Bible Teaching
Calvary Temple Teaching Library
Four Steps To The Renewed Mind Pt.1
Pastor Scott
July 5, 2000 Wed PM
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Let’s turn to the book of Romans. We’re going to spend a little bit of time talking about the renewed mind and the necessity to allow that to take place in our lives today.
Just before I do, let me read something to you from Africa. I didn’t know whether to read this or not; it’s a little four-page note from Tony. We all appreciate how Tony can take something short and turn it into something long. What a blessing, praise God! I’m going to read the majority of this to you, so it’s going to take just a little bit of time. But it’s so exciting what God is doing in Africa! In probably about six more hours, Ronnie is going to be meeting again with the AG (and GG, and PG, and whatever else is over there), and they said they’re very excited. The president just got back from Switzerland; so he’s out, I’m sure, getting more support. Hopefully, we’ll hear word by midnight tonight on the registration. We’re coming down to the deadline. Their visas end in August; they’re trying to get an extension; they want to stay longer because of what God is doing there, and they want to extend the work permits. So, pray toward that end. Pray that not only would we be able to extend the work permits, but that the doors of utterance would continue to be opened, and then, of course (so importantly), that we’d get our registration there.
"Greetings in the Lord Jesus! We hope you’re all well. I thought it good just to record a day-by-day highlight of the last number of days to possibly give more tangible feel of the daily ministry, particularly the evangelism that I’m involved in. We’ve been conducting one to three evangelistic meetings daily. The Word of God and the ministry of the Spirit continue to spread rapidly. There’s a real stirring going on in town, and as Pastor shared recently, ripe for a visitation and for opposition. Many souls daily are encountering the true gospel of Jesus Christ, and the kingdom of God is coming to them. The Lord’s been moving upon the people everywhere—whether we’re just in the way about business, open-air meetings, or at our facilities. The town is getting to know what we represent.
6/22 (Thursday): I was hurrying through the market with a long list of things I had to take care of. A young man selling his goods shouted, ‘Mazungu! Why not come and buy one of these?’ as he held the panga (machete) in his hand. I turned around, put my bag down, pulled out my Bible, and politely said, ‘You’re trying to sell me what I don’t need; but let me give you what you do need.’ I held out my Bible and said, ‘If this message gets into your heart, you will have the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.’ I didn’t plan on sharing at any length, but as I opened my mouth, the gospel just began to pour out, and another man came, and then a couple of others, as I began to share. In about five minutes, there were about twenty-five people (mostly young men) intently listening as the Spirit of God began to move upon their hearts. After a few more minutes, one young man, listening intently, literally got up and ran away. He came back about two minutes later, running with his friend whom he’d run to get. In about twenty-five minutes, I shared the gospel. At the end, about fifteen young men—all about ages 22 to 28—confessed to surrender their hearts to Jesus Christ. After I prayed with them, I stood and exhorted them on their need to have a shepherd and a fellowship of believers where they could be trained and equipped to know the Lord more intimately, and to fulfill the purpose of God in their lives. I challenged them about what might happen in this town if fifteen young men bound their hands and lives together behind the plow of the kingdom in a town where most of the young men are doing little or going nowhere. I let them know where we are and the service times, picked up my bag, and finished shopping.
Friday: Ron was ministering the daily lunch meeting in the building. I went out front of the property to see what the Lord might do. I put on "Satanic Wiles, Part 1," and cranked the volume up. We’re right in the bus staging area of Kakamega—a lot of people trafficking. A few people in no time came to listen. I started sharing with them and, before you know it, around ten or fifteen people were listening. If I’d had an interpreter, it would have been a good number more. I shared the gospel, and four of these young men surrendered their hearts to the Lord. I took them onto the property to show them where the teachings take place, and they had just ended. As I finished ministering to them, one man came walking up that appeared to be under strong conviction of the Holy Ghost. In the process of ministering to the four, I had left the tape playing out in front of the property. He said he’d been listening to the message and was earnestly asking to know more about this message, and the way to salvation, and who we are. In this same method of playing Pastor’s tapes, we’ve had many pastors (and a number of others) come to listen and inquire, several of which are coming to the daily meetings.
Also on Friday, after we finished ministering to the lunch meeting crowd, I decided to go and check on our sign that we were having made. I was right under a little open-air tree limb, and as I finished looking at the sign in the little kiosk [that’s the little open-air things], there was an old retired minister of the gospel whom I’ve been getting to know. We were fellowshipping, and right up on the sidewalk, in the midst of all the noise and confusion at the matatu station, as I was sharing, I noticed a couple of people were listening. In a matter of minutes, people started gathering, so I just shifted gears and started preaching. I preached on, ‘What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul, and what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?’ There were at least thirty people fixed upon the message and a considerable number who stopped listening to board the bus (the "matatu").
That evening, Pastor Musa and I went to another area of town (it’s called "Amalemba"), just where we used to live. We set up our teaching station; I started preaching the gospel, and he was interpreting. It was one of the most attentive groups we’d had yet. Probably a couple hundred passed through the time I was preaching, but only about forty or fifty stopped and listened to the whole message. A few seemed frozen in their tracks. I preached on the rich man and Lazarus, and the good news of our salvation from hell by the grace of the gospel and the love of God. We declared the way of salvation and prayed for them, and let them know where we were located. It was a great time in the Spirit. After we were finished, we just hung around with some songs playing over the P.A. system. There gathered around us a mass of kids—probably about fifty. So we shared the gospel with them on their level. It was a pretty serious pack of kids. We shared and packed it in for that day.
The next day, we held a meeting on the other side of town. We were strategically setting up meetings on every side of town, and then beginning to spiral out. It started to drizzle, so we got under a shop overhang. As soon as we set up our equipment, it began to pour rain, and the place where we were was packed with eternal souls. So we began preaching to about sixty people huddled under the shelter. We preached on the fall of man, the fig leaves of religion, of man’s covering of sin, and the futility of his own righteousness, and then the voice of the Lord speaking and asking Adam, ‘Where are you?’ I shared the good news of the righteousness of God by faith. We preached the whole gospel message for about forty-five minutes.
Monday, the 26th: Pastor Musa, Charles, and I returned to this same spot. The weather was good. We set up, and people began to flock around. You could really sense an anticipation in the crowd. There were about fifty kids between ages nine and fifteen and it’s hard to say how many adults—probably a hundred to a hundred and fifty. They gathered everywhere, sitting on benches, the roadside, and everywhere. We preached on the resurrection of Jesus Christ, and that He’s the same yesterday, today, and forever—present, and not willing that any soul should perish, but that all should come to repentance. The people were very fixed and very attentive. It seemed like the Holy Ghost arrested many souls. We preached for about forty-five minutes and left open for those who wanted prayer. Probably about fifty wanted prayer for salvation. It seemed like a number were backslidden, and a good number who were scattered all over listening to what God was saying to their hearts. All we knew was that the time we walked away, a great number of souls was affected. We thank God and praise Him for the anointing and for the doors of utterance that have been opened.
Tuesday: We held an open-air meeting in the center of town and preached on the prodigal son. Where we preached was a very transient place, and so we knew it wouldn’t draw a huge crowd, but would expose many to the Word. It makes for a great number to get a taste and... [This part isn’t making any sense to me; but anyway, he’s saying that a number of the people are beginning to identify their faces and the message, and they’re beginning to recognize people who are really hungering for the gospel.] A lot of folks passed through and probably about thirty-five stopped and listened. We declared what a man must do to be born again, and then just announced that we were present for those who had questions regarding the ministry or who needed prayer. There were about eight who requested prayer to surrender their hearts to the Lord. Again, only the Lord knows what might take place in each of these lives.
After this meeting, I thought of the wonders of the sovereignty of God, as the timing of Charles, Pastor Musa, and myself were praying simultaneously with different people, the equipment was set up, the gospel music was playing, and as I was praying for an individual, I glanced up, and Juma was walking by looking at us. I thought it interesting for the one that has blasphemed, railed, and tried to conspire against us to find us out laboring in this great harvest. This is what he’s opposing. It was another precious time in the Spirit, and I only wish I could have shared the testimony of how many we prayed with, but it might become too lengthy. We packed it in and headed our separate ways.
I was heading along home on the bike with the equipment, and I got caught in a severe rainstorm. I took shelter under an overhang of a shop inside the interior where there were about sixty people waiting out of the rain. I stood for about two minutes and realized the megaphone was still around my neck! There was no point in wasting time standing around, so I introduced the ministry and myself and began preaching the gospel. Again, the people gathered around, closely listening very intently. What was really neat was when a number of people started coming from houses, and other shops, and the bush, and stood under umbrellas in the pouring rain to listen to the message. This is unusual for these people to get out in the rain. The fear of sickness is very real. I preached for about half an hour while the rain poured heavily. I prayed for the people, informed them of our location and the schedule of services. These spontaneous meetings orchestrated by the Lord are often the most powerful visitations. These are becoming daily occurrences as the Lord is causing us to wax bold in the defense and proclamation of the gospel.
Thursday and Friday: We’ve seen some great things happening. As Ron continues to teach the daily Bible doctrines classes, I’ve been continuing to go out in front of the property to see what God might do. It’s truly amazing at the realization as we just go out as vessels of clay and watch the power of God. I’ve been putting a few Kswahili songs and then crank up one of Pastor’s teachings for a few minutes. I’ve been playing "Satanic Wiles." As Pastor’s voice teaches doctrine, the anointing fills the air; it ignites a fire in the area. Pastor is preaching daily in Kakamega. People are supernaturally being drawn. A few will come, and then they start to flock in. Then I turn the tape down and start preaching the gospel of the kingdom. I’ve been preaching to a new crowd daily of twenty or more. They’ve become so used to that [no megaphone]. Without it, it makes people come to you and causes them to have to step out, which makes their decision more serious. It also separates us from what they’re typically used to. There have been tremendous times; scores of lives are being affected. I took about six men who had surrendered their hearts to the Lord onto the property to welcome them to the daily teaching sessions and catch the end of Ron’s teaching. By the time I got out front about twenty minutes later, I found five more who were still standing and listening to Pastor’s teachings. As Ron teaches and disciples, I go out and look for more. It goes on for hours until your strength is gone.
I could go on, but I will refrain; though it’s hard not to tell you about ten men sleeping in a wheelbarrow. They were under the shade of a truck this morning as I was just trying to buy some paint in town. The one rolled out of his wheelbarrow (just half awake himself), woke the others up, and told them they needed to listen to the gospel that I was preaching. He’d been in one of our evangelistic meetings prior. So, I shared the gospel with them, got to know their names, and left them with prayer for their salvation. It seems like the Lord dealt with their hearts. It was kind of humorous watching them all roll out of bed. I mean, literally, to roll out of their wheel barrels from under a truck, waking up, scratching their heads, still yawning from sleep, while the mazungu was standing before them declaring the message of heaven, hell, salvation of their souls, and the free gift of God to prepare them to meet their God. It was another day.
I’m not sure what’s going on. I’m just reporting the extraordinary and unusual visitations and working of the Holy Ghost on the hearts of the people, no matter where we go. Wherever, whether just being out in the way, or taking care of business, or sometimes just trying to break in between ministering, things are busting loose in a matter that few words and a few minutes can share. These are some of the things that are happening on a typical day. Great grace is upon us. Things are spontaneously happening. It’s as the net of the kingdom gathering the souls that the Lord spoke of in His parable of the good and evil. We don’t know who’s going to follow, but we believe that when the smoke clears, there will be a remnant that will be cared for. For these we continue to be fishers of men, and we know it’s surely Him. We believe the prayers of the saints are prevailing. It’s truly evident that their prayers are not in vain. We believe the Son of God is being manifested and destroying the works of the devil. The enemy is being pushed back; strongholds of vain religion, hypocrisy, and doctrines of demons are being exposed by the word of God. In the name of Jesus, the captives are being set free. We are so privileged to have the light of this glorious gospel in these earthen vessels, that the excellency of the power would be of Him, and not of us. We are debtors to Him Who redeemed us with His own blood. We are not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ; it’s the power of God unto salvation. We miss you greatly."
What a great time, amen? Our prayers are not in vain. Let’s just thank the Lord for what He’s doing in that ministry. Just take a minute and worship Him. Hallelujah! Father, we thank You for the word of God that’s going forth. And we thank You for the small part that we have in the kingdom of God, that as these Your servants are there sharing the everlasting gospel, the power of God to salvation, Father, that it’s falling upon good ground. We know that Your word does not return void, but it accomplishes that whereunto You’ve sent it, Father. As the word is going out in power, as faith is united with it, we thank You for souls that are being added. Father, we will give you all the glory. And we’re careful to ask you one more time, Lord, give us doors of utterance that would open, that we could step through and share this that we have so freely received. Give us boldness, Father. Give us an appetite to freely give, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
A great opportunity to share—it just shows you a little bit of what’s taking place in that culture, and it’s what many of you are doing here. And so, we just encourage you to continue to be about Father’s business in the same manner as you go into your marketplaces tomorrow, the highways and the byways, and compel them to come.
Romans, chapter 12, verses 1 and 2. Passages that we’re very familiar with. The apostle is speaking to us; he says, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." Every time we read this passage, you have to pause there and understand that "reasonable service." We know that in the Greek it’s really talking more literally about your "spiritual service" or the consequence of the renewed spirit man. In other words, what Paul is saying here is that this is nothing extraordinary. He’s not asking you for something that you’re going to get a meritorious valor or some kind of medal for this. This is what Christians ought to do—to present our bodies a living sacrifice.
How many of us seem to think the fact that we might come up here to prayer every night and, "Other churches only pray once a week. And we come to service three times a week for Bible teaching, and there are other churches that have stopped their Sunday night and Wednesday night services, and they’re only coming on Sunday mornings." If we’re not careful, we’re going to begin to think that we’re doing something extraordinary. The fact that you pray every day, share the gospel in the highways and byways, daily give yourself to devotion and spend time in the word of God, come and fellowship with the saints, come and pray every night of the week—it’s called Christianity. It’s nothing extraordinary. It’s what you ought to do; it’s what you and I have the privilege to do. "I beseech you, brethren, by the mercies of God…" It’s the mercy of God that brought us here. Aren’t you thankful for God drawing you into His presence? These things that we talked about that some people in the flesh would like to boast in—those of us who are walking in the spirit see it as grace and a gift that we would be able to do these things. Jesus said it this way: we’re nothing but unprofitable servants. At our best, we’re just unprofitable servants. At our best, we’re totally debtors to His love, His mercy, and His grace. And so, when we see these things that are being done in our lives or those around us, it’s nothing to boast in. Our only boast can be in the Lord. Let him that boasts, boast in the Lord, praise God!
And so, Paul is saying to us here, "Look, this is your reasonable service. It’s the will of God; it’s what He’s ordained for you and the way that you ought to walk." But he says that as you’re presenting yourselves continually, offering yourselves up on that sacrifice—and it is a daily offering, isn’t it? It’s a momentary offering as we’re faced with all of the decisions that life brings to us as to whether we’re going to continue to walk under His lordship, or whether we’re going to take things back into our own hands. Every time we make a decision to obey the lordship of Jesus, we’re offering up our bodies again as living sacrifices, because it’s not natural. All you have to do is look around you and see the masses that are doing what’s natural. All you have to do is look at so many professed Christians and see how they can’t be distinguished from the world, and see that what’s going on in your life and my life is not natural; it’s supernatural. It’s not of us; it’s God; but there is that presentation and that willingness to offer ourselves up that he speaks toward. And every time you make a decision to do what’s right, you ought to just breathe a prayer and say, "Jesus, thank You for the grace that allows me to obey. Thank You for the mercy of God that causes the blood of Jesus to affect my life and cleanse me, as I John says, from sin."
He said that if you’re going to continue in this vein, though, of being able to offer yourself up, there’s one thing that you’re going to have to guard yourself against. Look at the next verse. "And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed [how? Say it with me—how? Say it again] by the renewing of your mind…" Okay, so we want to talk a little bit about the four steps of renewing our minds, because this is the real issue as to whether or not we’re going to be successful in our daily walk in the spirit. The renewed mind. What does it mean to renew our minds? As we study the word of God and we analyze what God is speaking toward us, He tells us that this renewed mind is a mind that is under control of the spirit. The renewed mind is the mind that’s refreshed in illumination. In other words, what we need to understand is this: it’s not just having Bible knowledge. The renewed mind is one that receives fresh revelation. I don’t mean something that no one else has ever heard and, "Praise God! Now I can start my own ministry and newsletter!" I’m talking about the fact that it’s something that God has spoken to you today, freshly. The Bible says it this way: it’s the still, small voice that says, "This is the way; walk in it." Did you hear that today? If you heard it today, then you’re refreshed. If you’re aware of one time today of God speaking to you and saying, "This is the way; walk in it," then you can be confident that all of your other steps are being ordered by Him, because He doesn’t speak except to put us back on course. Our steps are ordered by God, but when He speaks, it’s to put us back on course so that we wouldn’t lean to our understanding, but in all our ways acknowledge God and let Him direct our paths.
Don’t be conformed to the world. What’s the world all about? Be not conformed to the world. All that’s in the world is the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and the pride of life. Be not conformed to the world. Now, it’s interesting in this context. When we begin to talk about "the world," we’re going to see it (as we go back to Romans 8) in this light—not just what the world chooses to worship or to partake of (their appetites)—but we’re going to talk a little bit about conforming to the world’s philosophies or ideologies. When we talk about "the world" here, I want you to understand "the world" in this context as the carnal mind, which is enmity against God. Don’t be conformed to thinking the way the world does, because it’s always opposing God. Now, that can get into all the different aspects of idolatry, the worship of the world and the false gods. We’re not just talking about all the weird religions that are out there. We’re not talking about the new rise in mysticism and the Eastern religions. How many of you ever thought you’d be driving down Route 7, and look and see a huge mosque being built? We’re not talking about the rise of some of the Eastern religions.
The fastest-growing religion today is, as we know, secular humanism—the New Age movement that’s embracing many of these old, ancient religions and putting them along with the political correctness of our day. We’re here listening to all of these things that are being articulated by the world’s system, which is the worship of man—man’s intellect, man’s abilities. Man seems to think that he now can solve not only all of the physiological problems that we face... Have you heard the blasphemy going on in the news lately as they’ve categorized the genetic code? They say that within five years now, they’re going to be able to control within the fetus and deal with any type of malformation of this particular individual. They can begin to genetically engineer the intelligence and the colors of the eyes, that we’ll begin to make this super race. As we shared earlier, they’ve begun to make boast that they’ve found the aging gene now, and that they’re going to be able to eventually bring us to eternal life. God’s not going to let that happen. And so, what generation are we living in? Has a generation ever faced the opposition of God like you and I face on a daily basis? Has there ever been an hour like this? I’m telling you something: the hour that you and I are living in makes the time of Babel look like a picnic! When man stood, and with all of his archaic tools, said, "We’ll build this tower into heaven," and God came and said, "Unless I confound man, nothing would be impossible to him." And so He sent the language barrier, and dispersed men, and they’re unable to communicate. And now, in this generation, all you have to do is get on the computer, type, and it’ll immediately translate to you into another language, and we can talk to anybody in the world at any time. And you tell me that God’s not going to come and visit this generation, as they stand and boast that they can not only create life, but also sustain it forever! That’s the spirit that we’re talking about not being conformed to.
Now, as Christians, we say, "We’re not into that; we don’t believe in that!" Of course, we don’t. But how much are we being influenced by their natural abilities? And how much are we beginning to trust in their methods and their message? And how are we going to respond to their hatred, which is the natural consequence? Because as they raise up this worldwide religion—and it will tolerate everything but Christianity—there will be a hatred of the gospel to the degree that when the true witnesses are finally killed (as we see in the book of Revelation), they’re going to throw a worldwide party because these prophets are dead. Can you imagine that? It’s hard to imagine the hatred, the vileness that has to be turned on the true believers in Jesus Christ. Where are those people today, and what is it that you and I have to be aware of?
Romans 8 speaks toward it. Keep your finger here in chapter 12, and turn back to Romans 8. I want you to see this. When it talks about not being conformed to the world, it’s not talking about taking drugs, and drinking, and all of the lascivious behavior. It’s talking about trusting in man’s abilities. And how many of you know the person that we most need to fear? Who do you think it might be? The devil? No. Antichrist? No. He’s in your chair! That natural inclination to trust in ourselves, the ability not to trust others for self-preservation, the pride that causes each one of us, regardless (this is what cracks me up the most) of our IQ’s, regardless of any of our accomplishments, how man (each one of us in this room tonight) how man just seems to think of himself more highly than he ought to think. "My opinion is as good or better than anybody else’s!" And how there’s that pride, and that blindness to how needy we are for the wisdom, and the knowledge, and the power of God. I want to tell you something: you can’t do it on your own. You won’t succeed in this spiritual kingdom with the world’s methods. Because look at what chapter 8 says. "For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the flesh [they that are carnally minded, those who are worldly minded; say it with me] cannot please God." (Verses 6-8)
That’s what we want to talk about. It’s not the lasciviousness, the drugs, and all of these things. It says as long as you’re trusting in yourself, you can’t please God, and that as long as your mind is not being renewed by the Spirit of God and by the word of God, then you’re at enmity with God. The word "enmity" just means you’re "in opposition" to Him; you’re opposing God. Every time you choose to do things your way, you’re opposing God. The Bible says draw nigh unto God, and He’ll draw nigh unto you. Resist Him, and what will happen? He’s going to resist you! And so, in so many of the things that we just casually blow off and think, "Well, you know, I’m just going to do my thing." Do you understand what’s happening? That’s the spirit of Antichrist. That’s the original sin of father Adam rising up into dominion in our lives and saying, "I choose my own lordship. I choose my wisdom, and I hold it up against the wisdom of God and say, ‘God, You’re wrong.’" Now, how many of us—if that were actually a scenario that really went on visibly, audibly—might be taken aback by that? How many of you think you’d be taken aback by that if you saw yourself doing that or heard yourself saying that? Would that concern some of you? And yet, how many of us do it without even giving thought? Why does that happen? Because we’re not renewing our minds, and self-will becomes natural to us. That old nature begins to dominate again, because of the lack of offering ourselves a living sacrifice.
Galatians speaks toward this. Turn over to Galatians for just a moment. In Galatians 5, there’s an interesting passage that we’re familiar with, beginning at verse 16. "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law." (Verses 16-18) I won’t get into a lot of the theological debate over this, but there’s an interesting debate on verse 17 of this fifth chapter of Galatians concerning the fact that "ye cannot do the things that ye would." Tragically, a lot of commentators have told us that the dominant force in our lives is sin. Now, we all know that we have sin in our members. Romans 6:6 says, "…the body of sin might be destroyed that henceforth we would no longer serve sin." How many of you still have sin showing up periodically in your lives (let me see your hands), like daily? Well, what’s the problem? You say, "Well, you know, really it’s not daily in my life." Well, the observable ones aren’t. But remember, the Scripture says He is a discerner of the thoughts and the intentions of the heart. We don’t go a day without sin—in thought, in motive, in deed. Somehow, sin evidences itself, even without our knowing, and it’s on a daily basis.
And so, the flesh is lusting against the Spirit, and the Spirit is lusting against the flesh. That word "lust" just means "a strong desire." To understand it in the Greek better, it’s saying that the two are actually opposing one another. It doesn’t mean that they’re necessarily fighting each other. What it’s saying is they are both expressing themselves based upon the source, or their origin. The flesh—the power behind it is Satan; it’s sin. The Spirit—holiness, righteousness, truth, light. Each is soliciting our lives every moment of the day, and we’re reacting accordingly. Because they’re drawing upon us, they are affecting our course so that you can’t do what either one of them is soliciting at any moment. In other words, the flesh is soliciting; the Spirit is contrary to that, and He’s soliciting us. Sin is an irresistible force without the solicitation of the Holy Spirit. How many of you sin much less than you used to? May I see your hands? One? Okay. No, all of us, I hope! How many of you know why? Because the Spirit is lusting against the flesh, and the flesh can't do what it wants to. Now, if the Spirit was totally unopposed in our lives, then we would walk in perfection just like Jesus did. And don't misunderstand the doctrine. He was tempted in every way; He was tempted and could have sinned just like the first Adam. But the fact that sin was not resident in Him caused Him to walk in a new plain that you and I know nothing about. He was tempted; He was solicited, but He didn’t have the Adamic nature. That Adamic nature continually tries—it’s a weight; it’s an anchor; it’s drawing on us. Every time you choose to do good—what does Paul say in Romans 7—evil is present.
Look over at chapter 7 for just a second. I probably don’t have to read it to you; you all have experienced this today already. As you read this, you begin to understand this warfare. We’ll begin reading here at verse 17. "Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. [There is no way in the flesh I can do anything good, is what Paul is saying.] For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me." "Oh, praise God! I’m off the hook!" No, he doesn’t leave it there. But he is showing us that, as regenerated people, there is a force in us that’s working, that can seduce us, that can overpower us at times, that can cause us to bring a reproach upon the kingdom, that can cause us to walk contrary to the desire of our hearts and the desire of the Holy Spirit for us. How does that happen? Look what he says. "I find a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me." (Verse 21) How many of you have found that law?
And we say, "Okay, now; praise God; I’m going to do... I am really... I’m SERIOUS, man! I’m making it to prayer tonight." The boss holds you late; you got a flat tire; there’s a wreck on the beltway; the drive-up window at McDonald’s won’t open. Everything is opposing you. You determined to be there; you’ve missed too many times. Your flesh has won out, and you said, "Flesh, I’m putting you down. You are not keeping me from the presence of God tonight!" And you know that when you make a determination that way, all hell breaks loose, doesn’t it? "When I would do good, evil is present." The flesh will not allow you to pursue rightness without opposition. So, don’t think it strange concerning the fiery trials that come upon us. There’s nothing that’s taken you but such as is common to man, the apostle said. And with every temptation, He makes the way of escape. You’re not the only guy sensing this, feeling this. You’re not the only person being opposed. We think of ourselves more highly than we ought. "If everybody else had the trials I have, man, they’d be just as unfaithful as me! I don’t know what it is; it’s something there in all that genetic code that just makes those donuts irresistible! Nobody else knows." Well, maybe we don’t have a problem with donuts. Our problem is somewhere else. Our problem is making fun of people who eat too many donuts! And we’re so proud of ourselves (like we had something to do with our own genetic make-up). It never ceases to amaze me how those people with those skinny genes have no compassion for the rest of us! We’re going to be tempted in one way or another. And every time you make a decision to do it right, you’re going to be opposed.
"But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" (Verses 23-24) Ah, now we’re beginning to see what the problem is! It’s this body. You say, "That’s what I’ve been thinking. I looked in the mirror this morning and said, ‘Oh, this body! Somebody’s got to do something about it!’" What’s interesting today is that in our culture, we’ve become so physically aware, and we have these eating crazes, and the exercise, and all of this. But now we’ve come up with ways to change ourselves through cosmetic surgery. Some of my favorites: I love the men who get calf implants. What’s that all about? How often are you in shorts, Chicken Legs? I mean...! Now see, they wouldn’t do that if it weren’t for people like me who made those kind of remarks! So, where’s the problem with Chicken Legs? His legs, his lack of security in Christ, or people like me? What’s the real problem? What would cause somebody to do that? Now, you can go and work out; and we all know that certain body parts don’t respond like others. Some of the great body builders: Sergio, one of the great old-time body builders—this guy was a fabulous body builder—but he didn’t have any calves. He needed calf implants. Now, I’m speaking about calves because I have mega calves! I never had to work out. My calves were killer, man, especially when I was younger. I had calves these body builders would kill for! Ripped, cut, massive, 17-inch calves—in your face! But we all have certain parts (indicating his "love handles") that don’t respond like others. We’ll leave them unmentioned, but not unseen.
Who shall deliver me? We’re going to have to come to grips with the fact that in life we’re going to face these certain areas, and it’s going to oppose us the rest of our lives. Now, what are we going to do about it? What are we going to do about how we perceive ourselves, how we perceive life? What are we going to do about the natural sin that’s in our members? What are we going to do about our rearing as children, and we’ve had our parents put this stuff in us, and the older we get, the more we’re like them, and it’s scary when you see them coming out! "Where did that come from?" Genetics—powerful, far greater power than environment! You’re going to be what your folks were. You think, "No! Who shall deliver me?" Chapter 8. Chapter 8 delivers you, praise God! But all of those tendencies are going to be there if you don’t "present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you might prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God" for every Christian—not just for you. (Romans 12:1-2) What does an average Christian look like, live like? What’s expected of you and me in this walk in the Spirit?
Who shall deliver you? "I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin." (Romans 7:25) What this is saying is when your mind gets renewed, it’s going to now choose what it wouldn’t choose before. Here’s the good news. The problem before you got saved was not only did your flesh want to do all this, but also your mind said, "Yeah, let’s go for it!" And nothing restrained you. Do you all remember that kind of life? Sickening, isn’t it? You go back and read chapter 6, and it’s very clear.
Look at chapter 6, down here at verse 20. "For when ye were the servants of sin, ye were free from righteousness. What fruit had ye then in those things whereof ye are now ashamed? for the end of those things is death. But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life." (Verses 20-22) You see, before you were saved, before your mind was renewed, your heart regenerated, your flesh (appetite) would say, "Hey, let’s go do this," and your mind would say, "Yeah, let’s go for it!" There was no restraint. Now the flesh speaks up, and the mind says, "No; there’s another law in my mind. I want to do the law of God." And the body says, "Are you kidding me? We’re not doing that!" The mind says, "Yes, we are." The body says, "No, we’re not." "Yes, we are." "No, we’re not." "Yes, we are." "No, we’re not." And then another person comes in: the Holy Spirit that the Bible says then resists or lusts against the carnal mind or the flesh, and says, "I’m going to show you the way out of this." And the way out is never by self-will or resolve. "I’m not - going to eat - the donut—especially the fresh, hot off the conveyer belt, Krispy Kreme that melts in your mouth! I’m not! Oh, God, forgive me!" Because the more you think about the donut, the closer you are to eating it. How do you resist it? You give it no place; you walk in the Spirit. The moment the donut sign comes on—HOT—you immediately allow your mind that loves the law of God to begin to speak worship, praise, and thanksgiving for your deliverance. You begin to speak the word of God and declare His mercies for you. You begin to sing worship choruses; you begin to quote the word of God. You begin to look for someone to share the gospel with. You don’t resist the flesh by recognizing any of its appetites. You walk in the Spirit; you recognize that you’re a new creature. You begin to be about Father’s business, and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. And yet, so often, the exact opposite is what’s done.
So, let’s close with this. Tony’s letter was a real blessing, and we’re thankful for the ministry that it brought us. But let me show you something in this that’s so important. Turn back to chapter 12 again. There needs to be a transforming—that word "transform" means "a metamorphosis"—transformed by the renewing. The moment you speak the name of Jesus, there’s some power present that wasn’t there before. The minute you quote the first Scripture, it’s the power of God unto salvation. The word of God is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword. You speak the Word; more power is on the scene that wasn’t there before. There begins to be a metamorphosis; the spirit man begins now to rise up in power. And now it’s not a thing of resisting the donut. You’ve just walked away from it for something more precious: the Rose of Sharon, the Bright and Morning Star, the fellowship with Him whose name is Wonderful, the friendship, and all of those things that are a part of walking in the Spirit. Walking into the Spirit by the wooing of His presence, the fact that He is dwelling within us and ever living to make intercession for us, the quieting of our minds enough now to hear that still, small voice, saying, "This is the way." You’re a new creature. You’re not subject to those appetites, but you’ll go down if you don’t begin to think on these things immediately, if you don’t begin to acknowledge the Greater One. We’ll take it up Sunday and begin to get into the four steps of renewing the mind.
Father, we thank You for the word of God, and as a people living in this generation, bombarded on every side by everything that is opposing God. Many of them appear to be very humanitarian. "It’s for the good of man, and surely we can’t be overly concerned with science. Science is amoral, isn’t it?" The scientists aren’t. Do you really think they’re telling you the truth? You find me an unregenerate man that isn’t in it for himself. If you believe that, you’re calling God a liar. There are no good people out there. There’s no good thing, the word of God says, within man. His righteousness, the best he is without Jesus, is filthy rags. And so, we’re surrounded by a society that justifies all of its behavior and its actions. No one is accountable anymore for his actions. Everyone’s a victim. And that can’t come into the church. There are no victims in the church; there are only choices to obey or not obey. We are not victimized by the sin that’s in our members; we are not victimized by the solicitation of a world bound by lust and greed. We, as regenerated people, have the capacity to hear and choose righteousness. Choose this day whom you’ll serve.
Let’s stand before the Lord. As Gary plays for us, we’ll take these next moments and worship Him and allow His word to minister life to us. Present your bodies a living sacrifice. Have you offered it up today? Have you consciously said, "I’m not lord of my life? Lord, what do You want me to do? I’m not making the decision. What do You want me to do?" That’s the offering up. It’s not "I’m going to fast lunch today and go pray." That’s not offering up your body. That’s sometimes obedience; it’s a method, many times, of one of the steps of renewing the mind. But the presenting of our bodies is the acknowledging of His lordship. "I’m not in charge, Jesus; You are. What do You want me to do? Give me words to speak. Lord, I don’t understand what’s going on here, this opposition I’m receiving, this opportunity that’s at hand. Is this your desire to bless me, Lord, or is it Satan’s seduction to draw me away? What are You speaking to me? I’m not making any decisions of my own; I want to hear the voice of God. I want to know the way. I don’t trust my own mind. I don’t trust the natural reasoning. I want to hear the voice of the Spirit. I want to hear the wisdom of the word of God. I want to hear the Proverbs come to life. I want to hear the Beatitudes become a reality; I want them to work in my life here. I don’t want to do it like everybody else, like the world does. I want a spiritual mind. I want to walk in the Spirit." That’s not getting mystical messages from somewhere. That’s just knowing the word of God and doing it. Speak to us, Lord, so we could be a people, epistles read of men, that they would say, "Man, there are people that are doing this; this is amazing! In this generation, there are people that are doing it God’s way." Be glorified, Lord, and help us to boast in You.
Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Glory, glory, glory! Lord, finish the work in us. Let us receive the mind of Christ, that You, Father, would be glorified and, Jesus, You’d become all in all. It’s the desire of our heart, and it’s a desire that You’ve put there, and we just want to say thank You. It’s not natural to man to want to do Your will. It’s supernatural; it’s the renewed mind. To even desire You is such a gift. Thank You. We are truly debtors and truly thankful, Father, in Jesus’ name. Amen.
Before you go, turn to somebody and say, "He’s renewing my mind."
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