Galatians 5:16-25 – Flesh vs. Spirit Part 1
In chapter 5 of Galatians, Paul finally begins to draw upon the true heart of his whole discussion with the church. He is no longer pulling punches and using word pictures, metaphors, or allegories. He is going to use plain language to explain what the Galatians are really struggling against. They are not struggling with a man, a group, or a certain denomination. The Galatians are struggling with their very flesh, their very nature. Paul up until this point has made very clear distinctions, contrasting ideas, alluding to this point. First he uses the distinction between his Gospel which is from Christ and the “gospel” preached by the Jews which usurped Paul’s Gospel after his departure. From there he goes into several different contrasting scenarios: faith vs. the Law, Law vs. the Promise, sons vs. slaves, Hagar vs. Sarah, and freedom vs. slavery. All of these are simpler ways of discussing the battle between the living by the Spirit or living by the flesh.
For this part of our discussion we will focus on the flesh. What does it mean to live in the flesh? What are the results of such a life? Living in the flesh can best be described by Romans 14:23 when Paul says, “For whatever does not proceed from faith is sin.” Paul in this context is trying to distinguish what the Spirit allows and does not allow in the life of the believer. Some said you could eat meat sacrificed to idols while others strongly stated that you could not. Both were wrong. Now this is not a text that advocates moral ambiguity as many suppose. It instead advocates a life defined not by what our human minds think and understand, but a life led totally and without exception by the Spirit of God through faith. Paul in Galatians will make it plain that a life not lived by the Spirit is lived by the flesh. Paul lists sins committed by the body for pleasure (sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality), for personal gain or control (idolatry, sorcery), selfish ambition (enmity, strife, jealousy, envy), and sins that numb us to our surroundings (drunkenness and orgies). All of these are readily found in people claiming to know Christ but not allowing their lives to be changed by Him. They refuse the active, constant work of the Spirit and only choose to pick up the mantle when it pleases them to do so.
Paul’s warning warns not against atheism or another competing religion. His warning is to those who know the Gospel, attend church, attempt to be “good” people, but who ultimately miss the Kingdom of God because their lives were lived in the flesh and not the Spirit. The list that Paul makes certainly has many actions that would readily be recognized publicly as sin, but also included are private sins (idolatry, sexual immorality, impurity, sorcery, jealousy, envy, and even drunkenness). In addition to the list Paul also gives this disclaimer, “and things like these” meaning that this is by no means an exhaustive list of what it means to live by the flesh. Matthew 7:13 warns us that the way to destruction is wide and easy, drawing the parallel that living by the flesh comes in all different flavors. Some choose the route of murderers and thieves while others fall into self-righteousness and religion like the Pharisees. All lead to destruction. All are walking in the flesh. None get to enter the rest that Christ has prepared for His children. So we must now examine ourselves in light of God’s Word, are we living by the flesh or by the Spirit? Next time we will talk about what it looks like to walk in the Spirit. Paul gives us some very specific markers that help us see our lives through the eyes of the Spirit. Ultimately though, we all must allow the Spirit to speak to our hearts, showing us where we are walking in the flesh. Some of the things that you do that you think are ok could be areas where you have resisted the Spirit and are walking in the flesh. May we all surrender to the work of the Spirit in our lives. I love y’all more than you know. Grace and peace,
JOT
Strengthen My Hands 