The doorway to the flesh and all of its works is called doubt. All doubt, fear, and worry reside in the flesh. There is no doubt, fear, or worry in the Spirit.
When we think of Satan’s temptations, our mind usually goes to his temptation to commit outward acts of sin. But before he can get us to act out in sin, he tempts us to sin by doubting God’s promises. Just think of when we are most likely to sin, isn’t it when we entertain doubt that leads to fear, worry, unrest and despair?
I believe that many do not consider that the enemy’s main temptation, from the very beginning with Adam and Eve until today, is to get us to doubt God’s word. He tempts us to doubt, and like Peter, we look away from the truth of eternity found only in Jesus, unto our temporal circumstances and thus sink into our flesh and the circumstances of this world. The enemy uses the media, circumstances, worldly teachings, what we see with our eyes and other people, scripture twisting, the failures of our flesh and the letter of God's law, to name a few, to tempt us to doubt. All of his temptations are lies. Satan’s system in this world is only designed to sow to the flesh, the old creation, and keep it obedient to him. This is why God tells us to be in the world but not of the world.
If we understand that our enemy’s primary attack is the temptation to doubt, we have a much greater opportunity to close the door on doubt and simply believe. The worst thing we can do is to entertain our doubts, to meditate on them. Stopping all doubt is something we absolutely must do if our life is to be transformed. This is how we walk in God’s peace that overcomes all circumstances.
Jesus repeatedly told us: “Stop doubting and believe." John 20:27b NIV
Doubt is being double-minded, a divided mind, wavering between belief and unbelief. Wavering between fear and faith. It is doubt, double-mindedness that leads to fear and freezes the squirrel in the middle of the road to be run over. Fear can only come if we fall for the enemies temptations to doubt. One of several reasons why Satan wants us in the flesh and double-minded is because our double-mindedness greatly limits God's ability to help us.
But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind. For that man ought not to expect that he will receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways. James 1:6-8 NAS
Here is the Greek definition behind double-mindedness.
Strongs 1374 Definition: of two minds, wavering Usage: (lit: of two souls, of two selves), double-minded, wavering.
The wavering comes from an identity crisis. We vacillate between who we were in the flesh and who we are now in Christ. It is the battle between our born-again perfected Spirit, the new creation and the old creation. The flesh that God calls us to see as passed away. But Satan constantly tempts us to sow to the flesh and His world system is set up to do so.
For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Gal 6:8 NAS
Satan wants us to live as though the old creation is our real identity. This is a lie as God sees the old creation as already passed away, dead on the cross with Christ.
Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come. 2 Cor 5:17 NAS
God only sees us in the Spirit, in the new creation He has made and waits patiently for us to renew our minds to this truth. The truth of the new creation we have become is clearly revealed in scripture. God’s word must be properly divided and read to renew our minds. It takes effort on the believers part to renew our minds.
God calls us to sow to the Spirit where we find life and peace even in this world and not the flesh where it is impossible to please God.
For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the Spirit is life and peace, because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so, and those who are in the flesh cannot please God. Romans 8:6-8 NAS
Walking in the Spirit is done by rejecting all doubt, renewing our minds to the truth of who we are in Christ and then simply trusting our Fathers word. We are a new creation in Christ, the old has passed away and the new has come. The work is finished and we rest in Jesus finished work. Jesus is the true Sabbath rest – Hebrews 4.
Let’s stop fooling around, living from faith, to doubt, to faith, to doubt. Let’s shake off all doubt and step out of the boat. Let’s take God’s advice and live from faith to faith to faith to faith…., making a firm, unwavering decision to reject any doubt in God’s promises from this day forward.
For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH." Rom 1:17 NAS
Let’s trust our Fathers word. He is certainly beyond trustworthy, cannot lie and will never let us down. There is no one or nothing else worth trusting. He holds our eternity in His hands.
Dear Father, I will never doubt your word again. Amen
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16 NASMore New Covenant Bible Studies that Apply:Walk from Faith to Faith with No Doubt, Fear or WorryDoubting Your Complete and Total Forgiveness is What Keeps You Sinning, ChristianDoubt and Unbelief are the Precursors for All Sin and TurmoilSee Yourself as God Does, Stop Doubting, Rest in Him, Walk in PeaceQuestioning Another's Salvation, Creates Doubt, Does Satans WorkMany more New Covenant Bible Studies HERE. Jesus poured out His blood for the New Covenant of grace and truth, replacing the Old Covenant law of Moses. Believers are exclusively under the New Covenant, the last will and testament of Jesus that began after the cross. And in the same way He took the cup after they had eaten, saying, "This cup which is poured out for you is the new covenant in My blood. Luke 22:20