Free Moral Agents
ICS Daily Devotions
Galatians 5:24-25 (NKJV) And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
We are a three-part being, comprising of body, soul and spirit. Our will is located in the realm of the soul where we make decisions and choices in life, and our choices and decisions be significantly affected by our moods, feelings, and emotions. These decisions can also bring about negative impacts in our lives and the lives of the people around us.
God will not overcome our will because we are made to be free moral agents where we make our own decisions. Therefore, we can decide to walk in the Spirit by obeying what is right based on the Word, or we can react in the flesh based on what we feel at that moment. There are people who have chosen to go against the Word of God and pierced themselves with many sorrows. It has nothing to do with God tormenting or disciplining them, but they are purely reaping what they have sown with the choices that they have made. Therefore, if the soul is not renewed with the Word of God, it will be a great hindrance to us walking in the Spirit and we will be no different from the people of the world.
Galatians 5:17 (NKJV) For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
The flesh is part of the soul in the makeup of man. The “spirit man” is new and has the nature of God but the body doesn’t change after we have accepted Christ. Therefore, having had the liberty to live the kind of life that’s without restraint and accountability before we were saved, it is a huge challenge for the soul to submit to the Lordship of Christ after we are saved. Also, without the proper teaching, some of us are not even aware that we can overcome the bondages that used to dictate our lives. Therefore, we need to constantly renew our mind with the Word of God regarding who we are, what we can do, and what we have in Christ.
We are very used to living out of our soul rather than in the Spirit, but God leads us in the realm of the Spirit because only the “spirit man” can understand the things of God and enable us to overcome temptation. Therefore, unless the mind, which is part of the soul, is renewed, the soul will not yield to God. However, if we deal with the flesh daily by renewing our mind with the Word of God and yielding to the prompting of the Holy Spirit, we can have victory over sin and temptation!
Sermon Series: The Make-up of Man
