Sin Flavor One – Indulgence of the Flesh

God is in three parts having a triune nature. These natures are the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Referencing 1 John 5:8, “… these three are in agreement.” Accordingly, as imagers of God (Genesis 1:27), we have three parts to us – flesh, conscience, and spirit.

The three categories of sin can be classified as indulgence, pride, and lust. Each of these work against our three parts. An overview of these three categories can be viewed on a previous post. Here we will focus on the category of indulgence.

Our Flesh

The word flesh in the Old Testament translates from the Hebrew word בָּשָׂר, or baw-sawr’, which means flesh of humans or animals, our bodies that are subject to death – not eternal.

Fast-forward to the New Testament, the Greek word for flesh, σάρξ, or sarx, is translated literally to the flesh. The Greek use of the term expounds a little deeper than in Hebrew. It is used to represent the body, living creatures in general, or the sensual nature of man.

In other words, the flesh is the vessels that living beings walk, swim, or fly around in. It is what houses our conscience (souls) and our spirits.

We have five senses that are inputs to our flesh – sight, smell, sound, taste, and touch. Each of these can and do both direct and dictate our conscience, or what and how we think. Our flesh acts as a window to our thoughts.

Our senses

What is it about our flesh that makes it different from our conscience or our spirit? To start we have our five senses – sight, sound, smell, hearing, and touch. Each of these, and for good reason, direct our thoughts and our focus.

For instance, if we feel very cold temperatures outside, we know to put on a jacket so we don’t get hypothermia. Conversely, if we are active such as with work or playing sports and our mouths get dry, we know we are thirsty and need to drink something so we don’t dehydrate.

Sight

There are many other ways our physical senses direct our thoughts. Look at this picture:

I don’t know too many people that don’t like chocolate. Just looking at this pic makes me crave it. Smooth, creamy, apparently decadent – I can just about smell and taste it just by seeing this.

Here is another one:

Ahh, it’s a cute little puppy! Notice how the ears are out into radar mode and the head is cocked slightly to the side. It looks so curious, almost like it’s ready to pounce into playtime as soon as it figures out what’s going on!

Looking at this kind of gives a warm, happy feeling. Just for a moment worries or concerns were lost. Interesting how our physical senses affect our thoughts, our conscience.

Sound

Interesting that just by what we see our thoughts and even attitudes can change. Let’s consider sound. There are many sounds that can trigger different thoughts or emotions. For some, thunder triggers fear. For others, the sounds of children playing can be heart-warming.

What about music? Studies have been performed, and still are, regarding how different types of music can persuade the thoughts and emotions of not only people, but for animals and plants as well. Do your own research on this, you may be surprised in what you find.

I know in my own experience that there were certain types of music I would love to get lost in. Put on my headphones, crank the music up and lay back and just take it in. I also have talked to many people who use certain types of music as motivation when they’re working out.

Touch

Not enough can be talked about, yet caution must be taken on this so as not to make this post for adults only. There is a book called The Five Love Languages by Gary Chapman in which physical touch is one of them. It describes some people feeling more connected by appropriate physical touches.

Other examples can be the feelings we get from drinking alcoholic beverages or taking some types of narcotics. They can make a person feel relaxed, angry, or any number of other emotions according to the effects.

Indulging our flesh

Although we have only swiftly gone through three of the five senses, I think the point can well be made by now. Each one of our senses can open the door of temptation to indulge each of these.

Each one of our senses are important in guiding ourselves through this physical world, that can go without saying. Where we must be careful is to not overdo any of them.

Are we eating for taste and the feeling of having our bellies full? What about the feelings we like from drinking alcohol? For me at one time was listening to music that made me feel certain ways, especially concerning religion – or anti-religion for that matter.

As our physical senses act as windows to our minds and our spirits, we need to be extra careful where we put our focus. When we indulge, we are putting extra effort into that which our flesh desires.

Focusing on our desires to indulge becomes a motivating factor to our actions. Unfortunately for some people it motivates them more than taking care of their own families. Harsh I know, but that’s the reality of it.

Closing thought

We are created with our physical senses to appreciate His creation as well as to navigate this world. They act as windows to our thoughts as well as to our spirit. The trick is to keep our desires at bay.

When we give in to our desires, we are putting ourselves above anyone or anything else. In fact, it can be considered a form of self-worship. We must be cognizant of this and keep our physical desires in check.

Remember, all of this is for God’s glory, and His alone. If we catch ourselves indulging or constantly being drawn to do so, we have a mediator, Jesus Christ, who we can go to for forgiveness and redemption. It is by His grace we can continue on and not on our own.

The Scriptures quoted are from the NET Bible® https://netbible.com copyright ©1996, 2019 used with permission from Biblical Studies Press, L.L.C. All rights reserved.