Purify Your Mind Series (Part 3) by Joe KirbyNäide

Don’t Feed the Bad Wolf

"That you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness." (Ephesians 4:22–24)

Admittedly, I’m terrible at manual labor, but when I do attempt it, it’s not long before my clothes stink with sweat and dirt. So I climb into the shower to get clean, enjoy the sweet-smelling aromas of shampoo and soap, and dry myself off with a towel, only to find I have no clean clothes. So I have no choice but to put my old, sweaty, grimy clothes back on. That’s the picture here in Ephesians 4. If we are trusting in Christ, we have been washed clean by His blood, yet in our foolishness, we run back to the filth and put on our dirty clothes.

So the question needs to be asked: how do we put on the new man and kill the old man in us? This old Cherokee proverb* should shed some light. One day, an elderly grandfather sat down with his grandson to teach him all about life. He said to his grandson, “There is a fight going on inside me. It’s a fight between two wolves. One wolf is evil—he is anger, lust, pride; he is full of greed, tells many lies, is very jealous, and has a big ego. But the other wolf is good—he is love, joy, peace; he is full of hope, generosity, humility, and faith.” Then he looked at his grandson and he said, “The same fight that is in me is going on inside every human being, and I’ll tell you something else, boy—it’s going on inside you, too.” The grandson was a little shaken up and nervously asked, “So, Grandfather, which wolf will win, then?” The grandfather smiled and whispered back, “The one you feed.” Let us feed the spirit that yearns for Christ and starve that old wolf that obeys the flesh.

* Origin unknown. As told to Tèmakamoxkomëhèt by his friend Asuwibi’oxkwe. ‘Which One Do You Feed?’, Blog Post, N.D, Native American Embassy.