We need to have a clear picture of our inner situation so that we can effectively walk in victory.

Firstly, let us be reminded that we are a three part being: body, soul and spirit (1 Thess. 5:23). Through the fall we have the sin nature within, which totally corrupted us. Fallen man is identified by God as "flesh." In the days of Noah, mankind had become utterly wicked, as indicated in the following verse: "Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually" (Gen. 6:5, NASB).

It was at this time that God identified fallen man as "flesh." "Then the Lord said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh . . ." (Gen. 6:3, NASB) Thus, when the Bible uses the term "flesh", in usually refers to fallen man, although there are some other uses that can be determined by the context.

Fallen man lives according to the sinful desires (lusts) of the flesh. These desires, if allowed to be fulfilled, become deeds, or works, of the flesh. Note the following passage from Galatians:

In this passage, we see that some deeds arise out of the body (v. 19 particularly), some deeds arise out of the fallen soul (such as enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, and factions), and some are associated with man’s spirit (namely idolatry and sorcery, which are matters of the spiritual realm). Thus, we can visualize, according to Scripture, the totality of fallen man as flesh. His whole three part being has been corrupted.

We are born as sinners by nature (see Lesson  One; Rom. 5:19). However, when we are regenerated another nature comes into our being. Our human spirit is born of the Spirit of God (Jn. 3:6; Heb. 12:9)! This is a cause of rejoicing! Our spirit has been made alive with God’s life (Eph. 4:18- contrast Rom. 8:10).

With regeneration comes God’s life, and we become partakers of the divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4). Now, Christ is in us and we are absolutely joined in oneness with Him in our spirit (1 Cor. 6:17). He is the source of our new life and nature.

Over the years, some teachers have gone to an erroneous extreme by saying that when we were converted our old sinful life was removed or eradicated. They argue that the "roots of sin" were somehow pulled out of us, either in conversion, or some say in a second blessing experience. According to this view, the believer only has one nature and it has changed. There is also the mistaken notion that because the Bible tells us that our old man was crucified with Christ, the nature of the old man is no longer resident within a believer.

These views are unbalanced and do not take into account all of the Scriptures. Yes, our old man was crucified with Christ. That is what happened in the spiritual realm before God. It is what happened to us positionally (in Christ), not experientially. If the old man were out of our experience altogether then the Bible would not record the injunction in Ephesians 4:22 addressed to believers to "put off . . .the old man . . " Miles Stanford points out the fallacy of these arguments about the old man being out of our experience:

The flesh is still with us while we are in this body. Christians can be fleshly (1 Cor. 3:1,3). Christians can sow to their own flesh (Gal. 6:8). We can carry out the (walk according to) the desires or lusts of the flesh (Gal. 5:16ff). Sin is an active principle in the old flesh within (Rom. 7:20,24). The entire old "I" is flesh, in bondage to sin (Rom. 7:14). In other words, we are capable of living just as we did before being regenerated. Our inner situation is complicated. We have a new life and nature in our spirit, but we still have the old life and nature within us also.

Although according to our experience we have two natures within us, we are not two people. As believers we only have one identity. We are not "sinners" in identity, but "saints." Our identity is now found in who we are positionally in Christ. "Therefore, if any man is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things have passed away; behold new things have come" (2 Cor. 5:17, NASB).  In describing who we are in Christ, the Bible presents us as having only the new life and identity: "Christ, who is our life . . . " (Col. 3:4).

We must lay hold of the "identification truths." When the lusts of the flesh rise up within, we should not identify with them as belonging to us anymore. We must stand on the truth that our old man was crucified with Christ (Rom. 6:6)! The old troublesome body of flesh was cut away from us when we were with Christ on the cross (Col. 2:11). I must declare that now I am a new creature in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17)! I do not identify with my old self, my old life. Now, Christ is my life (Col. 3:4). I identify with Him.

The mind or the devil may tell us that we are still the same old fallen person. But, we must not accept that idea. We are not the same old person. We have a new identity, and that identity is Christ, who is our life. God has made us a new creation in Christ. We must stand on this truth regardless of the "feelings" within, and regardless of the arguments in our minds. As we stand on the truth of our old person having died with Christ, and our new person being Christ as our very life, then we will see that truth manifested in our lives. This is the way of faith, and this is the way of victory!

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