MEDITATIONS
FROM ROMANS
September 13,
2006
Reading
“If by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will
live” Romans
8:13
There is a constant
struggle in the life of every true believer, one that continues until the day you
physically die. The most mature of believers is not exempt from this battle and
must be on guard at all times. My soul, do not be discouraged about this for it
can be the source of great encouragement and rejoicing—it is the means of a
closer walk with your Savior.
The King James Version uses
a word that is seldom used these days although several other words are common
in the English language. That word is mortify. You are
told to mortify the deeds of the body, to put them to death. You still use the
words Mortician, Mortuary and Mortified, but somehow, mortify has slipped out
of the Christian vocabulary. Maybe it is because it calls on you to do
something that is difficult and therefore unpopular.
Paul uses the term ‘works
of the flesh’ to describe ‘deeds of the body,’ and, because your old nature
sill lives in you, you are still prone to commit these deeds. How, then, can
this be an encouragement to you?—simply because each victory over these
temptations brings you closer to Christ. A direct result of mortifying the
deeds of the body brings joy to your heart and confidence in your relationship
with Jesus. Of course, the opposite is also true—each defeat drives a wedge
between you and God as far as communion with Him is concerned.
Every unmortified sin will
certainly do two things:-- (1) It will weaken the soul
and deprive it of its vigor. (2) It will darken the soul and deprive it of its
comfort and peace” John Owen.
Continued failure to
mortify any particular sin will seriously effect your soul: It will dim the
light God has given you, depress your desire to pursue the things of God, blind
your eyes to the truths of His Word, quench the influence of the Holy Spirit in
your heart, and many other Godly blessings will be out of reach no matter how
hard you try.
My soul, the hard truth for
you to accept is that you cannot achieve this desperately needed victory alone.
No matter how hard you try you cannot put the works of the flesh to death. Then
how, especially when the scriptures tell us to do so? Read again the text
above, “If by the Spirit …” It is the Spirit of God who convicts you of your
sin and it is only the Spirit of God who can accomplish it. Jesus Christ, by
His Spirit, is the only means by which you can know victory.
“O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver
me from this body of death? I thank God -- through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Romans 7:24-25.