Reflection on Rom 8:8

Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

This concerns the way we think. Our minds are rooted either in the flesh – that is, in our own selfish interests – or in the Spirit. To be rooted in the Spirit means to respect God’s laws and to have a heavenly perspective – that is, to keep eternity in mind and to strive to do God’s will.

In the past, people believed that our Earth was at the centre and everything revolved around it – they were adherents of geocentrism. But it was found to be a false opinion and people started to believe the theory about the Sun being the centre around which everything revolves – i.e. heliocentrism. This too was found to be a false theory. In spiritual terms, many people regard their ego as the centre of the whole universe, which is egocentrism. If we do not truly live by faith in the Triune God, egocentrism becomes the guiding principle and central focus of our lives and we are on a false path. The true view is theocentrism, which means that Theos (God) is the centre of the universe and of our life.

To allow God to be at the centre of the life of a Christian, it is necessary to resist the rule of ego and its mind, i.e. egocentrism, which is the carnal mind. The Scripture says about it, “…the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be.”

Conversion means to receive Christ as our Saviour and as our Lord, too, and the following of Christ means that we continue on this path and in this direction; in other words, we follow Christ as He calls us, saying, “Deny yourself… and follow Me!” We must deny the carnal mind, which is a cross for us to bear. Let us carry this cross patiently and follow Jesus. Then we will come to Calvary, where we will put off our old self, and after that we will enter into the eternal glory of heaven. This is the calling of every Christian, be it a man or a woman, a monk or a priest.

It is a wrong attitude for parents to force a teenage boy or girl to deny themselves and resist the spirit of the world without being provided an opportunity for conversion. Self-denial without true conversion is an unbearable burden which they want to get rid of as quickly as possible. However, even if they are converted and change their minds – which is a gift of the Spirit of God – they have to go through the next stage of struggle so as not to be drawn back to the world. Therefore they need a living fellowship and encouragement on the path of following Christ.

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