Vicious Circle or Virtuous Circle

“My soul, be silent only to God; for my hope is from Him.” (Psalms 62:5)

In his psalm, David commands his soul. The soul is the mind, will and emotions. It has no alliance to the flesh or to the spirit. It depends on the greater influence. And it depends on which is given preference. It can become a vicious circle or a virtuous circle. We decide this by choosing what the spirit is telling us or what the flesh is telling us. Every minute we have a choice between the spiritual or the worldly. It’s in the little things at first, TV or Bible Study, secular music or worship music, prayer or just thinking, reasoning with our limited wisdom, a kind word or a snide remark, sacrificial time for someone else or “me time,” spending or offering, and the list goes on and on because the choices are numerous and as varied every minute. Every time we choose what the flesh wants, we are giving it more influence in our lives. And vice versa, every time we make a choice that is spiritual, we are giving the spirit more influence.

But how does that influence the soul?  The emotions will be influenced by the one given more influence. Emotions will “whine” to the mind and the will to satisfy that leaning, to the flesh or the spirit. Then mind decides as it’s influenced and the will agrees and acts on that influence, either to the flesh or the spirit. The more we give in to the flesh, the more influence it will have. And the more worldly we will be.  The more we give in to the spirit, the more influence the spirit will have. And the more spiritual we will be. You can see why I say it can become a vicious circle or a virtuous circle.

As Christians, children of God, born again of the Spirit of God, we fight the flesh every moment. “For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh. And these are contrary to one another; lest whatever you may will, these things you do.” (Galatians 5:17) Every minute we feel the tug to follow the flesh or the spirit. When we choose the spiritual in the little things, the spirit will gain more influence over the soul, and it will be reflected in our life.  When we choose the flesh, its intention is not only to satisfy the flesh but to destroy us. It’s from the enemy. “Do not love the world, nor the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him, because all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” (1John 2:15-16) The devil is prince of this world. Jesus said in speaking to His disciples before the Last Supper, “Now is the judgment of this world. Now shall the prince of this world be cast out.” (John 12:31) The flesh is not our friend. It’s from the world which is ruled by the devil. And the devil’s purpose is to destroy us. “The thief does not come except to steal and to kill and to destroy. I have come so that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.” (John 10:10)

When we give in to the flesh, it will begin to rule in the soul and eventually destroy us. “Dearly beloved, I exhort you as temporary residents and pilgrims to abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,” (1Peter 2:11). The flesh is not for us. It wars against the soul to destroy us.

We can command our soul like David did. We can command it to be silent before God, to listen to what the spirit is saying and to obey. Do not allow your soul to listen to the flesh. Be silent only before God. Our hope is from Him, our hope of life eternal, of forgiveness and sonship. Our hope is only from Him, so we wait only on God.

All things considered, obeying the spirit allows us to live the abundant and supernatural life in Jesus our Lord. It happens one step of obedience to the spirit at a time. Will we be 100% successful eventually? Yes! When we are perfected, when we enter eternity, we will be perfect. While we are here on earth, we will always struggle with the flesh. And sometimes we will fail. That’s why the Lord provided a way to confess and repent of our disobedience. “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1John 1:9)