For if you live according to the flesh you will die,
but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
Romans 8:13 (ESV)

What does the word „flesh“ mean in the Bible? This question has been bothering me for many years now. One the one hand, „flesh“ talks about our temptations – we tend to go back to our bad habits from the past, especially in stressful situation. We hope that our coping strategy that gave us some short-time relief will work again, like an addict that longs for the next shot. On the other hand, „flesh“ also talks about our normal human condition – our body is made of flesh. God made us by taking dust to form our flesh, then breathing his life into it. So it is normal, humanly speaking, to fail, to follow the sin of our previos generations.

Two Sides of a Coin

So which one is it, is „flesh“ a spiritual principle, or simply the „human way“? Is it someone tempting us, or is the Evil already inside of our heart? The Bible always puts flesh in the contrast: „Obey the spirit or obey your flesh.“, i.e. obey God’s way or obey Satan’s way of doing things. This means, probably it is both – it is a power beyond our human control, but still, it is our responsibility to choose Good instead of Evil.

Maybe that’s why the Bible is using this metaphor „flesh“. Both the human and the spiritual side are implied. Of course it’s totally understandable: You are human flesh. Your behavior will reflect his. However, you don’t have to stay there. You cannot go out of your body, but you can learn to behave in a new way, the spirit way.

Already Dead. Already Alive.

Recently, the Bible paraphrase „The Voice“ of the verse above helped me to grasp this paradox a little bit better:

For if your life is just about satisfying the impulses of your sinful nature [flesh], then prepare to die.
But if you have invited the Spirit to destroy these selfish desires, you will experience life.
Romans 8:13

It’s as if Paul is writing here:

You really believe doing what your instincts tell you is bringing life? You might really want to … and NOW. I get it. It might even feel good for that moment. But: prepare to die. In the light of death, all these pleasures or refuge places become meaningless. In a way, when you give in to these tempations, you are already dead. Because you are walking on the path that leads to death. It might be the broad, „normal“ path. But remember: You will die.

Now consider the alternative: You are a child of God. His Spirit is inside of you, ready and willing to teach you a new lifestyle. The question is: Do you listen? He has a much better way of doing things, you know. And yes, you are still human, but you are part of a new family now. You belong to this new life, a life that overflows into eternity. That’s your heritage. It already belongs to you. Now, whenever you choose to follow that new, narrow path, you are already alive, more alive then ever.

So – it’s our choice. Which path will we walk?

God is Encouraging Us

It feels like God whispering to us:

Don’t forget: Living fully in the spirit means to be fully human, like Jesus lived as „renewed human“, like Adam and Eve lived as „humans in his original design“. You don’t have to take off your body like you take off a coat. I will renew your body! No, just don’t trust every instinct, because Sin is more deeply rooted inside of you than you think. Your gut feeling might be correct, but it also might be a little out of tune, in subtle but important ways.

Trust me to sort that out. I am teaching you how to live.

Illustration generated by Gemini: „Write a prompt and generate the image of an anatomic heart to illustrate Romans 8:13. Spirit is illustrated by light, life, fruit; flesh is illustrated by death, decay, subtly going through the entire heart. No text. –ar 16:9“