One difficulty in learning to drive is getting the hang of how to yield. Having helped teach six teens to drive, I can tell you that coaching others to “read” the traffic is tricky.
(And while I could share some white knuckle stories from those days, those now-licensed young drivers could just as easily tell stories about their maniac mom in the passenger seat!)
But rules are rules. No matter your age, your schedule, your status in society, or how expensive your car, you must yield when entering the highway, for the good of all.
In the same way, God wants us to travel safely through life, with the least chance of harming ourselves or others. We’re not just here to reach our God-given destinations; we’re also responsible to not knock others off course as we make our way down life’s highway.
That’s why He instructs us to yield to the Holy Spirit but not to the flesh.
Romans 6:13 (KJV) teaches,
Neither 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.
History provides a sobering example of fleshly living:
In 1953, Thomas Costain published a history entitled, “The Three Edwards”, containing a story about two fourteenth-century brothers fighting over a dukedom in what is now Belgium.
The older brother, Raynald, had a Latin nickname meaning “fat,” since he was incredibly obese. His younger brother, Edward, led a successful revolt against Raynald to became Duke over his lands. But instead of killing Raynald, Edward had a room in Nieuwkerk Castle built around Raynald, featuring one unlocked door and unbarred windows.
Edward promised his obese brother that he could regain his land and title at any time. All he had to do was leave the room! But being obese, Raynald could not fit through the normal-sized door.
With cunning strategy, Edward regularly sent Raynald an assortment of tasty foods, knowing full well Raynald’s gluttony would rule his life.
When accused of being cruel, Edward replied, “My brother is not a prisoner. He may leave when he so wills.” But Raynald stayed in that room for ten years, until Edward died in battle.
Too many of us find ourselves in similarly self-imposed bondage. Because we keep yielding to our flesh, we stay stuck and miserable. By believing we “are” our flesh instead of new creatures in Christ, our flesh calls the shots and keeps us imprisoned.
According to Galatians 5:1,
It was for freedom that Christ set us free.
But His sacrifice alone does not guarantee we will experience that freedom. Christ did His part by paying the price, but we must do our part. A life of liberty begins when we say no to our desires and exercise the fruit of the Spirit the Bible calls self-control.
Christ bought our freedom and God desires that we embrace our freedom. But we choose whether or not we will walk in freedom.
He leaves the decision up to us.
