Crucify The Passions And Desires Of The Flesh

Our Father, who is in heaven, I humble myself once again before your mighty throne, drawing near to your godliness and your power of self-control. I thank you for your mercy and grace and for protecting me from the passion and desires of the flesh. As I continue this journey, please help me avoid temptations as I walk in the Spirit away from foolishness and disobedience. May the words of my mouth bear witness to my transformation as a new creation and to my belief that you are omnipotent and omnipresent. Please guide me to speak words that are pleasing to your ears and food for your people. In Jesus' name, I pray Amen.

We are living in troubling times and reality is taking a bite out of too many people. In times like these, the spirit of this world is feasting on those who walk according to the flesh! In a reality that confuses right and wrong, too many Christians are filling their hearts and minds with attitudes that are irreverent, from insolence to vulgarity. They claim Christ but deny Him with their deeds. We have seen the headlines: Pastor hires couple to kill his wife; Youth Pastor embezzles $90,000; Minister and teacher charged with rape and sodomy; former marine kills four, including a mother holding a baby; and the stories go on and on.

The people who do these things are the worse of the worse, but there are those whose deeds do not rival these, still their actions are disobedient to the Word of God, and they mock Jesus, the Christ. Do not be taken in by their excuses, for the grace of God has appeared, and “It teaches us to say, “no to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in this present age” (Titus 2:12, NIV). Or do you not know that we need to stay alert and watch what we do so that we do not lose the ground that we worked so hard to gain.

For the sake of fellowship and because Scripture tells us to confess to one another, we confess that “At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated, and hating one another” (Titus 3:3, KJB). However, it is not about what we used to be. We repented and came to the Lord; so, we are now washed and sanctified in Him and by Him. We no longer walk in the way of sinners and take the counsel of the ungodly. We walk worthy of our calling and we do not allow guilt and pride to hold us captive to the life and pleasures we once embraced. We crucified our old self and do not allow sin to reign in our mortal body. We can do this if we wholeheartedly believe that with Christ all things are possible.

When we crucify our old self, the one that follows the flesh, sin is rendered powerless. When sin rules, truth becomes subjective and confusing; however, the Lord’s truth is timeless. He said: “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin” (John 8:34, NKJV). We cannot allow sin to worm its way into our life by being negligent. We are free to be free but there are still rules to follow and work to do. We ask God to order our steps in His word so that we do not allow sin control over our soul. We fully understand that if we live after the flesh, we will die. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23, NIV).

We were given access to a holy path by Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. Since Jesus gave us the opportunity to be free, why do so many who claim Christ mock His sacrifice by being foolish and disobedient? Do not allow anyone to deceive you again; we must stand fast in freedom and rid ourselves of foolish and disobedient attitudes and behavior.

Again, we acknowledge that “we ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, and wrong” (Titus 3:3, GNT). This describes the people at Crete, and it describes our society today: foolish, disobedient, and wrong about many things, especially the things that God hates.

Scripture tells us that “There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are detestable to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, a false witness who pours out lies and a person who stirs up conflict in the community” (Proverbs 6:16-19, NIV). These things were present in Crete, remember the prophet who said all Cretans were liars.