According to the Bible, our earthly human body with its human nature is identified as the “fleshly man.” On the other hand, there is a place deep inside our hearts where God resides and reigns that is regarded as our “spiritual man.” Our fleshly man and spiritual man are usually quite at odds with one another. In general, our flesh wants what and when it wants, believes that an “easy” life without difficulty will bring fulfillment, and presumes that our lives will be complete without experiencing any hardships.
These fleshly beliefs could be no further from God’s truth. It is God’s desire to bring us, His beloved children, whom He loves more than we are able to comprehend, to a spiritual plateau where we discover purpose, power, meaning, and lasting fulfillment in our earthly lives and throughout eternity. This on-going spiritual process will gradually bring change to our soul, and create love, joy, faith, and peace in our hearts. As our spiritual man grows up and overshadows our fleshly man, we will still engage in difficulty, trials, and temptations, but they will push us towards an ordained, divine, and spiritual plateau. Although it seems madness to the natural man, God tells our spiritual man to consider it joy when we encounter trials of any sort or when we fall into various temptations. As our spirit receives this concept by faith, the Lord promises that He is working in and through all our hard circumstances to develop a life of faith, where we will learn to walk by faith and not by sight, and find rest through our King-Priest, Jesus Christ. Then our growing endurance, steadfastness, and patience will catapult us to higher spiritual ground where we may be perfected and fully developed, without defects and lacking nothing. God’s love longs for us to receive more of His mercy and grace, which will take us into His Presence, even though it may be a struggle to believe that He is working His life and Holy Spirit into our lives when circumstance seem so hard.
When we find ourselves in difficulty, let us remember to consider it a wholly joyful condition, because God is working something lasting, wonderful, and amazing into our lives.
“Consider it wholly joyful, my brethren, whenever you are enveloped in or encounter trials of any sort or fall into various temptations. Be assured and understand that the trial and proving of your faith bring out endurance and steadfastness and patience. But let endurance and steadfastness and patience have full play and do a thorough work, so that you may be [people] perfectly and fully developed [with no defects], lacking in nothing” (James 1:2-4).
