The greatest enemy of spiritual growth is not always Satan directly, but the fallen nature called “self” or “the flesh.” The ultimate ambition of self is to replace God, resist His authority, and become an alternative god.
This was the very root of Satan’s fall.
1. Satan’s Desire: To Be Like God
Lucifer said in his heart:
“I will ascend… I will exalt my throne… I will be like the
most High.” - Isaiah 14:12-14
The essence of rebellion is self-exaltation. Satan desired
independence from God. He did not want God to rule over him. He wanted his own
throne.
This same spirit entered humanity in the Garden of Eden.
2. The Fall of Man Began with the Desire to Be Like God
Genesis 3:5 / Genesis 2:17
The serpent told Eve:
“The day ye eat thereof… ye shall be as gods.”
The temptation was not merely about eating fruit. It was
about independence from God — deciding good and evil without submission to Him.
The flesh still carries this same nature today:
- “I
want my own way.”
- “I
know better.”
- “I
will rule my own life.”
Self naturally resists surrender to God.
3. The Devil Is Comfortable with Carnal Christianity
Colossians 3:9–10
“Seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man…”
Satan is not threatened by church attendance alone or by
religious activity without genuine transformation. As long as believers remain
carnal, flesh-driven, prideful, unforgiving, and controlled by sinful appetites
and emotions, the enemy is comfortable. A person may know Scripture and still
allow self to remain on the throne.
This is why the old man must be put off. Christianity is not
about self-improvement; it is about self-crucifixion. The old nature must be
discarded — including sinful appetites, pride, lust, bitterness, envy, selfish
ambition, and worldly desires.
Every unholy appetite must be brought under the authority of
Christ. The flesh must not be allowed to rule; instead, the believer must daily
put on the new man and allow Christ to take full control.
4. John the Baptist Understood the Principle of Decrease
“He must increase, but I must decrease.” - John 3:30
True spirituality is not making self greater while adding
Jesus alongside. It is allowing Christ to take full control while self loses
dominance.
Many want Christ as Saviour but not as Lord.
The Christian life is a daily surrender:
- less
of me,
- more
of Christ;
- less
flesh,
- more
Spirit;
- less
self-will,
- more
obedience.
5. Mortifying the Flesh
“If ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body,
ye shall live.” - Romans 8:13
Apostle Paul understood that the flesh must never be allowed
to rule.
The flesh must be:
- denied,
- crucified,
- disciplined,
- subdued
through the Spirit.
If self remains in charge, spiritual growth becomes
impossible.
6. Galatians 2:20 — The Life Christ Desires
Paul declared:
“I am crucified with Christ…”
This is the true Christian experience:
- self
dies,
- Christ
reigns,
- the
flesh loses control,
- God’s
will becomes supreme.
The goal is not merely to become religious, but to become
Christ-like.
Conclusion
The battle of the Christian life is ultimately a battle of
the throne:
Who will rule — self or Christ?
Self seeks independence and wants to be “like God.” But the
believer is called to surrender completely to Christ.
May we daily say:
- “Not
my will, but Yours.”
- “Let
Christ increase.”
- “Let
self decrease.”
- “I
am crucified with Christ.”
Amen.
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