A young man asked his pastor in counselling; “Sir, do you sometimes feel sexual or emotional towards the opposite sex? How did you handle it?” The pastor gave a sincere response; “I had such feelings too, but I learned to put my flesh under.” He went ahead to encourage the young man; “It takes more than a willing spirit to win in life. It takes a conquered flesh.”
Friend, it takes more than a willing spirit to win in life. You need a conquered flesh (1 Corinthians 9:27). The greatest problem of the believer is not the devil. It is the flesh. Truthfully, the devil has been conquered by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. But your flesh has not been conquered. Conquering the devil was Jesus’s responsibility. Conquering the flesh is your responsibility (Colossians 3:1-5).
If you don’t conquer the flesh, your victory over the devil would only be a mirage (Galatians 5:1). Your flesh is the internal enemy that makes you vulnerable to the external enemy, the devil. Learning to conquer the flesh daily is the genius of a sound Christian. Without a conquered flesh, the fulfilment of your destiny is not in view (SoS 2:15). Most people fail, not because of a lack of anointing or gifts but because of lack of discipline.
You need to learn how to discipline your body or flesh. The truth is, your flesh needs to be retrained (1 Timothy 4:7-8). At salvation, your spirit is regenerated. But you need to take up the responsibility of renewing your mind and retraining your body. Your flesh is simply the training the devil has given your body over the years. You need to enrol that body in another training school, the school of the Spirit (Romans 12:1-2).
It is not enough to know that Jesus died for you on the cross. You need to learn to carry your cross daily (Luke 9:23). To carry your cross daily is to walk in the consciousness of your victory via Jesus’s death and resurrection and to enforce that victory in your daily life and walk. The cross is not for decoration. It is for reminder and retraining. If you leave your flesh unattended to, it would go wild (Galatians 5:13-16).
Conquering the flesh is a daily matter (1 Corinthians 15:31). This is why you cannot outgrow spiritual routines. You cannot outgrow the gathering of the saints. You cannot outgrow living a life of consecration. Like Job, you need to constantly reiterate to your body that you are not available for the works of the flesh (Job 31:1). You need to let your spirit take the lead always rather than indulge the flesh. You need a conquered flesh. Amen.
‘Demola Awoyele
Lead Pastor,
Destiny Impact Church
Akure, Nigeria