by Beth Fore
“So I find this law at work:
When I want to do good,
evil is right there with me.
For in my inner being I delight
in God’s law; but I see another
law at work in the members
of my body, waging war
against the law of my mind
and making me a prisoner
of the law of sin at work
within my members. What a
wretched man I am! Who will
rescue me from this body
of death? Thanks be to God—
through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind
am a slave to God’s law, but
in the sinful nature a slave
to the law of sin.”
(Romans 7:21-25 NIV)
The Battle Within
There is a battle within me, Lord,
that rages between spirit and flesh.
My flesh is hostile to You, Lord,
but my spirit Your will does cherish.
My sinful nature tempts me daily
with selfish desires and pleasure.
This nature ends in spiritual death
and despair that we cannot measure.
My spiritual nature submits to You,
and Your Spirit gives me life and peace.
Christ lives in me and my spirit is alive,
and His presence in me brings release.
I choose to be led by Your Spirit, Lord,
and I cry out, “Abba, Father”, to Thee.
Put the misdeeds of my body to death,
and defeat the power of the enemy.
May Your Spirit give me a bold spirit
and testify to all that I am Your heir.
Give me courage and strength, Lord,
so that in Your sufferings I may share.
May Your spirit ever live in me, Lord,
and may Your glory be revealed in me.
Help me know that through Your will
the battle within will be Your victory.
written by Beth Fore
*Both good and evil live inside of man. There is a constant battle raging between the flesh and the spirit.
“So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.” (Romans 7:21-23 NIV)
Paul is saying these words to the Romans, long after he has been converted to Christ on the road to Damascus. So that means that this war going on inside of him, and us, is a war between good and evil (God and Satan) even after we become Christians. Because of the fall of Adam and the curse God placed on mankind, we are sinners. Because of the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins, we are made pure and righteous before God. But Satan is still roaming the earth, seeking whom he can devour, and Christians are at the top of his list.
As Christians, our spirits desire and seek God. We want to obey God and become more like Christ. But, our flesh is human and fallible; and we want to satisfy our fleshly desires and enjoy the pleasures that the flesh desires. So, this war goes on inside each Christian. God gives us the strength and fortitude to overcome these temptations and allows His spirit to reign in us and rule over our bodies; but we must be willing to do His will and ask His Holy Spirit to give us the strength to battle Satan and sin.
*God is the only one who can defeat Satan and give us peace of mind and spirit.
“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25a NIV)
The Holy Spirit lives inside of the hearts of Christians. He guides us into all truth. He gives us the strength we need to overcome anyone or anything. We must cry out to our God, “Abba, Father, put the misdeed of my body to death, and defeat the power of the enemy.” We must truly seek to become pure and holy, and we must fervently pray to God to help us overcome evil with good.
APPLICATIONS
- Name one of the sins that you constantly battle. Think of some things you can do to defeat this sin. Spend time in prayer asking God to help you defeat it.
- Write down some verses, such as, “…the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world” (1 John 4:4), and speak them aloud when you are tempted.
- Choose one sin to focus on changing. Try speaking scriptures over it when you are tempted. Keep a record, for a week, of each time you are tempted and how you deal with this sin. Reflect on your record and proceed another week, etc., until you defeat it.
- Too often our pride deceives us and makes us think we are strong enough, on our own, to overcome sin. This is the power of Satan, the great Deceiver, lying to us. It is only through the power of God that we can overcome and defeat Satan. Pray to God confessing this truth, and ASK HIM to give you the strength you need to defeat sin and Satan.
If you want to learn more about what it means to be a Christian or to become a Christian, click this link: https://woww.newlifebehavior.org/what-it-means-to-follow-jesus-how-to-become-a-christian/ If you have questions, please send us an email at nlbiministry@gmail.com.
Women of Worth Worldwide 