The Destruction of the Flesh: Satan’s Gift to the Church
“. . . you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord” 1 Corinthians 5: 5.
This is such an interesting statement. Essentially the idea seems to be that Satan destroys the sinful nature. So, the embodiment of sin itself destroys sin. To read the entire chapter for context, click here.
This seems to convey the similar thought as “for whoever has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin” 1 Peter 4: 1. Even Satan has a purpose. God wouldn’t allow him to be here if he didn’t serve some important function.
Delivered To, not from for the Destruction of the Flesh
We all want to be delivered FROM Satan, of course. But there is scarcely a greater gift or blessing than to have the sinful nature destroyed. It is the source of destruction and death. And misery and every evil thing (Galatians 6: 8).
So, if we can somehow be delivered of it, even if we have to go through hell and high water, we are blessed. And we obtain this blessing by being delivered TO Satan.
We see some examples in scripture of men being “delivered to Satan”. Job is one example (Job 1: 1-12) and so is Peter (Luke 22: 31-34).
This is a painful, difficult sentence, indeed. But it’s not a bad one. Once our sinful nature is destroyed and we begin walking in the Spirit we will be blessed. With life and protection and guidance and provision. And we’ll be spared the painful rod of correction henceforth.
When my son got childhood cancer twice, it was most certainly because we had been delivered to Satan. I had an out-of-control tongue and temper, and Sam’s father had his own set of problems. We sowed to the flesh and consequently reaped destruction (Galatians 6:8).
(Noone will ever convince me that a loving heavenly Father gives innocent children cancer for no good reason. No, we do these things to ourselves when we sow to the sinful nature).
To read our story, click here.
Not God’s First Choice
This is not the way God prefers to deliver us of our sinful nature. His first choice is that we be obedient and don’t sow to the sinful nature. He would rather we learn the easy way. Just as we desire for our children.
But if we’re foolish and dense and hard-hearted and don’t get the gentle message, then we have to learn the hard way. We are handed over to Satan and reap destruction.
Sin is our only real enemy. It is the source of all pain and misery and death and destruction. So, Satan is really doing us the greatest possible favor in tormenting us.
Although the hope in all this is to destroy our sinful nature, this is not a guarantee. Everything hinges on our response. We can choose to become bitter or better.
But it certainly is, I dare say, a *wonderful opportunity* to get set free of every evil thing.
To read another post related to the Destruction of the Flesh: Satan’s Gift to the Church, see Confess Your Sin and Avert God’s Judgement.