Romans 8:9 - You Have the Power to Say No.
Romans 8:9 (NLT) But you are not controlled
by your sinful nature. You are controlled by
the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living
in you. (And remember that those who do not
have the Spirit of Christ living in them do not
belong to him at all.)
Some people today insist that we should
just give in to any desire that comes our way. If
it feels good, do it! If it serves you, go for
it! If everyone else is doing it, why not? As
long as it doesnt hurt anyone, have at it!
Its a destructive mindset. Just
because you have the desire to eat an entire
chocolate cake doesnt mean its good for you. And
just because you think doing something wont
hurt anyone doesnt mean youre free of the
consequences of your choices.
Romans 8:9 says, You are not
controlled by your sinful nature. You are controlled by
the Spirit if you have the Spirit of God living
in you (NLT).
Before you became a believer, you only
had willpower to fight against temptations. But
it was never enough. You were relatively
powerless against the cravings that drove you to make
unhealthy and destructive choices.
As a believer, you now have the Holy
Spirit - and a new ability to say no. You
still have the same compulsions, desires, lusts,
and impulses you had before you began a
relationship with Jesus. But now the power of God resides
in you. Now you have the power to say
no.
The Bible says, So I say, let the Holy
Spirit guide your lives. Then you wont be doing
what your sinful nature craves (Galatians 5:16
NLT). It doesnt say you wont have sinful
desires after you become a Christian. Youre still
going to be a sinful human. But you do have the
Holy Spirit, who will help you choose not to
satisfy those desires.
If you ever hear people say, Im a
Christian, but I couldnt stop myself, theyre
lying. They can stop themselves! They simply never
called on the power of the Holy Spirit in the
moment of temptation. They didnt surrender to
his guidance in their lives.
You have the greatest power in the
universe available to you. Its your choice to use
it to say no to anything that does not
honor and please God. [Daily Devotional by Rick
Warren: https://pastorrick.com/devotional/]
LINK FOR FURTHER STUDY
Romans 8:6 - HOLY SPIRIT LIVING!!!
https://www.abible.com/devotions/2023/20230331-0855.html
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
https://abible.com/links/