For the flesh sets its desire against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh, for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please
(Galatians 5:17).
Battle on the inside
As soon as we get born again, there is a battle on the inside.
The flesh and the spirit start wrestling for control. The soul and body have been calling the shots for our whole life, and they do not want to submit. All of a sudden, our spirit is alive and connected with God, God lives on the inside of us. So now we face choices, every day, every moment. Surrender our life to our spirit, or to our soul.
Two resonating testimonies start to compete, and will create destructive interference patterns unless we consistently decide to choose one over the other.
The flesh does not want what our spirit wants, and vice versa. If we end up doing the things our flesh wants, our spirit is not happy (and God is not pleased either). Let’s be honest with ourselves: which is winning the contest? How much of each day are we living according to God’s purposes and plans for our lives, and how much are we just drifting through it, living according to the whims of our flesh? We need daily to surrender to the purposes of God for us.
And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me (Luke 9:23).
Living sacrifices
I have posted before about how we surrender ourselves as a living sacrifice, daily. As we do, we are transformed, so that we can come into our destiny.
Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect (Rom 12:1-2).
Our mind is not our brain. It is our subconscious, which is in our heart.
For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart (Heb 4:12).
As we line up with the word of God, both with the scripture and with what He has written on our scroll of destiny, that will have an effect on the thoughts and intentions of our heart. Will those thoughts come from our spirit or from our flesh?
The choice is ours to make.