Walk by the Spirit

In one paragraph

This message came from Galatians 5:16-23, with the main weight on verses 16 through 18. The preacher walked through Paul's exhortation to walk by the Spirit, what it means that the flesh and the Spirit oppose each other, and then moved through both lists, the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit, to show what each one looks like in a life. Paul opens the section with an exhortation, not...

Read together

1. Psalm 145:8 opened the service: 'The Lord is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger, and rich in love'
2. Colossians 3 cited before the offering prayer: since we have been raised with Christ, set hearts on things above, life hidden with Christ in God
3. Galatians 5:16-18 primary passage for the sermon, walk by the spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh
4. Galatians 5:19-23 the works of the flesh and the fruit of the spirit lists read through
5. Galatians 5:5 referenced to show Paul saying 'we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness', he has not arrived
6. Romans 7 compared to Galatians 5:17 as the same idea: doing what I don't want to do and not doing what I want to do
7. John 8:36 closing: 'if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed'

Talk about it

1. Paul's exhortation in Galatians 5:16 is described as a promise tied to a command: walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. What is the difference, practically, between treating that as a promise and treating it as a second command you have to muscle through on your own?
2. Galatians 5:17 says the flesh and the Spirit are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. That cuts both ways, pulling you away from sin but also pulling you away from good you want to do. Where have you felt that tension most honestly in your own life?
3. The Cherokee story of the two wolves says the one you feed will win. If you look at your actual daily habits and choices, which wolf are you feeding most consistently right now?
4. The fruit of the Spirit is singular, not a checklist of separate items to perform one by one. How does that change the way you think about things like patience or gentleness when they feel absent from your life?
5. The sermon closed with a challenge to do an honest self-evaluation and ask which list characterizes your life right now. What did that evaluation surface for you, and what would it look like this week to either thank God for the fruit you see or pray honestly about the works of the flesh you recognize?