P.O. Box 640109

El Paso, TX 79904

The following letter-form was brought about as a means of teaching my children the Word of God through the mail. And of course, quite naturally so, that’s the reason I begin these letters with "Dear Children" and end them with "Love Dad". So for the rest of you who participate in these weekly messages, please keep their original intended purpose in mind.

18 April, 1999

Dear Children,

Oh what a blessing this has been! And just how do you figure having been fired can be such a blessing? Well you see it was only minutes after having lost my job with Toro that Father God encouraged me with His little speech on "everything is going to be all right." And as He continued to develop that little speech, He expanded on how "everything was going to be all right" by telling me that this "time off" from Toro was going to be sorta like an all expense paid "free" vacation.

And then, it was only a few days after His mini speech that Father God gave me some more of the details. Because what He told me was that during this "free" vacation time He wanted me to completely dedicate myself to Him, focus in on Him, and develop my communication skills with Him through prayer. And believe it or not but this "vacation project" seemed to come about as a result of His message to me in the story of Elijah. And seeing how we might be spending a few weeks on this subject, why don’t we just go ahead and give it a title? In fact why don’t we just call it The Good Fight Of Faith (The Spirit Of God Verses The Flesh Of Man)?

OK, so why do you figure Father God wanted me to concentrate so heavily on this one subject of the Spirit of God verses the flesh of man? Well to be perfectly honest with you, in order for any man, woman, or child to become successful in the eyes of God they have to first overcome what their flesh wants by doing what Father God says. And before anyone can do what Father God says, they have to first hear what Father God has to say through His Spirit. Because you see once these communication lines to Heaven are finally opened, and the Spirit of God is finally coming through loud and clear, then the only remaining thing that needs to be done is... just do what He says!!!

So it all sounds pretty easy... right? Well take it from someone who’s fifty years old and still trying... it ain’t all that easy. But even though it ain’t all that easy, it is absolutely necessary that we do it in order to be able to complete the plans that God has intended for our lives. And of course the one very good reason why He’s focusing in on my life is because of the fact that He’s about ready to cut loose on some gigantic projects for the FMH Children’s Club International Ministry. And seeing how this ministry is totally dedicated to carrying out God’s plans, the results can only mean serious heartache and trouble for Satan. So keeping all that in mind, do you really think Old Splitfoot is going to be any too happy about it? And do you really think he’s just going to sit back and let us do what God’s called us to do without putting up a fight?

Well speaking of fighting, and the fight that Satan is going to put up in opposition to our ministry, that’s the very good reason why Father God is working with me on this "vacation project" of The Good Fight Of Faith (The Spirit Of God Verses The Flesh Of Man). Because you see in order for God’s plan of the FMH Children’s Club International to be carried out through my life, it’s absolutely necessary that I first learn to get Father God’s approval (through His Spirit) before even taking the very next step. Understand?

And even though God’s plans for my life might be a whole lot different than the plans He has for your life, our lives really aren’t that much different when you get down to the basics. Because you see before Father God can complete His plans in our lives, we must have a bonafide, certified, wholehearted type of never doubting faith in God.

Now seeing how we received a very special letter this week [one that somehow miraculously falls in line with this message entitled The Good Fight Of Faith (The Spirit Of God Verses The Flesh Of Man) part II] why don’t I just go ahead and share it with you right now? Because you see it went like this:

Bruce,

I’ve read the last two letters that you sent to my mom and had a few questions to ask. My mom said that you would be most helpful in answering my questions. If you have time I would appreciate it if you would look over them and give me some feedback on them.

i. How can you believe and trust in God?

ii. Where did God come from?

iii. How do you know that He is the only one?

iv. How does God have total control over the universe?

v. How can you believe and trust in the Bible?

vi. Wouldn’t the words in the Bible reflect on all those who read it?

vii. Don’t those who read the Bible interpret the word of God differently?

viii. Aren’t angels considered godly or "good"?

ix. If nothing can come between the power of God, then how does the work of Satan get through?

x. If God were to be watching over us, why would He let Satan reign power over some of His people?

xi. Why is it that if we don’t exactly believe or follow God, we are automatically assumed to be the work of the Devil?

xii. If we are suppose to be consumed by the Spirit, then what’s the point of being Flesh?

xiii. Are you not in Flesh? If so, how can you go about pleasing God?

xiv. Why is it said that it is Satan that instills fear within us, and not ourselves?

xv. What if you are overcome by Satan, yet you waited ever so patiently for God’s help and He didn’t come through?

xvi. Why would God wait so long to win the war and let people suffer throughout the battles?

xvii. Who are you to say that you are a "living god"?

xviii.Who are you to say or point out who Satan has "power" over, or who is evil?

xix. How do you determine if that person is or isn’t?

xx. How does God show you?

xxi. How do you receive your messages from God?

xxii. How do you know that it’s God sending you those messages?

Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule to look over my questions. Hope to hear from you soon.

Thank you,

Cheryl

OK, so what do you think about that list of questions? Well all I’ve got to say is "come on Cheryl... give me a break." But in all seriousness... I’m glad to see that some of you out there are starting to think about spiritual matters. In fact what better time than now to just go ahead and say "thank you Cheryl" for the letter. And the letter that you have just read is pretty much what she wrote, with the exception of me slightly rearranging the order of the questions. And of course seeing how we are discussing the topic of the Spirit verses the flesh, it shouldn’t take any of you too very awful long to figure out how my answers to Cheryl’s questions will be directed.

Now as we head on into the Scriptures, please keep it in mind that there is probably no way possible for me to answer Cheryl’s questions in such a manner that she will be completely satisfied with my answers. But, what I can hope for is that this little sermonet will wet her appetite for larger servings of the Word of God. Because you see one of the single most important requirement that’s needed for anyone to become a child of God is for them to first become a want-to-be. And if they truly want-to-be a child of God, then there is absolutely nothing in this universe that can stop them.

And that takes us right on into the first question for today of "How can you believe and trust in God?" So turning to and reading from Hebrews 11:1-6 for the answer: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. For by it the elders obtained a good report. Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear. By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, by which he obtained witness that he was righteous, God testifying of his gifts: and by it he being dead yet speaketh. By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

Now just for general information, verse 1 is the very first verse that I ever remember God focusing my attention on as a child. In fact I believe this was the very first verse that I ever memorized. And in retrospect, now that a few very rough years have passed by in my Christian development, I can see how very important these words have actually been in my life. Because you see the first verse of chapter 11 tells us how we can believe in and trust in God, while the sixth verse tells us why we should believe in and trust in God. And even though this one word "faith" is a very deep subject of it’s own, I’ll try my best to simplify it as much as possible.

Because in plain and simple terms, "faith" means to believe in certain divine truths (such as God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit) without ever being able to prove it in the flesh. Understand? Well going back to the sermonet of last week, we covered one very good example of faith "in reverse" (unbelief) with the story that we read of Jesus and His disciples after His crucifixion. Because reading once again from John 20:24-29, "But Thomas... said unto them, Except I shall see in his hands the print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and will thrust my hand into his side, I will not believe... then... Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed... that believing ye might have life through his name."

So Thomas, being typical of the flesh, demanded that he both see and touch Jesus before he would believe that He was the resurrected come-back-to-life Christ. And it was only because of the fact that Thomas was one of the original twelve disciples, who had the very rare opportunity of seeing Jesus after His death, that He was even able to be saved through his believing in what he saw. Because reading once again Jesus’ parting words to Thomas: "...blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed... that believing ye might have life through his name."

And that’s the very good reason why we must believe God "in faith" in order to receive everlasting life in Heaven. I mean let there be no mistaking the fact that if believing in faith will get you life, then the opposite of unbelieving will get you death. And going back to Hebrews 11:6 just one more time we read, "...But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him."

So can any of you folks take a wild guess at what happens to those who don’t please God? Well I hope you’re starting to see the picture. Because the bottom line fact is that we as human beings only want to believe what our flesh can verify or prove to be real through it’s five senses (touch, see, hear, smell, and taste). And of course when it comes to believing in God Almighty, the process of trying to believe in Him through the flesh just ain’t a gonna be good enough.

But as we continue on with our search for the answers to Cheryl’s questions, we find by reading from Revelation 1:1-18, "The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw. Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand... I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty."

Now from what we have just read we should be able to answer Cheryl’s next three questions: "Where did God come from?", "How do you know that He is the only one?", and "How does God have total control over the universe?" Because in those very short verses from the book of Revelation we found Jesus Christ the Son of God repeatedly telling John the apostle that He is the beginning and the end. You see He was not only here before there was anything but He will likewise be here forever... and this is all that we are told... but then again that’s really about as much as any of us could even hope to comprehend. And then He goes on to speak it in no uncertain terms that He is the Almighty God, the One and Only God, and the Ruler Of Everything (the universe and beyond).

So by continuing on with the words of John in verse 9, we can find out exactly how this book called the Holy Bible was brought into existence, "I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ. I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day,and heard behind me a great voice, as of a trumpet, Saying... Fear not; I am the first and the last: I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore, Amen; and have the keys of hell and of death. Write these things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter..."

Now notice that John was in the Spirit (not in the flesh) when he received these great words from our Lord. So with that in mind let’s go on into the next three questions which will be followed with my answer: (1)"How can you believe and trust in the Bible?"- As I read the King James Version of the Holy Bible I do so in the same Spirit as it was written (the Holy Spirit not the flesh), and likewise He then verifies to me that it is His Truth. (2)"Wouldn’t the words in the Bible reflect on all those who read it?"- Yes, it’s the same as what Jesus told John concerning the writings of the book of Revelation: "Blessed is he that readeth". (3)"Don’t those who read the Bible interpret the word of God differently?"- If the understanding of the Scriptures comes about through the Holy Spirit (instead of the flesh) then the interpretation will likewise always have the same meaning as God originally intended.

OK, so not losing track of the fact that we’re still focusing on this battle between the Spirit and the flesh, let’s turn from the last book of the Holy Bible to the first. And picking it up in Genesis 1:1 we find, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light... And God said, Let the waters under the heaven... and let the dry land appear... And God said, Let the earth bring forth grass... And God said, Let there be lights in the firmament... And God said, Let the waters bring forth... life, and fowl... in the open firmament of heaven... And God said, Let the earth bring forth the living creature after his kind... And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over... every living thing that moveth upon the earth... And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good."

Now this part about "in the beginning" gets a whole lot deeper than I can even begin to get into. But in a nutshell, what happened in verses 1 and 2 was the result of Lucifer (the angel of light) and his demonic fallen angels (33% of all the angels that rebelled against God) trashing up the earth. You see in the beginning God created heaven and earth perfectly... and then came along Satan (Lucifer after his rebellion; kicked out of Heaven and cast down to earth) with his most unholy angels ... and the final results being an earth without form and void. But... then comes the Spirit of God moving upon the face of the waters to put earth back into a new perfect state. And after having said what I have just said, the answer to "Aren’t angels considered godly or "good"?" should be pretty obvious.

And as we read on into the book of Genesis, we find the creation of man: "And the LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul... And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die... And the LORD God caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam... And the rib, which the LORD God had taken from man, made he a woman..."

Now, we’re about to get to the bottom of the story... and I do mean down to the very bottom of the pit. Because reading from chapter 3 we find, "Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said... And the serpent said... And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat... And the LORD God said... unto Adam... Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life...till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and dust shalt thou return... Therefore the LORD God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken."

So this is the story of all stories when it comes to the battle between the Spirit and the flesh... and guess which one won this battle? Well the one that won was also the one that lost... because from that very day forward until now the word death has become very real for the flesh of man. You see man was designed and built by God to last forever (including his fleshly body), but because of his disobedience to the Spirit of God (thou shalt not eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil) and his obedience to the flesh (in the day ye eat thereof... ye shall be as gods) he had to die. And this death that he was about to die was not only physical but it was also spiritual.

And now that we’ve covered all that, we can take on three more questions: (1)"If nothing can come between the power of God, then how does the work of Satan get through?"- Through man’s own free will to accept what Satan has to offer. (2)"If God were to be watching over us, why would He let Satan reign power over some of His people?"- Because through their own free will they have chosen Satan to reign over them. (3)"Why is it that if we don’t exactly believe or follow God, we are automatically assumed to be the work of the Devil?"- There are only two possible ways to get through this life... either God’s way or Satan’s way.

So on a final note concerning the story of Adam and Eve... if you’ll go back to the Scripture that we read a little earlier in the book of Hebrews chapter 11, you’ll see that the very first man who actually believed God in faith (and likewise made it through those pearly gates of Heaven) was not Adam but one of his sons (Abel). So Adam, the only man (besides Jesus Christ) who was ever made perfect and without sin, died and went to Hell because of his very own decision to obey the flesh instead of the Spirit. And of course this very first mistake that was made by man, as he chose to do what he felt like doing (the flesh) instead of doing what Father God had instructed him to do (the Spirit), brought about a new word to his vocabulary... and this word was "sin".

Now before we answer a few more of Cheryl’s questions, let’s take it on back to Romans 8:1-14 just one more time: "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit... For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit... So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his... For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God."

OK, so let’s tackle six more questions real quick: (1)"If we are suppose to be consumed by the Spirit, then what’s the point of being Flesh?"- God made us with our flesh so that we could either choose Him or Satan... in other words we weren’t created as zombies. (2)"Are you not in Flesh? If so, how can you go about pleasing God?"- By obeying the Spirit of God instead of the flesh. (3)"Why is it said that it is Satan that instills fear within us, and not ourselves?"- "For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of sound mind." II Timothy 1:7 (4)"What if you are overcome by Satan, yet you waited ever so patiently for God’s help and He didn’t come through?"-God only allows us to fail so that we can identify the flesh problem that caused us not to be able to see the problem in the first place. (5)"Why would God wait so long to win the war and let people suffer throughout the battles?"- It’s better know as "God’s own perfect plan!?" (6)"Who are you to say that you are a "living god"?"- I’m not... but I am a son of God (child of God) if and only if I both hear from and obey the Spirit of God.

So now that we’ve had this little discussion for the day, let’s read I Corinthians 2:9-16 just one more time before we answer Cheryl’s final set of questions: "But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ."

And now that we’ve reviewed this Scripture as found in I Corinthians 2:9-16 , let’s answer Cheryl’s five final questions: (1)"Who are you to say or point out who Satan has "power" over, or who is evil?"- I can only say what I say as an obedient child of God after hearing from my Father God. (2)"How do you determine if that person is or isn’t?"- I can only determine who is evil through the leading of the Holy Spirit ("But he that is spiritual judgeth all things..."). (3)"How does God show you?"- Either through His Spirit, or His written Word. (4)"How do you receive your messages from God?"- Either through His Spirit, or His written Word. (5)"How do you know that it’s God sending you those messages?"- You learn who He is through prayer, praise and worship, fasting, and a study of the Word.

So I hope you’re starting see what the Word of God has to say about fighting this ongoing battle between the Spirit and the flesh... because we’ve all got to do it... and seeing how there is no other successful way to do it... then what better way to do it... than through the Word of God?

Don’t give up the fight! Sharpen up your sword through a daily study of the Word and prayer... and then you’ll be able to

Love,

Dad (Bruce Hallman)