Do Not Let The Monster Win

 

DAILY VITAMIN

- Do Not Let The Monster Win

"....but be a new and different person with a fresh newness in all you do and think. Then you will learn from your experience how his ways will really satisfy you." (Rom 12:2 TLB)

When a man becomes born again, what gets rebirthed is his spirit. Not the soul nor the body. This is why at first, the urge to smoke a joint or to down a full bottle of alcohol still remains if you used to do that, or the crave for drugs or to fornicate. And sometimes many still slip into these vices. Not because their salvation wasn't genuine, but because though their spirit has been saved, their bodily elements and a large portion of their yet-to-be spiritually influenced soul still remains as it were. Without a fresh newness. Still doing as you once thought and did. Which are the two actions that shape a man's everyday life.

Now, these other facets of man learn to change and be transformed as the spirit influences our daily living. It's like relearning how to live again. As our spirit receives from God's spirit, it spreads this bandwidth of positive change towards the soul. Our mind and personal will ingest it and begins to reshape our mode of actions, seeing former rights as wrongs. Only then can our body appropriate the right way to do these right things. That's what Paul meant in our theme verse. It's a daily activity. A renewing. Continuous. And this is done by the word of God. The more we get the Word in, the more we empower the spirit to influence the other parts of ourselves. As such, whoever leads is whom the others follow. And who leads is based on who we feed the most with what it desires. And with the work we put into making it in charge. And believe me it takes work to live above the old ways (Ephesians 4:17-32). Serious work. In Romans 6:1-11, we are told about how we have been placed above sin, yet in v12-23 we are told to constantly work to live above it. If we spend time on the Word, we feed the spirit. If we spend time on carnal ponderings we feed the non-spiritual. And when the non-spiritual leads we end up doing non-sporitual things often.

You see, though born again, as Paul wrote, a part of the old man yet remains at the crevisse of the soul. We can only suppress it by enlarging the spirit's dominion until it seems relatively nonexistent; but if we fail to do that, it will begin to grow until it takes the reins again. And then you'll find yourself doing the things you'd thought you had overcome. Smoking, fornicating, doing drugs, brooding terrible thoughts, living horrible lifestyles. Why? Because the monster has awoken. That part of you Jesus came to crucify to the cross with Himself has been given a new lease of life, a chance at dominion, a substantial breath again. And so it ravages everywhere, everything. Making you a semblance of your old self instead of Christ as you were a moment ago. This doesn't mean you weren't saved, or aren't, but it does mean you can end up in damnation if you don't curtail its excesses, because its actions can lead you to a life that is against Christ's. For if you live as sinners do you will also end where sinners do

Hence, don't let the monster win. Even when it's awake, learn to run back to God. Even Jesus, as Solomon did, testified that no man is so good except God. Meaning we all make mistakes. What matters is what we do after we've made them. Do you sulk and stay in your mess, or do you run back to the Father like the prodigal son? Do you return to your old life as Peter nearly did or will you listen to Christ's voice and come back to His path and will for you? If your choice is anything like mine would be, then don't let the monster win. Choose Christ every time. Run back to Him when it seems like the monstrous feeling is swallowing you. Find help and relief in the Word of God. Choose to believe it. You might not feel like it at that moment because the monster is influencing your thoughts and patterns, but you've got to give your spirit that breathing space to believe and start to sprout in faith. Help it grow stronger till it can suppress the monster, that old man and send it back to the abyss of the soul where it has no power over your actions anymore. 

I still have my battles with the monster daily. Paul did as well, so much that it got him confused even though he eventually learned how to live an overcoming life at all times (Romans 7:15-25). And if we're honest with ourselves everyone does. Till our last day on earth, but we can live above it like Paul did. That's the essence of grace. That's the reason the Holy Spirit daily loads us with strength that swallows up our every weakness in victory (2 Corinthians 12:7-10). Granting us the fortitude to place it under at all times (1 Corinthians 9:27). 

However, know this: regardless of the setbacks you may have encountered before now, you can overcome. You can win this monster and stop it from dragging you back into darkness. Don't see yourself as less because you fell off the horse's back. No, get back on your feet and ride on the wings of grace till you are back pleasing the Lord. For even the light isn't completely free of darkness as darkness continually waits in the shadows, but because it is light darkness can never show its face. That's how we win the monster. As lights. Shining ever brightly, full of Christ's righteousness. The darkness will still keep lurking and might win if you let it, but if you don't you will never know any night in your life time. Thus, choose to walk as light to keep the darkness out forever.