Self-Defeating

Back in the early 1930s, C.D. “Bigboy” Blalock of Louisiana State University, a six-foot-six-inch giant of a boxer, was taking on a stocky fellow from Mississippi State.

In the second round, Bigboy let lose a roundhouse punch.

The Mississippi State man stepped in, and his head caught Bigboy’s arm inside the elbow.

With the opponent’s head acting as a lever, Bigboy’s arm whipped around in almost full circle, connecting with haymaker force on Bigboy’s own chin.

He staggered, grabbed the rope, walked almost all the way around the ring, and then fell flat for the count–the only prizefighter who ever knocked himself out with a right to his own jaw.

He defeated himself!

This is the way it is in our spiritual life if we depend on the flesh rather than the Holy Spirit.

We read this in Galatians 3:3:

“Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?”

Paul is speaking here of the sanctifying work of the Holy Spirit in the lives of believers in empowering them to grow spiritually in Christ.

Paul literally is saying this:

“Are you lacking such spiritual discernment? Having begun your spiritual life in dependence upon the indwelling Spirit, are you now trying to reach a state of spiritual maturity by means of self-effort?”

The Holy Spirit and the flesh are two spheres of spiritual influence: one is divine; one is human.

If we are turning from the divine to the human, we will not grow to spiritual maturity.

No one can ever do the work of the Holy Spirit.

It is the height of foolishness to go from the high plane of the Spirit to the low level of the flesh and expect legalism to accomplish what only the Holy Spirit can do.

We can never produce the supernatural in the energy of the flesh.

Is it not reasonable, that since we were saved through the Holy Spirit’s work and not the flesh, through faith and not Law, that we should continue that way throughout our Christian life?

Warren Wiersbe says this:

“The illustration of human birth is appropriate here. Two human parents are required for a child to be conceived and born, and two spiritual parents are required for a child to be born into God’s family; the Spirit of God and the Word of God.  When a normal child is born, he has all he needs for life; nothing needs to be added! All that is necessary is that the child have food, exercise, and cleansing, (of course love from parents) that he might grow into maturity. It would be strange if the parents had to take the child to the doctor at 1 month to receive ears, at 2 months to receive toes and so on.  ‘You have begun in the Spirit,’ writes Paul. ‘Nothing need be added!  Walk in the Spirit and you will grow in the Lord.’”

We are seeing in our day a drifting away from believing in the sufficiency of the Holy Spirit for every aspect of Christian living.

Instead, believers are substituting all kinds of fleshly means for the Holy Spirit’s supernatural power.

When we experience spiritual defeat it’s because we have forgotten our only source of spiritual power.

The Holy Spirit is the key to us living victoriously.

Blessings!

Pastor Ken Keeler, Director of Church Ministries