Galatians 5:16-25 (NIV), “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. ¹⁷ For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever^[a] you want. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”

When we live by the Spirit:

• We live by grace and not under the bondage to the Law
  • Grace is unmerited favor, which means we receive what we don’t deserve. Grace is based on our relationship with God
  • The Law is the commandments from God in the Old Testament. The Law is based on our performance. No one is perfect to follow God’s entire commandment. Only Jesus was the perfect one and lived a sinless life.
  • We are controlled by the Spirit instead of the flesh
    • We are led by the Spirit
    • We have the grace to withstand the desires of our flesh
    • We live for God’s Glory rather than for ourselves
      • We start living with Biblical worldview; being aware of God within us
      • We become aware of our selfish actions and we start to think of others first before ourselves

The Spirit and the flesh are at war with each other. They have different appetites and different perspectives. Our “human body” is not sinful; it is neutral. In verse 16, Apostle Paul said “the desires of the flesh” not the body. So if our body is neutral, and the Holy Spirit controls it, then we keep in step with the Spirit.

However, if the flesh controls our body, then we walk in the lusts or desires of the flesh. We live by the worldview instead of living with Biblical perspectives.

This is a brief overview of living in the Spirit. In my next issue, we will take a look at the second part of the equation. Until then, live in His blessings!

Merlin