There are two basic directions we can follow in life: our own desires or God’s desires. If we believe in Christ, our goal should be to obey God’s will.
Here’s a little test we can give ourselves. We can write our desires in two columns. In one column we can note how many of our daily desires are for sinful or selfish things. In the second column we can note our desires for good or divine things. How many of our thoughts seek to satisfy our evil desires, and how many seek to do God’s will and show love to our neighbors? If your brain works like mine, there will be lots of examples in the first column, and just a few in the second.
This is the spiritual and mental struggle of the Christian life. As believers in Christ, we have been born again to new life in the Spirit. We are no longer trapped in the realm of sin and death with lies and false promises, but we are not yet fully regenerated either. Our life in the Spirit is a work in progress.
Two systems are in operation. In one, our desires oppose God, and we continue to sin. In the second, we are born again into life led by the Holy Spirit. Thankfully, we are justified by the fulfillment of Christ’s law and His finished work, and we are given eternal life through the Spirit. So we have been freed from the curse of sin and death, and we have been called by the Spirit to live so that we may become like Christ. True life is found only in that.
