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In your own words, describe the “war” discussed by Dr. Dodson in this lesson.
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There is a war between living by the flesh and living by the spirit. It is a constant battle that we can overcome by not “opening the door to sin”.
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It is true that Christ has set us free from sin. It is also true that we are no longer under the law. This means that we are free to obey Christ and no longer have to fulfill the sinful desires of the flesh. Nevertheless, we are still living in a world that is cursed and characterized by sin and its desires. As such, we are still tempted to continue in the things from which Christ set us free.
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Though we are saved by Christ and are not of the world, we are still physically in the world. Thus there is this conflict between our spirit and our flesh. Our spirit desires to please the Lord and obey God but our flesh desires to run after worldly pleasures.
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Although we are forgiven by Christ, saved for freedom and given his Holy Spirit to empower us to live a life free from sin, our sinful nature is in fact not dead yet. It comes back to “war” against the Spirit in the form of a temptation to sin. Dr Dodson suggests that behind the sinful inclinations of the world, there is a demonic power that tempts us to go against what the Spirit desires to form in us.
In turn, the Holy Spirit “wars” against this sinful desire and its demonic power too, when the Holy Spirit convicts us through our conscience and the Bible. He urges us to surrender to Him and obtain the strength to resist sin.
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This war is very real. I feel it every day. I’ve been a Christian for years. I study daily. I know Scripture. I know how I am supposed to live. Yet so often it is a battle. As Paul said – I know what I should be doing but I don’t do it; instead I do what I don’t want to do! It can be very disheartening but it’s good to remember that this is just part of the human condition. Thankfully, as discussed in the last session, I’m not in this battle alone. Jesus sent the Holy Spirit to fight with and for me.