Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh

Galatians 5:13-26 from the daily reading in the One Year Bible

For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴ For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” ¹⁵ But if you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.

¹⁶ But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. ¹⁹ Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, ²¹ envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. ²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. ²⁴ Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

²⁵ If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, envying one another.

In Luke 16:13 Jesus says:  “No servant can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”    This particular verse, these words of Jesus, deal with the love of money, with serving material things or serving God.  Still what Jesus says is, “you cannot serve two masters.”   If we cannot serve two masters then what Paul speaks of in today’s text is true, he says:  But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.   Romans 6:16 says:  Don't you know that when you offer yourselves to someone as obedient slaves, you are slaves of the one you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?     We cannot serve two masters. Either we will obey the Spirit or we will obey the flesh. As Paul says these are in opposition to one another. Of course we all struggle with the desires of the flesh, with the desire for self satisfaction. None of us are without temptation and the struggle of yielding to our own desire. Look what Paul says:  The deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,  idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,  envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.   While we may all struggle in some of these areas, we need to remember that it is sin, not temptation that causes us to not serve God. James 1:13-15 says:   Let no one say when he is tempted, “I am being tempted by God”; for God cannot be tempted by evil, and He Himself does not tempt anyone. But each one is tempted when he is carried away and enticed by his own lust. Then when lust has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and when sin is accomplished, it brings forth death.    It is yielding to the things we are tempted by which is sin. Even then though, if we have sinned, there is a way out. 1 John 1:9-10 says:  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.   Paul says:  I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.   It is not the struggle with temptation or even the occasional fall into sin which causes us not to be a servant of God. It is the choice of sin over repentance, the intentional practice of sin, yielding to and serving self which keeps us from God and His kingdom.

In John 16:8 Jesus says:  “When He (the Holy Spirit) has come, He will convict the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment.”   Again Paul says:  walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another.       If we are truly walking in the Spirit, serving the Spirit, then we will respond to the conviction of sin in repentance and not by continuing to practice sin. There are many today who claim to be servants of God. They even walk in some of the power of the Holy Spirit, yet they continue in sin. They try to do what Paul and Jesus say we cannot do, serve two masters. Jesus did in fact die for our sin, once for all, so that sin would no longer have power over us. But in Matthew 7:21-23 Jesus Himself says:  “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’”      Even some who walk in the power of the Spirit will be cast away from Jesus, they will not inherit the kingdom of God if they choose to practice, to willfully continue in sin.  

In today’s text Paul says:  The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  Lawlessness keeps us from God and our inheritance of His kingdom. Following, yielding to and serving the Spirit will bring the things of the Spirit forth in our lives. We need to remember what 1 John 1:10 says:  If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.     We are not the ones who determine what is sin and what is not. The world has believed that by changing definitions it can eliminate sin and so can continue in it, practicing it, serving the desires of the flesh rather than responding to the conviction of the Spirit. God says:  Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. (Isaiah 5:20)    We cannot eliminate sin and lawlessness by changing the definition of sin. God and His word determine what is sin, what is evil and what is good, what is darkness and what is light.   Paul says:  Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.  On the cross, Jesus was crucified for our sin. In Matthew 16:24 Jesus says:  “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me.”    If we would follow Jesus, if we would serve Him, we must crucify our flesh. We must deny our own desires and lust. To walk in the Spirit, to inherit the kingdom of God with all its promises and all of its power we must determine who and what we will serve,  you are slaves of the one you obey--whether you are slaves to sin, which leads to death, or to obedience, which leads to righteousness?

Thank You heavenly Father, Lord Jesus Christ and precious Holy Spirit. Your word makes it clear what You call evil and what You call good. Thank You that on the cross all of my sins were  forgiven. I recognize that sin was not eliminated by the cross, only its power over me. I choose to walk in the Spirit, practicing the fruit of the Spirit rather than practicing lawlessness.  Amen