Beyond These Walls: Here We Go! Week 1 Devotional Day 5
DAY 5 – Friday
Daily devotional
Read
Mark 4:5-6, 16-17; Luke 14:25-33; Romans 6:11
Ask
What characterizes a person who is the “rocky ground” type soil? What does this look like in everyday life?
How does one practically “consider” oneself “dead to sin but alive to God” in his/her life (see Romans 6:11)?
Reflect – The Soils (Part 2): The Rocky Ground
Our next soil, the “rocky ground,” allows the seed to sink one layer deeper than “the path.” These folks are described as very excited about Jesus initially— very enthusiastic about being his follower. Unfortunately, when times get tough, they are just as quick to give up on Jesus as they were to follow him. They give up because their faith in Jesus is putting their comfort, their way of life, at risk. They give up because of what the Bible calls “the flesh.”
The flesh is our natural, human propensity toward sinful living. It could be described as our commitment to our earthly comforts and desires over and against our heavenly commitments and destiny. When we choose the ways of the Spirit over the lusts of the flesh, we become the committed disciples that hold on to Jesus and don’t let go, even when the going gets tough. These are the kind of followers that Jesus is seeking. And in order to maintain our commitment to Jesus, we have to overcome the enemy of the flesh.
While our response to the devil is to resist, our response to the flesh is to reckon (that is, to consider). The Bible says, “So you also must consider [reckon] yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus” (Romans 6:11). Our fleshly, sinful ways no longer have any power over us—we can live a new life for God! And we need God’s grace to do this. Our closeness to Jesus has to be far sweeter than all of our earthly comforts if we are going to follow him completely, if we are going to forsake the flesh. Consider praying for God to cultivate a deeper love for Christ and a deeper disgust for the fleshly desires in your life.