24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
Last Wednesday Amy led us down two distinct paths that are outlined in our text. The first is the path of the Flesh, which was a progression from crucifying the spirit, walking with the flesh, exemplifying the fruit of the flesh and ultimately living by the flesh. The second path, of the Spirit, progressed from crucifying the flesh, walking with the Spirit, exemplifying the fruit of the Spirit and finally living by the Spirit. You see that you can not do both at the same time, either the Flesh lives and the Spirit dies or the Spirit lives and the Flesh dies.
The call of the Christian life is to walk in the Spirit and Paul reminds us of the daily need to crucify the flesh. We cannot serve two masters; either our flesh or the Spirit will reign in our hearts. When we give way to our idols, to our comforts, to worldly wisdom then there is no room for the Spirit. But when we walk by faith in the knowledge and truth of the Holy Spirit and acknowledge that Jesus Christ is our Lord and Savior then we will see the fruit of His spirit in our lives.
Those that “exchange the truth of God for a lie” (Romans 1: 25) will find a fleeting joy in the moment as they experience the fruit of the flesh, but this joy will give way to death. It becomes immensely important for us that are walking in the Spirit to share our lives with those that aren’t. That is how we give them hope and show them an everlasting joy found in life. How can you exemplify the fruit of the Spirit to win others to Christ? How can you shine your light into the darkness of the flesh? Will you repent when you see yourself walking the path of the flesh?
This week we will be discussing Gospel Relationships at The Ross's - 8425 Kings Ridge Road, Parkville, MD 21234. Please remember to bring a copy of the participants guide with you on Wednesday.
1 comment:
I have found, in my life, that pride is the single most powerful drive for me to live by the flesh. I have always known, studied, seen firsthand, that pride is an ultimate evil...one of which took down an angel even the holiest of angels. Pride's main strength is in its relativity. Taken from any angle, it will cause us to steer away from Christ.
Why? While almost all things are created by God, sin is not one of them. This is our corrupted flesh, so to say. Walking by the spirit is a true reliance on the Lord, as it comes from Him. My pride says "Lord, I want to give you something by my own merit". What can we give God that does not come from Him? Can I manipulate the spirit? No, either the Spirit controls or it does not...there is no controlling it. That lack of understanding in my life allowed me to focus on my own interpretation of what God wants from me.
Now? I shudder at my past and its prideful ways. I am trying to figure out how love actually goes against pride....there is a mechanism there and it is evident when you love Christ, but I can't quite explain it yet. I may never be able to...but just having the ability to love the Lord is sufficient for me =)
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