Two Natures: Old & New
DAY 4
No Reformation
Read Romans 7:15,18-25; 8:5-9; Galatians 5:19-21,24-25.
Romans 7:15,18-21 pictures a Christian who attempts to reform the old nature. Summarize the struggle in your own words.
Did you record something like this?
• “I want to do good, but I can’t do it.”
• “I don’t want to do evil, but I do it anyway.”
In what ways can you identify with the struggle you’ve just summarized? Take time to think before you record your answer.
It doesn’t seem logical that Christ would give you His indwelling life, yet you live in such a struggle. However, the struggle is a reality because your old nature can’t be reformed. When a tree has apple roots, the branches produce apple fruit. The nature of the root always determines the nature of the fruit. Your old nature still attempts to produce the same kind of fruit it produced before you became a Christian.
Galatians 5:22-23 lists the fruit of the new nature. List that fruit here.
Now read Galatians 5:19-21 and list the fruit of the old nature.
Count the number of deeds related to the old nature that you personally experienced before you became a Christian. Record that number here.
Now count the number of deeds related to the old nature that you’ve experienced since you became a Christian. Record the number here.
What observation can you make after comparing the two numbers?
Many Christians tend to trust their old nature too far. They assume that giving their lives to Christ automatically removed everything that might lead them astray. Big mistake! They forget that the old nature can’t be changed and can’t be trusted.
It’s a little like two former alcoholics. Both had kicked the habit, as far as they or anyone else could tell. But one of them was so proud of himself that he took just a little drink to show that he knew when to stop. As a result, he returned to alcoholism. The other knew better than to trust himself. He avoided times, places, and situations when the temptation to start drinking again might be too great.
In your opinion, why do people so easily trust the old nature after becoming Christians?
Perhaps you stated that we don’t take sin seriously enough or that sin uses our tendency to trust the old nature as a way of regaining control of our lives. Sometimes Christians have to take some pretty hard blows before they realize they can’t ever place confidence in their old nature again. Self, I, sin—all of these are words for the old nature.
The old nature will never be any different but will always produce the same ugly fruit.
Because the old nature isn’t dead, a civil war rages within you daily. Your new nature and your old nature constantly struggle with each other.
Read Romans 7:22-25.
These verses describe the struggle of a Christian who hasn’t made a clear-cut decision to let the indwelling Christ be the Lord of his life.
Romans 7:23 mentions a frequent result of war: captivity. And Romans 7:24 pictures a hideous situation. Ancient conquerors developed a terrible way of torturing prisoners. They bound a corpse to a prisoner so tightly that the living man, if he tried to escape, would have to carry the dead man on his back.
In verse 24 the apostle Paul asked a question that shows he may have been thinking about this horrible torture. What’s the question?
“Who will rescue me from this body of death?” Paul pleaded. Verse 25 gives both the name and the title of the One who can release you from this internal civil war. Record them both here.
Name: __________
__________Title: __________
What significance does this title have in bringing an end to the civil war between your two natures?
If Jesus Christ is truly your Lord, He must control your life. You must submit to His lordship and refuse to obey your old human nature.
Another expression for “the old nature” is “the flesh.” Remember what these terms mean and read Romans 8:5-6.
These two verses contrast two types of life you can experience as a Christian. One is the life of a Christian who has yielded to the rule of the old nature. The other is the life of a Christian who has yielded to the rule of the new nature.
Complete the chart to show the contrast.
| The Old Nature | The New Nature | |
| Mindset (v. 5) | ||
| Results (v. 6) |
• Is __________
toward God.• Doesn’t __________
.• Can’t __________
.• Can’t __________
__________.Your four phrases should be something like this.
• Hostile (or an enemy) toward God.
• Doesn’t subject himself to God’s law. Actions are disobedient to God’s law.
• Can’t subject herself to God’s law. Incapable of obeying God’s law.
• Can’t please God.
What conclusions have you reached about your life as you studied Romans 8:5-8?
Romans 8:9 tells you that the Spirit of God dwells in you. The word dwell means “to reside permanently.”
Is there any time or area in your life in which Christ doesn’t reign as Lord? Explain your answer.
You may have had difficulty putting your answers to the two previous questions into words. Remember that even when you can’t put your feelings into words, you can pray about them. Christ’s indwelling Spirit will understand your feelings and express them to God for you.
To conclude your quiet time today, meditate on those two questions and pray.