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Spirit and Flesh in Paul's Letters



Spirit and Flesh in Paul's Letters

Excerpt

‎In Romans 6, Paul asks a rhetorical question about continuing to sin in order that grace might be multiplied. He answers this question with another: “How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (Rom 6:2). This raises the question of why believers still struggle with sin. Are believers somehow defective?

‎Jesus’ death and resurrection not only conquered death once and for all, it enabled believers to have new life as well (Rom 6:4; Col 3:1–3). Paul describes a twofold division between the flesh and the spirit. The flesh refers to God’s originally perfect creation, which is now mortal and in decay as result of sin entering the world through Adam (Rom 5:12). The spirit is the essence of who we are, the part of us that lives on after our physical bodies die. In 2 Corinthians 4:16, Paul contrasts the two, stating that our outer person is being destroyed as our inner one is being renewed. Our physical bodies will continue to decay until Christ returns (1 Cor 15:39–42). …

Barry, John D., Michael S. Heiser, et al. Faithlife Study Bible. Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software, 2012. Print.

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