Reflection on Genesis44:33
Sometimes
we get a second chance. When we do, it’s important to seize the opportunity.
That’s what Judah did. When his brothers wanted to kill Joseph, Judah didn’t
rescue Joseph but instead suggested that they sell him as a slave (see Genesis37:26–27). His second chance came when Benjamin’s life appeared to be in danger.
This time Judah put his own life on the line to protect his half brother,
Rachel’s other son. Perhaps this commitment was taken into account in the
blessings that God inspired Jacob to give his sons; eventually the Messiah came
through Judah’s descendants (see Genesis 49:10).
God
often gives us second chances in life. When he does, we need to take advantage
of the opportunity and set things right.
CHANGING YOUR
BEHAVIOR
Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire
of the flesh
A
careful distinction must be made concerning your relationship to the flesh as a
Christian. There is a difference in Scripture between being in the flesh and
walking according to the flesh. As a Christian, you are no longer in the flesh.
That phrase describes people who are still spiritually dead (Romans 8:8), those
who live independently of God. Everything they do, whether morally good or bad,
is in the flesh.
You
are not in the flesh; you are in Christ. You are no longer independent of God;
you have declared your dependence upon Him by placing faith in Christ. But even
though you are not in the flesh, you may still choose to walk according to the
flesh (Romans 8:12, 13). You may still act independently of God by responding
to the mind-set, patterns and habits ingrained in you by the world you lived
in. Paul rebuked the immature Corinthian Christians as "fleshly"
because of their expressions of jealousy, strife, division and misplaced
identity (1 Corinthians 3:1-3). He listed the evidences of fleshly living in
Galatians 5:19-21. Unbelievers can't help but live according to the flesh
because they are totally in the flesh. But your old skipper is gone. You are no
longer in the flesh and you no longer need to live according to its desires.
Getting
rid of the old self was God's responsibility, but rendering the flesh and its
deeds inoperative is our responsibility (Romans 8:12). God has changed your nature,
but it's your responsibility to change your behavior by "putting to death
the deeds of the body" (Romans 8:13). You will gain victory over the flesh
by learning to condition your behavior after your new skipper, your new self
which is infused with the nature of Christ, and learning to transform your old
pattern for thinking and responding to your sin-trained flesh by renewing your
mind (Romans 12:2).
Prayer: Lord, knowing that I
am no longer controlled by sin is such a liberating concept. I can walk today
in freedom from my old self, the world system, and the devil. Praise Your name!
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