'The Spirit Is Eager but the Flesh Is Weak

Inasmuch as Jesus suffered intense emotional stress as he served Jehovah, we can expect Satan to exert pressure on God's servants.  (John 15:20; 1 Peter 5:8) Moreover, we are imperfect. So even if we willingly  serve God, it will not be easy for us to do so. Jesus saw how his apostles struggled to do all that he asked them to do. That is why he said:  "The spirit, of course, is eager, but the flesh is weak." (Matthew 26:41) There was nothing inherently weak in his perfect human flesh. However, he had in mind the weakness of his disciples' flesh, the imperfection that they had inherited from imperfect Adam. Jesus knew that because of inherited imperfection and resulting human limitations, they would have  a struggle to do all they wanted to in Jehovah's service. 

So, then, we may feel like the apostle Paul, who was deeply distressed when imperfection inhibited his ability to serve God fully.  "Ability to wish is present with me, Paul wrote, "but ability to work out what is fine is not present."        (Romans 7:18)  We too find  that we cannot carry out completely all the good things we wish to do. (Romans 7:19) This is not because of any reluctance on our part. It is simply because the weakness of the flesh hampers even our best efforts.

Let us not despair. If we have heartfelt readiness to do all we can, God will surely accept our service.  (2 Corinthians 8:12) May we 'do our utmost' to imitate Christ's spirit of complete submission to God's will.  (2 Timothy 2:15; Philippians 2:5-7; 1 Peter 4:1, 2) Jehovah will reward  and support such a willing spirit.  He will give us "the power beyond what is normal" to compensate  for our weaknesses.  (2 Corinthians 4;7-10)  With Jehovah's help, we, like Paul, will  "most gladly spend and be completely spent " in His precious  service. 

Next time: We Can Learn From the First Human Couple

From the Watchtower magazine, 2000