The Struggle
One of the biggest struggles we face as Christians is ourselves… our flesh… our carnal nature. We often see the world as our oyster. We buy food, to feed our flesh. We shop for clothes, to adorn our flesh. We set up our homes, to comfort our flesh. We put together albums and videos, to commemorate our flesh. We work jobs and earn money, to secure our flesh. We engage in sex, to satisfy our flesh. We have children, to propagate our flesh. Let’s face it, the very bodies we live in are made of flesh. Carnality is our default. Combating Carnality seems hopeless.
If you find yourself in this struggle, you are not alone. Paul highlights the struggle with his flesh concluding “that in me (that is, in my flesh), dwelleth no good thing”. Shortly after he exclaims “O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death” (Romans 7:18, 24)? Concerning our carnal attachment to this world, John warns, “Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world is passing away…” (1 John 2:15-17).
Often we combat carnality with a worldly mindset. We establish rules, boundaries, budgets, and diets. None of these things are bad. In fact, some are quite beneficial. But none of these things have the power to transport us out of our flesh and into the spirit… None of these things can lift us out of the muck of this world and into a heavenly land (Colossians 2:23).
The Escape
How do we get out of our flesh? How do we escape our earthly carnality? We need some sort of portal… something that can transport us out of our flesh in this world… into the spirit in another world… God gave us access to such a portal. He gave us something that is made of earthly material (i.e., leather, paper, ink), which can be accessed by our flesh (i.e., our eyes, our mind), that can supernaturally transport us into another land, a spiritual world, a heavenly kingdom. He gave us our bible… the word of God.
The word of God pre-existed the world, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (John 1:1). The word of God is eternal, “All flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away, but the word of the LORD endures forever…” (Isaiah 40:6-8, 1 Peter 1:24-25). The word of God transports us to another land, so we can say with Paul, “We do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen. For the things which are seen are temporary, but the things which are not seen are eternal…” (2 Corinthians 4:18). The word of God is our portal out of this world… into the kingdom of heaven.
Look back at the current season of your life… the time you’ve invested, the money you’ve spent, the effort you’ve exerted. Is it primarily to satisfy your flesh, with the things of this world, and that which is transient? Or is it for that which is spiritual, the things of heaven, and that which is eternal?
The Future
As you look to next year, how will you combat carnality? What’s your plan? Will you spend more or less time in God’s word? What will your devotional life, your prayer time, your study, your meditation look like?
What land will you be spending your time in? Will it be an earthly kingdom or a heavenly kingdom? Who will you become? One who is carnal, blinded by the trappings of this world? Or one who is spiritual, freed from the bondage to your flesh and its appetites.
It’s our choice. We have open access to both worlds… And our life will reflect which world we are in. Let us choose that land that is eternal, unfading, and full of God’s glory.
For Further Reading:
3 Things We Must Believe about God’s Word | Crossway Articles