The Spirit is Willing, but the Flesh is Weak - Deuteronomy 26-27 and Mark 14:27-53
We all need to understand the weakness of the flesh to do God's will, even when our spirit is willing. We must heed the commands of the Bible, because many times they are given to help us with the weaknesses of the flesh. Think about this as we read these passages today.
Deuteronomy 26 and 27 give us several insights into how to deal with the flesh in order to do God's will. The command to give the first fruits of our increase is a great example. What does our flesh tell us to do when it comes to giving to the Lord? The flesh says to wait and see if we have enough left over, and then we can give to the Lord. God tells us to do the opposite. Bring the first fruits to Him, and that helps us overcome the flesh. The same is true with the tithe. The flesh says we can't possible live on 90% of our income, but God wants to show us that He will provide. Therefore, He instituted the tithe. If we make it a priority to tithe, we keep the flesh from hindering our giving to God. We must remember that we are God's special people, and we are to be holy. The flesh will want to be as sinful as possible, but God calls us to be totally holy, separate from sin. If we try to stay close to sin, our flesh will be weak and give in. If we are totally separated from sin, we can do God's will. Finally, God told them to proclaim the curses once they entered the Promised Land. Why did they need to proclaim the curses as well as the blessings? The curses are a deterrent to the flesh. If we have the fear of what God will do to us when we sin, it brings our flesh in line. If there is no fear of God, the flesh is emboldened to sin.
We can see this so well in how Jesus dealt with His disciples before the crucifixion. He told them they would stumble, and he specifically told Peter he would deny Him three times before morning. Was Jesus being negative? He was not being negative, but He was being truthful and stating reality. We must admit our weakness before we can overcome it. Notice that Peter would not listen to Jesus, and he and the rest of the disciples proclaimed that they would die for Him, but they would not deny Him. That was not positive thinking. That was pride and the failure to admit a weakness. Then, Jesus took them out to the garden. He told them to watch and to pray. They could not even watch and pray for one hour, so how would they die for Him? He told them that the spirit was indeed willing but the flesh was weak. He explained their problem, and He gave the solution. We must all hear what He said. Watch and pray. We should constantly watch to see what Jesus is doing and pray for God to give us the strength to follow Him. That is why we read His Word today. We are watching Christ. We are seeing the nature of God. Then, we pray for the Holy Spirit to make us like Jesus. This is the only way to overcome the flesh.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Deuteronomy 28-29 and Mark 14:54-72.
Deuteronomy 26 and 27 give us several insights into how to deal with the flesh in order to do God's will. The command to give the first fruits of our increase is a great example. What does our flesh tell us to do when it comes to giving to the Lord? The flesh says to wait and see if we have enough left over, and then we can give to the Lord. God tells us to do the opposite. Bring the first fruits to Him, and that helps us overcome the flesh. The same is true with the tithe. The flesh says we can't possible live on 90% of our income, but God wants to show us that He will provide. Therefore, He instituted the tithe. If we make it a priority to tithe, we keep the flesh from hindering our giving to God. We must remember that we are God's special people, and we are to be holy. The flesh will want to be as sinful as possible, but God calls us to be totally holy, separate from sin. If we try to stay close to sin, our flesh will be weak and give in. If we are totally separated from sin, we can do God's will. Finally, God told them to proclaim the curses once they entered the Promised Land. Why did they need to proclaim the curses as well as the blessings? The curses are a deterrent to the flesh. If we have the fear of what God will do to us when we sin, it brings our flesh in line. If there is no fear of God, the flesh is emboldened to sin.
We can see this so well in how Jesus dealt with His disciples before the crucifixion. He told them they would stumble, and he specifically told Peter he would deny Him three times before morning. Was Jesus being negative? He was not being negative, but He was being truthful and stating reality. We must admit our weakness before we can overcome it. Notice that Peter would not listen to Jesus, and he and the rest of the disciples proclaimed that they would die for Him, but they would not deny Him. That was not positive thinking. That was pride and the failure to admit a weakness. Then, Jesus took them out to the garden. He told them to watch and to pray. They could not even watch and pray for one hour, so how would they die for Him? He told them that the spirit was indeed willing but the flesh was weak. He explained their problem, and He gave the solution. We must all hear what He said. Watch and pray. We should constantly watch to see what Jesus is doing and pray for God to give us the strength to follow Him. That is why we read His Word today. We are watching Christ. We are seeing the nature of God. Then, we pray for the Holy Spirit to make us like Jesus. This is the only way to overcome the flesh.
Tomorrow, I intend to read Deuteronomy 28-29 and Mark 14:54-72.