“There’s a REBEL inside EACH ONE of us” (Understanding the NEW MAN)–Part 2

Yesterday we talked about DECEPTION and how the devil’s main goal is to deceive people; to lie about what God has said and to get people to disobey God’s Word. Deception sets in motion a process of degeneration: deception produces lust; lust is a perverted, rebellious desire designed to contradict the will of God. Lust in turn produces sin, and sin produces death.

James explains this clearly. “Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own lusts and enticed. Then, when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, brings forth death” (Jam 1:13-15).

So here it is. That’s the total process that deception produces. It generates lust, lust produces sin and sin produces death.

Now, the Bible says that the old man is corrupt, in every area, spiritually, morally, and physically. Because the old self is the offspring of Satan. It is of the seed of the deception of Satan. Consequently, God told the serpent in Genesis 3:15 that his seed would then be corrupt, and therefore be the enemy of the seed of the women… “I will make your offsprings and her offsprings enemies of each other”.

So the old self is actually at war constantly against the new self. Paul said that the carnal mind is enmity against God. “For the sinful nature is always hostile to God. It never did obey God’s laws, and it never will” (Rom 8:7)

Remember how Jesus said that “a good tree cannot bear bad fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bear good fruit” (Mat 7:18). In other words, man in his original state is essentially CORRUPT, and consequently cannot bear good fruit. Isaiah 53:6 says “We all, like sheep, have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all”. That is the mark of the “old man” and his behavior, he turns to his own way, he goes away from God and seeks his own will, his own pleasure and satisfaction.

Paul explains this clearly, “and you were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Eph 2:1-3).

So that is the product of Satan’s lie and rebellion in the sons of disobedience. This is the description of those who live by the old self, the sons of disobedience. Satan is able to work in them because of the spirit of disobedience. It goes on to say “how we all formerly lived in the lust of our flesh, indulging in the desires of our flesh, and of the mind, whereby by nature we are the children of wrath”.

Notice that it says “by nature”, we are the children of wrath. In other words by default, we’re born in sin, and consequently children of wrath. We have in each one of us a spirit of rebellion and disobedience to God which was created by Satan’s deception.

The nature of the old self has two distinctive marks. First of all it is corrupt– spiritually, morally and physically, and secondly it is the nature of rebellion.

But hang in there, there’s GOOD NEWS… the new man is created from an incorruptible seed.

To Be Continued…