Flesh Verses Spirit
The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace.
Romans 8:6
Satan attacks us through the flesh, and God gives us victory through Spirit. Our mind is from our soul, and we have to determine what is coming from our flesh and what the Lord is telling us through the Spirit; then we make a choice. The problem is we are biased by our own justification, because Satan poses as an angel of light.
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. (Romans 8:5) Our soul is fed by the Lord’s truth and our flesh is fed by Satan’s temptations, and the battle is in our mind. Satan attacks by pleasing our flesh supported by our emotions, while God reveals the truth.
Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. (James 4:7) Before the temptation is conceived in our minds, we must submit ourselves to God. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. (1 Corinthians 10:5) The difficulty in our Spiritual war can be capturing the thought before it is conceived in our mind, because we may entertain our thought instead of capturing it to the obedience of Christ. To overcome this phase of Spiritual war we can immediately quote a selected scripture, giving us time to pick up the Word, read and pray. Once we have control over our emotions, it will make it easier to win the spiritual battle.
Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. (Ephesians 6:11) If we are dressed in our spiritual armor: Belt of Truth, Breastplate of Righteousness, Feet fitted for readiness through gospel of peace, Shield of faith, Helmet of salvation, and Sword of the Spirit. To have the power of this armor we must think deeply about each piece armor until it enters our heart and becomes our life.
No temptation has overtaken you except what is common to mankind. And God is faithful; he will not let you be tempted beyond what you can bear. But when you are tempted, he will also provide a way out so that you can endure it. (1 Corinthians 10:13) But the Lord is faithful, and he will strengthen you and protect you from the evil one. (1 Thessalonians 3:3) You, dear children, are from God and have overcome them, because the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. (1 John 4:4) From these verses we know the Lord has given us power over Satan and his temptations, if we depend on the Lord for His power. When tempted we immediately capture the thought and run to the Word in prayer for victory.
Today when tempted, know you can have victory if you call on the Lord for His divine power. If we learn to depend on the Lord’s power in our lives, then we will automatically seek his power when tempted.
Prayer: Lord I will depend on you to capture ever thought to your obedience, especially when tempted. Guide me in the Spirit so no temptation will be conceived in my mind. In Jesus name, Amen