WALKING IN THE SPIRIT
The flesh, with its carnal thoughts, attitudes, desires and lusts, wars against the Spirit and blocks you from taking hold of the things of God. Paul told the Galatians:
But I say, walk and live habitually in the (Holy) Spirit — responsive to and controlled and guided by the Spirit; then you will certainly not gratify the cravings and desires of the flesh — of human nature without God. For the desires of the flesh are opposed to the (Holy) Spirit, and the (desires of the) Spirit are opposed to the flesh (Godless human nature); for these are antagonistic to each other — continually withstanding and in conflict with each other — so that you are not free but are prevented from doing what you desire to do. (Galatians 5:16-17, TAB)
As long as you are walking in the Spirit — yielding to the Spirit, being controlled and guided by the Spirit — you will not gratify the desires of your flesh. You will continually resist and deny the flesh.
The flesh with its carnal desires and lusts, struggles and wars against the Spirit. It resists the move and work of the Spirit in your life and everything that is spiritual. The battle rages. The Holy Spirit within you continually opposes and resists the flesh. As a result of this war between the Spirit and the flesh, you are hindered from doing the things you would like to do. You are at a spiritual standstill, unable to take hold of the things of the Spirit. To break through this barrier of the flesh holding you back from entering in to possess all God has provided for you, you must consider yourself dead to sin and your relationship to it broken.
Paul said:
Even so consider yourselves also dead to sin and your relation to it broken, but (that you are) alive to God — living in unbroken fellowship with Him — in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore rule as king in your mortal (short-lived, perishable) bodies, to make you yield to their cravings and be subject to their lusts and evil passions (Romans 6:11-12, TAB)
There can be no compromise with the flesh. When you are walking in the Spirit and are continually yielding and being controlled by the Spirit, you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. I did not say you wouldn’t be tempted, but you will not yield to your fleshly desires and appetites.
Make this declaration:
I will not compromise with the flesh. I will be yielded to and controlled by the Holy Spirit.
