Keep In Step With The Spirit
Galatians • Sermon • Submitted
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The Bible makes sense of the world outside of us, and the world inside of us
Galatians Theme: “Saved by faith alone, but not a faith that is alone.”
Today we will be talking about life in the Spirit, or, as the passage puts it, “keeping in step with the Spirit.”
Main Text:
Galatians 5:25–26 (ESV) — 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
[Helpful to see how Paul views the Spirit is how he introduces his letters to the believers at Galatia]
The Effects of The Trinity In Paul’s Greeting
Galatians 1:3–5 (ESV) — “3 Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, 4 who gave himself for our sins to deliver us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, 5 to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
Paul writes to the Galatians a greeting of grace and peace from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. But where is the Spirit in this greeting? Jonathan Edwards concludes that the Spirit is the grace and peace. The fruits of the Spirit that we learn of later in ch. 5 are the fruits of God himself manifested through us.
Individually, the love is Christ in in, the joy is Christ in us, the peace, etc.
There is a renovation going on. A whole new being, a new birth and new desires, are being formed.
The Spirit is at war against the flesh: (God in you fighting sin and temptation)
Galatians 5:17 (ESV) — 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.
The Spirit changes our appetite
“Fine feelings, new insights, greater interest in ‘religion’ mean nothing unless they make our actual behaviour better; just as in an illness ‘feeling better’ is not much good if the thermometer shows that your temperature is still going up.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity p.175.
“A true Christian is one who has not only peace of conscience, but war within. He may be known by his warfare as well as by his peace.”
― J.C. Ryle, Holiness
The difference between justification (finality, perfect, complete) and sanctification (progressive, incomplete, ongoing). See Ryle for help here.
Justification And Sanctification: [Lest we think I’m talking about earning salvation]
From Ryle, Holiness:
(a) Justification is the reckoning and counting a man to be righteous for the sake of another, even Jesus Christ the Lord. Sanctification is the actual making a man inwardly righteous, though it may be in a very feeble degree.
(b) The righteousness we have by our justification is not our own, but the everlasting perfect righteousness of our great Mediator Christ, imputed to us, and made our own by faith. The righteousness we have by sanctification is our own righteousness, imparted, inherent, and wrought in us by the Holy Spirit, but mingled with much infirmity and imperfection.
(c) In justification our own works have no place at all, and simple faith in Christ is the one thing needful. In sanctification our own works are of vast importance and God bids us fight, and watch, and pray, and strive, and take pains, and labour.
(d) Justification is a finished and complete work, and a man is perfectly justified the moment he believes. Sanctification is an imperfect work, comparatively, and will never be perfected until we reach heaven.
(e) Justification admits of no growth or increase: a man is as much justified the hour he first comes to Christ by faith as he will be to all eternity. Sanctification is eminently a progressive work, and admits of continual growth and enlargement so long as a man lives.
(f) Justification has special reference to our persons, our standing in God’s sight, and our deliverance from guilt. Sanctification has special reference to our natures, and the moral renewal of our hearts.
(g) Justification gives us our title to heaven, and boldness to enter in. Sanctification gives us our meetness for heaven, and prepares us to enjoy it when we dwell there.
(h) Justification is the act of God about us, and is not easily discerned by others. Sanctification is the work of God within us, and cannot be hid in its outward manifestation from the eyes of men.
“Where there is not sanctification there is no justification” - Ryle
“Where there is no holy living there is no Holy Ghost” - Ryle
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.
Putting justification and sanctification together =
What would it look like for you to go into battle knowing that you would win?
You still need to suit up and fight or you will be hammered constantly.
How would you fight if you knew the outcome and knew that help was coming?
Possible Illustration: Justification is like a prisoners pardon, sanctification is like that pardoned prisoner going out to be productive in the world
A Note On Assurance
Down Payment of Our Inheritance
Ephesians 1:13–14 (ESV) — 13 In him you also, when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation, and believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, 14 who is the guarantee of our inheritance until we acquire possession of it, to the praise of his glory.
ἀρραβών (arrabōn), ῶνος (ōnos), ὁ (ho): n.masc.; ≡ DBLHebr 6860; Str 728; TDNT 1.475—LN 57.170 first installment, a deposit which guarantees, a sure down payment, a pledge (2Co 1:22; 5:5; Eph 1:14+)
Practically Keeping In Step With The Spirit:
Ryle’s 10 Principles of Sanctification [Some Taken From Ryle’s Holiness]
1. Done By Scriptural Means: Bible reading, Prayer, Public worship, Lord’s Supper
We often look for some secret and easy shortcut to keep in step with the Lord. It’s often the case that we run out and buy the latest Christian best-seller, but we neglect the Bible. We often talk about God without talking to God in private prayer. There is no need to try to get nutrition any other way than by the simple act of eating bread - the same is true with God’s word.
2. Prepares us for heaven:
“Most men hope to go to heaven when they die; but few, it may be feared, take the trouble to consider whether they would enjoy heaven if they got there. Heaven is essentially a holy place; its inhabitants are all holy; its occupations are all holy. --- Some say ‘I only want the Lord to forgive me my sins, and take me to rest.’ But those who say such things forget that the rest of heaven would be utterly useless if we had no heart to enjoy it.”
3. Not Retreating From The World:
“True holiness does not make a Christian evade difficulties, but face and overcome them. Christ would have His people show that His grace is not a mere greenhouse plant, which can only thrive under shelter, but a strong, hardy thing which can flourish in every relation of life. It is doing our duty in that state to which God has called us - like salt in the midst of corruption, and light in the midst of darkness - which is a primary element in sanctification. It is not the man who hides himself in a cave, but the man who glorifies God as master or servant, parent or child, in the family and in the street, in business and in trade, who is the Scriptural type of a sanctified man. Our Master Himself said in His last prayer, “I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil.” (John xvii. 15.)”
If you have anger, frustration, and a desire for seclusion from your neighbors, you are not walking in the Spirit.
The fruit of the Spirit is relational
“We must remember that this fruit is produced to be eaten, not to be admired and put on display. People around us are starving for love, joy, peace, and all the other graces of the Spirit. When they find them in our lives, they know that we have something they lack. We do not bear fruit for our own consumption; we bear fruit that others might be fed and helped, and that Christ might be glorified. The flesh may manufacture “results” that bring praise to us, but the flesh cannot bear fruit that brings glory to God. It takes patience, an atmosphere of the Spirit, walking in the light, the seed of the Word of God, and a sincere desire to honor Christ.”
The fruits of the Spirit are relational fruits - love, joy, peace, patience — they aren’t evident or expressed in a vacuum.
Our world is a mess - it needs the hands and feet of Christ. It needs the Spirit of Christ set loose among our neighborhoods and cities. That comes through us, Christ’s ambassadors (2 Cor. 5:20).
4. Obedience To God’s Law
There is a decisive (resolved) decision to obey. Don’t just wait until you want to, as if that’s the only time an action is genuine. Often times our desire for obedience, even when we don’t desire the action of obedience, leads us to the desire for the action later one.
It’s like running. You may have a desire to be a runner and get into shape but have no desire to actually run. When you obey and simply get going you often find that the desire to run follows. Love begets loveliness. Sometimes, obedience begets desire.
5. Act Like Jesus
“A sanctified man will try to do good in the world, and to lessen the sorrow and increase the happiness of all around him. He will aim to be like his Master, full of kindness and love to every one; and this not in word only, by calling people “dear,” but by deeds and actions and self-denying work, according as he has opportunity. The selfish Christian professor, who wraps himself up in his own conceit of superior knowledge, and seems to care nothing whether others sink or swim, go to heaven or hell, so long as he walks to church or chapel in his Sunday best, and is called a “sound member” - such a man knows nothing of sanctification. He may think himself a saint on earth, but he will not be a saint in heaven. Christ will never be found the Saviour of those who know nothing of following His example. Saving faith and real converting grace will always produce some conformity to the image of Jesus. [8] (Coloss. iii. 10.)”
6. Take Every Thought Captive
2 Corinthians 10:2–6 (ESV) — 2 I beg of you that when I am present I may not have to show boldness with such confidence as I count on showing against some who suspect us of walking according to the flesh. 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. 4 For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ, 6 being ready to punish every disobedience, when your obedience is complete.
Repent of our wicked thoughts. Be transformed by the renewal of our mind.
John stott says the first degree of holiness is the decisiveness of our repentance
Romans 8:5–6 (ESV) — 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. Sends Us Humbly To Christ
Walking in the Spirit holds on to the singular hope of Christ.
The world teaches us that our primary identity is that of victims and oppressed, but the Bible never tells us that. It always teaches the individual that they are the sinner in need of repentance, not matter what their circumstances.
8. Makes Us Happy:
“Let us feel convinced, whatever others may say, that holiness is happiness, and that the man who gets through life most comfortably is the sanctified man. No doubt there are some true Christians who from ill- health, or family trials, or other secret causes, enjoy little sensible comfort, and go mourning all their days on the way to heaven. But these are exceptional cases. As a general rule, in the long run of life, it will be found true that “sanctified” people are the happiest people on earth. They have solid comforts which the world can neither give nor take away. “The ways of wisdom are ways of pleasantness.” - “Great peace have they that love Thy law.” - It was said by One who cannot lie, “My yoke is easy, and my burden is light.” - But it is also written, “There is no peace unto the wicked.” (Prov iii. 17; Ps. cxix. 165; Matt. xi. 30; Is. xlviii. 22.)”
9. Remembers the past
Galatians 5:24 (ESV) — 24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Galatians 2:20 (ESV) — 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
“The dying thief rejoiced to see that fountain in his day. And there have I, though vile as he, washed all my sins away.”
10. Makes us Holy
Hebrews 12:14 (ESV) 14 Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.
1 Peter 1:13–25 (ESV) — 13 Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 14 As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, 15 but as he who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, 16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” 17 And if you call on him as Father who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds, conduct yourselves with fear throughout the time of your exile, 18 knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot. 20 He was foreknown before the foundation of the world but was made manifest in the last times for the sake of you 21 who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God. 22 Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, 23 since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; 24 for “All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, 25 but the word of the Lord remains forever.” And this word is the good news that was preached to you.
1 Peter 2:24 (ESV) — 24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
Titus 2:14 (ESV) — 14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
Romans 8:9 (ESV) — 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.
Romans 8:14 (ESV) — 14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.
Ask For Help - Parable of Jesus: Knock and it will be opened to you.
Luke 11:5–13 (ESV) — 5 And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, 6 for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; 7 and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? 8 I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. 9 And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. 10 For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened. 11 What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; 12 or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? 13 If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Notes:
In Mere Christianity C.S. Lewis expressed it like this, “The union between the Father and the Son is such a live concrete thing that this union itself is also a Person. I know this is almost inconceivable, but look at it thus. You know that among human beings, when they get together in a family, or a club, or a trade union, people talk about the ‘spirit’ of that family, club, or trade union. They talk about its ‘spirit’ because the individual members, when they are together, do really develop particular ways of talking and behaving which they would not have if they were apart. It is as if a sort of communal personality came into existence. Of course, it is not a real person: it is only rather like a person. But that is just one of the differences between God and us. What grows out of the joint life of the Father and the Son is a real Person, is in fact the Third of the three Persons who are God. This Third Person is called, in technical language, the Holy Ghost or the ‘spirit’ of God. Do not be worried or surprised if you find it (or Him) rather vaguer or more shadowy in your mind than the other two. I think there is a reason why that must be so. In the Christian life you are not usually looking at Him. He is always acting through you. If you think of the Father as something ‘out there’, in front of you, and of the Son as someone standing at your side, helping you to pray, trying to turn you into another son, then you have to think of the third Person as something inside you, or behind you…God is love, and that love works through men-especially through the whole community of Christians. But this spirit of love is, from all eternity, a love going on between the Father and the Son.”
[https://thepublicans.org/2013/02/13/jonathan-edwards-c-s-lewis-on-the-holy-spirit/#_ftn3]
“The Spirit is the gift of God. It is manifested as Jesus coming into and out of us. The fruit of the Spirit is Jesus expressing himself through us. The fruit is Him. He is the love, joy, peace, etc.” (Note from D. Wilson)
“Fine feelings, new insights, greater interest in ‘religion’ mean nothing unless they make our actual behaviour better; just as in an illness ‘feeling better’ is not much good if the thermometer shows that your temperature is still going up.” C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity p.175.
The Bible makes sense of the world outside of us, and the world inside of us
If the fruit of the flesh is the defining characteristics of your life and you should have no confidence of your inheritance
Noticed that the fruits of the spirit are not a to do list, they are rather a list of the type of person that God will make you, namely like himself
Practical ways to grow in the spirit: remember what has happened in the past, verse 24, be transformed by the renewing of your mind, hold every thought captive
John stott says the first degree of holiness is the decisiveness of our repentance
Justification is like a prisoners pardon, sanctification is like that pardoned prisoner going out to be productive in the world
Helpful texts:
30 And because of him you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, righteousness and sanctification and redemption,
25 Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, 26 that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
14 who gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works.
24 He himself bore our sins in his body on the tree, that we might die to sin and live to righteousness. By his wounds you have been healed.
21 And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, 22 he has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before him,
19 And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.