"This Ugly Flesh"

"An evil disease, say they, cleaveth fast unto him: and now that he lieth he shall rise no more." (Psalms 41:8) To be perfectly honest, this flesh can really be hard to put down, especially when it keeps getting fed. Not that this has anything to do with this verse above, because it may or may not; but then again, I just say whatever I think God is putting upon my heart; and today it's about this ugly flesh. I don't care how strong you think that you are as a Christian, if Christ is not the one who is in charge of your life, then you have not got the strength to put down the flesh; you might think that you do, and you might even pray as though you do, but if Jesus Christ is not the Lord of your entire life, then you are feeding that flesh in at least one area of your life. As was stated in the closing of yesterday's post, Jude used the term of "the garment spotted by the flesh", a term that speaks about these robes of righteousness, which are to be worn by those which have been justified in Christ, having spots which are caused by the earthly nature of the flesh, the same flesh that is to be considered crucified and buried in Christ. I heard an analogy yesterday given about a river, and it used to explain how it was okay for Adam and Eve's children to have children together, because the closer you are to the source of the river, the purer the source; put the further away you get from the source, the more the water becomes contaminated and is no longer pure. This same analogy works in our daily lives in which we are to be abiding in Christ: Christ is the source of are strength, and each and every day we must begin at the source, not each and every Sunday, or whatever day it is that causes us to recommit our lives to Him; but every day we commit our lives to Him anew, expecting Him to draw out of us those things which feed our flesh, and those things which cause those spots to appear in these robes of righteousness. The further we get away from the source, the more contaminated we become by the flesh; the more contaminated we become by the flesh, the less we are any useful for Christ, because the less pure the water is that flows out of us... "In the last day, the great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the Scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of Living Water. (But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)" (John 7:37-39)