This is going to be a short blog post, because the content is not necessarily deep. It is practical and the wisdom of it lies in the understanding. The title may not be gramatically correct, but it says exactly what the topic is about in this blog. As a christian there is a battle raging in us daily that we need to win on a consistent basis. It gets easier the more we abstain from sin and fleshly pleasures. Needless to say, it is a daily battle we fight at different levels, depending on our spiritual growth. That battle is the ‘Will of God’ against the ‘Will of our flesh’. An unsaved person does not really fight this battle because to them the will of their flesh is their will. They comply with every request of their flesh and rarely abstain from anything that they believe will make them feel good or happy. Little do they know, that their fallen fleshly urges are influenced by a world, designed by another fallen being, satan. His desire has always been to keep humanity separate from God by leading them deeper and deeper into sin. As you know the wages of sin is death, which is the destination of all those who reject the love of God. You will not find happiness at the end of that rainbow. This is why many people who reject God and live a life of sin, always revert to a life of depression and despair. This concept of thinking comes from the satanic belief system spreading in society today that is summized by these phrases, “Do As Thou Will” and ” YOLO (You only live once)“. The thrill of sin is temporary, but the damaging effects on your soul and body are long lasting. The only solution is the salvation of Jesus Christ.
Man was not created to live in sin. When you become saved and gain the wisdom of God’s love through Jesus Christ, you recognize that the pursuit of happiness without God is fruitless. You become spiritually awakened, no longer are you apart of this carnal world, but you become transformed by the renuing of your mind. Unfortunately you also become aware of the ‘Battle of The Wills‘. The will of your flesh to influence you to return to sin and the Will of God that leads you in love to a life of righteousness, love and holiness. As a christian it is important to be aware of this struggle within ourselves. The fact that we are aware, gives us the opportunity to challenge our actions and thoughts to make sure they are spirit led and not carnally influenced. What does this mean? Here is an example from the bible, where Apostle Peter experienced being on both sides of this battle within a short time period:
Matthew 16:15-19
15 He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
Matthew 16:21-24
21 From that time on Jesus began to explain to his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things at the hands of the elders, the chief priests and the teachers of the law, and that he must be killed and on the third day be raised to life.
22 Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him. “Never, Lord!” he said. “This shall never happen to you!”
23 Jesus turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.”
24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me.
How in the same chapter, could Peter be favored by God with revelation of his Son Jesus Christ and then be called satan by the very Son of God? What made him transition from being the rock that the church will be built on, to being satan and a stumbling block to Christ. What I love about our Lord is that he leaves nothing up to chance by explaining Peter’s error, so that we are aware. It wasn’t Peter’s belief that changed, it was his mindfulness. He allowed his mind to shift from being mindful of God and his will, to focusing on his fleshly emotions for Christ as a friend. Some could say it was a selfish desire of Peter not wanting Christ to fulfill his purpose, because he wanted to have Christ with him always. You could also say in Peter’s defense that his expression of concern for Christ as a friend, was harshly rebuked. How was he to know the whole story of Christ’s need to be a sacrifice.
To really address any of the above statements you first need to understand Peter’s possible perspective in each case;
- When Christ asked who do you say that I am, Peter had to genuinely reflect on Christ’s character, the miracles he saw him perform, the word he teached that set their hearts on fire. He knew Christ was no ordinary man and pondered on Christ, seeking an answer as to who he truly was. His carnal logic could not explain it therefore, God responded and provided him with the revelation of Christ as the Son of the living God. His mind was focused on Christ and in so doing he received revelation directly from God. Jesus himself said he would build his church upon this very concept.
- After hearing the Son of God explain his purpose for suffering and his need to die. Peter switched from thinking on Christ as the Son of God, to thinking about his friend’s suffering and his selfish desire to prevent Christ from dieing and leaving. He was not concerned about the will of God that needed to be fulfilled through Christ. Therefore Christ saw him as a stumbling block, an obstacle trying to play to his carnal emotions, in an attempt to influence Christ from fulfilling the will of God in his life.
This stark contrast in how I believe Peter viewed Christ in both those instances, is at the heart of the battle of Will’s. Peter was in line with the Will of God in revealing who Jesus truly was, but was in opposition to God’s will when he strongly objected to Jesus’s purpose for Christ’s safety. Christians need to be weary of their own carnal emotions and desires, challenging the will of God in their lives or in the lives of others. The carnal emotions we experience, being in relationship with the people that are close to us, cannot supercede the will of God. Our logical conclusions based on worldly knowledge, cannot supercede the wisdom of God’s will. Peter acknowledged Jesus’s identity, through revelation, as the Son of God, but denounced his purpose as the Son of God here on earth. Why? A lack of knowledge and understanding. Peter relied on his carnal perspective of Christ’s purpose and felt his suffering was not necessary. This led to him coming between Jesus and God’s will as an obstacle. This is why Solomon says in proverbs;
Proberbs 3:5-8
5 Trust in the Lord with all your heart
and lean not on your own understanding;
6 in all your ways submit to him,
and he will make your paths straight.[a]7 Do not be wise in your own eyes;
fear the Lord and shun evil.
8 This will bring health to your body
and nourishment to your bones.
This is what Christ meant when he told the diciples to take up their crosses and follow him. The cross is a symbolic representation of the restriction and crucifixtion the body. Christ has asked us as diciples, to carry ours daily and follow him. In other words we are to constantly keep our flesh and emotions under subjection to God’s will in order to follow Christ. If not, we leave an opening for the devil to influence us into becoming a stumbling block to the will of God in our lives. In order to function this way we are requried to abandon our carnal logic (what we think is right or wrong) and rely on the wisdom and will of God. This does not mean we sit there waiting on God to give us a GPS like direction for our lives. It means that all the plans we make should always be subjected to him in prayer and if God guides us away from where we think we should go, we are obedient. We may never understand why somethings had to happen a certain way, but our job is to trust and know that God understands and has a path prepared for us. Jesus eventually shows us in the garden of Gethsemeny, how to handle those contradicting emotions to God’s will, especially when we don’t understand.
Luke 22:40-46
40 On reaching the place, he said to them, “Pray that you will not fall into temptation.” 41 He withdrew about a stone’s throw beyond them, knelt down and prayed, 42 “Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me; yet not my will, but yours be done.” 43 An angel from heaven appeared to him and strengthened him. 44 And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.[a]
45 When he rose from prayer and went back to the disciples, he found them asleep, exhausted from sorrow. 46 “Why are you sleeping?” he asked them. “Get up and pray so that you will not fall into temptation.”
As Jesus did, we ought to offer our emotions of uncertainty and our plans to God in prayer. All the time desiring his will be done, not yours. It is surrendering to God and acknowledging that his wisdom supercedes everything as our Creator. As we see in the verses above, it is not easy carrying your cross daily. This battle of the Wills can create anguish, anxiety and even challenge our faith, but prayer is the solution. When we pray in surrender, desiring God’s will, the bible says we will be kept from temptation in our flesh, as well as God will stregthen us in our time of need. Fasting is also very helpful in developing self control over your flesh. In the life of a Christian that walks in self control, fulfilling the will of God for their lives in obedience, I can assure you there is evidence of fasting and a mature prayer life.
- Awareness (Being aware of the battle is the first step to winning against your flesh )
- Surrender and Prayer (Acknowledging God’s wisdom and will, supercedes your earthly desires and carnal emotions. Prayer is the key to abstaining from sin. )
- Fasting (Related to self control which is needed to grow in obedience to the will of God. It is also a fruit from the intemacy with the Holy Spirit)
This last comment is just something to ponder on in your walk with Christ. The bible says that when we accept Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior he not only considers us part of his bride the church, but also his friend. As true as this may be, we must not allow this belief to affect the need for us to walk circumspect and Holy before God. Peter was Christ’s friend and he did not hesitate to call Peter satan, when he chose to become an obstacle to the Will of God. Do not assume, Jesus being our friend, will breed tolerance for us living a worldly life style in opposition to God’s Will for our lives. The worldly idea of friendship is to tolerate, compromise and excuse bad destructive behaviors, to prohibit a confrontation that could cause the friendship to end.
Jesus is God in flesh and he has a purpose and mission to fulfill here on earth. As a christian, you are part of that mission and tolerance is not apart of his relationship. God is patient, merciful and full of grace for when we fall short, but he will not tolerate or compromise, on accomplishing his Will. Jesus affirms the importance of God’s will by going to the cross, after his plea at Gethsemane. Even before that, he asserted the importance of God’s Will in his words from the Lord’s prayer. At the beginning of the prayer he instructed us to pray;
Our Father who art in heaven,
Halloweth be thine name. Thy Kingdom come,
Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.
After first acknowledging God as the creator and only true King, his first prayer request is for God’s Kingdon Rule and Will, be done here on earth. Our flesh and mind desires to fullfill one purpose, that is almost always in contradiction to the Will of God. Be aware and be vigilant of the battle raging on in your thoughts and the very members of your body. Self control developed through fasting, will give you the pause needed to pray and surrender your will to God’s.
I hope this was helpful.
God Bless.
