Fighting Fire with Fire?

Have you heard of the term, "Fighting fire with fire?"  To prevent massive fires, small controlled burns are utilised by fire fighters to protect areas potentially at risk.  Burning brush removes the fuel source which could allow a fire to rapidly grow out of control and spread into inhabited areas.  "Back burning" is commonly done in preparation for fire season to reduce risk of damage to property.  Inaccessible areas abound in Australia, and back burning in controlled areas help wildfire prevention and limit resulting devastation.

Fighting fire with fire is one way to prevent massive fires, but it doesn't ensure success.  Sometimes even after starting a back-burn in ideal conditions with professionals and equipment on hand, things can flare out of control.  An intended preventative measure can spiral into a complete disaster.  Today I thought about how Christians can try to fight the flesh with the flesh.  It is common to use external methods in an attempt to control what we say and do.  Facing a sinful temptation?  Ride a bike, go for a jog!  This way of dealing with temptation is sorely limited.  There is no way to possibly remove all the fuel from the fires of sinful passion which threaten to consume our hearts and minds.  Removal of temptation does nothing to change the deceitful condition of our hearts.  The only way to truly overcome the flesh is through walking in the Spirit.

In the movie "The Fellowship of the Ring," Gandalf revealed to Frodo that the ring of power wanted to be discovered by its master:  the wicked lord Sauron.  Frodo throughout the film and the two following films became more and more controlled by the power of the ring.  Though he realised placing the ring on his finger was a great danger, Frodo at times brought the ring from his hiding place close to his heart, stroked the ring and stared at it instead of sleeping, and grew possessive and defensive about his habits.  The ring wanted to be found, and by the end it was the ring that controlled Frodo.  Had not Gollum intervened, the ring would have led to Frodo's certain demise.  The same is true spiritually about the flesh we live in.  Our flesh wants to be dominated by sin.  It wants to be ruled by idols, addictions, vain pursuits, excitement, and fun.  Paul said in his flesh dwelt no good thing.  What that means for us is because of our sinful nature, we have a propensity to take perfectly good things and distort them into great evils which threaten our souls.

Paul wrote to the Galatian Christians in Galatians 5:16:  "I say then: walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh."  When we have the ability to remove temptations to sin from our lives, we are wise to do this.  Yet even the removal of outward temptation or opportunity does not solve the issue of the sin which resides in our flesh.  There are seasons for back-burning in our hearts and lives, for fuel can accumulate which threatens our spiritual vitality and closeness to God.  We can adopt habits and practices which should be culled.  But the victory over all temptation is found through repentance and faith in Jesus Christ, whose shed blood cleanses us from all sin.  The Christian life is not one primarily of sin avoidance or resistance, but a lifestyle of righteousness through the power of the indwelling Spirit.  It is a practical, positive life of intentionally living for the glory of God.  1 Corinthians 15:57-58 says, "But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. ⁵⁸ Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord."