For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God.  Romans 8:5-8 NASB

Willpower is defined as control exerted to do something or restrain impulses. Some people call it self control. We say it requires willpower to stick to a budget or a diet. It requires willpower to complete tasks that require us to do things that we don’t really enjoy doing. Some people are very strong willed and seem to possess great willpower and some not so much. In Romans 7:15, Paul described a lack of willpower in this way, he said, “For I do not understand what I am doing, because I do not practice what I want to do, but I do what I hate.” He goes on to say that it is the sin living inside of him that is causing him to do what he doesn’t want to do.

Does this sound familiar? Do you ever have buyer’s remorse after a day of shopping when you spent way more than you had intended? Have you ever asked yourself why you couldn’t refrain from eating just one more piece of cake? Maybe you suffered with a hangover wondering why you had to have any alcohol in the first place? Or perhaps you wondered why you lingered so long after work with that cute coworker when you should have been headed home to your spouse?

The weird thing is that the flesh causes us to want things or to want to do things that we should not do. We know they are bad for us. We know they will result in disastrous consequences, but we plunge forward anyway. We know these actions may cause further problems. We may have to lie or we may have to commit another sinful act. In 2 Samuel 11 and 12, we learn from the sins of David with Bathsheba how one sinful act (adultery) can lead to another sinful act (murder). We also see that it can have disastrous consequences.

On the surface it would seem that we are living in an impossible situation, but this is not the case at all. We simply have to make a choice as to how we are going to live. If we are going to live in the flesh, then we are going to carry out the desires of the flesh. If we choose to live in the Spirit, we will not carry out the desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). Our scripture passage today tells us that if we live according to the Spirit, we will set our minds on the Spirit.

When we are weak, we fail. Without God’s help we are weak. If you want to conquer the flesh, you must ask God to fill you with His Holy Spirit. You much choose to be filled with the Spirit. You must set your mind on the things of the Spirit.

When we live according to the flesh we are hostile to God. We are enemies with God. Nothing good is going to come from that.

It’s all about what we think about, what we set our minds on and where our focus lies.

Matthew 6:33 says our focus should be on God and His kingdom. Philippians 4:8 tells us to focus on things that are true, honorable, just, pure, lovely, and commendable and that we should dwell on any moral excellence and praise.

I have often heard people, say things like, “I can’t help it. I just can’t stop thinking about it” when referring to some type of errant, addictive behavior. But the Bible says this is not true. The Bible tells us that we can take every thought captive to be obedient to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). Proverbs 23:7 says, “So as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.”

We know that without the right mind set we fail every time we set out to do something. So, I ask you today what is your mind set on? Is it being controlled by the flesh? If it is, you can stop that. You can turn to God and surrender to Him. You can ask Him to fill your heart with His Holy Spirit. You can then take your thoughts captive and you can set your mind on the Spirit and the things of the Spirit.

In John 10:10 Jesus says that the thief comes to kill, steal and destroy, but He has come so that we may have life more abundantly. We can only experience the abundant life when we set our minds on the Spirit and live according to the Spirit. I pray for your sake that you have the right mindset.

Have a great day!