Many times we think of the phrase “ruling the roost” in reference to marriage. It’s obvious it refers to the hen house. A rooster rules unless there happen to be two hens; then there may be trouble. I want to talk about a real-life situation—the responsibility that comes with our justification. Through our trust in Jesus, we have been justified. Having received this justification through the grace of God, we have experienced the new birth; we’ve received a new nature. As a saved person we have two entirely different natures. They are explained here in Romans. Our new nature goes against what we naturally think and feel. Our tendency as humans is to project our human nature. As a Christian, we now have a spiritual nature. Which one do we project the most?
You can talk to people in various religions, and many will project their religion before they do their human nature. Talk to some a few minutes, and you’ll shortly find out about their religion. I don’t understand how it is that they will do that, but when it comes to a Christian projecting his spiritual nature, the tendency is to put the spiritual man in the background. In reality, the Christian is the only one who has a new spiritual nature. This is just evidence of how the devil works against Christianity to keep God in the shadows.
The conflict goes on between the two natures. We are saved souls in a human body. There is a self to deny and a Lord to follow. This goes against the grain of our old nature putting us in the position of who rules the roost? We will be ruled by one or the other. What we have in Jesus is far superior to our old nature. Paul said sin doesn’t have to have dominion over us. Examine the enemy. See the tactics. Look at the resources we have. Walk after the spirit and not the flesh.
Romans 6: 11Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. 12Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. 13Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. 14For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace.
I like the strong statement of verse 14. We don’t have to cave in and lose out. Sin does not have to have dominion. We are under grace. Our new spiritual nature can have dominion.
American Christians tend to want to be identified as just another person. Our Adam nature reflects our personality, and we have a “Christian side.” We’re asked what religious affiliation we have as if being a Christian is just a side of us. Like it or not, as a saved person we are not to be our old nature first and saved second. The old man or woman we used to be is supposed to be in the background. We should be identified quickly as a Christian and shouldn’t have to remind people we are one. It should be shown to and perceived by others. The more we move and act like we should, the more it will be shown and perceived. Being a Christian shows. On the other hand, if we live in the natural and walk after the flesh, people won’t see God and will have a hard time being convinced we’re a Christian. Don’t be insulted if people think you’re different. Be the light that shines unforced.
Jesus didn’t hide and do what he did. People saw him. Christianity can’t be practiced in a corner and hidden. The grace of God must reign, not sin, in our body. Our old nature doesn’t have to rule the roost. Remember: greater is HE that is in you than he that is in the world. The spiritual man is to be the stronger and can be. This doesn’t mean we live in a state of denial that we don’t sin and do wrong. We sin and come short in many ways because we still feel the frailty of this flesh. We will until we get a new body one day. We can’t live above sin, but we can be victorious over it. We come to God when we sin and confess our failures. We’re ever mindful of the old person, but we know the potential of our new spiritual nature. We can live by letting God have his way in our lives by not living as a natural man with a spiritual side. Think of yourself as the saved person you are. When temptation comes, you’ll be able to see that you don’t have to give in. Verse 12 tells us let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof.
The more you give in to sin, the more control it will have. It will rule the roost. I’ve been saved 40 years, and the old Bob still wants the throne back. Jesus has given us a spiritual nature with a King in our heart to rule. If sin reigns, we’ll obey the old nature. If we let the spiritual nature rule, the Adam nature won’t have dominion and sin won’t rule. Always consider yourself dead to the old person. Don’t give in to the lies. None of us want that bondage again. We have the advantage when we walk in the spirit and not the flesh. When we let Jesus be Lord, the spiritual nature will rule the roost. The old nature will always be the enemy. It’s like a thief in hiding waiting to rob you. Be where God wants you to be so the thief can’t break in.
There is comfort in knowing that sin doesn’t have to reign. It is God’s will for us to be the children he made us. We have the resource of God’s grace and the power of his mercy. They give us strength so that the old sinful nature doesn’t have dominion over us. Jesus in control of a heart puts life in control. The happiest, most peaceful times are when we’re prayed up, studied up, and trying to serve and walk in the grace of God.
The struggle will be there till the day we die. The devil has no mercy; neither does our human nature. To our dying breath, we can live in victory not allowing sin to have dominion and rule the roost. See the old nature for who it is. Be on your guard. The real you is spiritual. Let that rule and reign in your life. It can AND WILL if you live yielded to God.
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 