1 Peter 2:11 Fleshly Desires
Food for Thought
An all-creatures.org Guide to Kingdom Living. True Christian living requires us to live according to Kingdom standards which bring Heaven to earth

By Marni Montanez

1 Peter 2:11 Young's Literal Translation

11. Beloved, I call upon [you], as strangers and sojourners, to keep from the fleshly desires, that war against the soul.

The current of the world flows in one direction leading to destruction  and many Christians are caught up in its influence.  There are demands inflicted on those of the world to stay on course or be trampled over.  There is no time for real internal peace.

The challenge is to always stay one step ahead of expectations.   It offers nothing that will give us sustained hope and prosperity always involves money.   It dictates to us, the shallow version of a meaningful life and keeps us in a web of hunger that is never satisfied.  It targets the flesh and its nature,  even using spirituality as an unattainable dreamlike state that constantly clashes with the surrounding reality. It draws its inhabitants into temporary pleasures which are not lasting nor are they life giving.  All that the world wants of us is to move us away from God.

As sojourners in this world, we are given the freedom to stay away from the oppression of sin.  Our focus on God is our lifeline.   

Through this life line we experience the sweet breath of peace flowing through our being.  Nothing that resists us will succeed and every head wind moves us into a deeper and higher place.  We live depending on the Holy Spirit and find that effort is simply a willingness to believe God.  Temptation is no longer a fearful struggle, but instead we see it as a chance to become more aware of our need for the Lord.   Too often we get in the way of our destination on earth.  It is only in living in our flesh that we are not who we were meant to be.  The meaning of our existence is wrapped up in God's reason for creating us. 

We don't have to be anything more than what we were always meant to be..........living vessels of honor.  We are people whose home is in heaven.  We don't belong in this world.   We were given an assignment and that assignment is unique to each one of us, though it produces the same results.........saved people.  

Challenge:  This is what it is to live in the flesh.   Does a change need to happen in your life?

Galatians 5:19-21 New Life Version

19. The things your sinful old self wants to do are: sex sins, sinful desires, wild living,

20. worshiping false gods, witchcraft, hating, fighting, being jealous, being angry, arguing, dividing into little groups and thinking the other groups are wrong, false teaching,

21. wanting something someone else has, killing other people, using strong drink, wild parties, and all things like these. I told you before and I am telling you again that those who do these things will have no place in the holy nation of God.

God bless

Marni

Go on to: 1 Peter 2:23 Entrusting Ourselves
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The purpose of this series is to encourage people to live as loving, compassionate, and peacemaking children of God: Jesus tells us to pray, "Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:10) God tells us through Micah (6:8), "He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the Lord require of you But to do justice, to love kindness, And to walk humbly with your God." And we know from Revelation 21:4 that there will be no more mourning, or crying, or pain, or death. Thus, Christian living requires us to set the standards of these conditions here on earth for our fellow human beings, and for the other animals, as a witness to the rest of the world. To do otherwise is not Christian.