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8th Sunday after Trinity - 31 Jul 1955

31 July 1955, St. John’s Chapel

Romans 8:12-17: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.   And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

A prominent feature in the writings of the New Testament is the tension between the flesh and the spirit. This is particularly so in the epistles of St. Paul. These verses are from the Epistle to the Galatians (5:16-17): ‘Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh. The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.’ The life of the flesh and that of the Spirit are so opposed to each other.

It is difficult to harmonise such teachings with certain Christian convictions about the nature of the body. Two great Christian convictions not unrelated to each other.

  1. Man’s physical constitution is an inescapable condition of his life on earth. Therefore it must be thought of as created by God for a positive purpose. It cannot be entirely evil. (Modern investigations – What is the physical basis of the mind? They direct attention to the essential unity of man’s nature.)

  2. Fundamental doctrine of the Christian Church – In the Incarnation the word became flesh. God could not be fully expressed in that which was wholly evil. If the body had become the vehicle of God’s final revelation it could not remain wholly evil.

How can you reconcile St. Paul’s strong sayings? Answer – In the New Testament, the words ‘flesh’ and ‘spirit’ have a distinctive sense. They do not stand merely for the physical and non- physical aspects of man’s nature.

‘The flesh’ in the New Testament sense might be defined as human nature in so far as it tends towards sub-Christian, hence sub-human standards of behaviour. You will note that in the Bible the work of the flesh include not only carnal sins, but also offences in the realm of human relationships such as jealousy and strife. The body might be thought of as the neutral battleground in which the great contest has inevitably to be fought out.

‘The Spirit’, similarly, does not normally mean the mental or non-material side of man’s nature, but quite briefly the Holy Spirit – that divine power which in a new way was released into the world by Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit, the early Christians believed, found His dwelling place in the central core of man’s being. Spirit, then came to mean (in the sharp contrast with flesh) man’s being just in so far as it was led and controlled by the Holy Spirit of God. In this indwelling power, St. Paul found the source of his confidence in God as Father, of effectiveness in prayer and of victory over temptation.

You will notice what St. Paul says as to the way we might destroy the works of the flesh. How can we overcome the temptations of the flesh? It is not by a frontal attack. It is by walking in the Spirit – by joining in worship, partaking of the Sacraments, regular study of God’s word, having a fixed quiet time for prayer and devotions etc. Walk in the Spirit and ye shall not fulfil the lusts of the flesh. If we walk in the Spirit the creative energies of the new life will kill the vices of the old by depriving them of their sustenance.