But you are not in the flesh; on the contrary, you are in the spirit, if only the Spirit of God dwells in you. Whoever does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
Romans. 8:9,12-13.
Consequently, brothers, we are not debtors to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.
What’s the flesh? The flesh is the inner child inside of us and we often recognize the voice.. You may have heard it this morning when the alarm went off. Your spirit was saying “let’s get out of bed and have a productive day”, and the flesh (inner child) was saying “I don’t want to get out of bed, I want to sleep, hit the snooze button”.
The flesh leads us to the seven deadly sins– anger, gluttony, greed, pride, lust, laziness, and envy. If we allow these things to run our lives, they will kill us (sometimes literally).
Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.
Matthew. 11:29-30.
It’s work to oppose the flesh and live in the spirit, and that’s why Jesus says “Take my yoke”. Yoke is a farming implement that helps pull a plow or cart. Jesus is welcoming us to have a yoke attached to Him so that He can be by our sides while we work.
Watch Father Mark Goring’s mini homily for today’s readings here