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What the Bible says about Flesh, Works of the
(From Forerunner Commentary)

Genesis 25:34

So, what is our particular "bowl of lentils"? For what would we give up everything God has offered us? For what are we giving up our fabulous birthright? What sinful pattern of living could be keeping us from inheriting all things? Is it worth it?

We would like to say, "Nothing," but actions speak louder than words. Our behavior reveals our beliefs. If we are acting in a way that despises our birthright, we are showing that our beliefs are no different from Esau's. In fact, if we are participating in behavior contrary to God's standards, that behavior has become our bowl of lentils.

Again, what have we been putting ahead of the promises we could inherit? Our answer identifies our present bowl of lentils.

Esau wanted to be satisfied immediately; he did not want to wait. He wanted the pleasures and satisfactions of the flesh fulfilled instantly. What good was a birthright if it did not satisfy his incredible hunger and thirst right now?

Anything, any sin, any behavior, any thought pattern, any god we place before the Holy One—anything that would keep us from receiving our birthright—is our bowl of lentils. For most of us, these are ingrained patterns of life that we must overcome. Some have been able to hide and camouflage these bowls of lentils from others. It does not matter. God sees all (Hebrews 4:13).

We could be working so hard laboring for the meat that perishes that we ignore and neglect the spiritual food and promises God has offered us. We could be working so hard at building a relationship with a boss that we do not spend the time building our relationship with the real Master. Perhaps it is sinful worry, the cares of this life, that have pulled us off center. Or, it could be the pleasures of this life, the vanities of this age, or unconquered sins. Any of these could be our bowl of lentil stew that could lead God to conclude we are despising our birthright too.

What are some typical bowls of lentils? Galatians 5:19-21, Paul's list of the "works of the flesh" is a good place to start. He concludes by saying, "[T]hose who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God" (verse 21).

Are we letting covetousness become a bowl of lentils? Have we chosen the god of "success" in place of the true God (Mark 4:18-19)?

Does anything each day come ahead of seeking Him and walking with Him? Are there sins of the flesh, of sex, of hate, of worry, of envy that keep us from seeking our birthright diligently?

How about the Sabbath and holydays? Are we keeping them holy?

The point is clear. Each of us knows what our bowl of lentils is.

We can learn from Esau. He should have gone hungry instead of selling out a fabulous future for literal beans. There will be many times when we will have that same decision: despise the birthright—or sacrifice, wait, endure, overcome, and put up with hardship. We have to make sure we choose properly: life (Deuteronomy 30:15-20).

No matter how temporarily enjoyable and satisfying any sin is in that moment, it cannot begin to measure up to the eternal rewards of God's birthright promises. Inheriting our birthright will not be easy. God wants to know beyond any doubt that we value it. That means we will be tested on this point repeatedly. It will take endurance, sacrifice, and keeping our focus on what is eternal and truly valuable (II Corinthians 4:17-18).

Staff
What is Your Bowl of Lentil Stew?

Proverbs 26:24-26

Anger can be outwardly visible, but it can also show up in ways that are subtle, indirect, and deceptive. Proverbs 26:24-26 provides an example of this:

He who hates, disguises it with his lips, and lays up deceit within himself; when he speaks kindly, do not believe him, for there are seven abominations in his heart; though his hatred is covered by deceit, his wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.

Solomon describes a hateful individual, and in such a person, the related works of the flesh—contention, jealousy, selfish ambitions, and dissension—also probably exist. An "outburst of wrath" is also here, but not in the way that we would normally think. Everything this person does is his "outburst of wrath," except that it is more like a tamped-down volcanic eruption in slow motion. It oozes out rather than explodes. It does not possess visual or verbal intensity, nor is there obvious fury or violence. The anger, malice, and violence are hidden and smooth (see Proverbs 10:18). The anger can only be observed by its effect on others rather than in full-bore, red-faced fury resulting in bloodshed. The injuries from this individual are not physical; his aggression may be quite passive. Nevertheless, his anger still reaches out and attempts to destroy, though he may not even be aware of what is happening nor admit to being angry.

Something similar is found in Proverbs 6:12-15 (The Amplified Bible):

A worthless person, a wicked man, is he who goes about with a perverse (contrary, wayward) mouth. He winks with his eyes, he speaks by shuffling or tapping with his feet, he makes signs [to mislead and deceive] and teaches with his fingers. Willful and contrary in his heart, he devises trouble, vexation, and evil continually; he lets loose discord and sows it. Therefore upon him shall the crushing weight of calamity come suddenly; suddenly shall he be broken, and that without remedy.

These people have something burning inside them, motivating them to the wickedness described in both proverbs. Something impels them to carry out their plans, regardless of the cost to others, and they may even rejoice at the price others must pay (Proverbs 17:5; 21:10). These are angry individuals, but their anger is hidden and finds its way out in subtle and creative ways. Proverbs 16:29-30 speaks of "a violent man [who] entices his neighbor, and leads him in a way that is not good. He winks his eye to devise perverse things; he purses his lips [as if in concealment] and brings about evil."

David C. Grabbe
Hidden Anger (Part Two)

Mark 5:2

Christ was met by the unclean men coming out of the tombs. These rock-hewn tombs were repulsive to the Jews and to dwell in them was deemed a sign of insanity. Because of the remains of the dead they contained, they were shunned by the Jews as unclean (Matthew 23:27). Under the Old Covenant, one could be physically defiled by touching a dead body. Even when a person died in a tent, the whole tent was regarded as unclean (Numbers 19:11, 14).

Unclean in Scripture means "to be defiled, polluted, unhealthy, or unfit," and refers to foods that are unfit, defilement of religious character, and moral or spiritual impurity. The word "defilement" describes a sinful and unfit condition (Isaiah 6:5). The Old Testament distinguishes between what is clean and helpful and what is unclean and unacceptable (Leviticus 10:10). The New Testament deals more with the spiritual application and lists uncleanness or moral defilement along with fornication and other sins as "works of the flesh" (Galatians 5:19-21).

In the gospels, "unclean" describes those who are possessed by demonic spirits through constant submission to evil. Uncleanness represents sin, and sin separates man from God. Because of sin, "we are all like an unclean thing" (Isaiah 64:6). Believers are not called to uncleanness but to live in holiness (I Thessalonians 4:7). We are not to yield our members to uncleanness but to righteousness and holiness (Romans 6:19).

The teaching about uncleanness springs from the concept of God's holiness (Leviticus 11:44-45). It is a miracle in itself that freedom from uncleanness and guilt is possible through God's grace. Holiness within, purity of heart, is possible through the exercise of faith in Christ's redemptive work and obedience to His truth.

Martin G. Collins
The Miracles of Jesus Christ: Two-Demon Possessed Men Healed (Part Two)

Galatians 5:16-17

The context in which these verses appear is important to understanding the production of the fruit of the Spirit. This immediately precedes the listing of the fruit of the Spirit, showing that Paul means that they will be produced through much internal conflict.

This is true because obedience to God's Word is required to produce the Spirit's fruit, and the Christian is being pulled or led in two directions. The one tries to make us satisfy the desires of our old nature, and the other leads us toward producing the fruit of the new. Paul expresses his experience with this in Romans 7:15-19.

For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do. If, then, I do what I will not to do, I agree with the law that it is good. But now, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.

Christians, as Martin Luther stated, "are not stocks and stones." As humans, we are creatures of desires, drives, and emotions. Certainly, as we learn to walk in the Spirit, we increasingly subdue our flesh. But flesh and Spirit remain, and the conflict between them is fierce and unremitting.

We need not become discouraged over this conflict, though, because Paul also gives us a very hopeful solution. In Romans 7:24-25, he exclaims: "O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of 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."

Every Christian striving to produce the fruit of God will experience this combination of lamentation over sinfulness and joyous expression of gratitude over the certainty of deliverance. The unconverted do not feel the agonizing struggle against sin with the same intensity as the converted. The converted have their peace disturbed and can feel wretched in their conscience.

But this has a good side to it as well. We know it is degrading to the divine nature, and it humbles us to know full well that we have succumbed to evil passions. We then realize more fully that the law cannot come to our aid, neither can other men, and our strength has already betrayed us. Therefore, if we really desire to glorify God and produce spiritual fruit, this conflict will drive us to God in heartfelt prayer for the strength only He can give. God's Word and eventually our experience prove that without Christ, we can do nothing!

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:19-21

If a person is walking in the Spirit, he has no conflict with the law of God. Paul uses "flesh" as a synonym for "carnality" or "human nature." The carnal mind, hating God's laws, does not subject itself to them (Romans 8:7). What we see in verses 19-21 is what carnality—what human nature—works at producing: the works of the flesh.

It produces adultery. Have you ever seen a young man—as carnal as the day is long—on the prowl after a sweet young thing? Maybe he stands on the corner, watching all the girls go by, trying to get a date, to pick her up. He has one thing in mind: conquering her and getting her in bed. He has to work at it. He turns on all his charm to seduce her.

It produces theft. Do robbers work at their thievery? Certainly, they do. Some of them actually consider it to be legitimate work, a skill. I recently heard of a church pastor who allowed himself to be convinced that gambling is legal according to God's law. The man who convinced him, a gambler by profession, labored long hours to perfect his skills in taking advantage of other people. He argued that gambling is lawful because he is working, not playing.

The flesh works at producing these things. But the Spirit is opposed to the flesh. They are at war with one another. If a person has the Spirit of God, he cannot allow his human nature to dominate his way of life. He must make a choice as to which way he will be led—by the flesh or by the Spirit of God.

The apostle says that if a person is doing these works, he is following the urgings of the flesh, not the law of God. Paul is by no means doing away with the law of God; that is the farthest thing from his mind, the last thing he would want these Christians to do. Note that he writes that people who practice the works of the flesh will not be in the Kingdom of God. Did Paul want Christians to be in the Kingdom of God? Of course, he did! But they must be guided and led by God's Spirit. If they are led by their carnal mind, they will not enter it.

Thus, the solution to sin and the struggle for salvation lies in the spiritual relationship between God and us. It lies in prayer, faith, study, meditation, and coming to know and love God with all of our being. It does not take long to realize that He is so desirable, and we want to do everything we can to please Him.

What pleases Him? When we imitate Him and live as He does. This great spiritual Being gives us elements of His mind so we can live the way He lives. God is love. And the bottom line of love, the place from which it starts, is the keeping of the commandments (I John 5:3).

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Twenty-Eight)

Ephesians 2:1-3

We cannot think with what we do not have. If we do not have the right material upon which to base our thoughts, how can we possibly produce the right things? We are always, whether pauper or king, limited by what is in our mind. Paul shows this in Ephesians 2:1-3:

This reveals to us that every human being who has ever lived (except Jesus) has been enslaved to a way of thinking generated by the prince of the power of the air, Satan. Because of this, we fulfilled the desires of our flesh and mind. Indeed, because our minds had little else with which to work, we could not produce anything else! We produced the fruits of a spirit but not the Spirit of God.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Fruit of the Spirit

Ephesians 2:11-13

Paul here reminds us of our indebtedness to God. Earlier, he had laid the groundwork for a proper sense of obligation and commitment to Christ by stating a few undeniable facts: That we conducted our lives according to the course of this world, according to Satan's will (verse 2); that we fulfilled the desires of the flesh and the mind (verse 3); and because of disobedience we were as good as dead (verses 1, 5). Through no merit of our own but by God's grace alone, He through Jesus Christ rescues us from this.

In those who understand this deeply and personally, this creates an exquisite sense of indebtedness, devotion, and longing to honor Him. It accounts for the sorrow we feel each time we are aware of falling short of fully pleasing Him. This is not bad; it is good because it motivates those who have this in balance to intensify their devotion and redirect their efforts along the right path.

John W. Ritenbaugh
The Beatitudes, Part Three: Mourning


 




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