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      "Two Natures of the Believer"
      Selected Scriptures
      Theme: Despite the enduring presence of the flesh, the believer as a new creation possesses the ability to overcome through the power of God’s Spirit.

        1. The Conflict within the Saints – "We believe that every saved person possesses two natures …"

          1. The Creation of the New Man

            1. When a sinner comes to faith in Jesus Christ, there is an essential change in his being.
            2. It isn’t enough to merely describe his as reforming – that is, he doesn’t merely find behavioral alteration – but an essential change.
            3. At salvation, a sinner becomes a new creation – fashioned after the likeness of Jesus Christ – cp. 2 Corinthians 5:18; Ephesians 4:24
            4. The existence of this "new creation" is established by God at the moment of justification when a person is made holy – fully sanctified positionally and identified as a "saint."
            5. As a believer obeys the Word of God, the Holy Spirit works to progressively sanctify him so that he is able to live a life of increasing holiness in conformity to the will of God – becoming more like our Lord Jesus Christ – cp. John 17:17-19; 2 Corinth-ians 3:18
            6. Although a believer cannot become more holy in the eyes of the God who has sanctified him, he is able to experience a growth in the practical knowledge of what it means to become like Christ – 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Peter 3:18
            7. We are to realize the impact of Christ’s work to deliver us from sin – cp. 1 John 3:5-9
            8. The Scriptures describe the "old man" as being crucified with Christ and buried with him – cp. Romans 6:4-7; Colossians 3:9-10

          2. The Competition with the New Man

            1. However, the experience of overcoming the power of sin and the principle of sin that continues to exert itself in our lives competes with the Spirit of God – cp. Galatians 5:16-25
            2. It is in this way that believer must concern himself with the influence of sin in his life and seek to "put it off" once and for all (aorist middle infinitive) – cp. Ephesians 4:22-24
            3. Paul’s struggle with this opponent of new man is evident throughout Romans 7 where he struggles to overcome the sin that is so powerfully present in him – cp. Romans 7:15-21
            4. The constant responsibility of the believer is to submit himself to God and refuse to yield to the mastery of sin – cp. Romans 6:13; 8:12-13

        2. The Control by the Spirit – "… with the provision made for victory of the new nature over the old nature through the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit;"

          1. The Provision of the Spirit (Indwelling)

            1. The ability to continually refuse the mastery of sin and yield to yourself to righteousness is entirely dependent upon the provision of the indwelling Holy Spirit – cp. Galatians 3:3
            2. God has poured out His Spirit to dwell within the believer – John 14:17; 1 Corinthians 6:19
            3. It is this indwelling Spirit that generates the life of the "new man" – thus enabling a believer to overcome sin – cp. Romans 8:9-11

          2. The Power of the Spirit (Filling)

            1. Again, the victory over sin comes through yielding to the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit.
            2. This control of the Holy Spirit in the life of the yielded believer is called the "filling" with the Spirit – Ephesians 5:18.
              1. Thus, it refers to the unhindered ministry of the Spirit who leads the believer into greater conformity to Christ.
              2. It is a repeated condition – a present imperative = "keep being filled with the Spirit."
                1. The Spirit can be grieved: to resist the Spirit’s working within you to bring you to conformity to Christ – Ephesians 4:30-32
                2. The Spirit can be quenched: .to disallow the Spirit to work through you – 1 Thessalonians 5:19
            3. There is no victory over the flesh independent of the Spirit of God – it is the application of His power that gives us the ability to overcome – and find genuine Christlikeness – 2 Corinthians 3:17-18.

        3. The Constancy of the Struggle – "… and, that all claims to the eradication of the old nature in this life are unscriptural."

          1. The Persistence of the Flesh

            1. Clearly any assertion that a person has overcome the flesh in this world is false – cp. 1 John 1:8
            2. The flesh hangs on to plague the believer throughout his life – causing the perpetual struggle or warfare between the flesh and the Spirit – Galatians 5:16; Romans 7:24-25
            3. Clearly Paul teaches that he had not attained unto perfection – Philippians 3:12-14
            4. The apostle John also teaches that we have not yet found the attainment of what we will one day be – cp. 1 John 3:2

          2. The Prospect of Freedom

            1. However, the great and blessed hope of the believer is the prospect of finally being delivered not only from the penalty of sin and the power of sin, but the very presence of sin itself – 1 John 3:2.
            2. This is the upward call Paul refers to in Philippians 3
            3. Therefore we embark on a perpetuated effort to realize in our practical experience what God has promised ultimately in glory – cp. 1 Peter 1:14-16

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