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www.truthworks.com 1 DEC 03 devotion archive send this page to a friend |
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THE FLESH I tell you the Truth, 5: Mid morning, hunger pains begin
to sneak up on me. It’s still another hour until lunch, but I
find a little snack in the desk drawer. The walk to lunch is a
good walk, nearly three blocks to the downtown mall. Finding my
way to the food court, the crowd is difficult to maneuver. I eat
till my stomach is content. I return to work and finish out the
day, a little exhausted and weary. The drive home is long this
time of year, with the sun lower in the sky and looking me directly in
the eyes. OK, Randy. What is all of
this about? Each sentence in the previous paragraphs gives an
example of what the “flesh” is and how we react to its desires
through the day. The flesh demands sleep, often craves and becomes
dependent upon chemicals, like caffeine. The flesh wants to be
bathed, pampered, and prettied up. The flesh wants to look good
for others to see. The flesh desires to be fed. The flesh
lusts for other flesh. The flesh becomes tired and distracts our
attention. Satan is at battle with us in
some form all the time. He is persistent. But there is
another battle that you and I fight. It is our own flesh. It
is this flesh that Paul decided to battle like an athlete battles the
opponent: 1
Corinthians 9: Paul realized what a strong
hold the flesh can have on our earthly bodies. The flesh is
constantly crying for attention, while God demands our lives in full.
The cravings of the flesh are strong. Sex,
drugs, money, and other self-centered things are being sold as
“natural” desires by the world. The world has convinced man
that giving into the flesh is OK. Satan whispers to a world,
“Hey, we’re all flesh and bone, so why not give into it?” But there is always hope!
Paul doesn’t leave us hopelessly confined to this body of flesh.
For this body, this jar of clay is not intended to go on forever: 1Corinthians
15: Adam was the first man.
But God sent a second Adam, a holy child, born of a Holy God.
Jesus is the last Adam and like Him, we will all be transformed in a new
body. The sinful flesh will be gone. All the things I talked
of in the beginning of this letter will be no more. There will be
no more distractions. No more desires. No more lusts. Are you getting the picture?
Exciting, isn’t it? The key as Paul has shown us is
to live for the eternal and not the mortal.
That is why Paul speaks of the prize. The
prize is not eternal life. The prize is the reward(s) we will
receive when we enter heaven. Not a prize that will pass away, but
one which will last forever.
Your Servant, <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Prayer Requests (and Praises!) Thank you all for your prayers!
My father spent most of last week in the hospital, but is back home
again. He’s amazingly feeling much
better and has regained most of his appetite.
He was bitterly sick last week and hadn’t eaten for over a week.
God is good and He hears our prayers!
Please reply if you have prayer requests, comments or simply need an open ear. I always enjoy hearing from you. <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< <*))))))< Copyright © 2003 Truth Works Publishing. All rights reserved.
Unless otherwise specified, all scripture quotations taken from the HOLY BIBLE,
NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. NIV.
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