Feed the Good Wolf

    I have recently heard different versions of this Native American parable, but the one below speaks volumes:

An old Cherokee is teaching his grandson about life. “A fight is going on inside me,” he said to the boy. “It is a terrible fight and it is between two wolves. One is evil – he is anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, false pride, superiority, and ego.”

 

 He continued, “The other is good – he is joy, peace, love, hope, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. The same fight is going on inside you – and inside every other person, too.”

 

The grandson thought about it for a minute and then asked his grandfather, “Which wolf will win?”

 

The old Cherokee simply replied, “The one you feed.

    It is interesting to me that the "good wolf" sounds much like the Holy Spirit in the Bible. In Galatians 5:22-23 (NIV), Paul notes, "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law." 

    Then Jesus tells us, in Mark 7:20-23, essentially about the same attributes of the "bad wolf" in the above Native American parable, "[Jesus] went on: 'What comes out of a person is what defiles them. For it is from within, out of a person's heart, that evil thoughts come--sexual immortality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, lewdness, envy, slander, arrogance and folly. All these evils come from inside and defile a person.'" 

    Paul tells the above parable this way, "So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law." The battle between our flesh and the Holy Spirit is a unending struggle, and cannot be won in our own strength. We can wear ourselves out trying to take control of the beast within us, or we can submit our beastly traits over to the only One, Jesus Christ, who has overcome the Beast of this world and graciously set us free for eternity. 

    Jesus died in the flesh and rose from the dead to overcome death's grip on us. That's it, accept it, believe it, trust it, walk in it, and feed it...the Good Wolf, the one led by the Holy Spirit of God. 

Galatians 5:5-6 For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus...the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.