THE WAR WITHIN

Friday, December 25, 2015

Paul held little hope of any intrinsic improvement of the human heart. In the above verse, he laments to the Romans that nothing good lives in him; that is in his sinful nature. The term 'sinful nature' is a translation of just one word in the original Greek -- the word 'flesh'. 'Sinful nature' is an Augustinian term, coined in the fifth century and has served as a useful description; but has also led to the idea that Christians have two natures, a fallen nature we inherited from Adam and a new nature that seeks to be obedient to God, the giver of our new nature through the "born again" experience. The word 'flesh', however, when it occurs in this context, doesn't refer to the physical body, but to all that a person is in themselves apart from the presence of God. To live 'in the flesh' is to live in a spirit of independence and self-reliance rather than a spirit of dependence on and obedience to God. It refers to the bankruptcy of human resources and capabilities when detached from the enabling grace, presence, and power of God.

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