“Can you fill his hide with harpoons or his head with fishing spears? If you lay a hand on him, you will remember the battle and never repeat it!” (Job 41:7–8).
THE BEAST LEVIATHAN
In one way we all have a beast that we walk around with, it’s called our “fallen nature”. We all have it, each one of us, although one man or women’s beast may not be entirely the same as someone else’s, but we all have an “old man” that’s wild and cannot be tamed.
Now here’s the deal: You will get hurt, scratched, perhaps mauled or pummelled, for it’s inevitable that each one of us will be marred and blemished by our own sinful nature. Perhaps it’s a little like someone taking a large wild dog for a walk on a lead, you will get your arm yanked, you’ll be pulled this way and that. A lady I know walked a dog who belonged to someone else, and the dog suddenly pulled hard on the lead, the lady fell over breaking her leg and was in a leg brace for 18 months.
There is only Christ who got through this life without a scratch on his inner man. Although his body was given over to being beaten, whipped and pierced, he did that so that our souls may be saved. For in Christ we are new creations. But our fallen nature has not yet left us, although we are no longer under its dominion. “For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace” (Rom 6:14).
Now let’s be sure that Leviathan is a fearsome beast and we ought not to toy with it. There is only Christ who can subdue it. In fact, “no one can enter a strong man’s house without first tying him up. Then he can plunder the strong man’s house” (Mk 3:27).
Christ on the cross has rendered the power of sin ineffective. Sin is no longer our master.
Formerly we have been hurt and marred by our own sinfulness, and even now we may get into a skirmish with it. But we certainly do not enter sin’s dominion the way we have in the past.
Paul told the Ephesian believers to “stop telling lies. Let us tell our neighbors the truth, for we are all parts of the same body. And don’t sin by letting anger control you. Don’t let the sun go down while you are still angry, for anger gives a foothold to the devil. If you are a thief, quit stealing. Instead, use your hands for good hard work, and then give generously to others in need. Don’t use foul or abusive language. Let everything you say be good and helpful, so that your words will be an encouragement to those who hear them. And do not bring sorrow to God’s Holy Spirit by the way you live. Remember, he has identified you as his own, guaranteeing that you will be saved on the day of redemption. Get rid of all bitterness, rage, anger, harsh words, and slander, as well as all types of evil behavior” (Eph 4:25–31).
In the story written by CS Lewis “The Great Divorce”. One ghostly person is accompanied by a red lizard that constantly whispers to him, influencing his thoughts and actions. This lizard symbolizes the person’s attachments to lust, or other sinful desires that have a hold on him. An angel offers to kill the lizard, which would free the person from the lizard’s influence, but the person is initially hesitant and afraid. This highlights the person's internal struggle and attachment to the red beast. When the person finally agrees, the angel kills the lizard, and the person undergoes a transformation, becoming solid and capable of moving towards heaven.
The story is fiction, but there are some valuable insights into our struggle with our fallen nature.
CS Lewis knew the importance of putting to death the works of 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” (Rom 8:13).