How did the great Christians of the past become so godly? They committed themselves to “putting off the old self” (Eph. 4:22) and crucifying destructive desires. This enabled them to completely dwell on God.
We naturally pursue our own desires and worldly things that will soon pass away. We struggle to completely defeat even one fault. It is a battle for us to pursue God’s grace every day. This is why many Christians never mature.
Our own desires keep us from becoming complete Christians. Our ungodly affections keep us from loving God with our whole self. When troubles surround us we naturally look for worldly pleasures to comfort us.
Therefore, we need to be very intentional about conquering our old self. If we think of ourselves as warriors or athletes (I Cor. 9:24-27) and train ourselves to “lay aside every encumbrance that entangles us” (Heb 12:1) then we would make much progress. God will bless us if we “say no to ungodliness and worldly passions” (Titus 2:11). Why should we do anything less than continuously improve our spiritual “skills” in overcoming sin with the fruits of the Spirit? Overcoming our will and our bad habits is very difficult but it will bring us great peace and joy. The effort is small compared to the gain.
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Today’s post is an interpretation of a chapter of the most popular devotional book in the history of Christianity, The Imitation of Christ. It is a profound explanation of spiritual formation. It was written by a monk (or possibly several monks) in the 15th century named Thomas a Kempis. You can view all the posts in this series by selecting “Imitation of Christ” in the categories listing.
