Walk by the Spirit Galatians 5

“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh” (Gal. 5:16, NASB).

This past week we have seen another incident of a young man killing other students in their school. On May 8, 2019 at STEM Highland Ranch k-12 school in Denver, Colorado 18 year old Devon Michael Erickson shot and killed 18 year old Kendrick Castillo and wounded eight other students. Each time that there is a person using a gun (weapon) to commit mass murder we ask this question: What can we do to stop these things from happening? The question, what can we do is not relegated to mass shootings only, rather this question is asked just about anything that we believe to be wrong and harmful to our society. Even in the church we are asked to pray about these types of incidents.

What can we do, it seems to me is the question of the day. Parents want to know what can be done to make their children safe from their own behaviors and the behaviors of others. What can we do to make sure that our church congregants are living a good moral life? There are all kinds of suggestions and debates about what we can do to make our world better. Politicians promise safety as a part of their platform as they seek to be elected to public office. What can we do to make sure that this does not happen again is asked time and time again. There is one answer found in the New Testament that is seldom suggested that I believe is applicable to human beings in general and Christians in particular. Paul writes to the Galatians that they can overcome their propensity to argue and fight among each other if they walk by the Spirit. In this article we will answer the question, what does Paul mean when he says “walk by the Spirit?”

Before we look into the text today, I want to make a few statements about cause and effect. You may want to know my reason for bringing up this subject. As stated above, once again our country has experienced the killing of students, mere children, in their schools by someone using a gun. When asked the questions why and what can we do, there are two answers that I have heard most frequently. The first answer is better gun control laws. The second answer is that we must become a society that helps us to recognize the need for mental health. Do guns kill in and of themselves? Are all people with mental health issues prone to violence? Guns are a means to killings but they are not the reason for killings. Mental health is a very complex issue. What can we do? This question can be answered when we address the cause instead of the effects. This is what Paul does in our text.

Paul writes to the Galatians because they are having squabbles among each other. Some of the new converts, especially among the Jews, are insisting that other converts, especially among the Gentiles, live by the Law. They believe that the Law has the power to control behavior. They believe that the Gentiles ought to learn the Law and then live accordingly. Paul says that the knowing the Law cannot control a person’s behaviors. In the Old Testament God gives Moses and the Israelites the Law to teach them that they sin against God. Their failure to conform to the Law teaches us that we need a savior to redeem us from the curse of the law. The proof is seen in the fact that both Jews and Gentiles are guilty of sin. Those that have the law have not overcome their desire to avoid those things that the law forbids. They do not have the desire to do what the law commands them to do.

Paul writes that our desires must change. We have desires according to our carnal nature, or stated differently as our sinful nature. God sends his Son Jesus to die on the cross to redeem us from our sins. He paid the debt that we owed but unable to pay. Although Jesus paid the debt, only those that have faith in Jesus are redeemed by His sacrifice on our behalf. So, what does all of this have to do with the notion that we are to walk by the Spirit?

In chapters 2-3 Paul writes to remind the Jews that they are not justified by the works of the Law. He writes to the Jews in the church saying, “We are Jews by nature and not sinners among the Gentiles; nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Christ Jesus, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified (2:15-16). Those that are justified by faith in Christ Jesus are given the Spirit to live inside of them so that they have the power of God to help them to overcome their sinful nature and desires. He asks, “So then, does He who provides you with the Spirit and work miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith” (3:5)

Having established that we are justified by faith instead of the Law, Paul writes that there is a difference between the powerless works of the Law and the power of the Spirit. We have been set free from the Law. We should not try to make the needed changes in our moral conduct by trying to follow the Law. “It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery” (5:1, NASB). “You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit, by faith are waiting for the hope of righteousness” (5:4-5, NASB). Paul is saying to the church that those that are trying to live by the law are cutting off their access to the Spirit. It is the Spirit that has the power to change our moral conduct.

I have observed that there are people in the church that believe that they are saved by grace. These people believe that Jesus saves them from the penalty of sin. At the same time these people will say “all of us sin’ and they use this to rationalize that they do not need to avoid anything that brings them pleasure as long as they are not hurting anybody. The problem is that our behavior affects people that we never think about. For example, if I eat and drink myself into bad health I hurt a lot of other people than myself. My decisions eventually will have an effect on my family, friends, and church members. In addition, my need for health care will contribute to the rise in healthcare cost for all people. Thus, Paul writes, “For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself’” (5:13-14, NASB). They can avoid those things that cause us to hurt others and ourselves. How is this possible?

Paul continues by saying, “walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desires of the flesh” (v. 16). When we are saved and made right with God through faith we do not stop being who we are. Paul recognizes that when we are saved we continue to have the old sinful nature and desires. Paul writes about this contradiction in Romans 7. Those that have faith in Christ Jesus have the ability to choose between the sinful nature and the new nature brought about by the Holy Spirit. The two cannot control us at the same time. We either yield to the flesh or we submit to the power of the Spirit. “For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please” (v. 17).

Paul describes the difference between the deeds that accompany the desires of the flesh in verses 19-21. In verses 22-23 Paul describes the fruit that the Spirit produces in a person. The fruit is love. Love is seen in the eight characteristics of the fruit. Some people look at this as nine fruit. Regardless, the point is that those that walk in the Spirit live according to the nature, will, and attribute or characteristics of God. If we are filled with the Holy Spirit there is no room for the flesh.

As we look at our society today we must consider the difference between cause and effects. Too often we want to eliminate effects without treating the cause. Why does a young man have the desire to murder his schoolmates? Does the sight of a gun make him have a low opinion of himself? Why are some people with mental illness filled with love and compassion for others? Why do others with mental illness live with anger, resentment and hatred? The gospel is preached in hope of leading people of every social status to faith in Christ Jesus. Those who have faith in Christ Jesus can overcome the desires of the flesh by choosing to live with the power of God through the Holy Spirit.

It is the duty of the church to live by the Spirit so that it can demonstrate the love of God. Christians are called to be an example of how the human family can live in peace. God gives us peace with Him, our self, and other people. However, God’s lasting peace is possible only if we walk in the Spirit. With this in mind, I pray and encourage you to walk by the Spirit.