The Spirit Enables Us to Overcome the Flesh (Gal. 5:16–21, 24)
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16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Just as Isaac and Ishmael were unable to get along, so the Spirit and the flesh (the old nature) are at war with each other. By “the flesh,” of course, Paul does not mean “the body.” The human body is not sinful; it is neutral. If the Holy Spirit controls the body, then we walk in the Spirit; but if the flesh controls the body, then we walk in the lusts (desires) of the flesh. The Spirit and the flesh have different appetites, and this is what creates the conflict.
I. The conflict (vv. 16–17)
16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish.
A. Opposite appetites
The Bible illustrates these opposite appetites in different ways. For example, the sheep is a clean animal and avoids garbage, while the pig is an unclean animal and enjoys wallowing in filth.
Noah released a raven which never came back. The raven is a scavenger bird and found plenty to feed on. When Noah released the dove (a clean bird), it came back. The last time he released the dove and it did not return, he knew that it had found a clean place to settle down; therefore the waters had receded.
B. Our old nature is like the pig and the raven.
The flesh is always looking for something unclean on which to feed. Our new nature is like the sheep and the dove, yearning for that which is clean and holy. No wonder a struggle goes on within the life of the believer! The unsaved man knows nothing of this battle because he does not have the Holy Spirit.
The Christian cannot simply will to overcome the flesh: “These two are opposed to each other, so that you cannot do anything you please”. It is this very problem that Paul discusses in Romans 7: “15 For what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do… 19 For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice.” Paul is not denying that there is victory. He is simply pointing out that we cannot win this victory in our own strength and by our own will.
II. The conquest (v. 18).
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
A. Victory over sin is not the result of living under the law.
Victory over sin is the result of actively yielding to the Spirit. Therefore, both the first step of salvation and its ongoing steps are brought about within us by God’s Spirit working through faith.
To be saved, we must have faith in Christ. To walk in God’s way, we must have faith in the Holy Spirit, for he empowers us to walk in obedience.
B. The solution is not to pit our will against the flesh.
We just need to surrender our will to the Holy Spirit. This verse literally means, “But if you are willingly led by the Spirit, then you are not under the Law.
The Holy Spirit writes God’s Law on our hearts so that we desire to obey Him in love. “I delight to do Your will, O my God, And Your law is within my heart.” (Ps. 40:8). Being “led of the Spirit” and “walking in the Spirit” are the opposites of yielding to the desires of the flesh.
III. The crucifixion (vv. 19–21, 24).
19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
A. The sensual sins.
Adultery is illicit sex between married people, while fornication generally refers to the same sin among unmarried people. Uncleanness means just that: a filthiness of heart and mind that makes the person defiled.
The unclean person sees dirt in everything. Lasciviousness is close to our word debauchery. It speaks of a wanton appetite that knows no shame. It goes without saying that all of these sins were rampant in the Roman Empire. Drunkenness and revellings (orgies) need no explanation.
B. The superstitious sins.
Idolatry, like the sins named above, is with us today. Idolatry is simply putting things ahead of God and people. We are to worship God, love people, and use things, but too often we use people, love self, and worship things, leaving God out of the picture completely. Jesus tells us that whatever we worship, we serve.
The word witchcraft is from the Greek word pharmakeia, which means “the use of drugs.” Our English word pharmacy is derived from this word. Magicians in Paul’s day often used drugs to bring about their evil effects. Of course, sorcery is forbidden in the Bible as are all activities of the occult.
C. The social sins.
Hatred means “enmity,” the attitude of mind that defies and challenges others. This attitude leads to variance, which is strife, the outworking of enmity. Emulations means jealousies or rivalries. How tragic when Christians compete with one another and try to make one another look bad in the eyes of others. Wrath means outbursts of anger, and strife carries with it the idea of “self-seeking, selfish ambition,” that creates divisions in the church.
Sedition's and heresies are kindred terms. The first suggests division, and the second cliques caused by a party spirit. Divisions and factions would be a fair translation. These are the result of church leaders promoting themselves and insisting that the people follow them, not the Lord. The person who practices these sins shall not inherit the kingdom of God. Paul is not talking about an act of sin, but a habit of sin. The fact that the believer is not under Law, but under grace, is no excuse for sin. If anything, it is an encouragement to live in obedience to the Lord.
D. The old nature must be crucified.
The believer is identified with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection. Christ not only died for me, but I died with Christ. Christ died for me to remove the penalty of my sin, but I died with Christ to break sin’s power. Paul tells us that the flesh has already been crucified. It is our responsibility to believe this and act on it.
You and I are not debtors to the flesh, but to the Spirit. We must accept what God says about the old nature and not try to make it something that it is not. We must not make “provision for the flesh” by feeding it the things that it enjoys. In the flesh dwells no good thing, so we should put no confidence in the flesh. The flesh is not subject to God’s Law and it cannot please God. Only through the Holy Spirit can we “put to death” the deeds that the flesh would do through our body. The Holy Spirit is not only the Spirit of life, but He is also the Spirit of death: He helps us to reckon ourselves dead to sin.