Galatians 5: 16-26 Walking by the Spirit (Ezekiel 36:16–38; Romans 8:9–11)
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.”
Paul has done everything he can to convince the Galatians that slavishly following rules and regulations will never achieve holiness. But if those attempts won’t work, what does? What does a holy life really look like? In these eleven verses, Paul gives the answer.
“So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh craves what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are opposed to each other, so that you do not do what you want.” Trying to achieve holiness by following sets of rules amounts to gratifying desires of the flesh, the old nature. Our old nature craves independence from God and continues to struggle to convince us that if we only follow a few more rules, we can achieve holiness all by ourselves with no help from God. If we follow our old nature, we will be certain that Jesus’ death on Calvary was unnecessary. But such thinking is as ridiculous as a tiny ant thinking it can take a bite out of a stately marble column. No amount of struggle will ever cancel our sin debts, because the very act of struggling also constitutes sin.
When we believe in Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit enters our hearts and minds and impels us to seek God’s will for our lives rather than our own. “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” The Holy Spirit transforms us so that we become different creatures than we were before we believed in Jesus. 2 Corinthians 5:17 tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.”
What did we look like before we believed in Christ Jesus? “The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and sorcery; hatred, discord, jealousy, and rage; rivalries, divisions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
You might read this list and think, “Well, I was NEVER as bad as all that!” Really? You never gossiped about anyone or became jealous or resentful or furious? You never indulged in ANY impure thoughts? You never joined a particular faction during an argument, or made statements that led to division rather than to unity in the Body of Christ? Hmm. Do you walk on water on the weekends? Check your thoughts! Even if you haven’t indulged in overt sins, you have still considered many of them. Face it, friends, all of us have sinned and have fallen short of the glory of God, just as Paul says in Romans 3:23. Without the convicting power of the Holy Spirit to transform us, we have no hope of sharing God’s holiness.
Great! Now we are new creations in Christ Jesus. But what does this actually mean? “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.”
“Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” – These are the qualities of a Holy Spirit-led life. These are the qualities that please God. But without God’s help, it is impossible to please Him. Even if we manage to go for a few minutes without thinking something unkind or critical, in the next minute, we will fail because our own efforts will always result in failure.
Hebrews 11:6 tells us, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” When we have faith in God, we may ask God to help us and He will send the Holy Spirit to guide us and empower us to live Godly and holy lives. When we “diligently seek” God, we look to God for direction rather than trusting in our own resources. Does this mean that we must live in constant despair, fearing that we are failing God? No! God is a good Father and good fathers do not torment beloved children. God clearly shows us in His Word what we must do and then sends the Holy Spirit to help us so that we are able to live lives of increasing holiness.
“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us walk in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying one another.” Does a life of holiness become easier as the years go on? Yes and no. Yes, as we grow in grace, we continue to learn more about holiness; however, we remain human and therefore we continue to face temptations. The truth is that as we grow in the knowledge of God and His Word, the temptations become increasingly more subtle. One of the most common temptations is for us to become “conceited (about our knowledge of God,) provoking and envying one another. How can a believer remain humble?
In one of his sermons, C.H. Spurgeon compared growing in the knowledge of God to climbing the mountains in Wales. While standing in the valley, one could only see the first elevation, but once achieving that level, a climber would swiftly realize that there were higher heights yet to be conquered, with succeeding peaks eventually coming into view. The difference between the Welsh mountains and the Kingdom of God is that in the Kingdom of God, there is no end to God’s mercy and grace, to His righteousness and holiness.
Because God’s qualities are endless, we always have more we can learn about God and experience of God. The more we learn about God, the more we realize how little we really know and how far short we fall in comparison to God’s perfection. It’s the difference between paddling in a wading pool and plunging into an ocean.
Today, as we study the fruits of the Holy Spirit, why not pray that God will make each of these abound in your life?PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and for caring for us. Lord, we beg you to send Your Holy Spirit to us so that we will live lives full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
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