The Conflict Between the Old and the New — The Spiritual Man

The Conflict Between the Old and the New

After a believer is born again, one of the most urgent matters is to understand how much he has received through regeneration, and how much of his natural disposition still remains. Only by understanding these can one continue to progress in the spiritual journey. Therefore, we must explain what is included in the human flesh, and how the Lord Jesus, through His redemption, has dealt with the elements of the flesh. In other words, we must clarify what a believer receives at the moment of regeneration.

Romans 7:14 says, “I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin.” Verses 17–18 say, “Sin that dwells within me... in my flesh, there is nothing good.” From these verses we see that the flesh is composed of two parts: sin and self. The sin refers to the power of sin; the self refers to what we commonly call the ego or self-will. If a believer is to understand the spiritual life, he must not confuse these two aspects of the flesh.

We know that the Lord Jesus has already dealt with the sin of our flesh on the cross. Therefore, Scripture tells us, “Our old self was crucified with him” (Romans 6:6). That is why the Bible never instructs us to crucify sin—because Christ has already accomplished this work perfectly. There is nothing left for man to do but to “consider [ourselves] dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11). By this reckoning, we gain the efficacy of Christ’s death and are completely freed from the power of sin (Romans 6:14).

Although Scripture does not call us to crucify sin, it does instruct us to take up the cross concerning the self. The Lord Jesus repeatedly said that we must deny ourselves and take up the cross to follow Him. This is because the way He dealt with sin on the cross is different from how He dealt with the self. We know that the Lord bore our sins on the cross (not before it); however, His self-denial was lifelong, not beginning only at the cross. So, a believer may overcome sin completely in a moment, but it takes a lifetime to learn to deny the self.

Galatians explains this twofold relationship between the flesh and the believer with great clarity. On one hand, it tells us, “Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). This means that the day one belongs to Christ Jesus, the flesh is already crucified. Without the teaching of the Holy Spirit, one might mistakenly think this means the flesh no longer exists, simply because it has been crucified. But on the other hand, Scripture also says, “Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh. For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh” (Galatians 5:16–17). This clearly shows that even those who belong to Christ Jesus and have the Holy Spirit still have the flesh—not only does it still exist, but it remains especially powerful. How is this to be understood? Is there a contradiction between these passages? No. Verse 24 focuses specifically on the sinful aspect of the flesh, while verse 17 emphasizes the self. The cross of Christ deals with sin, while the self is dealt with by the Holy Spirit through the cross. Christ, through the cross, frees believers completely from the power of sin so that it no longer reigns; and Christ, through the indwelling Spirit, enables believers to overcome the self daily and submit fully to Him. Deliverance from sin is an accomplished reality; self-denial is an ongoing experience.

If a believer understands the full salvation of the cross, then at the moment of regeneration—in other words, when he receives Jesus as Savior—he can simultaneously be delivered from sin and receive new life. Unfortunately, many ministers do not present God’s complete salvation to the sinner. As a result, people believe only a partial gospel and thus receive only partial salvation. Their sins are forgiven, yet they lack the power not to sin. In some cases, even when the full gospel is preached, the believer may only seek the grace of forgiveness, not the power to be free from sin. As a result, they too receive only part of salvation.

If a believer, at the moment of regeneration, believes in the complete salvation and receives it, then in his Christian life, he will rarely experience defeat in battles against sin. Rather, he will face more conflicts against self. However, such believers are rare. While we cannot estimate their number, we can say confidently that they are very few. The majority of believers receive only half of salvation. Therefore, most of their spiritual battles are against sin. Some, when first regenerated, do not even know what self means.

A person’s experience prior to regeneration also plays a role in this. Many people, before they believe, already have a tendency toward doing good (though they lack the power to do it). Their conscience may be relatively enlightened, but their strength to act is weak, so conflict is inevitable. What the world calls the struggle between reason and desire is this very thing. When such people hear the full gospel of salvation, they eagerly receive the grace of deliverance from sin, just as they do forgiveness. Others, however, whose consciences were darkened and lives were dominated by great sin before they believed, never seriously intended to do good. When they hear the full gospel, they tend to grasp the grace of forgiveness naturally and neglect (not reject) the grace of freedom from sin. After regeneration, such people will especially experience intense battles with the sin in their flesh.

Why? Because once a person is born again and receives the new life, this life insists on dethroning the flesh and taking over lordship. God’s life is absolute; it demands total authority. Once it enters the human spirit, it requires that the person abandon his former sinful master and submit fully to the Holy Spirit. But sin is deeply rooted in this person. Though the will has been renewed by the regenerating life, it has long been allied with both sin and self. Therefore, in many cases, it still inclines toward sin. As a result, a fierce battle breaks out between the new life and the flesh. Since such believers are numerous, I must particularly focus on their experiences. Still, let the reader remember: this kind of long and repeated struggle with sin (as distinct from self) is not necessary.

The flesh seeks complete dominion. So does the spiritual life. The flesh wants permanent submission; the spiritual life wants total surrender to the Spirit. Flesh and spirit differ in every way. The nature of the flesh is of the first Adam; the nature of the spiritual life is of the last Adam. The motivations of the flesh are earthly; the intentions of the spiritual life are heavenly. The flesh is centered on self; the spiritual life is centered on Christ. Because of these differences, one cannot avoid ongoing battles with the flesh. The flesh tries to lead one into sin; the spiritual life urges one toward righteousness. Therefore, after regeneration, if a believer does not understand Christ’s full salvation, he will often experience this inner conflict.

Young believers, when they notice such warfare within themselves, are often confused. Some become discouraged, thinking they are hopelessly evil and unable to progress. Some even begin to doubt the authenticity of their regeneration. But little do they realize—it is because they are born again that such battles exist. When the flesh ruled alone, there was no resistance. Since the spirit was dead, sin caused no guilt. But now that the new life has come—with its heavenly nature, desires, light, and intentions—it illuminates just how corrupt and vile the old life was. These new desires cannot bear ongoing defilement and seek to walk in God’s will. Naturally, the flesh resists the spirit. This conflict makes the believer feel as though there are two persons inside him, each with its own will and strength, vying for victory. When he follows the spiritual life and wins, he rejoices. When the flesh wins, he inevitably reproaches himself. This very struggle is evidence of regeneration.

God’s purpose is not to reform the flesh, but to destroy it. God gives His life to man at regeneration precisely to use this life to eliminate the self within the flesh. Though the life God gives is powerful, the newly born believer is like a newborn baby—very weak—while the flesh, having ruled for so long, is extremely dominant. Add to that the believer’s failure to grasp full salvation by faith, and the result is that even after regeneration, one still remains carnal. To be carnal means to still be governed by the flesh. The saddest part is that the believer now has heavenly light shining within, knows the flesh is despicable, and longs to overcome it—but is too weak to do so. This is often the most tearful and sorrowful stage. Every regenerated person has a new desire to be rid of sin and to please God. But their will is not yet strong, and they are often defeated by the flesh. Victories are few, defeats many—how could this not lead to anguish?

Paul’s experience in Romans 7 describes this exact struggle:“I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate... I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it... I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do... I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind...” (Romans 7:15–23). His final cry resonates in the hearts of all who share this experience: “Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?” (v. 24)

What is the meaning of this struggle? It is one form of the Holy Spirit’s discipline. God has already prepared a complete salvation. If people fail to receive it, it is either because they do not know it or do not want it. God can only grant according to what we believe, accept, and fully appropriate. So when a person seeks forgiveness and regeneration, God grants both. But He also uses such inner battles to drive believers to seek the victorious life in Christ. If a believer lacks understanding, through these struggles he is moved to seek knowledge. Then the Holy Spirit has the opportunity to reveal how Christ dealt with the old man on the cross—so that the believer may believe and receive. If a believer fails to receive because he does not want it, the truth he knows remains only in his mind. Repeated defeat will show him how useless mere head knowledge is, and stir up in him a hunger to experience the truth he already knows.

This kind of conflict intensifies over time. If such believers do not grow discouraged and remain faithful, the battles may become fiercer still. And these struggles will not cease until deliverance is obtained.