Originally posted by Sozo
I agree! So is our spirit alive or dead? If you say "alive", then what do you think makes it alive?
I think you assume that the flesh is controlled by the spirit, which is contrary to everything that Paul says about the flesh. He says they are in opposition to one another. People whose spirits are dead to God can do a very good job of disciplining their flesh, but it will never be righteous. The same goes for those who are made alive in the spirit. They can discipline their flesh till the cows come home, but their flesh will never be acceptable to God. Only the spirit of a man is made whole and complete, and it groans within the body waiting for the day of the redemption of the body.
"... we ourselves, having the first fruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body."
Our minds our renewed through the ministry of the Spirit of the things of God. The fact that some people change their behavior, after being made alive in the spirit, is not what makes them Christians. It is from believing the gospel of the righteousness of God in Christ, being reconciled to Him, and receiving His life! Some people change their behavior in some areas, and some in others. However, anyone who is a Christian will no one thing for sure, it is not what they do that makes them righteous, but what Christ did. If they do not have that one single truth, then they reject the very gospel that they claim they believe.
Christianity is not behavior modification, it is a complete change of identity. And even though a Christian may struggle with unprofitable behaviors, they will at least be able to discern that they are, in fact, unprofitable and inconsistent with who they are in Christ.
