Gal 5:16-26[1]
Preached at Rolling Hills Church, 29 August 2010
Gal 5:16-26
16 But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
17 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,
20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,
21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do 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 And 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 conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
This will be a two-part message; there is simply too much to cover in one sermon. It is about walking in the Holy Spirit; but for today we will consider this perspective: this text is about conflict, influence, and evidence. Here we read of the conflict within Christ-followers between the Spirit of God and the flesh. It is about whom we are going to listen to, depend on, and follow; and this determines what evidence or fruit is exhibited in our lives. What we will reflect is either the works of the flesh or the fruit of the Spirit.
This is the epic battle of God's good glory and sin's wicked deeds carried out in the frail human heart! First we'll look at the people and the opponents, then we'll look at the opponents in this conflict – the Holy Spirit vs. Flesh, and lastly we will consider submission. First let me talk about people: who we are, and there are two options here…
1) Lost people. Spirit, soul, and body – and dead to God. We are by nature sinners – dead in trespasses and sins – opposed to God from birth (Eph 2:1-4, Rom 3:23).
a. Now when we are lost, Scripture says that we sin because we are sinners, not vice-versa. If Christ hasn't come in, despite any religious activity or experiences – if Christ hasn't saved you and if you haven't received the Holy Spirit by faith when you were converted, you are still spiritually dead, and separated from God. Ruled by this flesh. There is no battle here; the lost person glorifies sin and Satan. You may be restrained by the law or influences, but you are dead.
2) Christ-followers. Christians. Saved. This speaks of those who have believed in Christ, received Him, and received the Holy Spirit upon conversion (Rom 8:9, Eph 1:13). This is humans who have believed in and received Christ, been brought to life, that have been filled by the Holy Spirit. New creation, new life. Here is where the battle rages, in the believer.
a. When we are converted, have been saved, have received Christ, His Holy Spirit has come in, and we have received a new nature, new life, and power to live for, love, believe, and follow Christ.
Those are the people; this text deals with Christ-followers. Now for the opponents in this battle raging inside the Christ follower…
1) The Holy Spirit. This is the very Spirit of God, who seals, indwells, fills, and empowers believers upon their conversion from dead sinners to living Christ-followers. He is the third person of the Trinity. He is completely and fully God; time-to-time you'll hear Christians refer to the Holy Spirit as 'it'. I humbly suggest we not do so; He is God.
2) The flesh. Now if you are a Christ-follower, you are a new creature in Christ; the power of sin and death has been broken in your lives. But there is a remnant of the human sin nature there to deal with; some theologians call it 'indwelling sin'[2], and others call it 'unredeemed humanness'[3]. Regardless of the term, it is important to know that this is that part of a believer that remains in us until complete redemption with Christ, and is often referred to in Scripture as 'the flesh', and it fights the will of God and the Spirit of God in us. It desires sin and debauchery and death.
The Spirit is the Holy Spirit of God; He is the third member of the Godhead, the Trinity: One God, yet Three in One. He is the One who regenerates (brings to life, Eph 2:5, Jn 6:63,) believers, and who baptizes them, seals them, and fills them when they believe. He is the God who indwells believers from their conversion from unbelief to belief in Christ. He is also the One who gives us power to obey God's Word.
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth." So there's a bit about people, and the opponents in this conflict; now let's look briefly at submission. You see we will submit to the Spirit of God or we will submit to the flesh. Either way, fruit and evidence will flow.
Submission to the flesh is not complicated; just ignore the Word of God, fellowship with Him, and the conviction and leading of the Holy Spirit. You see how it turns out.
Submission to the Spirit of God is not complicated either, but it is harder due to the fight.
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality,
20 idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions,
21 envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. We would do well to pause and consider these words; they are very scary, very deadly, and very serious.
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 And 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.
Submitting isn't passive; it is active human will working to obey Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit! But it is not 'let go and let God'; it is not like we've learned from the Keswick tradition (movement in England years ago). Hannah Whitall Smith wrote a book called, The Christian's Secret of a Happy Life, teaching how we don't struggle, we simply submit and passively trust. Not true, unfortunately; we are involved in this conflict! But while working with all our might, we are still completely dependent upon the Holy Spirit's help and power! I think this text from Romans 8:1-9 helps us see a bit of this struggle…
Rom 8:1-9
1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.
2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.
3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,
4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.
6 For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.
7 For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God's law; indeed, it cannot.
8 Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.
9 You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
Our mindset, our focus of thoughts and dwellings, these are critical here! It is the same truth as is taught in John 15, abiding in the vine. The branch makes nothing; the branch holds and displays that which the vine produced through it.
There is much more to learn here, but when we are submitted to the Holy Spirit, walking in the Spirit, being led by the Spirit, we are believing in Christ, in God's Word, and setting our eyes, affections, hopes, and faith completely upon Him!
Church we must remember that cross; there He died by the power of the Holy Spirit so we could live by the power of the Holy Spirit.
So this lays a background for our learning next week. We've seen the people, the opponents, and a couple of thoughts about submission.
This text is about conflict, influence, and evidence. The conflict in believers is strong; who will influence us depends on whom we submit to.
There is much more to consider in this text, but I would challenge you to read it, pray through it, and meditate on it until next week. Let's pray now…
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