"Yes, Yes" and "No, No"

The Holy Spirit penned through Paul a statement that has made me stop and think numerous times. In 2 Corinthians 1:17 Paul writes, "Or what I purpose, do I purpose according to the flesh, so that with me there will be yes, yes and no, no at the same time?

God has been gracious to reveal what happens in unregenerate people and disobedient Christians. Specifically, they live inconsistent. They become a living, breathing contradiction. They say "yes" and "no" at the same time. The accusation against Paul was that he said, "Yes, I will come to see you" while at the same time thinking, "No, I will not come to see you." Paul says to do that is the way of the flesh.

And this is where unbelievers live. Non-Christians are defined in the Bible as being of the flesh, natural, and spiritually dead. Therefore, unbelievers are continually living a yes and no life. For instance, an unbeliever will say they want to be logical in coming to a decision to reject God. That is in essence saying, "Yes, I believe in logic" while at the same time saying "No, I won't live according to a God-created logic." The problem is there is no other kind of logic. They will say yes to logic, but no to logic if they don't like where it leads. Or again, an unbeliever will say, "Yes, it is wrong to own a slave" while at the same time saying, "No, morality is up to the individual." Individualistic morality is a non-morality. That is saying yes, yes and no, no concerning morality

Christians are not immune to this. Lets try to not be so shocked by the declaration that we become two-faced when we walk by the flesh. Think about it. When you walk by the flesh you start to do things like giving thanks to God for His provision while at the same time living miserly and hording resources. That is like saying "Yes, God will supply my needs" while at the same time saying "No, God can't be trusted to give me enough." Or getting thoroughly irked at the child who will not pick up the toys after you told him while at the same time having a great thankfulness in the patience of God. That is like saying "Yes, God is patient as I grow out of my rebellion" while at the same time saying, "No, your rebellion is worse and not worthy of patience."

Saying yes, yes and no, no is holding to two different things at the same time. Saying "No, Lord" is a good encapsulation of this mindset. You can't say no to a Lord. God's grace rescues us from this dungeon of unregenerate inconsistency at the point of repentance and faith. A repentant faith that clings to grace will keep us from further inconsistent stumbling. May God's grace keep us repentant and believing.