WEBVTT

00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:08.099
 Thank you, Anna, for that reading and what a passage that we have to speak on this morning.

00:00:08.740 --> 00:00:15.960
 When you prepare for a message like this, you realise that you could speak probably on a multi-week series.

00:00:16.420 --> 00:00:19.000
 And we would just about cover it, just in these 14 verses.

00:00:19.219 --> 00:00:30.380
 But even more than the passage that we've got to speak, I think Fiona done well in choosing those verses that we spoke this morning before we sang.

00:00:30.460 --> 00:00:31.539
 Let me just read one to you.

00:00:32.119 --> 00:00:34.979
 And let me just bring us to where we are in this passage.

00:00:34.979 --> 00:00:39.119
 I wasn't planning to say this, but in Romans 8, verse 11, it says,

00:00:39.479 --> 00:00:44.159
 If the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,

00:00:45.159 --> 00:00:47.059
 and that word if is just since,

00:00:48.059 --> 00:00:51.439
 since the spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you,

00:00:51.819 --> 00:01:00.659
 he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his spirit who dwells in you.

00:01:01.959 --> 00:01:04.900
 And it just ties so much together.

00:01:04.980 --> 00:01:09.180
 What we are going to speak about over the next short period.

00:01:11.079 --> 00:01:12.560
 So we have this section.

00:01:12.760 --> 00:01:14.960
 And if you're in this section, and if you've read your Bible,

00:01:15.040 --> 00:01:16.719
 and if you've been on the Christian journey a long time,

00:01:17.219 --> 00:01:22.020
 then you normally know that this is a section that we would normally refer to as life in the spirit,

00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:26.680
 which is why I've chosen, and we could pop it up now, a different title, which is walking free.

00:01:26.680 --> 00:01:31.740
 Because sometimes we just fall into the same mindset when we hear the same words,

00:01:31.880 --> 00:01:34.100
 and we think we've heard it before, we know about it.

00:01:34.520 --> 00:01:36.580
 And it'd be quite easy to take a passage like this,

00:01:36.880 --> 00:01:38.880
 and just to focus on the fruit of the spirit.

00:01:38.960 --> 00:01:43.540
 And again, you could spend ages just thinking about two verses within there.

00:01:43.600 --> 00:01:45.380
 But we've got 14 verses to get through this morning.

00:01:45.379 --> 00:01:51.920
 And so I'm going to try and do my best to help you understand what is being said here by Paul in this chapter,

00:01:52.379 --> 00:01:56.519
 but also not keep us here for the rest of the day.

00:01:57.179 --> 00:02:00.579
 But we're continuing in chapter 5 in Galatians this morning.

00:02:00.699 --> 00:02:03.340
 It's fallen on from where we left off last week.

00:02:03.340 --> 00:02:08.340
 And we've been thinking about the freedom that we have in Christ.

00:02:09.020 --> 00:02:12.520
 Depending on which Bible you have with you, that word might be referred to as liberty.

00:02:13.180 --> 00:02:17.020
 But I think for us, we, for most of us, it'll say freedom.

00:02:17.879 --> 00:02:20.780
 And that we have in Christ, that we're not under the law.

00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:24.080
 Now, I'm just going to pause here again, and I know we're going to get sidetracked this morning,

00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:25.879
 but I think these things are helpful to say.

00:02:25.879 --> 00:02:33.000
 Now, when we talk about the law, what we're talking about is the law that was given to Israel.

00:02:33.000 --> 00:02:37.840
 It's that covenant or that contrast, that contract between God and Israel,

00:02:38.199 --> 00:02:46.280
 where there was a list of rules and regulations to govern and to guide and to control the nation.

00:02:46.599 --> 00:02:50.900
 That's what we're talking about when we're talking about the law in this book.

00:02:51.099 --> 00:02:53.800
 And Paul is really clear on that.

00:02:54.240 --> 00:02:59.500
 And just to pause here for a little second, I wonder, when we come to Christianity,

00:02:59.500 --> 00:03:05.219
 when we come to your friends or your neighbours, or you might even be in here this morning,

00:03:05.719 --> 00:03:10.960
 and your perception is this, that to be a Christian is just to keep a set of rules.

00:03:11.479 --> 00:03:15.300
 It's just to keep a set of, it's to do the law, right?

00:03:15.460 --> 00:03:18.580
 And I think that is the big misconception.

00:03:18.580 --> 00:03:25.600
 I wonder if you've ever actually spent any time with your friends or your colleagues at work or whatever,

00:03:26.120 --> 00:03:28.840
 and actually told them what it is to be a Christian.

00:03:29.740 --> 00:03:31.400
 Because that's what the world believes.

00:03:31.520 --> 00:03:32.740
 You've just got to keep this rules.

00:03:32.960 --> 00:03:33.939
 It's a burden on us.

00:03:34.540 --> 00:03:37.800
 And I just want to say that this morning.

00:03:37.900 --> 00:03:41.460
 If you are here and you're not a Christian,

00:03:42.060 --> 00:03:44.540
 then what we're going to say today is largely aimed at Christians,

00:03:44.539 --> 00:03:48.039
 because that is what Paul is writing to when he's in Galatians, he's writing to Christians.

00:03:48.340 --> 00:03:51.859
 But there's a lot in here that I'm hoping that you will understand and that you'll take away

00:03:51.859 --> 00:03:56.519
 and you'll realise that what we are saying here is not because we are keeping a set of rules

00:03:56.519 --> 00:03:58.759
 or anything else like that.

00:03:59.019 --> 00:04:04.539
 It is because we have received free and full, unmerited grace from God.

00:04:04.639 --> 00:04:05.879
 God's favour towards us.

00:04:06.259 --> 00:04:07.579
 And it's nothing that we have done.

00:04:07.799 --> 00:04:08.620
 It's nothing that we can earn.

00:04:08.699 --> 00:04:13.519
 It's nothing that we can achieve by our own ambition or our own habits or our own actions.

00:04:13.520 --> 00:04:18.579
 It is because we have received full and free grace from God.

00:04:19.540 --> 00:04:23.240
 And that's something that you can have today as well.

00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:30.199
 It's not something, as we're going to find out when I get into the passage here,

00:04:30.420 --> 00:04:32.460
 it's not something that we have to work towards.

00:04:32.540 --> 00:04:33.860
 It's not something that we have to earn.

00:04:34.120 --> 00:04:35.600
 It's not something that we can earn.

00:04:36.040 --> 00:04:42.580
 It is God's love and his grace demonstrated on Christ dying on the cross

00:04:42.579 --> 00:04:46.479
 who took the burden off our sin, my sin.

00:04:47.019 --> 00:04:48.759
 And he can take the burden off your sin this morning.

00:04:49.800 --> 00:04:55.339
 And he can give you peace and rest and reconciliation and salvation.

00:04:55.579 --> 00:05:00.219
 And there's a lot of other Christian words that you'll hear off either through this or in other times.

00:05:00.579 --> 00:05:04.240
 That can be yours today when you come to God and you submit to him.

00:05:04.240 --> 00:05:10.840
 And you accept and you ask God to be accepted because of the work that Christ done on the cross.

00:05:10.920 --> 00:05:14.060
 And that's kind of the basis that we were thinking about last week.

00:05:14.280 --> 00:05:18.160
 It is the freedom that he has won for us on that cross.

00:05:18.280 --> 00:05:22.860
 Not by keeping a set of rules or by keeping the law.

00:05:23.560 --> 00:05:26.040
 And that is just as a sidetrack.

00:05:26.100 --> 00:05:27.300
 So let's get back to where we were.

00:05:27.379 --> 00:05:28.879
 But that is just as a sidetrack this morning.

00:05:28.980 --> 00:05:30.759
 That is important for us to understand.

00:05:30.759 --> 00:05:34.740
 And I genuinely, I think, you know, most of us, if we are believers here today,

00:05:34.819 --> 00:05:35.659
 we would be praying.

00:05:35.860 --> 00:05:40.259
 If you are in today or if you're watching online and you are not in the good of this,

00:05:40.360 --> 00:05:43.740
 if you're not a Christian, then we pray that you come to that realisation

00:05:43.740 --> 00:05:47.759
 that you can have forgiveness with God through what we're about to think about today.

00:05:48.819 --> 00:05:52.259
 And this is one of the greatest themes that Paul has in this book of Galatians.

00:05:52.360 --> 00:05:54.180
 It is that we have been set free.

00:05:54.300 --> 00:05:58.139
 We've been set free from trying to merit God's favour by keeping a set of rules,

00:05:58.139 --> 00:06:01.300
 which, as I've said already, we couldn't keep anyway.

00:06:02.219 --> 00:06:05.879
 But here's one of the big questions that we have to then deal with this morning.

00:06:06.120 --> 00:06:06.599
 It is this.

00:06:07.240 --> 00:06:12.180
 If Christ has set us free, how do we actually live free?

00:06:12.879 --> 00:06:15.419
 Or as the word I've put on the screen there, walking free.

00:06:16.099 --> 00:06:19.019
 And we're going to think about this word to walk in a little minute.

00:06:19.419 --> 00:06:25.699
 But to walk or to live, how do we live in the freedom that then Christ has won for us?

00:06:25.699 --> 00:06:31.740
 You know, most Christians grasp the truth of the gospel that Christ has redeemed us by his grace.

00:06:31.920 --> 00:06:34.879
 As I've said, it is full, unmerited favour from God.

00:06:35.459 --> 00:06:42.319
 And this was independent of law-keeping, the Mosaic law that was given to Israel.

00:06:42.560 --> 00:06:45.139
 Or any works of anything that we could do.

00:06:45.300 --> 00:06:48.519
 But we struggle with the daily reality of this.

00:06:48.579 --> 00:06:49.860
 And that is what I want to tackle this morning.

00:06:49.939 --> 00:06:52.079
 That is what our passage about this morning is,

00:06:52.379 --> 00:06:54.459
 what is the daily reality?

00:06:54.599 --> 00:06:55.560
 How do we live this out?

00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:57.259
 How do we walk free?

00:06:58.040 --> 00:07:00.100
 And we're going to think about, in a little title up there,

00:07:00.139 --> 00:07:02.579
 we're going to think about the flesh, we're going to think about the spirit,

00:07:03.000 --> 00:07:06.180
 and we're going to think about the life that truly works.

00:07:07.100 --> 00:07:10.740
 You know, Paul writes to the Galatians because they were being tempted to return,

00:07:11.500 --> 00:07:15.459
 or because they were not the Jews, they were not keeping the law,

00:07:15.459 --> 00:07:25.159
 to enter into this rule-keeping, this checklist, or religious performance as their form of righteousness.

00:07:25.839 --> 00:07:29.959
 And it was kind of, well, you know, Christ has set you free, that's okay for being converted,

00:07:30.159 --> 00:07:31.879
 being saved, becoming a Christian.

00:07:31.879 --> 00:07:35.899
 But in order to become righteous, in order to live this life,

00:07:36.219 --> 00:07:40.839
 then you've got to go back, or you've got to enter into this kind of way of living.

00:07:40.980 --> 00:07:43.560
 And our passage gets right to the heart of this message.

00:07:43.699 --> 00:07:44.019
 It's this.

00:07:44.079 --> 00:07:51.959
 A Christian freedom is not a license to sin, or to do as we please,

00:07:51.959 --> 00:07:55.219
 nor is it a return to legalism, as we thought about last week,

00:07:55.519 --> 00:07:59.019
 but it is a life that is empowered by the Holy Spirit.

00:07:59.139 --> 00:08:02.799
 And that's when, when we read these verses that Fiona picked this morning,

00:08:03.079 --> 00:08:05.659
 it just brings that whole piece together.

00:08:05.879 --> 00:08:09.579
 It is a life that is empowered by the Holy Spirit.

00:08:10.699 --> 00:08:14.159
 You know, Paul presents this life to us as a Christian life that is not,

00:08:14.359 --> 00:08:18.319
 it is not as any humour effort of good living,

00:08:18.319 --> 00:08:24.060
 but it is a supernatural walk that is produced only by the Spirit.

00:08:24.920 --> 00:08:30.019
 It's how the Spirit should transform our everyday actions and our attitudes.

00:08:30.360 --> 00:08:34.059
 And we're going to look at the stark contrast between the two ways of living,

00:08:34.399 --> 00:08:41.439
 freedom from sin and the law, but freedom into Spirit-led living.

00:08:42.200 --> 00:08:47.519
 And some people may get a little bit uncomfortable when we talk about that,

00:08:47.519 --> 00:08:52.319
 because often, as there is a misconception about what happens when we become a Christian,

00:08:52.679 --> 00:08:57.019
 there's a misconception about what it means to be led by the Spirit.

00:08:57.860 --> 00:09:03.639
 Well, I'm going to give our section, I'm going to give our passage here today three titles.

00:09:04.059 --> 00:09:05.539
 If you're taking notes, you'll get them.

00:09:05.579 --> 00:09:07.860
 If not, they'll come up on the screen as we work through.

00:09:08.199 --> 00:09:08.819
 But it is this.

00:09:08.899 --> 00:09:12.919
 In verses 13 to 15, we're going to think about the call to freedom.

00:09:13.059 --> 00:09:16.199
 You'll see this, it's a kind of reflection of where we were earlier in the chapter.

00:09:16.200 --> 00:09:20.680
 In verses 1 to 13, you'll see that in a couple of verses there, it is the call to freedom.

00:09:21.480 --> 00:09:24.280
 Then we're going to think about the conflict within.

00:09:25.520 --> 00:09:29.300
 And lastly, we're going to think about the character of the Spirit.

00:09:29.400 --> 00:09:31.420
 Now, I've had to take a little bit of poetic license for that,

00:09:31.480 --> 00:09:34.620
 because normally we would say the fruit of the Spirit.

00:09:34.620 --> 00:09:40.139
 But in order for me to get my C's, then we're going to just call it the character of the Spirit.

00:09:40.740 --> 00:09:45.919
 And hopefully then we don't end up in the same way of thinking that we always do when we hear the words,

00:09:46.220 --> 00:09:47.019
 the fruit of the Spirit.

00:09:47.820 --> 00:09:53.299
 And as we explore these verses, we're going to see that Christian freedom, it has a unique form, right?

00:09:53.340 --> 00:09:54.279
 It's filled with love.

00:09:54.279 --> 00:10:01.000
 It fights a battle and it forms fruit in our lives.

00:10:01.620 --> 00:10:05.579
 So let's start with then this call to freedom in verses 13 to 15.

00:10:05.740 --> 00:10:07.819
 Paul opens with this beautiful statement and he says this,

00:10:07.879 --> 00:10:10.259
 For you were called to freedom, brothers.

00:10:10.679 --> 00:10:15.360
 Freedom is not an optional upgrade for the advanced Christian.

00:10:16.339 --> 00:10:19.279
 It is the calling of every believer.

00:10:19.279 --> 00:10:24.819
 Through Christ's death and resurrection, God issues this divine invitation.

00:10:25.720 --> 00:10:31.059
 Not only to be free, not only to live free, but to walk free.

00:10:32.419 --> 00:10:39.740
 And as immediately as Paul has written this, he then issues this warning that freedom can be misunderstood.

00:10:41.000 --> 00:10:44.819
 And I think we were having a little bit of discussion, some of the guys here on Wednesday around,

00:10:45.120 --> 00:10:48.000
 maybe that misunderstanding of what actually freedom is.

00:10:48.000 --> 00:10:53.919
 It's easily to push back and say we're being legalistic or it's legalism when we don't like what we've been told.

00:10:54.539 --> 00:10:56.759
 But freedom can be misunderstood.

00:10:57.419 --> 00:10:58.059
 Paul says this, he says,

00:10:58.179 --> 00:11:04.000
 Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh elsewhere.

00:11:04.940 --> 00:11:09.179
 Paul would use the word of a cloak.

00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:14.779
 You know, we cover up our sinful actions and we put the kind of cloak on of righteousness

00:11:14.779 --> 00:11:20.699
 to pretend that what we're doing is freedom, to pretend it's Christ-like, to pretend it's spirit-led,

00:11:21.039 --> 00:11:24.600
 but actually it's just the flesh underneath wanting to do what we want to do.

00:11:24.959 --> 00:11:25.919
 Paul says that somewhere else.

00:11:26.199 --> 00:11:28.059
 Christian freedom is not doing whatever we want to do.

00:11:28.579 --> 00:11:32.759
 That's just another, it's just another form of slavery in disguise, if we're honest.

00:11:34.179 --> 00:11:37.799
 It's not expressed in allowing the flesh to control our life.

00:11:37.799 --> 00:11:39.579
 This is going to be a big thing in this passage.

00:11:40.079 --> 00:11:43.039
 We are controlled, and I'm going to use the word controlled.

00:11:43.579 --> 00:11:49.159
 Sometimes we think of a verse in the Bible and it is constrained.

00:11:49.259 --> 00:11:50.979
 We're constrained by the love of God.

00:11:51.279 --> 00:11:53.539
 We might use the word guided or governed.

00:11:53.679 --> 00:11:55.879
 That's the kind of idea that we're thinking about.

00:11:56.659 --> 00:12:05.659
 But we've not to allow the flesh to control or to guide or to govern or to constrain the things that we do.

00:12:05.659 --> 00:12:09.899
 When we're talking about the flesh, just in case you haven't been through this passage before,

00:12:09.980 --> 00:12:18.100
 when we're talking about the flesh, we're talking about the fallen, self-centered, self-indulgent human nature that is within us all.

00:12:18.959 --> 00:12:25.659
 And we're thinking about the full expanse of all of its cravens, all of its desires, all of its appetites,

00:12:26.480 --> 00:12:31.679
 not just the kind of bodily impulses that we might think about when we think about the flesh,

00:12:31.740 --> 00:12:33.079
 when we think about the kind of physical flesh.

00:12:33.080 --> 00:12:35.840
 It's a human fallen nature.

00:12:37.020 --> 00:12:41.500
 And as Paul is writing this, he must have known our human hearts well enough to write this.

00:12:41.600 --> 00:12:48.420
 You know, if we mistake grace as a permission to sin or a license to sin, as we often refer to it as,

00:12:48.680 --> 00:12:51.060
 then we've misunderstood grace completely.

00:12:52.300 --> 00:12:54.780
 You know, if you've read any commentaries or any books around this,

00:12:54.779 --> 00:13:07.339
 you'll often see that this word that we have in here, in verse 13, this word opportunity,

00:13:08.039 --> 00:13:11.279
 often that is referred to as an operating base.

00:13:11.539 --> 00:13:12.459
 It's a military term.

00:13:12.460 --> 00:13:15.900
 And not that I would have come out with that on my own.

00:13:17.420 --> 00:13:19.120
 The smart one in our house is Rachel.

00:13:19.580 --> 00:13:24.019
 I certainly got a three in standard grade English, so you'll see where I get this from.

00:13:24.139 --> 00:13:28.780
 But the word opportunity that we have there is a word for,

00:13:28.900 --> 00:13:35.920
 it's a military term for a base that is used for operations, you know, as a point for attack.

00:13:35.919 --> 00:13:46.000
 And Paul says here, don't let your freedom that Christ has purchased become the staging ground for fleshly desires.

00:13:47.939 --> 00:13:56.419
 So if freedom is not serving the flesh or to be controlled or to be governed by the flesh, then what is it?

00:13:57.000 --> 00:13:58.379
 And Paul tells us, it's quite clear.

00:13:58.719 --> 00:14:01.939
 He says through love we have to serve one another.

00:14:03.539 --> 00:14:05.399
 You know, this is the paradox.

00:14:05.399 --> 00:14:10.120
 This is the kind of complicated bit that when you get your head around it, you kind of see what it is.

00:14:10.179 --> 00:14:12.480
 Because quite often we stop there and we think we've been free.

00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:13.779
 We are free.

00:14:14.179 --> 00:14:21.519
 But actually, Paul says this, freedom in Christ makes us servants to one another in love.

00:14:22.480 --> 00:14:31.759
 You know, to love one another as ourselves is to seek that other person's good, their highest good, their well-being at all times.

00:14:31.759 --> 00:14:40.559
 You know, Paul doesn't want them to go back to the law, but he is declaring that what the law actually demands,

00:14:42.080 --> 00:14:45.159
 even though it was not able to help them to produce it in their lives,

00:14:45.720 --> 00:14:49.639
 true Christian freedom or liberty is able to produce.

00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:52.480
 You know, we're thinking about last week, we're thinking about legalism.

00:14:52.939 --> 00:14:55.360
 Well, legalism forces service.

00:14:56.600 --> 00:14:59.759
 You've got to do it because I'm telling you, that's the rule, you've got to do it.

00:14:59.779 --> 00:15:00.539
 This is how you've got to live.

00:15:01.580 --> 00:15:03.360
 Sin distorts service.

00:15:03.360 --> 00:15:10.820
 But when it comes to the freedom that Christ has given us, Christ frees us to service.

00:15:12.080 --> 00:15:14.360
 You know, Christian freedom is not freedom, it's not autonomy.

00:15:14.519 --> 00:15:18.100
 It's not, as I've said, it's not to do anything that we would want to do.

00:15:18.539 --> 00:15:20.759
 But Christian freedom, I want you to view it like this.

00:15:20.860 --> 00:15:22.039
 It is the capacity.

00:15:22.720 --> 00:15:23.700
 It is the capacity.

00:15:23.860 --> 00:15:27.039
 It's the spirit-given capacity to love.

00:15:28.039 --> 00:15:30.240
 You know, Paul kind of brings us back to the Old Testament.

00:15:30.379 --> 00:15:35.299
 He says this, the whole law, and we've put aside the law, but he says the whole law,

00:15:35.659 --> 00:15:37.860
 and you see that in your verse, is fulfilled in one word.

00:15:38.199 --> 00:15:41.259
 You shall love your neighbour as yourself.

00:15:42.419 --> 00:15:46.319
 You know, this is maybe a wee bit of a shock when you think about where we've been in here

00:15:46.319 --> 00:15:52.439
 and we've said that the law's been fulfilled and it's, sorry, the law's been set aside

00:15:52.439 --> 00:15:53.319
 and we're not under the law.

00:15:53.320 --> 00:15:59.000
 But actually, Paul brings us back into alignment with maybe the deepest commandment of the law

00:15:59.000 --> 00:15:59.920
 and it's this, love.

00:16:01.700 --> 00:16:04.260
 But it is love without law-keeping.

00:16:04.420 --> 00:16:05.500
 It's love without fear.

00:16:05.640 --> 00:16:07.820
 It's love without religious pressure.

00:16:08.780 --> 00:16:16.620
 And it is love that is driven by the desire and the power of the Holy Spirit.

00:16:17.240 --> 00:16:20.100
 You know, Paul warns the Galatians that if they do not walk in love,

00:16:20.100 --> 00:16:22.120
 then something terrible will happen.

00:16:23.019 --> 00:16:23.800
 It's in verse 15.

00:16:23.960 --> 00:16:27.000
 It says this, but if you bite and devour one another,

00:16:27.139 --> 00:16:30.279
 watch out that you're not consumed by one another.

00:16:30.759 --> 00:16:34.940
 You know, legalism breeds this biting when we set the rules.

00:16:35.399 --> 00:16:39.139
 And we've actually thought about the flesh trying to control us,

00:16:39.399 --> 00:16:44.180
 but legalism when it comes to Christian living is actually just other Christians trying to control us.

00:16:44.179 --> 00:16:48.219
 And legalism then breeds this biting at each other.

00:16:48.919 --> 00:16:52.000
 The flesh breeds this devouring of one another.

00:16:52.679 --> 00:16:56.519
 But when it comes to the Spirit, the Spirit breeds within us love.

00:16:57.179 --> 00:17:00.120
 And the question I've got for you then, before we move on to the next point, is this.

00:17:00.459 --> 00:17:02.519
 How do we live out this love?

00:17:03.019 --> 00:17:04.079
 And point two is this.

00:17:05.339 --> 00:17:07.000
 Well, there's a conflict within.

00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:09.400
 It's not going to be easy.

00:17:09.900 --> 00:17:10.700
 Paul's writing this.

00:17:11.359 --> 00:17:16.500
 You know, Paul reveals to us that there's an inner battlefield in every single Christian.

00:17:17.420 --> 00:17:20.140
 He says this as we get into verse 16.

00:17:20.299 --> 00:17:24.980
 Walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

00:17:25.460 --> 00:17:27.039
 You know, notice what Paul does say here.

00:17:27.099 --> 00:17:28.039
 He doesn't say try harder.

00:17:29.099 --> 00:17:30.319
 He doesn't say tick the boxes.

00:17:30.519 --> 00:17:31.859
 He doesn't say memorise the rules.

00:17:32.619 --> 00:17:34.960
 What he asks us to do is to walk in the Spirit.

00:17:34.960 --> 00:17:37.779
 Now, I always listen to Johnny Mac.

00:17:38.460 --> 00:17:41.819
 Or if I give him his Sunday name, John MacArthur.

00:17:43.180 --> 00:17:43.960
 And if we're going to give...

00:17:44.720 --> 00:17:48.100
 And he reminds us often of this verb, to walk.

00:17:48.240 --> 00:17:52.299
 And it means this, the continuous, habitual direction of life.

00:17:53.299 --> 00:17:54.360
 He kind of gives us...

00:17:54.360 --> 00:17:59.779
 In one of his sermons, he kind of gives the outline of this kind of shift in one's weight,

00:18:00.160 --> 00:18:03.460
 step by step, in reliance on the Spirit.

00:18:03.460 --> 00:18:12.680
 That it's not an emotional experience or some kind of, you know, mystical sensation that goes on when we talk about walking by the Spirit.

00:18:13.180 --> 00:18:16.640
 But it is our ongoing dependence on him.

00:18:18.079 --> 00:18:19.799
 You know, we could look at it a little bit like this.

00:18:20.340 --> 00:18:23.180
 That this walking in the Spirit is...

00:18:23.180 --> 00:18:25.400
 It implies that there's some kind of cooperation.

00:18:26.059 --> 00:18:27.539
 You know, the Spirit provides the power.

00:18:27.539 --> 00:18:31.680
 That's the verse that we thought about in Romans chapter 8 and 11.

00:18:32.119 --> 00:18:34.859
 But we have to provide the willing step.

00:18:35.339 --> 00:18:39.879
 The obedience to what the Spirit of God wants us to do.

00:18:40.119 --> 00:18:41.779
 The way that he guides us.

00:18:41.859 --> 00:18:42.899
 The way that he governs us.

00:18:44.299 --> 00:18:46.319
 And then Paul gives the reason for this walk.

00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:49.700
 The reason that why this walk is necessary for us.

00:18:49.759 --> 00:18:49.980
 He says,

00:18:49.980 --> 00:18:58.980
 You know, sometimes...

00:18:58.980 --> 00:19:02.200
 And I'll say this kind of tongue-in-cheek.

00:19:02.339 --> 00:19:02.980
 Sometimes...

00:19:04.700 --> 00:19:07.140
 There was a hymn that we...

00:19:07.140 --> 00:19:10.360
 Or a song that we would sing at primary school.

00:19:10.500 --> 00:19:11.380
 Kumbaya, my Lord.

00:19:11.759 --> 00:19:12.120
 Kumbaya.

00:19:12.279 --> 00:19:13.620
 I don't know if anybody has ever sung that.

00:19:13.700 --> 00:19:15.980
 And sometimes that can be used...

00:19:15.980 --> 00:19:17.480
 You'll maybe get it at work.

00:19:17.599 --> 00:19:18.380
 And somebody will maybe say,

00:19:18.500 --> 00:19:21.640
 Oh yeah, we'll just sit around with our legs in a basket singing Kumbaya.

00:19:22.059 --> 00:19:22.980
 And they're trying to kind of...

00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:26.680
 They're trying to kind of give the impression

00:19:26.680 --> 00:19:28.980
 that Christians just have this...

00:19:30.759 --> 00:19:34.779
 Kind of easy, you know, life to become a Christian.

00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:36.400
 You know, and it's all peace and joy and love.

00:19:36.460 --> 00:19:37.900
 And we're going to think about these three things.

00:19:38.559 --> 00:19:40.720
 But that's not what Paul is saying to us here.

00:19:40.720 --> 00:19:45.039
 The Christian life is not this peaceful coexistence

00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:46.339
 between these two natures.

00:19:46.480 --> 00:19:49.000
 The nature that is within us.

00:19:49.079 --> 00:19:54.099
 The flesh and the spirit that has come to take residence in our life.

00:19:54.399 --> 00:19:55.799
 You know, the flesh wants its way.

00:19:56.480 --> 00:19:59.119
 And yet the spirit wants God's way.

00:20:00.099 --> 00:20:03.619
 And as Christians, we stand in the middle of that tension.

00:20:04.220 --> 00:20:05.879
 And that's why Paul is writing this.

00:20:06.680 --> 00:20:08.920
 He says, you know, these two things are opposed to each other.

00:20:08.920 --> 00:20:11.440
 And because of this,

00:20:11.960 --> 00:20:16.259
 it keeps us from doing the things that we want to do.

00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:18.920
 You know, it's probably safe to say that most,

00:20:19.019 --> 00:20:20.820
 if not all, Christians desire to please God.

00:20:21.160 --> 00:20:25.880
 I don't know really any Christian that really wants to live the Christian life

00:20:25.880 --> 00:20:30.600
 who doesn't have a desire to please him and to live a victorious life.

00:20:30.599 --> 00:20:37.439
 But this inner war means that the Christian life is not about this kind of passive self-improvement

00:20:37.439 --> 00:20:44.039
 that your colleagues or your friends at university might think that your Christian life is all about.

00:20:44.219 --> 00:20:50.359
 No, it's about our active dependence on the spirit in the midst of this real conflict.

00:20:51.299 --> 00:20:52.779
 You know, Paul goes on to say,

00:20:53.319 --> 00:20:56.500
 but if you are led by the spirit, you're not under the law.

00:20:56.500 --> 00:20:57.359
 But here's the idea.

00:20:57.440 --> 00:21:01.200
 It says this, that the spirit, not the law, shapes true Christian behavior.

00:21:01.799 --> 00:21:04.420
 See, we go back to what Graham was talking about last week in terms of legalism,

00:21:04.460 --> 00:21:05.579
 and that was to do with conversion.

00:21:05.740 --> 00:21:08.619
 But legalism in the whole is this,

00:21:08.700 --> 00:21:11.299
 that if we tick the box, if we keep the rules, if we keep the list,

00:21:11.579 --> 00:21:15.579
 then that somehow produces this righteous, spirit-led Christian behavior.

00:21:16.420 --> 00:21:17.200
 Well, uh-uh.

00:21:18.660 --> 00:21:19.519
 Paul's quite clear here.

00:21:19.519 --> 00:21:25.180
 That does not produce the life that we want.

00:21:25.180 --> 00:21:29.000
 You know, the law, as it was given, it diagnoses sin.

00:21:29.120 --> 00:21:34.860
 It shows us how we are, how we fall short of God's standard.

00:21:36.180 --> 00:21:39.100
 And it is only the spirit that destroys it.

00:21:39.660 --> 00:21:44.100
 The law points to righteousness, and yet it's only the spirit that can produce this.

00:21:44.860 --> 00:21:48.360
 And then Paul goes on to catalog these works of the flesh.

00:21:48.359 --> 00:21:54.919
 And as I say, because we could spend a whole heap of time in here just thinking about either this list here

00:21:54.919 --> 00:21:56.339
 or the list of the fruit of the spirits,

00:21:56.659 --> 00:22:04.500
 we're going to maybe just categorize them and round them up rather than examine each one.

00:22:05.939 --> 00:22:07.899
 But before we go through them, let me just say this.

00:22:07.959 --> 00:22:09.299
 This list is not exhaustive.

00:22:10.299 --> 00:22:14.899
 Again, this is a thing we were maybe touching on on Wednesday night in our growth group.

00:22:14.900 --> 00:22:16.880
 It's not exhaustive, but it's representative.

00:22:18.120 --> 00:22:24.960
 And just in case the Bible, just in case we think that the Bible doesn't cover a sinful habit that we want to justify,

00:22:25.620 --> 00:22:27.080
 Paul adds at the end of that verse,

00:22:27.480 --> 00:22:29.900
 and things like these.

00:22:30.540 --> 00:22:33.019
 It's so easy to say, well, it's not in the Bible,

00:22:33.140 --> 00:22:35.620
 and therefore God doesn't have an opinion on it, and therefore I can do it.

00:22:35.619 --> 00:22:38.719
 But you've heard that.

00:22:38.799 --> 00:22:43.399
 You've heard that from a Christian who, and we've got to be careful,

00:22:43.500 --> 00:22:47.019
 and we'll think about how we deal with that as we get into the later part of this chapter.

00:22:47.399 --> 00:22:50.939
 And when we get into chapter 6, we really see how we deal with it.

00:22:51.939 --> 00:22:55.579
 But that is a warning before we get into this list.

00:22:56.979 --> 00:23:01.899
 First of all, we're going to think about things that are sexually immoral or impure.

00:23:01.900 --> 00:23:08.040
 And this covers every sort of unlawful sexual indulgence.

00:23:08.560 --> 00:23:09.860
 It includes every word.

00:23:10.860 --> 00:23:12.120
 It includes every thought.

00:23:13.600 --> 00:23:16.019
 It includes every desire or action.

00:23:18.820 --> 00:23:24.040
 And then Paul goes into this idea of idolatry or sorcery or witchcraft.

00:23:24.500 --> 00:23:26.280
 And it is the pagan religion.

00:23:26.460 --> 00:23:29.740
 It is the worshipping, the created thing rather than the creator.

00:23:29.740 --> 00:23:36.759
 And the word witchcraft, again, your Bible might have sorcery or witchcraft or along those lines.

00:23:36.859 --> 00:23:39.599
 It's the same word that we derive in our language, the word pharmacy.

00:23:39.819 --> 00:23:44.480
 And it then gives you the idea that the original meaning was the use of drugs,

00:23:44.519 --> 00:23:49.220
 which would heighten the appeal to the occult or the pagan powers.

00:23:50.819 --> 00:23:53.579
 Where then Paul covers over some things.

00:23:53.660 --> 00:23:56.380
 And if you've got your Bible open, you might just want to read them there for yourself.

00:23:56.380 --> 00:23:58.120
 But it is these kind of relational sins.

00:23:59.760 --> 00:24:03.800
 The jealousy, the fits of anger, the rivalries, the arguing, the quarreling.

00:24:04.660 --> 00:24:05.820
 Those types of things.

00:24:07.240 --> 00:24:09.660
 He then covers off these self-centred lifestyles.

00:24:09.660 --> 00:24:14.960
 And lastly, he thinks about this in the ESV.

00:24:19.340 --> 00:24:22.100
 I think actually maybe in the NIV it'll maybe say sensuality.

00:24:22.420 --> 00:24:25.440
 But it is this, it is sensual indulgence.

00:24:25.660 --> 00:24:28.680
 It is just that we live according to our senses.

00:24:29.060 --> 00:24:33.900
 What we can taste, what we can touch, what we can see, what we can hear, what we can smell.

00:24:33.900 --> 00:24:37.700
 And we just live according to what is in front of us.

00:24:37.720 --> 00:24:42.740
 And we go after that and we want to tantalise our senses in that way.

00:24:42.840 --> 00:24:48.920
 And Paul has that list of things that are works of the flesh.

00:24:49.019 --> 00:24:50.920
 It is what the flesh produces.

00:24:51.040 --> 00:24:51.820
 But why this list?

00:24:51.880 --> 00:24:53.900
 Why does Paul give us this list?

00:24:53.980 --> 00:24:59.500
 Well, he wants us to recognise the fleshly patterns of behaviour in ourselves.

00:24:59.500 --> 00:25:04.900
 This flesh is not just simply bad behaviour in that sense.

00:25:05.359 --> 00:25:10.000
 It is this deep orientation towards self.

00:25:10.140 --> 00:25:11.000
 Self-gratification.

00:25:11.259 --> 00:25:12.559
 Self-protection.

00:25:12.720 --> 00:25:13.480
 Self-indulgence.

00:25:13.720 --> 00:25:15.900
 Self-exaltation.

00:25:17.079 --> 00:25:18.240
 And we have this grave warning.

00:25:18.400 --> 00:25:23.319
 He says, those who practise these things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

00:25:23.319 --> 00:25:33.639
 You know, he's not speaking about here the occasional strain across the line or the struggle and failure that each and every one of us have to deal with.

00:25:35.179 --> 00:25:41.899
 The point is the persistent, unrepentant practice of as a lifestyle.

00:25:41.900 --> 00:25:55.240
 Because if that is the case, if that is your lifestyle, if that is what is dominating in your life, then it may be an indication or a proof that the Spirit of God is not present.

00:25:56.580 --> 00:25:58.660
 Now, I don't say that to unsettle anyone.

00:25:59.720 --> 00:26:02.259
 And I don't say it for us to judge and look at other people.

00:26:02.700 --> 00:26:11.300
 But just consider in your own heart, if that was the pattern of your life and that is all that is in your life, then it's maybe an indication.

00:26:11.299 --> 00:26:15.700
 That the Spirit of God is absent.

00:26:16.680 --> 00:26:21.960
 But as I say, Paul doesn't write that there for us to be necessarily troubled by that.

00:26:22.180 --> 00:26:26.440
 As we've thought before, and I was in Kids Church last week, so I don't know exactly if it was said.

00:26:26.839 --> 00:26:29.899
 But once a Christian, always a Christian.

00:26:31.119 --> 00:26:34.419
 Once you are saved, you can never lose your salvation.

00:26:34.420 --> 00:26:41.940
 And the reason being is that when you were taken from out under the law and you were given God's unmerited favour.

00:26:42.580 --> 00:26:46.160
 And we're going to think about it when we talk about crucifying the flesh.

00:26:46.920 --> 00:26:51.140
 But when that happened, the Spirit of God took up residency in your life.

00:26:51.880 --> 00:26:53.160
 It's not something that you get later.

00:26:53.420 --> 00:26:54.600
 It's not something that grows.

00:26:55.060 --> 00:26:55.820
 It's nothing like that.

00:26:55.819 --> 00:26:58.740
 You get it when you are saved.

00:26:59.980 --> 00:27:00.839
 And you can never lose that.

00:27:00.919 --> 00:27:07.960
 So don't be put off if we all will, because we have the flesh and because we have this battle, this conflict within.

00:27:08.379 --> 00:27:10.799
 There are going to be times where you fall into sin.

00:27:10.839 --> 00:27:11.919
 But it's how we deal with that.

00:27:11.920 --> 00:27:19.060
 But for the true believer, for the Christian, for the person who has the Spirit of God within them, that will not be the bent of their life.

00:27:20.160 --> 00:27:21.400
 And we should take comfort in that.

00:27:22.220 --> 00:27:23.120
 So here's a question.

00:27:23.240 --> 00:27:28.100
 If the flesh produces these works, then what does the Spirit produce?

00:27:28.580 --> 00:27:32.420
 And we're going to get into probably the best part of this chapter, right?

00:27:32.460 --> 00:27:34.840
 The heart of the Christian life.

00:27:35.000 --> 00:27:38.920
 And it is this character of the Spirit, or fruit of the Spirit, if you like.

00:27:39.740 --> 00:27:42.340
 Now, just let me take a little liberty for a second.

00:27:42.440 --> 00:27:43.340
 And again, I wasn't going to say this.

00:27:43.460 --> 00:27:48.960
 But some of us, well, certainly I have, have been in the Western General and the Royal Infirmary and several other hospitals.

00:27:49.080 --> 00:27:51.700
 And we've had loads of MRIs, loads of CT scans.

00:27:52.160 --> 00:27:58.340
 And when you're strapped on that slide, and you're ready to go into the tube, the nurse radiographer pops her head in.

00:27:58.340 --> 00:28:00.560
 And she puts a cannula in your arm.

00:28:00.940 --> 00:28:04.800
 And in that cannula goes some dye or some contrast.

00:28:04.799 --> 00:28:15.419
 And the reason they do that is so that they can very, very clearly see the difference, the contrast between the types of tissues that they're imaging within you.

00:28:15.779 --> 00:28:21.500
 And I don't care to number how many MRIs and CT scans, unfortunately, I've had to have.

00:28:21.879 --> 00:28:25.839
 But every time they put it in, and the time that they don't put it in, well, guess what?

00:28:25.839 --> 00:28:28.200
 They pull you back out, and they put it in, and they put you back in.

00:28:28.259 --> 00:28:31.339
 Because they can't tell the difference between the things that they're looking at.

00:28:31.339 --> 00:28:33.059
 Well, let me tell you this.

00:28:34.039 --> 00:28:36.579
 Paul, in a sense, uses a contrast.

00:28:36.980 --> 00:28:40.720
 Because these things are in stark difference to each other.

00:28:41.099 --> 00:28:50.339
 The fruit of the Spirit is just as clear and as definite as the image on that scan when it comes out at the other end.

00:28:51.459 --> 00:28:55.959
 Now, as we get into this, notice that the word that we are going to look at here is the fruit of the Spirit.

00:28:56.259 --> 00:28:57.099
 Not the fruits.

00:28:57.319 --> 00:28:58.439
 Quite often we get that wrong.

00:28:58.740 --> 00:29:00.319
 And we think about the fruits of the Spirit.

00:29:00.319 --> 00:29:02.740
 Well, it is not the fruit, the fruits of the Spirit.

00:29:02.879 --> 00:29:03.679
 It is singular.

00:29:04.139 --> 00:29:05.339
 It is the fruit of the Spirit.

00:29:05.439 --> 00:29:09.419
 And you think maybe I'm getting a bit technical, and I know that your attention will be waning ever so slightly.

00:29:09.759 --> 00:29:11.839
 But I think it's important because it is this.

00:29:12.419 --> 00:29:14.819
 It is singular.

00:29:15.159 --> 00:29:16.539
 It is a whole.

00:29:16.639 --> 00:29:18.919
 It is the unity of what we are looking at.

00:29:19.619 --> 00:29:23.319
 The Spirit of God produces one integrated character.

00:29:24.599 --> 00:29:25.519
 In balance.

00:29:26.240 --> 00:29:27.720
 In our lives.

00:29:27.720 --> 00:29:29.940
 And we see them.

00:29:30.000 --> 00:29:30.680
 There's nine here.

00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:34.079
 We'll just look at them very quickly because I know that time is almost gone.

00:29:34.579 --> 00:29:35.880
 Love, joy, peace.

00:29:36.059 --> 00:29:40.220
 Quite often when we think about these, we think of these qualities.

00:29:40.220 --> 00:29:43.839
 And we might think of them as God word in a sense, right?

00:29:44.640 --> 00:29:49.680
 All of the character qualities are affected across our whole life where the Spirit is leading us.

00:29:49.900 --> 00:29:51.640
 But these ones often we think of God word.

00:29:51.640 --> 00:30:03.080
 It is a selfless, unconditional commitment to care deeply for others as we reflect God's love, God's perfect love in our lives.

00:30:04.080 --> 00:30:09.759
 Equally as joy is this deep, enduring sense of gladness and contentment.

00:30:09.860 --> 00:30:17.180
 And if you were upstairs two weeks ago and I could hardly speak, you'll remember that we talked about this joy, this happiness that we long for.

00:30:17.180 --> 00:30:20.940
 But this joy comes from trusting God.

00:30:21.680 --> 00:30:28.340
 And then peace is this inner rest and assurance from trusting God despite our circumstances.

00:30:28.340 --> 00:30:30.140
 It's not the peace that we're given at salvation.

00:30:30.620 --> 00:30:35.320
 It is the peace that we experience in our lives as we go through difficult circumstances.

00:30:35.319 --> 00:30:40.279
 We then come on to the next three, which are patience and kindness and goodness.

00:30:40.460 --> 00:30:45.980
 And again, I think these have just come out of the ESV, so you might have a slight different order in NIV before you.

00:30:46.299 --> 00:30:51.519
 But these are, quite often we think of these as relational, as how we deal with each other.

00:30:52.039 --> 00:31:03.619
 And when we think about patience, it's this ability to deal with, endure difficult situations and delays without frustrations or anger towards one another.

00:31:03.619 --> 00:31:08.579
 When we think about kindness, it's the gentle disposition.

00:31:09.279 --> 00:31:18.379
 It's shown true, genuine care and compassion through our thoughtful words and generous actions.

00:31:19.719 --> 00:31:21.519
 And then we think about goodness.

00:31:21.859 --> 00:31:29.619
 And it's just that, this ongoing, active, constantly generosity for the benefit of others.

00:31:29.619 --> 00:31:36.279
 And then lastly, we've got these last three of faithfulness and gentleness and of self-control.

00:31:36.839 --> 00:31:44.119
 And if the first three are Godward and the next three are manward, then the last three are inward.

00:31:45.099 --> 00:31:53.000
 And faithfulness is just that, is that reliability, is that trustworthiness, is that loyalty that the Spirit of God produces in us.

00:31:53.000 --> 00:31:55.920
 Gentleness, or quite often we might see it as weakness.

00:31:56.980 --> 00:31:59.200
 And we see that in the life of the Lord Jesus.

00:32:00.019 --> 00:32:04.759
 And when we think of gentleness, as I say, we think of that word meekness.

00:32:04.920 --> 00:32:05.319
 It's interesting.

00:32:05.420 --> 00:32:06.680
 Moses is called the meekest man.

00:32:07.200 --> 00:32:12.240
 But Jesus demonstrates completely just that strength under control.

00:32:12.920 --> 00:32:14.980
 And that is what gentleness is.

00:32:14.980 --> 00:32:16.500
 And then lastly, self-control.

00:32:17.240 --> 00:32:26.360
 It is the Spirit empowering us to have mastery over every desire, every impulse, every appetite, every longing.

00:32:27.579 --> 00:32:32.140
 You know, notice just how different this list is from the world's version of goodness.

00:32:33.120 --> 00:32:37.120
 You know, the fruit that the Spirit produces is not a result of our personality.

00:32:37.960 --> 00:32:39.279
 It's not a result of our upbringing.

00:32:39.279 --> 00:32:44.460
 And it's not a result of the training that we've had, or discipline, or our temperament.

00:32:44.960 --> 00:32:52.859
 It is the supernatural, if I'm allowed to use that word, it is the supernatural imprint of God's own character in our lives.

00:32:54.259 --> 00:32:56.240
 And here's the next part of the verse.

00:32:56.299 --> 00:32:56.779
 It says this.

00:32:56.960 --> 00:32:58.039
 Against which?

00:32:58.740 --> 00:33:01.039
 Against such things there is no law.

00:33:01.319 --> 00:33:06.220
 There's no law that can condemn these qualities, nor can the law produce some, if we're honest.

00:33:06.220 --> 00:33:09.559
 It's only the Spirit that brings this to life.

00:33:10.539 --> 00:33:13.680
 And then Paul comes on to the bit that was just mentioned a little minute ago there.

00:33:14.220 --> 00:33:14.700
 And it is this.

00:33:14.779 --> 00:33:22.180
 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.

00:33:22.420 --> 00:33:25.220
 Now, I don't want to lose you right at the end here, but this is a little bit technical.

00:33:26.259 --> 00:33:31.720
 And if I can just sum it up, there was a Scottish Christian from a few years ago called John Ritchie.

00:33:31.779 --> 00:33:32.559
 Some people might know him.

00:33:32.559 --> 00:33:37.440
 And he has a fairly lengthy section of this, which I find incredibly helpful.

00:33:37.740 --> 00:33:39.740
 But I've kind of summarised it in this.

00:33:39.799 --> 00:33:40.319
 And it says this.

00:33:40.559 --> 00:33:46.639
 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have already put their old sinful nature to death with its desires.

00:33:47.799 --> 00:33:53.679
 They agree with God's judgment on the flesh, shown in the cross and accepted by faith.

00:33:54.099 --> 00:33:57.740
 Not through long efforts of self-denial.

00:33:57.740 --> 00:34:03.579
 The experience may look different from person to person, but the truth is the same for everyone.

00:34:03.920 --> 00:34:14.480
 As we grow in grace, know God more and trust ourselves less, this reality, the reality of this will show more clearly in our words and our actions.

00:34:14.480 --> 00:34:20.480
 But it is present from the start in all who are Christ's.

00:34:21.599 --> 00:34:28.480
 You know, at conversion or at salvation, at the point that we became a Christian, the authority of the flesh was broken.

00:34:29.280 --> 00:34:33.059
 You know, the flesh remains present, as we all sadly are aware.

00:34:33.699 --> 00:34:34.659
 But it is not dominant.

00:34:35.519 --> 00:34:36.679
 It has been sentenced.

00:34:37.000 --> 00:34:37.900
 It has been dethroned.

00:34:38.000 --> 00:34:41.260
 It's been denied its authority in our lives.

00:34:41.260 --> 00:34:48.840
 And yet, even though that is true on the day that we were saved, the power was removed from the flesh.

00:34:49.700 --> 00:34:56.400
 Paul writes elsewhere, and it's a slightly different context, but Paul writes elsewhere that we have, we've got to take up our cross daily.

00:34:56.820 --> 00:34:59.740
 You know, rejecting these old desires and choosing the Spirit's way.

00:34:59.740 --> 00:35:05.420
 But the point that Paul is making here is more of an identity statement about who we are.

00:35:06.120 --> 00:35:10.440
 We are people who are not under the control of the flesh.

00:35:11.260 --> 00:35:16.160
 So Paul concludes, he says this, if we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.

00:35:16.240 --> 00:35:17.760
 And it's another beautiful image.

00:35:18.220 --> 00:35:19.700
 You know, it's not running ahead of the Spirit.

00:35:20.060 --> 00:35:21.540
 It's not lagging behind the Spirit.

00:35:21.880 --> 00:35:25.260
 It is keeping in rhythm with Him, step by step.

00:35:25.900 --> 00:35:33.520
 You know, as the Spirit, and I'm going to come back to those four words I was thinking about, whether it's control or constrain or guide or govern.

00:35:33.519 --> 00:35:36.840
 But the Spirit convicts and guides and teaches us.

00:35:37.119 --> 00:35:38.039
 And we must be attentive.

00:35:38.639 --> 00:35:49.259
 You know, walking in step means that it should shape our habits, what we spend with our time, our relationships, our desires, around where we go, etc.

00:35:49.340 --> 00:35:52.539
 Because we know that He is with us.

00:35:52.539 --> 00:36:02.460
 And then finally, Paul writes, let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

00:36:04.159 --> 00:36:10.320
 You know, the sad part is this, that even spiritual people can slip into fleshly attitudes.

00:36:11.599 --> 00:36:16.639
 Pride, compassion, sorry, comparison, self-importance.

00:36:16.639 --> 00:36:21.099
 They're all subtle forms of the flesh just rearing its head.

00:36:21.960 --> 00:36:28.400
 And yet, if we truly walk by the Spirit, the Spirit produces humility.

00:36:29.019 --> 00:36:30.259
 It produces unity.

00:36:30.579 --> 00:36:32.299
 It produces mutual encouragement.

00:36:32.960 --> 00:36:45.139
 And that warning that Paul puts right at the end there should not be the pattern amongst us that we become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

00:36:45.139 --> 00:36:50.460
 Right back to where we probably started with the verse, for you were called to freedom.

00:36:50.859 --> 00:36:53.500
 Now, and I know that time has gone, but let me just say this.

00:36:54.299 --> 00:36:55.960
 How does this really work in principle?

00:36:56.599 --> 00:37:01.000
 You know, have we become, as Christians, have we become desensitized?

00:37:01.659 --> 00:37:07.679
 Is our life so busy and so distracted that we cannot hear the Spirit speak in our lives?

00:37:07.679 --> 00:37:24.739
 Have we become so accustomed to sin and the sinful ways of the flesh and the world that we do not have that contrast between what is sinful and what is, what should be our life?

00:37:25.119 --> 00:37:30.519
 Led by the Spirit and the character or the fruit that the Spirit produces.

00:37:30.519 --> 00:37:38.900
 You know, our passage today is one of the clearest pictures in Scripture of what it means to actually live as a Christian in the world.

00:37:39.440 --> 00:37:40.659
 You know, Paul tells us this.

00:37:40.719 --> 00:37:42.639
 We've been called to freedom.

00:37:43.480 --> 00:37:47.820
 Not to law keeping or lawlessness or license, as we might think.

00:37:48.759 --> 00:37:51.380
 Paul tells us this, that we are involved in a battle.

00:37:52.340 --> 00:37:53.539
 It's not a passive life.

00:37:53.679 --> 00:37:57.019
 You're not going to float into this unless you take action.

00:37:57.019 --> 00:38:02.639
 He tells us this, that we are only empowered by the Spirit to lead this life.

00:38:02.739 --> 00:38:05.440
 We cannot do it on our own strength.

00:38:06.920 --> 00:38:07.820
 Paul tells us this as well.

00:38:07.940 --> 00:38:11.759
 We are to bear the fruit of the Spirit, not the works of the flesh.

00:38:12.820 --> 00:38:15.099
 And Paul finishes lastly by saying this.

00:38:15.199 --> 00:38:20.159
 We are to keep in step with the Spirit, not to follow our own impulses.

00:38:21.000 --> 00:38:24.599
 This passage that we've thought about today is not a list of commands to keep,

00:38:24.599 --> 00:38:27.880
 but it is a life to embrace.

00:38:28.139 --> 00:38:28.839
 It's not a burden.

00:38:29.279 --> 00:38:30.159
 Some of us think it's a burden.

00:38:30.219 --> 00:38:30.900
 It's not a burden.

00:38:31.319 --> 00:38:32.360
 It is a blessing.

00:38:33.480 --> 00:38:35.139
 It's not by human achievement either.

00:38:35.860 --> 00:38:37.799
 It is the work of the Spirit.

00:38:38.339 --> 00:38:41.319
 You know, the Gospel doesn't merely free us from sin,

00:38:41.619 --> 00:38:44.920
 but it frees us for life in the Spirit.

00:38:45.779 --> 00:38:46.900
 It frees us to love.

00:38:47.639 --> 00:38:48.819
 It frees us to joy.

00:38:48.820 --> 00:38:53.019
 It frees us into a life that actually works.

00:38:53.880 --> 00:38:57.900
 And the life where the character of Christ shines through us.

00:38:58.240 --> 00:39:00.080
 That's the point we want you to get to this morning, isn't it?

00:39:01.280 --> 00:39:06.019
 Well, may we, by the grace of God, walk in the freedom and power of the Holy Spirit,

00:39:06.220 --> 00:39:11.380
 step by step, day by day, until Christ is formed in us.

00:39:12.019 --> 00:39:12.740
 Let us pray.

00:39:13.739 --> 00:39:15.859
 Heavenly Father, we come before you this morning,

00:39:16.279 --> 00:39:21.719
 and we thank you for this time that we have been able just to spend in this passage.

00:39:22.500 --> 00:39:27.819
 Our Father, we thank you for every true believer that we are indwelt by your Holy Spirit.

00:39:28.159 --> 00:39:32.179
 And our Father, we are so thankful for that this morning.

00:39:32.779 --> 00:39:38.139
 For as we could not save ourselves by our own merit or our own works or our own actions,

00:39:38.139 --> 00:39:41.719
 our Father, we realize this morning, just as we've spent time in this passage,

00:39:41.719 --> 00:39:45.980
 that we cannot live the Christian life by our own efforts either.

00:39:46.500 --> 00:39:51.980
 And so, our Father, we pray that as we meditate and think on what we have spoken this morning,

00:39:52.799 --> 00:40:00.480
 our Father, that you would grant us the strength and the wisdom and the submission and the humility

00:40:00.480 --> 00:40:04.000
 just to come and to submit ourselves to the Spirit's leading.

00:40:04.939 --> 00:40:08.980
 Our Father, if there is anything this morning that I have said that is not of value, our Father,

00:40:08.980 --> 00:40:12.139
 we just ask that it might be cast aside.

00:40:12.300 --> 00:40:15.240
 And yet, our Father, we just pray that your word would speak to us

00:40:15.240 --> 00:40:19.099
 and that your Spirit would enable us to live this life.

00:40:19.460 --> 00:40:21.659
 And so, our Father, we commit ourselves to you for your blessing.

00:40:22.039 --> 00:40:23.559
 For we ask these things in Jesus' name.

00:40:24.119 --> 00:40:24.400
 Amen.

00:40:24.400 --> 00:40:50.340
 Amen.