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Friday, August 8,
2008
A Weak Excuse
Mark 14:37-38 And he cometh, and findeth
them sleeping, and saith unto Peter, Simon, sleepest thou? couldest not thou
watch one hour? (38) Watch ye and pray, lest ye enter into temptation. The
spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak. (KJV)
The spirit truly is ready and willing to
serve the Lord, while it is the flesh that is weak and would rather be
doing something else. You know if you were hired to do a job and the boss
came around and found you sleeping on the job, how long before you think
you might end up fired? Which is what will happen to those that are
spiritually asleep and not keeping watch over their salvation. The flesh is
weak because it is limited to this fallen carnal realm, while the spirit
truly is willing, able to operate in a realm where all things are possible.
As I look around this fallen world I see many that are weak because they
choose to lean to their own understanding, things they can see, and not
into the unseen eternal realm where one can have access to the Lord and the
power of His might.
1 Corinthians 11:28-30 But let a man
examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup.
(29) For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh
damnation to himself, not discerning the Lord's body. (30) For this cause
many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. (KJV)
The Lord said many are called but few are
chosen. As we see in verse 30 the many had become weak allowing sickness
into the temple, and some are sleeping, in a spiritual stupor even to the
point of death. Rather than examining themselves working out their own
salvation, they gave in to the temptation of the flesh choosing an easier
path rather than a straight and narrow one that leads to victory. Instead
of watching and praying, exercising their spiritual senses to know and not
just guess the difference between what was good and evil, they dosed off
and let the enemy catch them with their guard down, making themselves an
easy target. While you were eating and drinking in a place you thought was
safe and healthy, you ended up ingesting a lot of poisonous doctrine,
doctrines of man that catered more to the flesh than to the Spirit.
Galatians 5:16-18 This I say then, Walk
in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. (17) For the
flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and
these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things
that ye would. (18) But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the
law. (KJV)
You know Church, there is still a law
that is in play and that is the law of sin and death, which if the devil
can catch a believer napping would like nothing better than have you put
back under arrest and convicted. Once a believer has begun a walk in the
Spirit it is vital to continue that walk, enduring to the end in order to
obtain your eternal salvation. The more you walk in the Spirit the stronger
you become, while on the flip side the more you stay in the flesh the
weaker you are. As many as are led by the Spirit of God are truly the sons
of God, and able to partake of His divine nature, operating in a realm so
much higher and above all that we could ever ask or think of.
Romans 8:1-2 There is therefore now no
condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the
flesh, but after the Spirit. (2) For the law of the Spirit of life in
Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. (KJV)
Sin to put it in its simplest form is
unbelief. All sin is a result of unbelief which stems from one choosing the
carnal over the Spirit. Death is the result of sin, which is another
definition of sleep, and for some it will mean eternal separation from God.
The law of faith is what brought you back from the dead and enlightened you
to the realm of the Spirit allowing you to walk in a new life by leaving
the old one behind. Just like with the laws of the land here on earth,
there is an order to the law of the Spirit; one must abide by the law of
faith, living a life that is based more on what I hear from God and less by
what my fallen nature tries to dictate as truth. So which realm are you in
today; are you up and at it, ready, willing, and able to worship our Lord
today in Spirit and in truth, or are you still on your backside, knocked
down and unconscious because you got sucker punched?
Galatians 5:22-25 But the fruit of the
Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,
(23) Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. (24) And they that
are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. (25)
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. (KJV)
Once you enter the realm of the Spirit
there are no laws or limitations on how far you can go, in fact you have
just entered a realm that goes on for eternity. The question is how far are
you willing to go? Well, if you are in the Spirit it never has to end, however
if you choose the flesh then it will come to an end, an end God did not
intend for His people. When you pray and make your petitions to God through
Jesus Christ you have tapped into a source of life that is not limited to
what you can see, hear, or touch in this fallen realm, but is able to do so
much more above and beyond what you could have ever asked or thought of on
your own. In fact when you revert back to the flesh, that being your carnal
mind, then you have taken the Lord out of the equation by leaning to your
own understanding; you then open yourself up again to the law of sin and
death which has now cut off the source of living waters, which if it lasts
to long will result in death.
Proverbs 19:15-16 Slothfulness casteth
into a deep sleep; and an idle soul shall suffer hunger. (16) He that
keepeth the commandment keepeth his own soul; but he that despiseth his
ways shall die. (KJV)
Have you lost interest in your salvation;
not as exciting as it used to be; instead of moving forward in your walk
you have parked on the side of the road and are idling? Is the upkeep of
your soul still your sole interest, or are you solely interested in what
appeals more to the flesh than to the Spirit?
1Thessalonians 5:5-8 Ye are all the
children of light, and the children of the day: we are not of the night,
nor of darkness. (6) Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us
watch and be sober. (7) For they that sleep sleep in the night; and they
that be drunken are drunken in the night. (8) But let us, who are of the
day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for an
helmet, the hope of salvation. (KJV)
There is a Son that shines eternally, it
never goes down or dims, but rather is described as a daystar which arises
in our heart and gives enlightenment to the believer. If you end up
sleeping spiritually and in the dark, it is because you chose a dark fallen
realm rather than the eternal one where there is no darkness, neither
shadow of turning.
Mark 14:38-41 Watch ye and pray, lest ye
enter into temptation. The spirit truly is ready, but the flesh is weak.
(39) And again he went away, and prayed, and spake the same words. (40) And
when he returned, he found them asleep again, (for their eyes were heavy,)
neither wist they what to answer him. (41) And he cometh the third time,
and saith unto them, Sleep on now, and take your rest: it is enough, the
hour is come; behold, the Son of man is betrayed into the hands of sinners.
(KJV)
When the enemy is heading your way and
trying to bring you back under arrest will you be watching and praying so
that you don’t enter into temptation, or will you be easy prey for him? The
spirit is willing; the flesh is weak, and is a weak excuse for those that
choose their own desires ahead of our Lord’s.
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