Greetings, friend, and welcome back! So great to be studying, praying, and seeking the Lord for freedom together.
Question 1. We remember that the first foundational principle of freedom is Washing at the cross. What is the second principle?
As Christians, we either live by the flesh, or we walk by the Spirit. That should be fairly obvious, and yet it wasn’t to me during all my years of being trapped in gluttony.
For instance, when I would go on layovers to hotels and couldn’t wait to get into my room to order off the room service menu, seeking comfort from food even though I may not have been hungry, I was being actuated by my flesh. When I would turn to food again, even after eating a big meal, I was empowered by my flesh. When I would gratify my flesh with food in private, eating whatever I wanted when nobody was around, it was the flesh driving me toward self-gratification.
Anyone who is participating in gluttony and laziness is merely following the dictates of their flesh.
Granted, the devil stirs up these desires within us with his fiery darts of temptation. He is very sneaky and tricky, and he knows the chinks in our armor and how and when to attack us.
But ultimately, it is simply a lifestyle of being energized and activated by our flesh (in cooperation with the devil) that traps us in gluttony.
We can establish rules and laws related to our behavior and require ourselves to obey them, yet we will discover that our flesh is weak and unable to obey the laws (Romans 8:3).
We can make vows and promises to try harder and do better, yet find that our flesh is still prompting and empowering us toward self-gratification so aggressively that when tempted, we forget all about our promises. (Matthew 26:41)
We can go the worldly route and learn all about "addictions" and "triggers" and learn "avoidance tools" and practical tips to stop "acting out." But in doing this, we demonstrate that we have misunderstood both the power of our enemy and the weakness of our flesh because there is no worldly wisdom that will give us the spiritual power to change our hearts. (Colossians 2:21-23)
So, if laws, vows, promises and worldly wisdom are not enough to set us free, how do we find freedom from our flesh?
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” Galatians 5:16 (NIV)
In this verse, we receive the key to being done with living by the power of our flesh; it is Walking by the Spirit. To resist the flesh, we must be actuated by the Spirit, energized or empowered by the Spirit, enabled and directed by the Spirit of God.
Question 2. What do you think it would look like, in your own life, to be empowered by the Spirit of God rather than the flesh? Please be specific:
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