June 16, 2024 CONTINUAL
Galatians 5:16-17 “But I say to you, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 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 you please.”
You are probably familiar with this verse. There is a danger in being ‘familiar’ with verses in the scripture. Our familiarity can cause us to not hear the message of the verse in the present tense; we read a verse and we say ‘I know what it is saying,’ and we quickly pass over it not allowing its message to penetrate our hearts and minds. As I read the above passage this morning, I was reminded of a truth that is so important to grasp. It is not a one-time, or an occasional act where we deal with the flesh and it is no longer and issue. The flesh sets its desire against the Spirit; there is never a time when the flesh is not set against the Spirit. The flesh has no other desire than to hinder the work of the Spirit in us. Likewise, the Spirit sets its desire against the flesh. We must realize that there is an epic battle taking place in us and there is no break time from the battle. It sounds like a miserable life, right? God always has solutions for the dilemmas (what we think are dilemmas) we face-they are dilemmas to Him. There is sure victory over the flesh and securing this victory is not difficult. If we walk by the Spirit, we will not carry out the desire of the flesh. The battle is not won by us trying trying to defeat the flesh; the battle is won by yielding to the Spirit. We do resist the desire of the flesh, but we win by yielding. This verse says that we cannot do the things we please-that may sound like bad news to us. We do not live in a neutral position in life; life is not about us; as believers, we do not have the privilege of doing just whatever we please at the moment. We belong God and we are called to walk according to His ways-not ours! The awesome good news is that when we walk according to the ways of God, we are totally fulfilled and we experience joy and peace. In verses 19-21 you can see the evidence of the deeds of the flesh. But, in verse 22-23 we see the fruit that comes by walking according to the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” For us, let us be aware that we must continually chose to yield ourselves to the Holly Spirit of God who lives in us; as we do, we will experience victory over the flesh.
Romans 6:13 “Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been bought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.”
Blessings, Buddy
Galatians 5:16-17 “But I say to you, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 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 you please.”
You are probably familiar with this verse. There is a danger in being ‘familiar’ with verses in the scripture. Our familiarity can cause us to not hear the message of the verse in the present tense; we read a verse and we say ‘I know what it is saying,’ and we quickly pass over it not allowing its message to penetrate our hearts and minds. As I read the above passage this morning, I was reminded of a truth that is so important to grasp. It is not a one-time, or an occasional act where we deal with the flesh and it is no longer and issue. The flesh sets its desire against the Spirit; there is never a time when the flesh is not set against the Spirit. The flesh has no other desire than to hinder the work of the Spirit in us. Likewise, the Spirit sets its desire against the flesh. We must realize that there is an epic battle taking place in us and there is no break time from the battle. It sounds like a miserable life, right? God always has solutions for the dilemmas (what we think are dilemmas) we face-they are dilemmas to Him. There is sure victory over the flesh and securing this victory is not difficult. If we walk by the Spirit, we will not carry out the desire of the flesh. The battle is not won by us trying trying to defeat the flesh; the battle is won by yielding to the Spirit. We do resist the desire of the flesh, but we win by yielding. This verse says that we cannot do the things we please-that may sound like bad news to us. We do not live in a neutral position in life; life is not about us; as believers, we do not have the privilege of doing just whatever we please at the moment. We belong God and we are called to walk according to His ways-not ours! The awesome good news is that when we walk according to the ways of God, we are totally fulfilled and we experience joy and peace. In verses 19-21 you can see the evidence of the deeds of the flesh. But, in verse 22-23 we see the fruit that comes by walking according to the Spirit: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” For us, let us be aware that we must continually chose to yield ourselves to the Holly Spirit of God who lives in us; as we do, we will experience victory over the flesh.
Romans 6:13 “Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been bought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness.”
Blessings, Buddy
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