Your war of flesh and Spirit
In Romans, Paul uses the Greek term sarx (translated variously as ‘flesh’, ‘sinful nature’ or ‘human nature’) on several occasions but in different ways, the difference in use being particularly notable in chapter 8. Sometimes, it refers to the characteristic of being human (Rom. 1:3; 4:1; 8:3; 9:5, 8), and human effort (Gal. 3:3). However, on other occasions, it is clear that he is using flesh , not to refer to the physical body and mortality, but to describe something much more malevolent and malignant that militates against God in a way that makes it inseparable from sin; indeed, the term ‘sin’ is often synonymous with ‘the flesh’ (8:4–9, 12–13; 13:14). In this respect, to live a life dominated by sin is equivalent to living a life controlled by the flesh. It is as if flesh and sin gang up on the believer and make it difficult to live as a follower of Jesus—so difficult that one wonders how it can be achieved. It is in this context that the Spirit, who was mentione...