The mold in the shadows

I sit on my porch as I write this, a cup of chai to warm me up and perfect weather of sixty-something degrees with sunshine. These days confirm my natural belief that life is supposed to be perfect on this earth.

But deep down, I know that is not true. A battle rages within me. One contestant in the battle is my comfort-seeking flesh, always trying to find a way to avoid pain and enjoy everything to the fullest at any cost. The other is the Spirit, gentle and kind, yet pulling back the curtain on my heart and letting me see that everything the flesh stands for leads to death and decay.

The other day, I was sitting by my bedroom window contemplating this thought when I realized that there was something in the air that was affecting my breathing. I glanced at the window to see mold growing around the edges of the window pane. Sunshine was pouring into the room, but at the same time this black mold sat there, just barely exposed. Why was it there, you ask? The cold weather and the warm air on the inside of our apartment caused so much condensation each day which eventually streamed down the window and puddled at the bottom, causing mold to grow quietly and unseen for quite some time. You see, my window has blinds on it and beautiful linen and sheer curtains that make it breathtaking when the sun comes in. One might never notice the little black mold growing there. But there it was. And that day, I did something about it. There is no more mold growing there now.

Some things about mold that you need to know: It grows quietly, naturally, and in the shadows. And if you let it stick around long enough it can be damaging to your health.

As I sit here, I wonder if you’re putting two and two together yet. I interrupted my own writings about the flesh to tell you about mold for a reason. It’s damaging, and so is the flesh. My flesh was in control from the moment I was born and never at any time has it been a good thing. The sad part is, I was born with it and I will die with it.

But something happened to me many years ago that I want to explain to you simply, in allegorical form….

 I had lived under the control and dominion of my flesh, which was deeply influenced by the devil. Things I thought, pursued and dreamed about were all to please my flesh.

Then I encountered a holy God. God had a holy hatred for the sins that my flesh was producing. It was a violent hatred, one that meant my death. I stood condemned before Him, knowing it was what I deserved. My flesh could not please Him because it was His enemy. It had no desire to please Him, therefore I had no desire to please Him. But my flesh cried out, “I will try to do what You want, God, as long as I can be comfortable and happy!” But that did not please God. He knew that all my flesh wanted was its own gain, which always led to sin and death, and God had bigger and better things in mind for me than that.

The sentence came down hard. I knew my doom and hopelessness. Death was the only thing I had to look forward to. But suddenly a light shone in my darkness. It was the light of Christ. At first, I could see only dimly and what I saw I did not understand. Christ was hanging on a cross in agony crying, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”

I questioned what I saw: “Why would God forsake His Son?” Soon Christ was dead, forsaken and alone in darkness. I watched as they took Him down from the cross and heard a whisper, “He died for you.” Tears welled up in my eyes… He’s dead now…. But then, I looked again, and He was alive! It was 3 days later and they had gone to put perfumes and spices on His body but He had risen from the dead! I heard another whisper, “Death is never an end for Christ.” I wondered what it meant.

Now I was standing before a holy God again, but this time, Jesus Christ was standing beside Him. Suddenly, all the pieces came together and I understood. My sentence had fallen on Christ. He had died for me. But now He was alive, pure and holy, standing next to the Holy and just God, interceding for me.  

He reached out to me with a nail-pierced hand. “You can receive this gift of righteousness before a holy God by faith.” It was the same voice that whispered to me before.

“I receive it, Jesus! But what about my flesh? It wants nothing to do with You!”

What happened next, was beyond my understanding. He took me out of the body of the flesh and put me in Himself and His Spirit in me. “The right your flesh had to you has died with Me,” He said simply but with a commanding voice. I looked, and sure enough my flesh had lost its grip and could no longer control me. It whimpered, looking at me in agony, crying out for comfort. I looked away, knowing that Christ was stronger.

A new battle began that day. The battle to learn to listen to Christ and not to the flesh. This is a battle that will go on until the day I die. That battle is the one I was describing at the beginning of this post. The one the Spirit reveals to me on a regular basis.

I think a lot of Christians know very little about this battle. Yes, we know we have a problem with the flesh and we have to learn to listen to Christ. Like the mold around my window, it naturally and silently takes over the life that belongs to Christ in the shadows of our unknowing; and eventually, the full life in Christ that we were meant to have is affected by the death and decay that was defeated at the cross.

Next time I hope to explain how we are to live in victory as the bible outlines. For now I will point out a few simple truths that you find in Romans about this battle to keep in mind as I close out this post.

 1.   In the flesh there is no good thing. “For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells….” (Romans 7:18)

 2. Those in the flesh have absolutely no ability to please God. “So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:8)

  3. If you are saved, you are in the Spirit and not in the flesh anymore. “But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you…” (Romans 8:9)

 4. As one who is in Christ, you now have a choice if you will walk according to the flesh or according to the Spirit. And whatever you choose produces fruit in its kind. “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.” (Romans 8:5-6)

As you digest these four simple truths, keep in mind One who is stronger than your flesh. His name is Christ. If He could loosen its grasp on you at the cross, He can quiet its voice now as you look to Him for help. Cast yourself on Him –all the heavy weights of the flesh and see if He can’t handle the fleshly pull that is too strong for you. He will!

More on this later. J