Conflicts happen between husband and wife,among classmates,co-workers,church members,political parties and even ministers of God.
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN THE OUTER AND INNER MAN
Man comprises of the body,the soul and the spirit.
The body(outer man) is the house for the soul and the spirit(inner man).
When the soul and the spirit leave the body,the person is said to have died.The real ‘I’ then is not the body!
For example, imagine yourself sitted in a room :The house is your body while you are the soul and the spirit.
…how much more those who live in houses of clay, whose foundations are in the dust, who are crushed more readily than a moth!-Job 4:19
Hello sir/ma.The real me is not the house of clay! ‘I’ stay in a house of clay! The foundation of the house is from the dust but ‘I’ is the image of God.
When the house of clay is subjected to crush injury,the real ‘I’ leaves the house and reconnects with His Maker.
But it is a pity that this house of clay is so powerful(body) in an unregenerated person that it dictates to the occupant!
How? Through the 5 sense organs of sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing!
The body transmits all the information received via these sense organs to the occupant of the house.
The body of an unregenerated man can do terrible things.Read how Paul puts it:
“What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death? “-Romans 7:24.
When someone is being controlled by the flesh,expect anything from him/her.
Let us try to simplify the three units that make up a man.I will use each part to describe the personality you see in people everyday.
The Body: I will call this person : FLESHY.
The Soul: The soul is subdivided into emotion,intellect and the will.I will call them: EMOTIONAL,INTELLIGENT and WILFUL.
The Spirit: The spirit is the part of every man that wants to connect with his Maker.I will call this person: SPIRITUAL.
THE FLESHY
The five senses are still primitive in the fleshy individual.
“But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, even those who because of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”-Heb 5:14
Let me just use sense of sight as an example:
I gave myself everything my eyes wanted. There wasn’t any pleasure that I refused to give myself-Eccl 2:10
That was King Solomon.A typical example of what flesh is.
CHARACTERISTICS OF THE FLESH
-Sexually immoral.
-Moral impurities( pornography, lewdness and obscene jokes)
-Sensuality:Unbridled in lust, doing whatever you feel good regardless of its impropriety or offense to others.
-Enmities: Living in the flesh makes you see other people as competition that must be crushed or
as enemies that must be conquered.
– Strife: Quarrels,fightings, yelling at others and name calling in order to get your way.
-Jealousy and envy: You can read my previous post on : The subtle spirit of envy and jealousy.
-Outburst of anger:Uncontrolled temper which usually erupts when something/someone blocks you from getting what you want! You can even destroy material things during the outburst.
-Factions:Having cliques that perpetrate evil. The flesh is more interested in finding people who will agree with their mindset.
Drunkeness:Read my previous post on : Addiction and sinful habits.
Other fleshy characteristics can be read in Gal 5:19-21.
So far this is the summary of all my points:
Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother‘s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?
I just quoted Jesus Christ in Matthew 7:3
Have you noticed I have avoided writing on how conflicts can be resolved among people? Yes,I am following Christ model of teaching: Fix yourself first before fixing others!
How can you have a log of wood in your eyes and you are pointing the attention of your neighbor to the speck of saw dust in his eyes?
” You say it is wrong to commit adultery, but do you commit adultery? You condemn idolatry, but do you use items stolen from pagan temples?”
One thing I have noticed in people is this:
Humans beings are good followers if they have good leaders!
You fight your wife because she is not submissive meanwhile you are an adulterer!Are you submissive to God too?
You cannot be trusted with an ordinary egg in your constituency as their representative because if you cannot eat the egg you will still end up licking the shell and now you want to probe other people for financial fraud.The people will definitely revolt and it will results in conflicts.
“How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? “vs 4
DEAL WITH YOUR FLESH
…I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave…(NIV)
…I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should …(NLT)
… I toughen my body with punches and make it my slave…(GWT)
… I keep on disciplining my body, making it serve me…(ISV)
… I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection…(KJV)- 1 Cor.9:27a
The body is not like the same way it was created.The house of clay has been corrupted by sin.Therefore,the ‘I’ (soul and spirit) that lives in the house too has been affected.
Any hope? Yes!
God knew about the conflicts within you now.He sent Jesus Christ.
I know you are ready to say ‘God sent Jesus Christ to die’.Yes, but why did he die?
KNOWING this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.
For he that is dead is freed from sin.-Rom.6:6-7
The purpose of his death was about our house of clay! The body of sin was destroyed on the cross so that ‘I’ will not serve sin.
That is the highlight of Easter celebration
NB:Knowledge of this truth does not keep the body in check! The body is still mortal.Paul said he kept disciplining his body like an athlete.
Deal with your flesh and put it under control.
Next post will focus on the emotional,intelligent,wilful and the spiritual folks.
Till then,
Remain blessed and rapturable.