“Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, they do not belong to Christ.”Romans 8:5-6, 9 (NIV) James 4:1-5(NIV)
Born of flesh: When you are born into the world you are born in sin the Word of God says. So your natural body has all the desires of the flesh- what to eat, what to wear and what to achieve. Even if you are born in a Christian family, you are born with flesh. That is why we should be born again in spirit, overcoming the flesh with the help of the Word of God and by the anointing of the Holy Spirit. When you receive Jesus into your heart, you should be entirely changed in your inner-man to follow Jesus. Living the same way the worldly people do, and pray for the things to satisfy your flesh alone as they do, is not a Christian life. The verses above clearly states, this leads to death spiritually and physically.
Born of Spirit: When you are born again, your spirit man comes alive and you start living in the realm of spirit life. You can hear the voice of God and discern things which you cannot, if you are in flesh. You have supernatural senses coming alive in you to understand the Word of God perfectly. And on top of that, if you are anointed by the Holy Spirit, when God Himself resides inside of you; you are empowered with supernatural strength and love. When you start operating in spirit with the help of the Holy Spirit, it is a different realm, as the verses explain above, which leads to life and peace. This is the abundant life Jesus came to give.
How many are seeking this kind of transformation to take place in their lives, these are the ones belong to Christ and others do not belong to Christ, the verses above explain clearly. These lent days as we concentrate on the Lord’s death on the Cross and His Resurrection, let us examine ourselves and be transformed. You are not called to just have a moral life but transformed life. Jesus went to that kind of pain and suffering to give eternal life, let us not take it light and lose it.