Galatians 5:19-23

                                                                 Galatians 5:19-23

Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  

The contrast between the flesh and the Spirit could not be more stark.  Both the practice and destiny are antonymous of one another.  The works of the flesh are marked by every sin imaginable and leads to death.  The fruit of the Spirit are virtues that lead to a full and rich life.  We must never imagine that life will come from our flesh.  Our assurance of spiritual life stems from observing the fruit that the Spirit produces in our lives.

THE WORKS OF THE FLESH CONDEMN: The flesh is at work in all our lives and since it is fallen, the works that it produces become very evident in our thoughts, motives, and actions.  Perverse sexual desires, worshiping false gods, broken relationships, out of control emotions, and destructive addictions all lie in the wake of our fallen flesh.  That does not mean that we all do or have done all these things.  It means that these are the desires of the flesh and will be the natural result of following the flesh in our lives.  The most disastrous result of the flesh led life is the eternal condemnation under which it leaves mankind.  We are all born under the curse of our fallen flesh.  Apart from Divine intervention, all of us would be eternally condemned and remain enslaved to these works of the flesh.    

THE FURIT OF THE SPIRIT LIBERATES: Praise be to God that He did intervene by sending His Son to die on the cross to cover our sin with His blood!  All who believe exclusively on the work of Christ to rescue them from the flesh receive the Spirit of God who gives us a new nature that produces an entirely different kind of fruit.  This fruit promotes the love of God and others, healthy emotions and relationships, holiness, and discipline.  The Spirit sets us free from the control of the flesh over our lives and the condemnation associated with it.  No law will ever condemn these Spirit filled lives.  The presence of the Spirit does not immediately irradicate the flesh.  As the preceding paragraphs indicate, there is a battle raging in the lives of believers, the result of which will be the victory of the Spirit.  Eventually, all believers will only experience the fruit of the Spirit for eternity, and we will be completely free of the works of the flesh as we rejoice in the presence of God completely free of any condemnation and sin.

APPLICATION: Recognize the dangers of the flesh in our lives.  Repent of any fleshly thoughts, motives, and actions.  Rejoice in the forgiveness we have in Christ.  Depend upon and submit to the Spirit’s work in our lives to produce this wonderful fruit in us.  Evaluate our lives to determine if we are truly being led by the Spirit or by our fallen flesh.  

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