I have sort of a David Letterman top 10 list to start out.
It's not quite 10 and it's not quite David Letterman because I'm not nearly as funny as him.
But seven things that you won't hear in church.
Number one, now that keeping all of God's commandments has become second nature,
I'm planning to solve some real problems.
Number two, I've stopped praying because I realized I don't need any help.
Number three, I don't read the Bible anymore because I already know everything there is to know about God.
Number four, since I've earned God's love for myself, I'm now working on helping others earn it too.
Number five, my strength is sufficient for my salvation.
Number six, grace is only for losers.
Number seven, wisdom?
That's why I've got this handy magic eight ball.
It's a toy from my childhood for those who don't know.
I say magic eight ball, should I go do this?
And it says it is decidedly so and so on and so forth.
So that's a list of things you won't hear in church.
It's right to kind of chuckle and laugh because they sound so ridiculous.
And yet, our sin problem goes so deep, our fleshly nature so pervades and oozes into every nook and cranny of our lives,
that things that sound ridiculous on one hand actually show up in our lives.
Not certainly in these brazen kind of arrogant statements that I listed, but more subtly.
We operate in our own strength all the time.
In fact, that was part of Billy's prayer of confession that we heard.
We fail to carve out time for the Lord to seek His face and to have Him help us.
Sometimes we act in haste in a situation that requires a lot of wisdom and waiting.
On God.
Sometimes we forget just how much help we need to combat our sin-sick condition.
Sometimes life is so busy we don't open our Bibles because we don't have time,
failing to remember that life is in knowing God.
The bottom line is we need help.
This is where the book of Galatians comes in handy.
To kind of get us back into this book, we've taken three or four weeks off now to enjoy Advent together,
but so to get us back into the book of Galatians,
this is a letter written by the Apostle Paul to a mostly non-Jewish Christian church in Galatia.
That's being written to folks who wouldn't necessarily have been following the commandments of God
because they were Gentile, they were pagans,
and they would have been living very different lives than the typical Jewish religious man or woman.
And Paul writes because these Galatian Christians are in danger of abandoning their faith in Jesus
for a cursed captivity under the Jewish law.
See, a group of false teachers, we call them Judaizers,
they've come in to this church and they've started giving the Galatians this message that says,
your faith is incomplete until you begin keeping the Jewish commandments.
All this faith in Jesus, it will be next to nothing until you obey the Old Testament law.
And tragically, this church who's been set free by Jesus,
the moment that they believe that His perfect life,
His death for sinners and His glorious resurrection
and now current ascension and rule and reign over all things,
this church has believed this.
They believe the good news.
They're in danger of turning from it.
Surrendering the freedom that Jesus alone provides
in exchange for slavery.
They're surrendering their salvation for condemnation.
And Paul is urgently warning them.
He's calling them back to faith alone in Jesus.
Saying the law cannot save you.
Only Jesus can through faith in Him alone.
But if the law is not the guide into righteousness,
if the law is not ushering the people of God into salvation,
then who or what is?
Well, Paul's answer in our text is,
the Holy Spirit is the guide into righteousness
and the one who is ushering us into salvation.
It's the Holy Spirit alone who does this.
So, in Galatians 5, 16-24, our text for this morning,
God, through the Apostle Paul,
issues a command to Christians,
both the Galatian church and us today,
and then gives us the reason why.
So, a command and a reason,
and essentially, if I could summarize it
and boil it down to one sentence, it's this.
Walk by the Spirit
because you need Him.
Walk by the Spirit because you need Him.
We all need help, right?
We're in agreement there.
And Jesus has sent,
not just sort of some book,
of course the Bible is amazing,
not just a list of do's and don'ts,
but a helper, a person,
to help us, the Holy Spirit.
So, walk by the Spirit
because you need His help.
We're going to walk through this passage this morning
by looking at three reasons
why we must walk by the Spirit.
Three reasons why
we must walk by the Spirit.
Reason number one,
you need Him to defeat the flesh.
You need the Spirit to defeat the flesh.
This is what Paul gets at in verses 16 and 17.
Right on the heels of making this command,
walk by the Spirit
and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.
Paul says in these verses
that each and every Christian
is engaged in a conflict.
Now, he's not talking about
that kind of cosmic conflict
of God versus Satan
and all the corresponding angels and demons.
Not that conflict Paul has in mind here,
but an inner conflict,
a conflict inside each and every Christian.
It begins the moment we trust in Jesus for salvation
and it continues for our entire life
until either we die
or Jesus graciously returns.
And it's because that at our salvation,
the Holy Spirit comes to dwell in us.
The moment that happens,
this conflict begins waging inside of us.
But that also means
that this conflict is not one
that is just universally true
of all human beings.
This isn't like the cartoon
where there's a devil on one shoulder
and an angel on the other shoulder
and every person is just kind of struggling
through this.
There is a sense that that's true,
but that's not what Paul's getting at.
This is a conflict between
the sinful nature of the Christian
and the Holy Spirit
who now indwells the Christian.
Just so we're clear,
the Holy Spirit is a person.
He's the third person of God.
The third person of what we call the Trinity.
God is three persons in one.
There's not three gods,
there's one God,
and yet there are three distinct persons
and the Holy Spirit is one of those persons.
He is God and He lives in every single Christian
the moment we are born again,
the moment we trust in Jesus Christ
for forgiveness and eternal life.
In fact, the Holy Spirit is the only reason
anyone in this room
is a Christian in the first place.
The Spirit gives life.
The flesh is no help at all,
Jesus says in John 6.
So Paul explains this conflict
in verse 17.
Listen to what he says.
For the desires of the flesh
are against the Spirit,
and the desires of the Spirit
are against the flesh.
For these are opposed to each other
to keep you from doing
the things you want to do.
Do you notice the word against
that Paul uses twice?
When you see that word against,
you should think hostile, enemy.
The flesh and the Holy Spirit
are enemies.
If you think back to a science class
that you had in school,
probably in grade school or middle school,
and your science teacher says,
today class,
we're going to look at magnets.
Right?
And a real magnet has kind of this
north pole on it
and a south pole on it,
and it attracts the opposite pole
of another magnet.
Right?
So if you take the north side
of a magnet
and the south side,
they actually pull together.
Paul is saying the opposite
is true of the flesh and Spirit.
You put the north end of a magnet
against the north end of a magnet
and they repel each other.
They're headed in opposite directions.
The flesh and the Spirit
possess contrary affections
and they're motivated
and driven by opposing desires.
That's the conflict
Paul's talking about,
but the good news is
that it's not a fair fight.
These are not equal opposites.
So of course,
we know as a Christian
that the flesh
and the temptations
and the desires
of things that are not of God
can feel very strong.
There can be a very strong pull
toward these things.
It can seem irresistible at points.
But look at verse 16.
Paul's not rejecting
that experience,
but he's saying something
so full of hope
in this verse.
But I say,
walk by the Spirit
and you will not
gratify the desires
of the flesh.
Paul's saying here
that the possibility
of gratifying the flesh
in the moment,
in the situation
that you're walking
by the Spirit
is zero percent.
Our English translation
sounds a bit tame
compared to what Paul's
really trying to get at.
He says,
there is zero possibility,
no potential
whatsoever
in gratifying the flesh
and its desires
if you are in that moment
walking by the Spirit.
Now just a caveat,
Paul here is not saying
that somehow
we can ascend
beyond the point
where the flesh
causes trouble
in our lives.
He's not saying
that you should be perfect
all day,
every day,
end of story.
He's not saying that.
We will have this
lifelong conflict.
But,
he's saying
there is hope.
There is reason
to have full confidence
that when we are walking
by the Spirit
we will not be gratifying
the desires
of the flesh.
It should make our ears
perk up,
friends.
It should be filling
our hope tanks
of our hearts
to hear that
because we know
all too well
this inner conflict.
facing this relentless
day by day
temptation
and influence
of the flesh.
The discouragement
and the heartache
when we fail.
Yet there's hope.
The Holy Spirit,
Paul says,
is so much more powerful,
so much more influential
that it's not a fair fight.
Whenever he leads,
whenever we walk
in his strength,
we will never ever
gratify the desires
of the flesh.
It is impossible
because these desires
are opposed
to each other.
They're not moving
in the same direction,
they're not on parallel tracks,
they're opposed.
If you're going this way,
you can't be going that way.
We all need this reminder
today and every day,
don't we?
Maybe you're here
and you're discouraged
by a sin
that just keeps cropping up
in your life
and it just seems like
you can't get a handle on it,
you can't gain victory.
Paul would say,
walk by the Spirit.
Not in some kind of
just dismissal sort of way,
but look to Him.
He's your hope.
You will conquer the flesh
by the Spirit.
You need His help.
You won't do it
any other way.
So don't look to yourself.
Don't be gloomy.
But walk by the Spirit.
Maybe you're in a hard
and stressful season.
Just temptation
feels more intense
and more real
just because you're strung out.
You're tired
and you're not thinking
as clearly
as you normally are.
You need the Spirit.
You need His help.
But even if we're
in a good spot
in the room, right?
Everything spiritually
is going pretty well.
We're not struggling
with anything in particular.
Still striving
and yearning for holiness.
Holy Spirit
is who you need.
We don't look
an ounce more like Jesus
by our own effort.
It's by the Holy Spirit
working in us.
So that's reason number one.
We're in a conflict
and we need the Spirit
to defeat the flesh.
So walk by Him.
The second reason
Paul points to
is in verses 18 to 23.
He says,
you need the Spirit
because He produces
and provides
what the flesh cannot.
You need the Spirit
because He alone
can produce things
that the flesh
has no hope
of producing.
And bear with me
because this is
the bulkiest part
of the text.
It's the bulkiest part
of the sermon as well.
The first thing
we see in verse 18
is the Spirit
produces
and provides
freedom.
Listen to 18.
But if you are led
by the Spirit,
you are not under the law.
Okay, I don't hear
freedom.
I don't hear
anything about the flesh
or what's going on here.
When Paul says
under the law,
which he has
three, four, five times
previously in Galatians,
he's speaking of
being in captivity
under the law,
being in slavery
under the law.
If you want to turn
to chapter 3,
verse 23,
I think it's most clear there
what Paul's meaning
by this phrase.
Now, before faith came,
we were held captive
under the law,
imprisoned
until the coming faith
would be revealed.
Okay, so under the law
means captivity,
but what does this have to do
with the flesh?
Paul's been saying
through chapters 3 and 4
of Galatians
is that those who are
captive under the law
are attempting
in their own strength,
aka according to the flesh,
to achieve righteousness
and salvation.
They're trying to keep
the law
to earn righteousness,
to earn salvation.
And Paul's been warning
the Galatians,
you can't do so.
By works of the law,
no one
will be justified.
No one will be saved.
Because the law
reveals sin
and the law
imprisons us.
So for the Jew
who was trying to gain
his salvation
through law keeping,
Paul says,
you're a slave.
You're not free
and you're not righteous.
You're a slave.
In fact,
Paul says,
the law was never
intended to save anyone.
But our own flesh,
our own pride,
tries to save
ourself anyway.
The flesh
enslaves religious people
underneath the law
that God gave
for that very purpose.
The Spirit
alone
frees
them
to live
for Jesus.
Verse 19
continues this argument
about freedom.
Paul writes
that
he's talking about
the flesh
enslaving
but the Spirit
providing freedom.
And Paul's been
given kind of
two ways
that you can be
enslaved.
The first is the one
I've just been talking about
being under the law,
being captive
under the law.
And now in 19
he pivots and says,
here's the second way
you can be a slave.
By living fully
into the desires
and passions
of the flesh.
You can be
imprisoned by
attempting to save
yourself through
rule keeping
and you can be
imprisoned by
pursuing
the immoral
unrighteous
works of
the flesh.
The Galatian
church would be
very familiar
with this list
in 19 to 21.
This essentially
was their
former life.
But they were
in danger of
reverting back
to slavery
though God
had set them
free not by
becoming immoral
unrighteous people
again but by
thinking that they
could start
keeping a law
to save
themselves.
Both are
slavery.
That's why Paul
can pivot so
quickly from
in verse 18
talking about
the law
to verse 19
talking about
the works
of the flesh.
In his mind
they're both
under this
category of
slavery and
captivity.
Because he spent
two chapters
already talking
about the
law and
its ability
to enslave.
He only needs
to raise it
in one sentence
to draw all
of that
information
back in.
Essentially he
says both
the rule
follower
and the
immoral
are slaves.
The spirit
alone
provides
freedom.
fruit.
But additionally
the spirit
also provides
Christ-like
fruit.
It's the
point of the
comparison in
verses 19
to 21
with the
fruit of the
spirit in
22 and
23.
Paul saying
look what the
flesh produces
and provides.
Only unrighteous
things.
Whether you're
trying to keep
the rule of
God or
whether you're
just letting
it loose and
living for the
flesh.
The flesh
produces unrighteous
things.
It's only the
spirit who
produces
righteous fruit.
Flesh cannot
provide righteousness.
It can't help
you and me
become more
like Jesus
Christ.
It only works
immorality.
Now look a
little bit more
closely at this
works of the
flesh in
19 to 21.
Paul's
intentionally
organized this
for us.
The first
three works
that he
lists in
verse 19
they cover the
full range of
sexual sin.
Whether it's
immorality,
adultery,
homosexuality,
lust,
all of it.
He covers
them all in
these three
words.
He says those
are of the
flesh.
The next
two on the
list,
idolatry and
sorcery,
deal with
false religion.
Worshipping
a god other
than the one
true god.
Or trying to
manipulate this
deity to do
what you want
him to.
And the final
two in the
list,
drunkenness
and orgies,
deal with this
blatant lack of
self-control.
This kind of
just letting
loose.
And rather
than seeing
that last
word as
some kind
of sexual
connotation,
it's more
of like the
movie Animal
House,
just like some
big frat
party and
carousing.
It's kind
of what you
want to
think of
there.
These are
all works
of the
flesh.
We skipped
over the
middle eight
because Paul
wants to
draw attention
here.
He wants
to focus
in on the
middle eight.
And it
starts the
third word
of verse
20.
Just listen
to these
and notice
the relational
kind of
components of
these.
These are
sins that
have to do
with treatment
of other
people.
Enmity,
strife,
jealousy,
fits of
anger,
rivalries,
dissensions,
divisions,
envy.
It seems
like Paul
probably has
the Judaizers
in his mind
as he's
writing several
of these.
Strife,
rivalries,
division,
envy.
These people
are coming
into the
church and
wreaking havoc,
dividing people
over by
speaking heresy
and falsehood.
People who are
envious of
Paul's position
and authority
and trying to
get him in
trouble and
trying to
oust him
from having
sway over
this church.
church.
But not
just that,
this list
kind of
hits even
closer to
home for
the Galatians.
If you
look at
5 verse
15,
Paul's
talking to
the Galatians
in this
passage we
heard three
or four
weeks ago
and saying
if you
bite and
devour
one another,
watch out
that you're
not consumed
by one
another.
So the
Galatians
are kind
of at
each other's
necks a
little bit.
And then
in verse
26,
the last
verse of
chapter 5,
we see a
similar idea
again.
Let us not
become conceited,
provoking one
another,
envying one
another.
These are
real warnings
because the
Galatian church
seems to be
kind of taking
on and
developing some
of these
very divisive
and hurtful
and sinful
fleshly
practices that
they're seeing
exhibited in
these false
teachers.
chapters.
It's a
pretty sobering
list,
isn't it?
We should
see ourselves
in various
ways and
shapes and
forms in
various works
on this
list.
Sobering
list when we
stop and
think a
little bit
about it.
And Paul
doesn't even
give a full
list.
He says,
these are
the all
inclusive
works of
the flesh.
Things like
these.
So we
could go
on and
list more
and more
things.
It's a
sobering
list because
of the
number of
fleshly
works that
involve our
treatment of
one another.
Rivalry and
division and
jealousy and
envy and
things like
this.
That doesn't
mean that we
must kind of
stay quiet
and just
kind of keep
the peace
sort of as
some fake
facade of
being united
but it
does mean
that if we
engage in
heavy things
and things
we're passionate
about that
the words we
choose,
our tone of
voice and
the heartbeat
underneath of
those things
matters a lot.
I find it
so sobering
to recognize
that if I
am living
a life that
has fits of
anger as
just kind of
the normal
course of
my existence
that Paul
says people
that do this
stuff don't
inherit the
kingdom.
But Paul
has not
sort of
listed this
thing to
sort of
condemn
anybody but
to call
the Galatians
and to call
us out of
these things.
We need
help.
Paul says
the Spirit
will provide
the Christ-like
fruit that
you need.
Only He can
make us
righteous like
Jesus.
We need
Him and
when we
walk by
Him,
when we
walk by
the Spirit
of Jesus
Christ,
this fruit
that we
see in
verses 22
and 23
is evident
moment by
moment,
circumstance
by circumstance,
but also
increasingly so
as we
mature and
grow in
our faith.
This fruit
should be
blossoming and
expanding in
our lives
as we walk
by the Spirit
and seek
His help.
Notice
again that the
fruit of the
Spirit involves
so much of
this relational
kind of
dynamic.
Love,
patience,
kindness,
goodness,
gentleness,
things that
show up in
our interactions
with one
another.
And Paul
here is not
talking about
things that
are natural
temperament.
Some of us
are just very
by nature
kind people.
Some of us
are fairly
patient individuals,
it's our
natural disposition.
That's not
what Paul is
talking about.
He's not
saying,
well,
you get a
pass if
you're an
impatient guy.
You get a
pass on this
fruit.
Saying this
is fruit that
is of the
Spirit.
Only God
produces it
and He will
produce it
as we seek
His help
and walk
by the
Spirit.
God will
love and
serve others
even if
they may
annoy us
or disappoint
us or hurt
us.
It means
that
God will
produce the
fruit of
gentleness
inside of
us who
may be
struggling
to love
someone
who's
rude
or harsh
toward us.
And it
means that
we will be
kind
toward those
who are
impatient
and aren't
bearing the
fruit of
the Spirit.
And we
know all
too well
that we
can end
up on
both sides
of this
exchange,
right?
Sometimes
we bear
the fruit
of the
Spirit
for the
sake of
those who
are struggling
with something.
And other
times those
of us in
the church
around us,
our friends,
our brothers
and sisters
bear the
fruit for
us because
we need
it, because
we're struggling,
because we've
wronged
somebody.
All of
this is
provided by
the Spirit
and only
by the
Spirit.
And of
course it's
love that
headlines the
list.
This first
priority on
the list is
love, because
Paul has just
said in the
previous verses
that the
whole law is
fulfilled in
one word.
You shall
love your
neighbor as
yourself.
That's verse
14.
Paul says
love is only
possible, true
love, the
love he's
talking about is
only possible and
yet readily
available as we
walk by the
Spirit.
We need the
Spirit to love
one another.
We need the
Spirit to
produce Christ
like fruit in
our lives.
Flesh doesn't
create these
things.
Only conflict and
division and
harm.
The Spirit
empowers us to
love, to
joy, to
peace,
patience and
kindness,
gentleness,
goodness,
faithfulness,
self-control.
And
ultimately, the
thing that the
Spirit provides
is eternal
life.
The flesh isn't
going to get you
there.
Paul says this
much at the end
of verse 21.
Those who
practice such
things, works of
the flesh, will
not inherit the
kingdom of God.
though we
don't see the
opposite idea at
the end of the
fruit of the
Spirit, it's
implied.
Those who are
bearing the fruit
of the Spirit,
those who are
walking by the
Spirit, are
sons of God and
they will inherit
eternal life.
life.
It's been said
that Jesus
accomplishes our
salvation and
the Holy Spirit
applies our
salvation.
He gives us
life in Jesus,
he sustains our
lives in Jesus,
he ultimately
will bring us
to glory.
So we need the
Spirit.
He provides what
the flesh cannot
provide.
Freedom,
Christ-like fruit,
eternal life.
It's the second
reason Paul gives
walk by the
Spirit.
The third and
final reason of
our text is in
verse 24.
We need the
Spirit because he
reminds us of who
we are in
Christ.
Paul writes in
verse 24,
and those who
belong to Christ,
Jesus, have
crucified the
flesh with its
passions and
desires.
This is a huge,
bodacious claim.
For those who
belong to Christ,
they have crucified
the flesh with its
passions and
desires.
sinners.
It means that the
Christian already
has the assurance
of victory over
the flesh because
it's already on the
cross being crucified
and done away with.
Friends, let me let
you in on a little
secret.
Crucifixion always
works.
It always kills the
one it intends to
kill.
Paul says, those who
belong to Jesus have
crucified the flesh.
It's perishing, it's
dying, it's being done
away with.
So in this verse, we
have another message of
hope.
It really is true.
The flesh is perishing
because of who we are.
We need the Spirit
because He reminds us
of who we are in
Christ.
Let me help realize
that seems like I
just went off on a
tangent.
But if we think
about it for a
second, we all know
the difference, right,
between a head
knowledge and a heart
knowledge.
This is the longest
two feet.
to travel ever
from our head
to our heart.
How do we get what's
true about Jesus and
what's true about us in
Him from our head
into our heart?
The flesh is not going
to do it for us,
friends.
We can't think hard
enough to get it from
our head into our
heart.
It's the Spirit alone
who will remind us and
impress these things upon
our heart in such a
way that they begin to
operate out of us.
We need the Spirit to
remind us of who we
are in Christ.
Paul says this much,
that's the Spirit's role
back in chapter 4,
verse 6.
He says this,
And because you are
sons, God has sent the
Spirit of His Son into
our hearts, crying,
Abba, Father.
This is how what's true
about us gets from our
head to our heart.
The Spirit reminds us.
He lives and dwells in
our hearts and He reminds
us of what is true about
us.
Words, either spoken or
on a page, can get into
our heads.
They can't get into our
hearts.
We need help for that.
We need the Spirit for
that.
He alone affects the
heart.
We need Him to remember
who we are, not in some
mental or intellectual
way, but in a way that
transforms us and changes
who we are.
Because we know we can
all be forgetful that we
even belong to Jesus in
the first place.
There's other times we
can be hardened and
callous and just don't
want anything to do with
the truth.
We need the Spirit to
soften us enough for it
to get lodged in our
heart and start producing
fruit.
Sometimes we can get
tunnel vision thinking
that the flesh is winning
and we get so discouraged
that we just check out.
The Spirit of Jesus is
our helper.
He's who we need.
The beautiful thing Jesus
says in John 16, 13, that
when the Spirit comes, He
will guide us into all
truth.
He will reveal everything
we need to know about God,
about our salvation, about
our very lives.
The Spirit will bring us
into that truth.
Jesus doesn't say, this book
that I'm leaving you or the
self-help book or your own
intuition, but the Holy
Spirit, God Himself, will
remind us of what we need to
remember in order to live
into this salvation accomplished
by Jesus for us.
So we tried to argue this
morning from Galatians 5 that
we need the Holy Spirit's
help.
We need Him to defeat the
flesh.
We need Him to produce and
provide what only He can
provide that the flesh
cannot.
And we need the Spirit to
remind us of who we are in
Christ.
So walk by the Spirit,
friends.
Hopefully this text has
convinced you of your need
to do so this morning, but
I'm guessing maybe you're
still wondering, well, how
do I do that?
What does it mean to walk by
the Spirit?
It seems great.
Yeah, sign me up, but how's
this look?
What does it mean?
Well, with the time we have
left, I want to try and help
us answer that a little bit.
First, I think there's
confusion about who the
Holy Spirit is, what He
intends to do, and why He
intends to do it.
So let me give us a few
things.
A couple of, it's not this,
it's not this.
Sometimes it might be that.
It's always this.
It's not this.
Your alarm goes off in the
morning, kind of wipe the
sleep dust out of your eyes,
and you wait for the Spirit
to tell you whether you
should drink coffee or tea.
It's not that.
The Spirit is interested in
truth and righteousness, not
beverage selections.
It's not this either.
The Spirit told me to punch
that guy in the face.
Because I was mad at him.
Or the Spirit told me to
divorce my wife and marry
this other lady.
The Spirit never contradicts
the Bible.
He always upholds it.
Sometimes, there's a
particular prompting.
It's kind of hard to explain
it.
It doesn't sort of show up as
an objective thing in the
Bible, but there's a
prompting to, hey, get on the
other side of the sidewalk.
Or, man, I think I need to
change lanes here or something.
Sometimes, this happens,
right?
We've probably experienced
some of this.
We shouldn't go looking for
these things as if the Holy
Spirit is just wanting to
make us robots and just kind of
dictate every single decision
and move of our lives like that.
It's not primarily what he
cares to do in us and through
us.
We shouldn't rely on this type of
thing.
Some people might debate that,
but that's kind of my take
anyway.
But always, we can be sure that
the Holy Spirit is seeking to
produce and work this way in all
of us.
He's looking to glorify Jesus.
John 16, 14.
He's looking to meet every single
spiritual need we have.
He's looking to produce
righteousness in our attitudes,
our affections, and our actions.
He's looking to assist our prayers.
Abba, Father.
And groanings with too deep for
words when we don't know what to
pray for as we ought.
Romans 8.
He's always interested in enabling
us to worship the risen Jesus.
Always.
Every time we gather, the Holy
Spirit is interested in our
worship and empowering us to
worship God in the way that he's
due.
He's always guiding us into all
truth.
He always wants us to come to a
greater and greater understanding
of the word of God and what it
means for our lives and who God
is revealed to be in it.
He's always giving us understanding
of God and of his word.
These are things the Holy Spirit
always delights to do.
Always delights to convict us
us of sin and to transform us into
the righteousness and image of
Jesus.
He's passionate about these
things and he works these things
constantly in our lives on behalf of
Christ.
So now, just a couple little
descriptions of what it can look
like.
How do I walk by the Spirit?
What are you getting at, Paul, when you
say walk by the Spirit?
I'll try to just sort of break that
down and deconstruct it a little bit.
And this isn't perfect, but I hope it
helps.
We need to be aware of the Holy Spirit's
presence in our lives.
He's always with us.
He lives in our hearts.
He doesn't kind of go on vacation.
He's always present in the heart of the
Christian.
We need to just cultivate this awareness
that he is with us.
So many times, right, we can just walk
around unaware of his presence.
That does us no good if the command is to
walk by him.
We've got to be aware of him.
And the more we're able to remember him,
the more we can walk by him.
Walk in his power.
Walk by his strength.
Walk on the path that he is revealing to
us from the Word of God for our ultimate
good.
It's kind of like this.
We have a two-story house.
And even if my wife is upstairs and I'm
downstairs, I know she's there.
I know she's home.
I know she's present simply because I know
where she is.
It's kind of like that.
If we can kind of develop that sort of
awareness of the Holy Spirit, he's always
home.
He's always in us.
He's always acting in our lives.
To develop an awareness of his presence.
But two, cultivate a dependence upon him.
Particularly for everything spiritual.
You can't understand a Bible verse?
Pray to the Holy Spirit to illuminate, to teach
you what it means.
And you might want to go ask help from a friend
who studied it longer or whatever.
But the Holy Spirit wants us to know God's Word.
Wants us to know the truth.
Depend upon him.
He should be your first call.
You need wisdom for a major decision in your
life. James 1.5
If anyone lacks wisdom, let him ask God.
Spirit, you're with me.
I need wisdom.
I need help.
I don't know what I'm doing.
Desiring to love your spouse,
your neighbor,
your brother, sister better.
It's the Spirit's fruit.
Ask him.
Depend on him to bear that fruit
in your life.
He will.
I was thinking this week,
I was convicted by this,
that
though I would say
I don't want to rely on the Spirit
to kind of decide which grocery store
I frequent,
how easily
I can turn to
sad sources
for information
when the Spirit should be
the one I turn to.
I don't do this particular one
but it's like
turning to Google
to seek some spiritual answer
instead of going to the Spirit
of the living God
dwelling inside of us.
It's silly
and yet
I do this stuff all the time.
I don't rely
and depend on the one
who lives in me
and wants my good.
Wants me to know God.
Wants me to be wise
in my actions.
Wants me to put
the flesh to death.
Must depend on the Spirit.
That's walking by Him.
Walking by the Spirit
means growing in godliness.
1 Thessalonians chapter 4
says the will of God
is your sanctification.
The will of God
is that you would come
to resemble more and more
the person of Jesus Christ.
Your character,
your attitudes,
your actions
would be like Jesus.
I want Paul's question
in Galatians 3 verse 3
ringing in my mind
a lot for this reason.
He writes to the Galatians,
are you so foolish
that having begun
by the Spirit,
are you now being
perfected by the flesh?
Are you trying to work
this out on your own?
If we want to grow in godliness,
we need the Holy Spirit.
And growing in godliness
is walking by the Spirit.
I cannot grow,
I will not grow
apart from the Spirit's help.
He gives the growth.
So the last thing.
All of these,
I've been trying to
both help us see
that the Spirit
has this active,
ongoing presence
in our life,
but that we're also
cooperating along with Him.
This isn't some
just kind of sit down
on the couch
and let Him drag us around.
But we cooperate,
we press in
in the ways
that God has called us to,
right?
And it's,
these aren't super complex things,
but we draw near to God
through His Word.
We pray to Him
and seek His help.
So we're cooperating,
we're cultivating
this dependence,
this awareness.
Essentially,
walking by the Spirit
is cultivating
a relationship with Him.
It's forming the habit
of seeking His wisdom
as we make decisions
that pertain
to our spiritual well-being.
It's forming the habit
of opening our Bible,
knowing that He is there
ready to help us.
So we pray,
Psalm 119.18,
Open my eyes
that I might behold
wondrous things
from Your Word.
It's forming the habit
of making every effort
to rely upon Him
for our faith.
It's a lifelong endeavor.
We don't ever arrive,
but we strive
to make it normal,
to make it a habit
to depend on Him.
It's like breathing,
second nature.
We want to be so aware
and so dependent
on the Spirit
that it just becomes
naturally who we are
because we've cultivated it
so much.
we're conditioned
and poised
to walk by the Spirit
because we need Him
so much
in our lives.
Church,
let's seek the Spirit.
Let's walk by Him
because we need Him.
We need Him
for our salvation.
Let's pray.
Father,
thank You for Your Word.
I recognize
I've said a lot of things
and none of it
will bear fruit
apart from Your Spirit.
Spirit,
would You have Your way
in our hearts,
in our lives.
Would You help us?
We need You.
Pray in Jesus' name.
Amen.