THE DISCIPLINE OF DEALING WITH THE OLD SIN NATURE

Rom 7:24-25

Morning Meditation 4/6/16

“O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.”

The conflict of which Paul speaks in this chapter has helped me more than almost any passage in the Bible. I do not glory in Paul’s conflict but I am relieved that conflict is consistent with being a Christian. There is an underlying truth in this chapter that is climaxed by Paul’s outcry in these two verses I have chosen for a text. It is this: we have an old sin nature from which the new birth or being a Christian does not eradicate. It is an enemy to faith in Christ. It is in rebellion to the filling of the Spirit. It is not subject to the law of God and cannot be made to be (Rom. 8:7). Therefore to be the Christian we have become requires a disciplined life exercised in the power of the Spirit (Rom 8:13). Being a Christian is a matter of grace and the baptism of the Holy Spirit at the point of salvation (Eph. 1:13). That takes no effort on man’s part. We are at God’s mercy completely when we are saved and we discover that he keeps his promises and saves us as we place our faith in Jesus (Rom. 10:9-13). But for us to live out our life in Christ we must “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16).

This old sin nature that is still a part of the body the Christian lives in is alien to God and is still in rebellion against God. For this reason many who have trusted Christ, feel after having been a Christian for a few days, and encountering the conflicts that they are experiencing from inside the body (wrong thought, wrong desires), that they must not be saved or they wouldn’t feel this way. This is a common experience: “There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it” (1Cor 10:13).

Just remember this. That old sin nature (the flesh) is not you.. It belongs to the body. That is what you used to be. (Rom. 8:9: “But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his). Now for Scripture so that you won’t think I’m using a psychological opinion on you. Paul uses two different verses in Romans seven that reveal this truth: verse 17: “Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” Then again in verse 20: “Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” The “I” of Paul that didn’t do it was the new “I” that is no longer in (identified with) the flesh. He is still in the same body but not in the flesh which is the old adamic nature that dominates the body. Some Christian psychologists (so-called) say this is spiritual schizophrenia and laugh at the idea. Let them laugh. It is a fact that they cannot successfully deny by the exegesis of Scripture.

Victory in Christ is not reaching a place in your life where you do not have conflict, it is reaching a place where you understand the conflict from God’s standpoint and are living an overcoming life in the power of the Spirit. Victory in Christ is the goal and it involves discipline.

Paul said “O wretched man that I am!” This doesn’t sound like victory. But whether it sounds that way or not, it is. Because he answers in confident faith, “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Is there a wretched side of the Christian life? Absolutely. It is the struggle against the “sin that dwells in us” as well as Satan and the world system. No passage in the Bible ever said it would be easy to live the Christian life. Christ is the victory over the flesh. This is brought out clearly in Romans 6:7: “For he that is dead is freed from sin.” Incidentally, this is the “sin that dwells in me.” Rom. 6:6 says, “Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.” This is the way God looks at it. When Jesus died, every believer died with him.. Therefore we are taken out of the flesh at the point of salvation by the baptism of the Holy Spirit (Eph. 1:13; 1Cor 13:13) and put into Christ (2Cor. 5:17; Gal. 3:27). And because of this, we have instructions to live out the rest of our lives on earth according the Spirit and this is how the Spirit puts it: “Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Our life unto God is through Jesus Christ our Lord. This is what Paul thanked God for in Romans 7:25.

The victory is not a goal, it has been accomplished by him. We enjoy that truth by faith in his finished work. We apply that truth by faith in his promised power to live a holy life now. At this point we must deal with rebellion in the old sin nature that continues to dwell in the same body with us. This is why Christians fall into sin. They are not disciplining themselves and submitting to the Lordship of Christ. If I am writing to someone, who is having problems with this, I must tell you that no one can do this for you. It is a choice. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” It is a matter of choice to Love Christ and do what he says. God has provided that you do not have to do wrong. If you are doing wrong, it is because of a bad choice now. You can quit blaming your mother or father, or brother or sister or someone who abused you when you were a child. You need to throw that excuse to do wrong away. You see, no one wants to take the blame. “I do wrong because of a bad childhood, so it’s not my fault.” You may get someone to believe that lie but not God. You are a child of God and God has provided for your victory. You do have a choice. But true freedom begins by repentance and forgiveness (you won’t repent as long as you are blaming someone else). Victory for the future comes from Loving Christ and obeying him.

Eve wanted the forbidden fruit. She wanted it badly enough to set God’s word aside and eat it. I want to ask you. Did she obtain freedom by satisfying her desires? Had you been Eve, knowing what you know now, would you have eaten of that fruit? Then you must, as a Christian, chose to abstain all that God has forbidden including questionable things. Yes that is right. 1 Cor. 10:31 says, “Whether therefore ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.” You cannot claim, without hypocrisy, to love God and refuse to practice what he says.

There are those who use grace as a license to sin. God wants holiness in the life of his disciples here on this earth right now. It is not a condition to salvation. It is a condition to usefulness and fellowship with him. Let no one say he had fellowship with him and walk in darkness at the same time (1John 1:6).

Some people who claim to be Christians are not living a life of discipline. They are yielding over and over again to the old sin nature. They need to quit broadcasting that they are Christians until they have dealt with rebellion in themselves and submitted to the Lordship of Christ.

I can hear someone say, “I’m having a struggle and I don’t need this kind of talk.” Just remember this; Jesus is listening to your complaints. Maybe you need a playback of the cross.

May God bless all of you.

In Christ

Bro. White