What does First B Jackson teach about flesh vs spirit?
Drawn from the messages where it was actually addressed: the words said from the front, the passages taught, and where to hear the whole thing.
At First B Jackson, the teaching on flesh versus Spirit starts with a clear-eyed acknowledgment that the conflict is real for every believer, not just for people who are struggling in obvious ways. Pastor Ray and Pastor Mike have both spent time in Romans 8 and Galatians 5 making the same point: a Christian can and does set their mind on the things of the flesh, and the choice has real consequences. The flesh and the Spirit are genuinely opposed to each other, working against each other in the life of anyone who belongs to Christ. That is not a failure of the faith; it is exactly what Paul describes.
The way through is not willpower but orientation. From Galatians 5, Pastor Ray explained that Paul's exhortation to walk by the Spirit is one command paired with one promise: keep walking by the Spirit and you will not fulfill the desires of the flesh. The word Paul uses for walking is the same ordinary word for how people got from one place to another every day. It is not a dramatic spiritual experience; it is a daily, habitual, one-foot-in-front-of-the-other choice to pay attention to God and act on what He says. Romans 6 brings the same idea from a different angle: almost every verb in that chapter is indicative, describing what God has already done, and the one imperative is simply to yield your members as instruments of righteousness. God has provided everything necessary. The one thing asked of the believer is to keep presenting themselves to Him.
The two messages in Romans 8 press further by explaining what is actually at stake in the choice of what we set our minds on. Using the image of the law of gravity and the law of flight, both Pastor Ray and Pastor Mike have taught that the law of sin and death still applies to believers, but the Spirit of life in Christ allows them to rise above it, not by abolishing the law but by operating under a higher one. The mindset on the flesh leads to hostility toward God and ends in death. The mindset on the Spirit leads to life and peace. The goal Paul keeps in view is that the requirement of the law, loving God and loving people, would be fulfilled in those who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.
Taught from Romans 8:1-18 · Galatians 5:16-23 · Romans 6:1-23 · Colossians 3:1-3 · Romans 13
The passage taught · 1 Peter 5
1 Therefore I exhort the elders among you, as a fellow elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and who will also share in the glory that will be revealed.
2 Shepherd the flock of God which is among you, exercising the oversight, not under compulsion, but voluntarily, not for dishonest gain, but willingly;
3 neither as lording it over those entrusted to you, but making yourselves examples to the flock.
4 When the chief Shepherd is revealed, you will receive the crown of glory that doesn’t fade away.
World English Bible
Messages that go deeper
- June 16, 2024 No Condemnation for Those in Christ Jesus Romans 8 shows that because of Christ, believers are free from condemnation and empowered by the Spirit to love God and love people as God designed.
- June 16, 2024 Union With Christ Is What It's All About Romans 8 shows that union with Christ, not self-effort, frees believers from sin and death and makes it possible to truly love God and others.
- June 5, 2016 Yield to Righteousness for Your Sanctification Romans 6 shows that believers are freed from sin and called to yield daily to God's Spirit, not the flesh, as the path toward sanctification and eternal life.
- June 28, 2015 Walk by the Spirit Paul's call in Galatians 5 to walk by the Spirit is both a command and a promise: feed the right wolf, and the flesh loses its grip on your life.