Several years ago the area I now try to garden was a neglected wheat field. Care was not taken to control the weeds and they gained a foothold in the run-down soil. As I carefully till the soil each spring, the ground looks rich, moist and mellow, but appearances are deceptive. Thousands of tiny weed seeds begin to germinate while the roots of thistles and quack grass, lying deep where the tiller cannot reach, begin to grow.
As the garden patch is transformed from black soil into a carpet of green leaves, it is difficult to find the plants I had seeded among the thick mat of weeds. The battle has begun in earnest, for any weeds left to grow will soon overshadow the garden and sap all the moisture away from the plants that were seeded.
Last year, I tried a herbicide which, though partially successful in controlling the weeds, still allowed others to grow, squeezing out the other plants in the garden.
The battle has been engaged each spring for several years. As spring turned into summer, and summer into fall, victory over the weeds appeared progressively further away. This has often reminded me of my own heart.
Within I find two men: that old man with which I was born and the new man which I became through the work of my Lord Jesus Christ. That new man delights in the Saviour and seeks to do His will. Yet the Apostle Paul wrote that “the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: but I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin” (Rom. 7:19, 22-2519For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. (Romans 7:19)
22For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. (Romans 7:22‑25)).
Every effort I made to conquer the weeds ended in failure, even as every effort I have made in my life to conquer the old man has led me to exclaim: “O wretched man that I am!” But victory can be gained through Jesus Christ alone.
The old man will remain in this life a constant reminder of my weakness. But “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me” (Gal. 2:2020I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Galatians 2:20)). I can reckon the old man to be in the place of death, and live in the new life by the power and faith of the Son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me.
In Ephesians Paul exhorts believers to put off the old man “which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts” (Eph. 4:2222That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; (Ephesians 4:22)). This reminds me of a very filthy pair of coveralls that I have worn to clean out the barn. It is a relief to leave those coveralls behind in the barn. I am to be renewed in the spirit of my mind and to “put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Eph. 4:2424And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness. (Ephesians 4:24)). The Lord would have me to put off the corrupt garment and put on a clean garment which is not tainted with the smell of the old man’s corruption. While in this life the old man remains within me, but I can, in the power of a risen Christ, remove the actions of the old man from my life and allow the new man’s actions to be evident.
“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not” (Rom. 7:1818For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. (Romans 7:18)). In the flesh I am as powerless to overcome the old man as I have been unable to conquer the weeds in my garden. All my efforts have been in vain. Nevertheless, “I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me” (Phil. 4:1313I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. (Philippians 4:13)). “Whereunto I also labor, striving according to His working, which worketh in me mightily” (Col. 1:2929Whereunto I also labor, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily. (Colossians 1:29)).
This is the story of the battle of the weeds. While I remain in this life, the battle will continue. The final outcome has already been determined at the cross. Nevertheless I must continue daily to pull weeds. I would encourage you to use diligence in weeding the garden of your life. And while you weed, keep in mind for whose glory and in whose strength you are weeding.
“Today pull up the little weeds,
The sinful thoughts subdue,
Or they will take the reins themselves,
And someday master you.”
K. Heslop