Renewed!

Renewed!

For which cause we faint not; but though our outward man perish, yet the inward man is renewed day by day.

2 Corinthians 4:16 KJV

There is a part of the fallen human nature that is irreversible, and that is growing up, growing old and if the Lord tarries long enough, dying. There is nothing that science can do to prevent the inevitable; it may seem to delay, but it will surely come. There is also the part of the renewed spiritual man, the one birthed and sustained by the giver of Life, who was himself raised to life so he can offer life to all who come to him. That is a life that has no end, and can't end. It is the Life of God himself, so it is not the life that any man can touch or tamper with. All of us, born of woman, came into being with the first, but there is an experience that must take me within the scope of the second. One comes of natural birth; the other comes from the work of the Holy Spirit. 

The work of the Holy Spirit is such that the natural man can't fathom or understand. The things that shake the natural man and push him away from God, inspires the spiritual man to seek God more. The things that would rock the faulty foundations of the natural man are the things that the spiritual man learns from and becomes even stronger. The One who sustains the spiritual man is God himself, and he is the One who helps a man hold on even when everything around him is going to pieces. The spiritual man does not faint because he is held up by the Holy Spirit. Who is holding you up? Who is providing inspiration for your present pursuits and priorities? The answers to those questions form the basis of the latter part of today's extract. 

While the natural process of time happens to the natural man, there is a work that is not seen by the natural man, but which is done in the inner man, and which leads to eternal life. Man is born and grows old, but as he lives, there is an appointment with the Holy Spirit that he must have if he is to be renewed. The natural man cannot be renewed, as its foundation and substance are based on sin. No amount of make up or touch up can prevent the effect of time on the natural man. The natural man cannot submit to God, as it is not in its nature to. The natural man is hostile to God, and cannot be used by God for eternal purposes. That is why I must let God work on my inner man, which is where the Holy Spirit can do his work of refreshing and renewal. To be controlled by the sinful, natural man is death; to be controlled by the Spirit is life and peace. 

The work of renewal is a daily thing. I cannot rely on yesterday's experience for today's challenge. I cannot trust yesterday's inspiration for today's perspiration. Yesterday's testimonies were good for yesterday, but God has to do a work in me that is fit for the challenges of today. The work of the Holy Spirit in a man's life cannot be based on the feelings of the natural man but on the desires of God for that life. There will be difficult and tough times; pressure will come from those under the control of the natural man and even the devil will fight, but ultimately, being under the control of the Holy Spirit guarantees victory. 

This is the basis of the confidence I have in God and the work the Holy Spirit does in me. That is why I can look ahead with joy even when things are tough. I have to learn to submit daily. I cannot trust God today and seek to do things my own way tomorrow. I cannot rely on God today and rely on the arm of flesh tomorrow. I cannot trust God today, and trust in man's promises tomorrow. That inconsistency comes with a price, as God cannot trust that kind of heart. Is my life the kind that God can work in and on? Can men look at me and see that work of God in and on me? Is my life being renewed daily, or is there a stagnancy that I need to address urgently? May the Lord show me who I am and what I need to do, so I can be all that He has created, planned and planted me to be and achieve. His time of favour is here.