Click Here to Read Galatians 5:13-26

In this portion of Paul’s letter, he really emphasizes the power and the purpose of the Holy Spirit.  We are called to live a life of freedom in the Holy Spirit.  This means that any life outside of the Holy Spirit is not free.  A few sessions ago we talked about Ishmael, the son born of the flesh, and Isaac, the son born of the Spirit.  This demonstrated how a life lived by the flesh is a life of slavery and a life lived by the Spirit is a life of freedom.  Paul further explains that this life of freedom is not a freedom to sin, but rather it is a freedom from our sinful nature.  We do not have the freedom to live a sinful life.  We do have the freedom to exit that sinful life without condemnation or judgement and be empowered by the Holy Spirit to live a life of love, serving and seeking the best for one another.

“As you yield freely and fully to the dynamic life and power of the Holy Spirit, you will abandon the cravings of your self-life.” (Gal. 5:16).  Let’s think about this statement for a moment.  The Amplified translation says it like this: “But I say, walk habitually in the (Holy) Spirit (seek Him and be responsive to His guidance), and then you will certainly not carry out the desire of the sinful nature (which responds impulsively without regard for God and His precepts.”  Sometimes we may be tempted to return to old habits or mindsets, but here Paul is telling us how we can be successful at abandoning those desires.  If we follow Holy Spirit, he will lead us away from those habits of old and into new and healthy habits that honor God.  He will literally change the desires of our hearts.  Philippians 2:13 NLT says, “For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him.”  We don’t work at becoming a better person, we choose to seek Holy Spirit’s guidance and respond to it.  Through the desire and power he gives us, we become what He made us to be.

I know this to be true in my own life.  When I made the decision to come back to God, I invited Him into every part of my life to bring everything into alignment with His will for me.  I had finally (by faith) accepted that whatever He had planned for my life would be the only way my life would have been worth living in the end.  He planted such a hunger in me to seek Him, and when I responded to it, I found Him.  I started wanting to listen to some of the old Christian music I grew up on, so I searched for it and began playing it.  I found Him in the music.  I started wanting to listen to old hymns that I knew as a kid and was curious about the people who wrote them and the story behind the songs.  So, I would research them.  I found Him in the stories.  I started wanting to know what all was really in my Bible, so I started to read it. I found Him in the Word.  I started wanting to find a church, a community, have connection.  So, I found one and just started getting connected.  I found Him in the kindness of people.  I didn’t want to waste time doing anything that I used to do.  I didn’t have any desire to watch TV, read books, listen to secular music, I only wanted to do things that I found Him in.  As I moved toward those things, I realized that I also didn’t have the desire to gossip, complain, speak negatively, or be judgmental.  Instead. I had the desire to help people, to give, to be joyful, forgiving, and encouraging.  Believe me, when you ask Him to, when you follow Him, when you respond to His guidance, He will give you the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.  

Paul talks about the self-life being at odds with the Spirit.  He says in verse 17 that the self-life is the life of the flesh and it wants to dominate us.  But this is the life that was crucified with Jesus.  We are a new creation because the Holy Spirit brings a new life, a Spirit-filled life in us.  This is the life that we want to empower.  I like the Message translation of the cravings of the self-life:  “It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on. This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom.” (Gal. 5:19-21 MSG).  While none of that really sounds desirable, this is the result of behavior that places self above God and looks to temporary experiences to satisfy a shallow longing rather than looking to God to satisfy and sustain every need and desire in a deep and permanent way.  Can I just tell you something?  God does satisfy our every need and desire.  He can do that because He gave us the desires of our hearts and He knows exactly what to do to fulfill them.  And Jesus said He feeds the birds of the air and clothes the flowers in the field so we know He knows and will meet our every need.  

“But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.” (Gal. 5:22-23 MSG).  And let us not forget that this is what the Holy Spirit produces in us as we live feely and fully yielded to Him.  That is really the only thing we have to do.  Choose to follow Him.  Trust that He is powerful in us, that He can and will finish the work He started.  We are meant to have an abundance of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, gentleness, goodness, faithfulness, and self-control flowing out of us.  But only He can produce it. 

I can’t tell you how many times I have looked at this list of attributes and picked out the ones I need to work harder on.  But this only comes by the work of the Holy Spirit in us.  We don’t work at being more patient.  We have many opportunities to practice it that’s for sure!  But in it, if we will seek His guidance, we will walk in patience.  We don’t have to try to be more joyful.  We just learn to embrace His goodness in all things, and we will be full of joy.  He knows the things we are not so good at.  And He challenges us when we face those things to focus on Him and not what we lack or how we feel.  If we remember that He fulfills us in every way, and remain open to where He is leading us, He will give us the desire and the power to do the things that please God.  Jesus is the vine; we are the branches.  The fruit that is in Him flows through us if we remain connected to Him.  He will continue to nourish and feed us the right desires and thoughts, and we will continue to produce that fruit so long as we remain connected to Him. 

Let’s pray.

Father we are so thankful for Holy Spirit.  He is the source of power and new life that we have in Christ Jesus.  You have given him to us as a deposit of our eternal inheritance and he is the one who perfects us.  Holy Spirit, you are our connection to the mind and the heart of our Father God and the means by which we can walk according to His desire for us.  It is you that works in us and gives us the desire and the power to do what pleases Him.  Thank you for being so faithful to bring us to perfection, to finish that work that has been started in us.  Thank you for always wanting the best for us, for desiring freedom for us, and for teaching us how to walk as free children of the Most-High God.  We just give you permission right now to come in and invade our lives, realign our hearts and our desires with yours.  Give our hearts ears to hear you as you speak to us.  Give us eyes to see the direction you are leading us.  God promised that if we seek Him, we will find Him.  Turn our attention toward seeking Him.  Give us a hunger for knowing Him, that we may find Him.  May our lives produce your fruit in the same abundance with which our Father demonstrates to us.  We pray these things in the beautiful name of King Jesus, amen.