:13 (NIV)
Question 2. How does Romans 8:13 show us that we are in a life and death struggle?
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