Book of Galatians Chapter 5 Part 4 Spiritual Warfare Is Real And We Must Walk In The Spirit

-


We must learn to walk in the Spirit as we face life's struggles.

Galatians 5:16-18 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17)  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 18)  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 

Christian life is often a struggle. 

A corrupt culture seeks to seduce believers into sinning. 

Our "old man" or the flesh as Paul calls it, does not want to live for the glory of God. 

Our flesh always runs contrary to what the Holy Spirit wants to do in our lives. 

The Devil tries to cause us to plunge into sin or to become cold and calloused to the things of God. He seeks to destroy our lives and ruin our families.

Thus, we have external and internal enemies surrounding us. 

A non Christian does not experience this kind of struggle because they have not received a new heart and a new spirit from God. 

Each Christian must learn to walk in the Spirit. 

Paul uses the word "walk" to teach us about new life in Christ. 

The word "walk" refers to how we live this life, our behavior and moral choices. 

How can a Christian gain victory over the world, the Devil and our flesh? By learning to walk in the Spirit. 

The Spirit of God guided Paul to use the word "walk" more than 30 times in order to teach us to live for God's glory.

We begin this pilgrimage walking in the steps of faith of Abraham (See Romans 4:12).

We must learn from the scriptures how to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4).

We learn that a born again Christian is no longer under the condemnation of God for sin, as we learn to walk after the Spirit (See Romans 8:1; 4).

Walking after the Spirit includes walking honestly by avoiding drunkenness, sexual perversion or causing strife (See Romans 13:13).

Walking in the Spirit means learning to walk by faith not by sight (See 2 Corinthians 5:7). 

We must learn about spiritual warfare because our weapons are spiritual not carnal (See 2 Corinthians 10:3).

Now, what does Paul mean when he gives us an imperative to "walk in the Spirit?"

We "walk in the Spirit" as we take the Spirit inspired scriptures or rule of behavior. It becomes the standard of our faith and practice. 

Walking in the Spirit is allowing the light of God's eternal truth to do its wonderful work in our heart and minds.

Walking in the Spirit is connected with studying the scriptures.

Psalm 119:105  NUN. Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 

Scripture is God's lamp for our feet to show us where our feet are going, so that we do not fall into sin or stumble away from the LORD.

His Word shines a holy light unto our path to show us where the LORD wants us to go.  

The Bible shows us the way of holiness, happiness and righteousness. 

Walking in the Spirit teaches us how to live dependent upon God's grace and strength for our walk and conversation. 

Galatians 5:16-18 This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17)  For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. 18)  But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

The Spirit of God seeks to sanctify us in our daily living. He wants to help us make choices that honor God. 

Our flesh will always fight against the Holy Spirit's work in us. 

Because these are two opposing forces at work in us, we often become ineffective in loving and serving God. 

We want to do good by loving and serving God but we often fail or are hindered.

The flesh which is the corrupt and carnal part of us lusts or strives with strength and vigor against the spirit. 

Our flesh opposes all working of the Spirit, and resists every thing that is spiritual and good. 

On the other hand, the Spirit which is the regenerated, renewed part of us, strives against our flesh. It opposes the will and desire of our flesh. 

The grace of God in us will not permit us to do the evil which our corrupt nature tempts us with. 

Neither can we do the good that we want to do by reason of the oppositions we meet with from that corrupt and carnal principle. 

Nothing good dwells in our flesh because our old man is corrupt.

Romans 7:18-23  For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19)  For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20)  Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 21)  I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 22)  For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23)  But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 

Paul speaks to this same issue in his letter to the church at Rome. 

In our flesh dwells no good thing. Most Christians have a desire to do the good works God ordained for us to do, but we fall short of doing them because of the battle in our soul.

Paul could say that when he sought to do good he found that evil was present within him. 

He saw there was a principle in him that fought against the good that God wanted him to do.

This truth is what Paul was teaching to the Galatian Christians. 

Romans 8:1 tells us the wonderful truth that there is no condemnation for those who walk after the Spirit. 

In like manner, Paul tells the Galatians that they must learn to walk in the Spirit so that their fleshly lusts do not dominate their lives.  

God's Spirit will lead us to an upright life. 

Psalm 143:9-11  Deliver me, O LORD, from mine enemies: I flee unto thee to hide me. 10)  Teach me to do thy will; for thou art my God: thy spirit is good; lead me into the land of uprightness. 11)  Quicken me, O LORD, for thy name's sake: for thy righteousness' sake bring my soul out of trouble. 

Walking in the Spirit means fleeing to Him in dependency, and asking Him to teach us the will of God.

He will lead us in the right ways of God and He will quicken or revive us as needed. 

He will bring us out of trouble when we find ourselves stuck between opposing forces of our flesh and God's Spirit.

God's Spirit will pour divine love into our heart.

Romans 5:5  And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. 

God's Spirit will fill us with hope when we are feeling hopeless. He will fill us with the unending love of God, so that we can rightly love God and others.

God's Spirit gives us hope and strength to love and serve God.

Romans 15:13  Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost. 

We can experience the joy of the LORD and enjoy peace with God as we abound with hope from the Holy Spirit.

God's Spirit renews our minds, gives us peace that passes all understanding.

2 Timothy 1:7  For God hath not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind.

The Spirit of God is powerful, and gives us courage when we need it the most. 

He gives us a sound mind so that we can think with a renewed mind. He will give us strength and the love of God. 

God's Spirit purifies us, so we can obey Him and love one another. 

1 Peter 1:22  Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart fervently: 

Walking in the Spirit means that we begin to consistently obey the truth of scripture. 

It means that we will be able to love one another with pure hearts.

Our next post will study the works of the flesh put in contrast to the fruit of the Spirit. 

Victory over the Devil, the corrupt culture and our flesh is only possible as we consistently walk in the Spirit. 

Let us then walk in the Spirit and so glorify God in all that we think, say and do.

Bob







Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Hymn Story of "Sunshine in My Soul Today"

-
Image
  Good afternoon.. I have a great hymn history to share with you today. One of the outstanding hymn writers was Eliza Hewitt. This hymn "Sunshine in My Soul Today" was written by Eliza after she suffered a serious injury. The lyrics and an excellent performance of the hymn are included. Psalm 92:1 “I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name,  O thou most High.” In 1851 Eliza Edmunds Hewitt was born, and grew to be valedictorian of her class and a school teacher in Pennsylvania.   At some point in her teaching career an unruly student struck her on the back with a piece of heavy slate.   This injury left Eliza in a heavy cast for months, confined to her room. During this time of painful confinement, Eliza was determined not to be bitter, and started writing hymns.   Many of them were praise hymns, such as:   Stepping in the Light, Singing I Go, Victory in Jesus and many more. When she was able to go outside for the first time on...
Read more

First Corinthians 12 Part 1 Addressing The Abuse Of Spiritual Gifts

-
Image
I need to give some historical context to what Paul is going to focus on in chapter twelve.  As we move into chapter twelve, Paul is going to address another major area of failure in the Corinthian church.  It will take some time to move through chapters twelve through fourteen, as we examine this vast and often misunderstood topic. He is going to give rebuke and correction regarding spiritual gifts by explaining their purpose and use.  It will help to remember that many Corinthians were idolatrous pagans before they heard the gospel of Christ. Pagan practices included gluttonous eating at their feasts, and consuming excessive wine.  Thus they were known for drunken debauchery.  The Acro-Corinth was a mountainous outcropping about 1800 feet high.  Citizens could flee to higher ground in the event of an invasion.  There is a winding, well defended path that leads from the city of Corinth to a relatively open space at the top.  In Paul's time there ...
Read more

Bible Character Studies: Peter. Pt 1 A Simple Fisherman Follows Christ

-
Image
Good Morning, This is the beginning of our character study on Peter.  We will see  that he was very much as we were. Hard working, the head of his household and he would have had good days and bad days.  His character was good but it also needed some work.  Like I said, he was alot like we were.  Let's watch how the Lord changes Peter. Matthew 4:18-20  And Jesus, walking by the sea of Galilee, saw two brethren, Simon called Peter, and Andrew his brother, casting a net into the sea: for they were fishers. 19  And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men. 20  And they straightway left their nets, and followed him.  Peter and his brother Andrew were the first 2 disciples Christ called into ministry. Peter was a fisherman which tells us a lot about the man, Peter. At the time of Christ fishermen were strong men who often took decisive actions. Although they were considered to be ignorant and unlearned, fishermen ...
Read more