Galatians 5:16 But I say, walk by the spirit, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.
There are two aspects to every Christ follower. There is the spirit, which seeks the things of God and tries to fulfill His will, and then there is the flesh. This is the "natural" side of man that seeks self gratification and the things of this world. The two cannot coexist in harmony.
God's word tells us that "the desires of the flesh are against the spirit, and the desires of the spirit are against the flesh" (Gal 5:17). That means that we should recognize when we are gratifying the desires of the flesh because we are not acting in the spirit. It is Go's desire that we would at all times be filled with His Spirit, acting in accordance with His will.
We must avoid "fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealously, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like" (Gal 5:19-21). That seems like a tall order, but we must strive for this.
When we avoid such things and walk in the spirit, we will outwardly show the effects in the form of "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control" (Gal 5:22-23). If we are not currently bearing such fruit, it's time for a spiritual inventory. If we are not showing those qualities; which of the sins listed previously has a hold on us?
The flesh and the spirit are opposed to each other.
God's word tells us that "the desires of the flesh are against the spirit, and the desires of the spirit are against the flesh" (Gal 5:17). That means that we should recognize when we are gratifying the desires of the flesh because we are not acting in the spirit. It is Go's desire that we would at all times be filled with His Spirit, acting in accordance with His will.
We must avoid "fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealously, anger, selfishness, dissension, party spirit, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like" (Gal 5:19-21). That seems like a tall order, but we must strive for this.
When we avoid such things and walk in the spirit, we will outwardly show the effects in the form of "love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self control" (Gal 5:22-23). If we are not currently bearing such fruit, it's time for a spiritual inventory. If we are not showing those qualities; which of the sins listed previously has a hold on us?
The flesh and the spirit are opposed to each other.
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