Desiderium Carnis (Lusts of the Flesh)

In Galatians 5.16-21, Paul warns the Galatians (and us) against fulfilling the desires of the flesh because they retard our spiritual lives. The flesh (sinful nature in the NIV) is a Greek word which includes both the physical and spiritual frailty of humanity.

The sinful nature has four characteristics, Paul writes: first, it can be gratified (16); second, it is contrary to and is in conflict with the Spirit (17); third, its acts are obvious (19): and fourth, fulfilling it can prevent us from inheriting the Kingdom of God (21).

The sinful nature is part and parcel with being born into our world. However, we can decide to give in to it or not. The apostle John wrote in 1 Jn 2.15-17, "Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world-the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does-comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God lives forever."

The "flesh" or sinful nature consists of the body (sinful cravings: physical sensations), the mind (lust of his eyes: the choosing of the target, the justification for it, and the method of achieving), and the heart (pride of life, boasting of what he has and does: beliefs, values, attitudes). These are often intertwined, and Satan's temptations sometimes involve one or more of the three.

Paul lists 15 works of the sinful nature (Gal 5.19-21), but does not mean it to be a complete list. The works of the body are sexual immorality, impurity, debauchery, drunkenness, and orgies. The works of the mind are idolatry (finding the best deal in heaven), and witchcraft (manipulating spiritual forces or other people through spells and potions). The works of the heart are jealousy, envy, hatred, fits of rage, discord, dissensions, factions, and selfish ambition. The core element of all these sinful deeds is selfishness. It's all about me and what I want.

Gratifying the sinful desires can be a lot like wanting an itch scratched that we can't quite reach. Gratifying them gives Satan control of our lives. Remember what Louis Sweet said in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia: "Men are not tempted by evil, per se, but by a good which can be obtained only at the cost of doing wrong." We may want intimacy so the devil offers us an opportunity to get it by being sexually immoral. We may want to not feel or care, or to fit in, so the devil offers us a bottle to get that.

The devil sifts us (Lk 22.31) to see what we're willing to do to get what we want (Jms 1.14). He then fills our hearts (Acts 5.3) with the craving to overcome our resistance (Eph 2.3). He then is able to enter our hearts (Lk 22.3; Jn 13.27; Jn 8.44) because we do what he wants us to whenever he wants us to for our "fix." The more we give in, the more we will give in, and the more we want to give in.

The antidote to gratifying the sinful nature and getting ourselves deeper and deeper into Satan's control is the Spirit. Paul uses three different phrases in Galatians 5 to mean the same thing: live by the Spirit (16), be led by the Spirit (18), and keep in step with the Spirit (24). This simply means to let the Spirit sift through what we want, and then to let the Spirit determine the boundaries of what we'll do to get it.

Gratifying the desires of the sinful nature may provide short term enjoyment or satisfaction, but alienates us from the Spirit and loses us our place in the kingdom of God. Therefore we must ask ourselves what we are willing to do to save our lives.

~Shawn