Grace in Galatians (Part 136): Walking in the Spirit vs. the Flesh

https://youtu.be/zxjcJRey9Zs

Today, we continue our series entitled "Living the Grace Life," where we will learn to embrace and walk in God's unmerited, unearned, and often undeserved favor throughout 2025.

As part of this series, I am teaching a verse-by-verse exposition of the book of Galatians.

Key scriptures for this year:

(2 Corinthians 9:8 TPT)

"Yes, God is more than ready to overwhelm you with every form of grace, so that you will have more than enough of everything—every moment and in every way. He will make you overflow with abundance in every good thing you do."

(Galatians 5:4 TPT)

"If you want to be made right with God by fulfilling the obligations of the law, you have cut off more than your flesh—you have cut yourselves off from Christ and have fallen away from the revelation of grace!"

(Romans 6:14 ERV)

"Sin will not be your master, because you are not under law. You now live under God's grace."

(1 Corinthians 15:10 CEV)

"But God treated me with undeserved grace! He made me what I am, and his grace wasn't wasted. I worked much harder than any of the other apostles, although it was really God's grace at work and not me."

Scripture we will study today:

(Galatians 5:16-18 TPT)

"As you yield freely and fully to the dynamic life and power of the Holy Spirit, you will abandon the cravings of your self-life. For your self-life craves the things that offend the Holy Spirit and hinder him from living free within you! And the Holy Spirit’s intense cravings are incompatible with the self-life. They are opposed to each other like two kings battling for a kingdom. But when you are brought into the full freedom of the Spirit of Grace, you will no longer be living under the domination of the law, but soaring above it!"

(Galatians 5:16-18 ERV)

"So I tell you: Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want. Our sinful selves want what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is against our sinful selves. The two are against each other, so you cannot do just what you please. But if you let the Spirit lead you, you are not under the law."

Supporting scriptures:

(Romans 8:5 NLT)

"Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit."

(Romans 8:13 NKJV)

"For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live."

(Romans 13:14 NLT)

"Instead, clothe yourself with the presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. And don’t let yourself think about ways to indulge your evil desires."

Setting the Stage:

Yesterday, we discussed the mandate to serve one another in love. We learned that freedom is not a license to sin, but a license to serve. Paul made it clear that while we are not under the Law, we are under the Law of Love.

Today, Paul addresses the "HOW." How do we actually live this way? How do we avoid the pitfalls of the flesh without using the Law as a restraint? The answer is simple yet profound (there are layers of revelation to it): Walk in the Spirit!

Many Christians live in a constant state of internal conflict. They feel like two people are living inside them: one wants to please God, and the other wants to please self. Paul validates this struggle in today's text. He explains that the flesh (the self-life) and the Spirit are in direct opposition to each other. They are like two armies fighting for the same territory. The two entities in conflict are: the Holy Spirit and the areas of your soul that are still programmed to operate with your old habits.

The Judaizers (the legalists) would tell you the solution to this problem is more rules. They would say, "If you want to stop sinning, you need more laws, more restrictions, and more discipline." But Paul gives a completely different solution. He doesn't say, "Fight the flesh with willpower." He says, "Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh." This is the secret to victory! You don't overcome darkness by fighting it; you overcome darkness by turning on the light!

So, what does this mean for you today? A few things.

1. The Solution to Fleshly Desire is Spiritual Pursuit, Not Legalistic Human Restraint.

Paul says, "Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want." Notice the order! He didn't say, "Stop sinning, and then you'll walk in the Spirit." No! He said, "Walk in the Spirit, and then you won't sin."

How this applies to you:

— Most religious people focus on behavior modification and sin management. They wake up every day trying not to do bad things. But focusing on not sinning is still focusing on sin! Whatever you give your attention to is what you will focus on all day.

— The Law focuses on the negative (what NOT to do). The Spirit focuses on the positive (who you ARE in Christ) and how God’s grace empowers you to overcome the desires of the flesh. But this does not happen by focusing on overcoming sinful desires; it happens by actually focusing on the things of God.

— When you fill your life with the things of the Spirit (prayer, the Word, worship, fellowship), you naturally overrule the desires of the flesh because you are not focused on them. You are too busy walking with God and being led by His Spirit to succumb to old habits. Your new life is actually creating NEW HABITS!

— Replacement is better than resistance. Instead of gritting your teeth and trying to resist temptation, turn your attention to Jesus. If you are interacting with Jesus through His Word and His Spirit, you are too busy to give your attention to old, selfish, and sinful desires.

— When you are "yielded freely and fully" to the Holy Spirit, over time, the cravings of the self-life lose their power. You don't have to fight them; you simply abandon them because you are focused and occupied with something better.

— Stop trying to fix your flesh with your flesh. You can't defeat the flesh by using willpower (which is just another form of flesh). You defeat the flesh by walking in the Spirit!

2. The Internal Civil War Is For Your Mind and Focus.

Paul describes a battle: "The Spirit and your self-life are opposed to each other like two kings battling for a kingdom." If you are a believer, you have experienced this conflict.

How this applies to you:

— Having fleshly desires doesn't mean you aren't saved; it means you are human. Even the Apostle Paul dealt with this struggle.

— The flesh (your unrenewed mind, your emotions, and your physical desires) wants instant gratification. It craves comfort, pleasure, and pride.

— The Spirit (God living inside you) craves holiness, love, peace, and purpose.

— When the flesh wants comfort, the Spirit may be leading you into doing something that will cause you all sorts of discomfort and pain, but you must do it, because it is part of your purpose.

— When the flesh wants attention, so it can feed pride, the Spirit may be leading you to humble yourself, to exalt others, and to put the spotlight on God and not you.

— These two forces are constantly fighting for your attention. Your spirit (which has been renewed) wants to please God, while your soul (which is still being renewed) may want to please your flesh. Your mind gets to choose. Your mind is getting input from heaven through your spirit and input from this world through your flesh (your five physical senses). If you want your soul to make the right choice, you must meditate and medicate on God’s Word. In other words, the one you feed the most is the one that will win!

—  If you spend all day watching worldly TV and social media, listening to worldly music, and hanging around worldly people, don't be surprised when your flesh is strong, and your spirit is weak.

—  Conversely, if you feed your spirit with the Word of God and surround yourself with the atmosphere of heaven, your spirit will dominate your flesh.

— You decide the winner of this war every single day by what you choose to focus on. Your focus is the fuel for your life.

— Romans 8:5 says, "Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit." Change your thinking, and you change the outcome of the battle!

— To be clear, this is not a matter of salvation. You can be Born-Again. It’s just that when you were Born-Again, the only part of you (there are three parts of you) that was made new was your spirit. So, you can be Born-Again and filled with the Holy Spirit and still want to live in sin. Your soul must be transformed. Your soul contains your mind (thinker), emotions (feeler), and will (chooser). The more you fill your heart with the Word of God, the more you will learn to think, feel, and decide like God! You are still saved, it’s just that your soul must be changed to align with God’s character.

3. The Spirit Leads You Into a Life That is Superior to the Law.

Paul concludes this section by saying, "But if you let the Spirit lead you, you are not under the law." This is a powerful statement. Being led by the Spirit lifts you above the jurisdiction of the Law.

How this applies to you:

— The Law is for people who cannot govern themselves. It is an external restraint for those who lack internal discipline. Or said another way, the Law was designed to show mankind that we could never have enough discipline or willpower to comply with God's standard. Our humanity is simply not that good. So the only way that we could overcome these desires is through the power of the Holy Spirit and through the immeasurable nature of God's empowering grace.

— When you are led by the Spirit, you have internal government. You don't need a rule book because you have the Author of the book living inside you!

— The Holy Spirit will never lead you to violate the moral character of God. The Spirit of God will never lead you contrary to the Word of God. He will never lead you to lie, cheat, steal, or hate.

— In fact, the Spirit will lead you to a standard higher than the Law. The Law says, "Don't kill." The Spirit says, "Don't even harbor anger in your heart." The Law says, "Don't commit adultery." The Spirit says, "Love your spouse as Christ loves the church."

— You are not "lawless"; you are Spirit-led. And being Spirit-led is the highest form of obedience there is.

— Stop looking for a list of rules to follow. Start developing a sensitivity to the Holy Spirit's voice. He will guide you into all truth and lead you into the life God planned for you.

4. Yielding is an Active Choice, Not a Passive State.

The TPT version starts with, "As you yield freely and fully..." This implies an action on your part. The Holy Spirit is a gentleman; He will not force you to walk in His power. You must choose to yield.

How this applies to you:

— Many believers are waiting on God to "take over," but God is waiting for you to yield. I've told you many times that God will allow whatever you allow, and he will permit whatever you permit. When Adam ate the fruit, God did not knock it out of his hands.

— This is a daily, sometimes hourly, decision. When someone cuts you off in traffic, your flesh wants to react. You have to choose in that moment to yield to the Spirit of peace.

— When you feel the urge to worry, your flesh wants to panic. You have to choose to yield to the Spirit of faith.

— Submission to the Spirit is the pathway to dominance over the flesh. You reign in life by walking with the Holy Spirit and by doing what He leads you to do. A great portion of what He leads you to do will require grace (God’s part) and faith (your part), because it will be things that you could never do in your flesh.

— The more you say "YES" to the Holy Spirit, the quieter the voice of the flesh becomes. It's a muscle you have to exercise. It has a habit you must form.

— Today, make a conscious decision: "Holy Spirit, I yield to You. I give You the floor. I give You the lead. You think through my mind, you speak through my vocal cords, and you operate through my limbs." Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

That's enough for today.

Declaration of Faith:

Father, I thank You for the gift of the Holy Spirit who lives inside of me!

I declare that I walk in the Spirit, and therefore I do not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

I am not under the domination of the Law; I am led by the Spirit of Grace!

I choose to feed my spirit with Your Word and starve my flesh of its worldly cravings.

I yield freely and fully to the dynamic life and power of the Holy Spirit today.

I win the internal battle by focusing my mind on the things of the Spirit, not the things of the flesh.

The Holy Spirit leads me to a life that is higher, deeper, and greater than anything the Law could produce.

I am sensitive to Your voice, Father. When You lead, I follow. When You speak, I obey.

I am living the Grace Life, walking in the Spirit, and GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!

I declare this by faith. In Jesus' name. Amen!

This is Today's Word. Apply it and prosper!