DAILY HOPE DEVOTIONAL: NOVEMBER 9 ENEMIES FROM WITHIN (1) SCRIPTURE: ROMANS 7: 15 – 23; GALATIANS 5: 17
We are about studying series of devotional concerning enemies from within. The thrust of the study will include, first, how we are enemies to ourselves. Second, it will address enemies within our families fighting us, then, enemies from within amongst our colleagues. We all know that an enemy is one who struggles with us to cause us failures, denies us comfort, subjects us to depressions, blocks us from breakthroughs, blackmails us so we should not be approved worthy persons in what we are doing. In this devotional, we will be looking into the enemies within us, orchestrated by our flesh. Biblically, the “flesh” stands as the worst enemy from within. The flesh wars against the Spirit of God in us who makes us do good things. Apostle Paul admitted that the flesh was his enemy from within, which kept waging war against the law of his mind and making him a prisoner of the sin that is at work within him.
We all fight the battle of the flesh, a serious enemy from within us. The flesh constantly weakens our desires to do good things and in turn, encourages us to do what we hate doing. Satan and his agents make us to satisfy the flesh so that we will never know peace in our lives. What the desires of the flesh do to us is to make our hearts residence of the enemy within us. The heart, as Jesus Christ noted, is defiled basically from the stuffs the flesh uploaded into it. The heart that accommodates immoral desires, impurity, hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy etc., usually makes life uncomfortable and misery for mankind. Anything that fights our joy and happiness is an enemy. Hear the Bible: “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is exact opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intension.” (Gal. 5: 17 Africa Study Bible).
From the Biblical point of view, the flesh controls the heart and the heart controls human actions, reason we often do things which we hate doing. Every sincere Christian, as well as human being, will attest to the fact that he or she has done so many things she/he hated to do; like Apostle Paul wrote in Romans 7: 15 – 19. As long as we do things we hate doing, we will be enemies to ourselves from within. This enemy from within is responsible for our feeling insecure around people and ended up hating them. Anyone who is angry with self will develop hates for others. This devotional directs our minds to look inward and deal with the functions of the flesh, the deadliest enemy within us. The quickest way to defeat the flesh, which is one human’s enemy from within is allowing ourselves to always walk in the Spirit of God. The Bible advises us to allow the Holy Spirit direct our desires (Gal. 5: 17). We Christians must allow ourselves to walk by the Holy Spirit so as to avoid living with enemies from within.
PRAYER:
FATHER JEHOVAH kindly subdue the power of “flesh” in my life and replace this forceful enemy with your Holy Spirit in me, in the name of Jesus Your Son.
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