Many times, right after we say we have been crucified with Christ, we have died with Him, we have been buried with Him, the natural question is, why am I still feeling the tendency to sin? That means my old man is still alive, right? So, that means I need to crucify my old man. Where is the problem here?
A lot of people, because of the way theologians have taught over the years, think that this is the old man who has not been crucified. And we have to crucify ourselves. Now, that is biblically erroneous teaching. In the Bible, it is very clear that you have been crucified with Christ. That is a fact that has been written throughout the Scriptures.
You cannot deny that fact. And Paul says to reckon yourselves dead to sin. He doesn’t say to consider yourself alive. So, where is the problem here? First and foremost, we need to understand that you don’t need to have a sinful nature in order to be tempted to sin. Think about Adam, for instance. He was created perfect.
The Flesh is not what you think it is
So why was he tempted to sin? You really don’t need a sinful nature in order to be tempted to sin. But, I agree there’s something apart from your old self which is pushing you to sin or tempting you to sin. That is the flesh. What is the flesh? A lot of times, flesh has been thought of as something bad. So when you say someone is walking according to the flesh, we understand it as walking according to sexual immorality or strife or division or things like that. Something really bad. But flesh is not always bad. Even if you look at the meaning of the word “flesh,” which is G4559 in the Strong’s Concordance, it’s the word sarikikos or sometimes translated as sarx. It also means material things needed for sustenance. In Romans 15:27, Paul was saying that if the Gentiles have shared in spiritual things, you are indebted to minister to them also in material things.
In 1 Corinthians 9:11, Paul talks about, “Is it too much if we reap material things from you?” This “material” here is actually sarkikos, or flesh. So, it’s not always the bad things. Paul is not saying, “Is it too much if we reap flesh from you?” No, that’s not what he’s saying. He is saying that if we reap material things—things that we need in your daily life.
So, what is the flesh? Flesh is a natural programming. It is a mindset. It’s an unrenewed mindset. So, flesh is a natural programming that motivates us to put confidence apart from Christ. Before you were born again, you had a spirit that was dead, and you had your soul, which includes your mind, emotion, and will.
New Hardware Old software
And then you have your flesh. So, what happened at the time of salvation? We know that our spirit became one with the Spirit of the Lord. Then, in your soul, it is under your authority. God is not going to take control over your mind because that is where your will is. It is supposed to be done by you. You are the one who will have to renew your mind because if you don’t renew your mind, you will have new hardware but the wrong software. You’ll have the latest processor, but your software will still be Windows 98. And because of that, you will not be able to operate in the true identity of who you are.
The Old software or Flesh could look good
So that’s what the flesh is—the old programming, the old system, the old way of thinking, strategies, attitudes, coping mechanisms. In 1 Cor 1:26, it says, “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble.”
So, apparently, according to the flesh, we can find a way to be wise, strong, mighty, and noble, or to have identity or status. The world teaches us ways to get these apart from Christ. It teaches you to wear branded clothes so that you will feel important. Then you can also try to have your identity in the fact that you’re driving an expensive car, and when people look at you, they will see you as a person with value. That is also according to the world’s teaching.
Now you see, doing these things is not bad. You can earn money and still have your identity in Christ. You can buy a new car, but still have your identity in Christ. So you see, it’s where your heart is. Flesh can be a source of smarts, a source of strength, a source of status. So flesh is something that we can put confidence in.
What Flesh isn’t
It is not who we are. So, flesh is not your heart—I should make that clear. Flesh is not yourself. It is an unrenewed mindset that you can follow. It is not you. It is not who you are. Let’s look at Philippians 3:3–6: “For we are the true circumcision, who worship in the Spirit of God and glory in Christ and put no confidence in the flesh.”
Now, listen to Paul making a list of flesh. He says, “Although I myself might have confidence in the flesh. If anyone has a mind to put confidence in the flesh, I far more.” Listen to this: “Circumcised on the eighth day.” Not a bad thing, but still, he was putting his identity on the fact that he was circumcised on the eighth day.
And it says, “Of the nation of Israel.” You’ve heard people say, “I come from the most powerful nation on earth. You cannot do anything to me.” So, that means even though they call themselves Christians, they can still walk according to the flesh by their identity, which is in their citizenship. For a person like that, if they are in a problem, they can put their identity in the fact that “Because of my citizenship, everything is going to be okay.”
“My government is going to take care of me,” rather than putting confidence in the fact that you’re a son of God and God will take care of you. You see, that’s a subtle difference there.
Continuing to read, “Of the tribe of Benjamin.” That means someone might say, “My family built the roads here, built the church here, and my family is related to this pastor. He knows that person, he’s the head of this ministry.” So that’s a confidence in the flesh. And then Paul says, “A Hebrew of Hebrews, as to the law, a Pharisee; as to zeal, a persecutor of the church; as to the righteousness which is in the law, found blameless.”
Now, the last part is actually the religious flesh, which we will touch on in a future discussion. But here, you see Paul talks about status, heritage, and putting our confidence in that. It’s not a problem to have a heritage. It’s not a problem to have an education. It’s not a problem to have a status. But rather, it becomes a problem when you put your identity in it.
The Flesh can easily entangle us
I remember a few years ago when I was doing my PhD. I was a student, and because of that, we were not dressed in an amazing way. You understand what I mean. My wife and I would go around on bicycles and live very modestly. When we met people, we noticed a certain condescension from some of them—whether it was because of how we looked or how we were dressed, without branded clothes or anything of that sort.
I also remember being in Germany, where there was this one person who initially didn’t talk much to me. He kept saying that he had studied at a premier institute in India. One day, during lunch, this guy finally asked me, “So, where did you study?” I told him the name of the institute I attended, which also happened to be a premier institute. Suddenly, his whole demeanor changed. His identity was not rooted in Christ; his identity was rooted in his education.
It’s something that can creep into our daily lives. When we earn money, when we achieve status, or when people look at us differently, we might start putting our hope, our trust, and our heart into those things. But that is the flesh. You see, our flesh is not our old man. The old man has been crucified. Our sinful nature has been crucified. We don’t have a sinful nature anymore, but we do have flesh.
Flesh is alive
Our flesh is very much alive. You can be a pastor, a preacher, or a minister and still live in the flesh. The flesh can bring about the works of the flesh. These works are given in Galatians 5:19–21: “Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing.”
The flesh tempts you to do these things. That’s what the flesh does. So when Galatians 5:16 says, “Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh,” it means to set your mind on the Spirit, not on the flesh. When inappropriate thoughts or deeds of the flesh come, remember—they are not you. You have been crucified. So when these temptations come, you have the choice to not obey the flesh but rather to walk in the Spirit.
Your true nature is given in Galatians 5:22–23: “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” This is your true nature. So, you have an option to walk according to the flesh or according to the Spirit.
That is why, even though you have been crucified, buried, and your old man is dead, the flesh—the unrenewed mindset—can still come up with these things. The flesh can tempt you to do things. That’s why Paul says in Romans 12:2, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.”
Why? Because the transformation on the outside happens when you renew your mind. When you completely agree with what God has said about you in the Scriptures, when you put your identity in Christ, that is true mind renewal. When that happens, the expression, the transformation, the metamorphosis—which is the word for “transform” in that verse—happens. It’s like the change that happens to a caterpillar when it becomes a butterfly. That kind of external change happens to us, from the spirit to the natural realm.
That is when it shows on the outside. We can be transformed. If you continue reading that verse, it says, “So that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect.” You don’t have to keep asking God, “What is your will? What is your will?” You will prove the will of God when you walk in the Spirit.
When you walk by love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control—when you live Christ inside out—you will walk in and prove the will of God. That is how you walk. But if you keep saying, “I have not been crucified. I am still a sinner,” and if you identify yourself as a sinner, you are living by the flesh.
Identity problem
When you live by the flesh, you are identifying yourself with something that is no longer true about you. The old man has been crucified. You are no longer a sinner by nature. The Bible says in 2 Corinthians 5:17, “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.” Your old identity as a sinner is gone. Your new identity is in Christ.
So, when you act according to the flesh, it is not because your old man is still alive—it’s because your mind hasn’t been renewed. You’re still operating with old programming. It’s like having the latest hardware but running outdated software. You’re not taking full advantage of who you are in Christ.
This is why Paul says in Ephesians 4:22–24, “Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Notice the emphasis on being renewed in your mind. The transformation happens when your mind aligns with the truth of who you are in Christ.
When you identify yourself as righteous in Christ, your actions will follow. The fruit of the Spirit—love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control—will naturally manifest in your life. It’s not about striving to produce these qualities; they flow out of you because they are already in your spirit.
When you walk in the Spirit, you’re walking in agreement with your true identity. You’re no longer living according to the flesh, which is the unrenewed mindset. Instead, you’re living in alignment with the Spirit of God, who is one with your spirit.
This is why Paul says in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Notice the past tense: “I have been crucified.” It’s a finished work. Your old self is dead. You are alive in Christ.
Stop resurrecting the dead sinful nature. You are dead to sin!
But if you keep identifying yourself as a sinner, you’ll keep struggling with sin. It’s a matter of identity. If you see yourself as a sinner, you’ll act like one. But if you see yourself as the righteousness of God in Christ, you’ll act in righteousness. This is why renewing your mind is so important.
Paul addresses this in Romans 8:5–6, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.” It’s all about where you set your mind.
When you set your mind on the Spirit, you’ll experience life and peace. You’ll walk in victory over sin because you’re walking in alignment with your true nature. But when you set your mind on the flesh, you’ll struggle. The flesh will tempt you to act in ways that are contrary to your new identity. That’s why Paul urges us to walk by the Spirit and not by the flesh.
Remember, walking by the Spirit is not about trying harder. It’s about agreeing with who you are in Christ. It’s about recognizing that you are a new creation, that you have been crucified with Christ, and that sin has no dominion over you. You are free.
Paul explains this beautifully in Romans 6:6–7, “We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. For one who has died has been set free from sin.” You are no longer a slave to sin because your old self is dead. You are free in Christ.
Live it out
So, the next time you feel tempted to sin, remember who you are. You are the righteousness of God in Christ. You are holy, sanctified, and justified. Sin has no power over you. You have been set free. Walk in that freedom. Walk in the Spirit. Walk in the truth of your new identity.
This is the message of the New Covenant: you are no longer under the law. You are under grace. You are a new creation. The old has passed away, and the new has come. Live in the reality of who you are in Christ, and you will see the fruit of the Spirit manifest in your life.
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