Overcoming Fleshly Battles

For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. (Galatians 5:17)

Years ago, I had a young man named Joe come in for a Sozo session.

Joe was very gregarious and seemed to have a lot of joy in his life, but as we worked through our session together, I quickly discerned he was hiding something he didn’t want me to find.

About halfway through our session, I saw a picture of an old homeless woman. She was bent over with unkempt hair and had filthy clothes. As I watched her painfully shuffle along, I noticed one of her stockings was rolled halfway down her leg.

To be honest, I wasn’t sure what this picture meant, but because I felt the Holy Spirit was on it, I related the picture to Joe. As I told him about the image, he began to cry.

“I don’t want to give it up,” Joe said. “But I told God if He exposed my old friend, I’d repent and hand it over.”

“Who is your old friend?” I asked.

“Chewing tobacco,” he said.

Joe went on to explain he was addicted to it and had been arguing with God for years about giving it up. He was still reluctant to quit, but then I asked God to show him the desire that his “old friend” (chewing tobacco) had for him. Immediately, Joe sat back in his chair and screamed, “I forsake my old friend now in Jesus’s name!”

Surprised at how violent his reaction was, I asked Joe why he was so eager now to break agreement with his old friend. Looking up in horror, he said, “The Holy Spirit showed me a picture of my old friend pulling back my lip. Underneath it was a glob of lip cancer that had eaten away my flesh. It was awful!”

I was not surprised to hear that years later Joe was still tobacco free.

. . .

Much of becoming a wise warrior for Christ depends on our ability to discern what types of attacks the enemy is using against us.

Once we learn how to identify the types of attacks he is using, we can partner with Christ to reverse their influence and instill His truth. As we grow in spiritual warfare, it is important to realize that not every battle we face is spiritual. Sometimes our battles are flesh and/or soul related—meaning that they target our minds or fleshly, physical desires.

When discussing the idea of soul versus flesh battles, I typically divide the areas into two categories—soul wounds and fleshly desires. For the purpose of this article, we will focus on fleshly desires and on the battles that specifically target our flesh.

In Devils, Demons, and Deliverance, Christian author Marilyn Hickey states that we can figure out whether we’re dealing with a flesh or soul issue by understanding this truth: soul issues show up in how we react; flesh issues by how we act.1

Flesh issues occur when we battle our desires—those urges that keep telling us “I’ve gotta have it! I gotta have it!” They tend to lead us to unhealthy or ungodly pursuits. Winning these types of battles sometimes only occurs when we are willing to say no to the temptations and yes to Christ. Consider this verse:

No temptation has overtaken you that is not common to man. God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your ability, but with the temptation he will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it (1 Corinthians 10:13).

Thankfully, God has given us plenty of weapons we can use when fighting against our flesh. Some of these weapons include: 1) taking thoughts captive, 2) clothing ourselves with obedience, and 3) leaning into the Holy Spirit for His strength. When battling the flesh, it might seem impossible to win and stop sinning. However, the Bible says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13 NKJV).

Taking Thoughts Captive

Scripture commands us to stand when we have done all to stand (see Eph. 6:13). Taking control of our thoughts is one of the best ways we can “stand” when we are facing fleshly desires. It is important here to realize our fleshly actions are very often a direct result of our thoughts. Part of taking thoughts captive is realizing we are not victims to our appetites; we have a choice and a responsibility to say no when necessary.

Our honesty and willingness to follow Christ in all circumstances becomes a powerful act of warfare as we take authority over the thoughts in our mind and choose righteousness—no matter how bad our physical or mental urges feel.

Sy Rogers, an evangelist and international speaker, has a profound testimony in this regard. A gay man who lived as a woman for a year and a half, Jesus met Rogers and changed his life forever. In an article, he wrote:

To be pleasing to God, to be loved and not rejected by Him—that was all I wanted. As I prayed my life into His hands, trusting Him, the “old man” died and the “new me” was born! What had happened to me? I wasn't sure, but I felt good. Peaceful. Clean. Forgiven. And confident that God would be with me now to help me begin living a decidedly different life.2

Although Rogers had a radical conversion and was determined to follow Jesus wholeheartedly, his attraction to other men did not immediately leave. He still had to fight his fleshly desires and walk his deliverance out. Perhaps his internal dialogue became, “I want this [insert name of sin here], but I want Jesus more.” Through obedience, Rogers chose his relationship with Jesus over the urges of his flesh and eventually broke the power of its hold over him.

Many times with God, our salvation brings about instantaneous deliverance. We immediately break free from our fleshly desires and rejoice in our newfound freedom. These are some of the most wonderful times. In my own life when I accepted Christ, many of my fleshly urges disappeared and never returned. However, other issues, although disempowered from my life, required me to take action and fight so I could stay free.

In these moments, I had to learn how to walk out my freedom and take hold of righteousness, even on days when I didn’t feel like it. Sometimes warring against my flesh became a constant, daily battle as I refused to listen to the whispers of the enemy and turned to the Lord. Eventually, this battle was overcome, but it was not because God appeared and instantly delivered me from my evil desires. This battle was won by me standing and denying my flesh—even when I didn’t want to.

I want to encourage you that as you walk in righteousness before the Lord, sometimes you will have to get down in the dirt and wrestle your flesh until you pin it to the ground.

Clothing Ourselves in Obedience

Years ago, I was talking to my good friend Renee at our church’s coffee shop. While we were ordering drinks, Renee looked at me and said, “Dawna, are you alright? You don’t look like you’re getting much sleep.”

Brushing it off, I said, “I know, but it’s fine. I’m not getting a lot of sleep, but boy, am I having fun dreams.”

“What kind of dreams?” She asked.

“Well,” I started out excitedly, “last night I was having dreams about flying around as a superhero. I was rescuing kids from bad guys. It was so fun.”

As soon as I finished, Renee looked at me with concern and said, “Dawna, that is a spirit of fantasy.”

Upon hearing her statement, I was dumbfounded. All my life I had loved this aspect of my life. It was so fun to be able to go to bed at night and enjoy my internal “movies.” But once Renee had called out my sin, I knew she was right.

God began right there at our coffee shop to show me how I had partnered with this spirit of fantasy since I was a little girl.

When I was young, I would go to bed thinking about how I was exploring new galaxies with Captain Kirk and his Star Trek crew. I would lay my head on my pillow and instantly be transported to a new world of fun and adventure. As I grew, these dreams became romanticized—even to the point of turning into sexual liaisons. Obviously, when I became a Christian, I would edit out these events as they arrived. So, without understanding, as a believer I had religiously continued partnering with this spirit of fantasy. And I was so deceived I didn’t even know it.

. . .

Now, before you all panic, I do want to point out there is a distinction between God dreams and fantasy dreams.

One distinction that showed me I was partnering with fantasy dreams was that upon waking, while I was still excited, I felt tired and worn out. Also, throughout the night, I was able to manipulate my dreams to edit out what I felt was either inappropriate or not as exciting as I liked. With God dreams, you are not able to change what you are seeing, and you should wake up feeling rested.

While I do think imagination is important for creativity, my practice had slid me into a realm of unhealthy fantasy. Instead of getting my fuel and assignments from God, I was getting them from an unhealthy imagination. I was allowing my dream life to be my comfort instead of my relationship with God.

After Renee confronted me on my dreams, I realized how deceived I actually was. I quickly repented before God and said, “I am so sorry for partnering with the spirit of fantasy. Please forgive me and close this door to sin. I give You not only my waking hours but my night life as well.”

When I asked God to forgive me and break any agreements I had made with the spiritual realm, God instantly removed the demonic influence that had been controlling my life. He delivered me right then and there, and I knew I had been set free. However, I still had to deny my fleshly desires that kept trying to lead me back into sin. Why? Because later that night, I realized I missed my nighttime friend. My inner nightlife had been meeting a need of significance that wasn’t being met now that I had been set free.

When you have been meeting your needs through a partnership with sin, your spirit will need to be delivered from any demonic agreements you have knowingly or unknowingly made. Your flesh may also need to be cleansed if you have opened a door to sexual sin, physical harm, or addiction. Repentance is a mighty weapon you can use as your first line of defense to stand up against these desires. When fighting a habitual sin, I have found obedience is my greatest weapon.

At first, when I was struggling to resist this former nighttime pattern, I would lay awake feeling myself starting to slip away down the old familiar path. When I felt this start to happen, I would literally say out loud, “I am a child of obedience and I will not partner with you.” This was me pulling on the wisdom in Ephesians 6:13 and standing when I had done all to stand.

As I withstood this spirit, its voice became increasingly weaker, and my ability to hear the Holy Spirit grew stronger. I have to say, however, this fight was not easy. At times during the night, I would literally have tears running down my face as I spoke out against the enemy’s voice. I had grown so accustomed to balancing out my mediocre days with this fantastical escape that on days when I felt short of other people’s expectations, I would feel the desire to slip into fantasy and go away to my happy place where not only was I loved but celebrated.

Eventually, as I continued to wield the weapon of obedience, the fight became easier and the enemy’s lure less appealing. Since winning this battle, I have been able to have wonderful dreams with the Holy Spirit—dreams that encourage me and fill me with hope. When I wake up now, I find myself relaxed and fully refreshed.

Although I have never had an alcohol, drug, or sexual addiction, I do know what an addiction feels like—and my addiction was this former escape. It was the pull toward what felt like freedom from life’s scary impossibilities. But after my victory, I know now it is possible to stand when you have done all to stand!

The truth is you are not a slave to your fleshly desires. You have overcome by the blood of the lamb and all your sin has been forgiven by the cross (see 1 John 1:9). Jesus paid for them once and for all. When you asked Jesus into your heart, He made you new (see 2 Cor. 5:17). Do not ever let the enemy deceive you and make you think you can’t break free. You can do all things through Christ who strengthens you (see Phil. 4:13).

If you are in a battle against your flesh, confess your sin to God and ask Him to forgive you. Hand Him your unhealthy desires and ask Him to override your urges with His presence in your life. If you need to, tell a friend about the issues you have renounced and ask him or her to hold you accountable in wielding your weapon of obedience.

Boundaries

Another strategy for winning fleshly desires is to set up boundaries consistent with your level of freedom. My husband has a brilliant sermon called “What My Pastor Never Told Me.” In it, he makes a distinction between liberty and freedom. Stephen says freedom is an escape from a person, place, or issue, whereas liberty is the capacity to stay free once you have broken through.3 Webster’s states that freedom is “the quality or state of being exempt or released usually from something onerous.”4 The Bible says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Gal. 5:1 NIV). Christ sets us free from a life of sin and death, but He doesn’t take away our free will. (See Romans 6:22.)

Webster’s dictionary defines liberty as “the power to do as one pleases…the power of choice.”5 My husband likens liberty in Christ as the ability to choose appropriately once set free. In his teaching, he states that freedom without liberty always returns us to bondage. In all my years I have found this to be absolutely true. Many people get free from sin but reopen old doors because they fail to choose righteousness in their daily situations. They fall victim to their old sins because they fail to use their freedom judiciously and protect themselves with healthy boundaries.

Boundaries are a great tool we can use to help us manage our newly found freedoms—especially when dealing with difficult issues such as addiction. Boundaries, in my opinion, help reinforce my character with strength until my choice to not sin becomes my new default.

Each of us should have distinct boundaries that match our level of liberty. My setting a boundary for you may not work. It might feel too loose or too restrictive. You will need to ask the Holy Spirit to give you your own strategies for setting and maintaining boundaries, so you can walk in the measure of liberty that you can manage successfully. I have known men who have been set free from pornography who have had to set extremely strict boundaries for themselves (such as no computers in the home until the lure to pull up pornography is completely mastered).

With regards to my own personal story, I still cannot read romance novels—even Christian ones. For me, it opens a door to the wooing of the fantasy spirit, and it says to me, “Wouldn’t it be great to have this type of rescue?” It is also not good for me to watch overly romantic movies.

In our quests to stay healthy, it is important that we become aware of the enemy’s schemes to try to reestablish his hold on our lives and set up healthy boundaries accordingly.

Leaning into the Holy Spirit for His Strength

The enemy’s number one goal in warfare against us is to make us feel powerless. But if we stand fast in our knowledge of God and realize that no temptation is beyond what we can bear, then we will be able to stand firm and resist those fleshly temptations that come from the enemy.

Many times when we are struggling with our flesh, we can come under the lie that tells us it is impossible to overcome. But here are some truths we can use to emerge victorious—when we received Christ, He changed our trajectories. We turned from living in a place of self-satisfaction to living for Him. We left a life of powerlessness and took our rightful place in authority over the enemy and sin. Jesus knows how hard the fight is. He lived as a man but did not sin (see Heb. 4:15). We can rest assured in the goodness of His love and pull on His mercy whenever we need.

It is important to understand that God has made all things new (see Isa. 43:19; 2 Cor 5:17). This includes our ability to withstand our prior propensities to sin. It is an aspect of the immeasurable power of grace—a grace Christ paid for so that we could walk in freedom.

When fighting against the desires of our flesh, we need to lean into the truth of God’s Word, follow His Holy Spirit, and apply Christ’s blood to our lives. In every circumstance, we need to remember that we are not fighting alone. God sent His Holy Spirit to be our helper, so we can lean into Him and call upon His name whenever we need Him (see John 16:7). God’s Spirit will stand with us in our battles to overcome the flesh.

Conclusion

Our battles against the flesh might seem impossible to overcome, but don’t let this lie overtake you. Through partnership with the Holy Spirit, careful obedience to God’s Word, and taking ownership over your thoughts, you can reject the demonic whisperings of the enemy and take authority over your flesh.

Looking at your own life, ask the Lord if there is an area pulling you in the direction of sin. When dealing with fleshly desires, learn how to stand when you have done all to stand. You are not a victim of your flesh. Your desires will bow as you continue to deny the enemy’s voice. Get into God’s Word, pray, make declarations, erect proper boundaries, be honest with God, and take up your weapon of obedience.

Summary

Points to Ponder: Freedom from sin does not always mean you will never have to battle fleshly desires. Sometimes after being set free, you will need to take authority over the desires of your flesh. You can break free from sinful patterns and conform to the image of Christ as you move deeper into His righteous calling.

Verse to Remember: “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me” (Phil. 4:13 NKJV).

Questions to consider:

1. Have you ever felt powerless to overcome your flesh?

2. Have you received deliverance in a specific area but have struggled to stay free?

3. In which areas of your life have you won the battle over your flesh?

4. What boundaries have you created in your life to protect your level of freedom?

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus, for delivering me from the desires of my flesh. I ask that You protect me and keep my mind and body safe. Keep me in Your will so that my life will raise up a sweet and pleasing aroma to You. Thank You for setting me free from the sins of my past. Keep me in the shadow of Your wings.

Activation: Repent for any areas of sin in your life and break agreement with any demonic strongholds you have partnered with. Command these strongholds to bow in Jesus’s name. Repent for any doors to sin you have reopened in your life. Ask the Holy Spirit to clothe you with the mighty weapon of obedience and to show you any new boundaries you may need to implement while establishing proper liberty to match your freedom.

Notes

1. Marilyn Hickey, Devils, Demons, and Deliverance (Dallas: Marilyn Hickey Ministries, 1994), 200.

2. Sy Rogers, “The Man in the Mirror,” Exodus Global Alliance, accessed February 4, 2020, https://www.exodusglobalalliance.org/themaninthemirrorp338.php.

3. Stephen De Silva, “What My Pastor Never Told Me,” recorded at Bethel Church, 2015, compact disc.

4. Merriam-Webster, s.v. “freedom,” accessed February 4, 2020, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/freedom.

5. Merriam-Webster, s.v. “liberty,” accessed February 4, 2020, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/liberty.