Bible Chapel of Shawnee  
April 15th, 2018  
Galatians series

Lesson 4: Understand the reason to walk in the Spirit (vv16-26)
 
**Rhetorical theme**: Understand the reason to walk in the Spirit.
 
**Full theme**: Walking in the Spirit is the means by which we properly wield the tool of freedom to combat the flesh and yield the fruit of the Spirit.
 
1. Introduction
    
    1. Paul is teaching the Galatians to trust their freedom in the gospel of justification again with several lessons
        
        1. Lesson 1) 5:1-6 the stakes are high, they have to choose freedom or slavery, no inbetween
        2. Lesson 2) 5:7-12 their situation is serious, but they can easily recover by adopting the view they previously had
        3. Lesson 3) 5:13-15 freedom is a tool for serving one another in love, but it can be abused or neglected
    2. Lesson 4 today - understand the reason to walk in the Spirit 3. The promise of walking in the Spirit (v16)
    
    1. But? - in reference to the last section
        
        1. Freedom is powerful tool
            
            1. Potential for abuse
            2. Potential for neglect
            3. Potential for great reward
        2. How do we wield is properly?
    2. Notice the action words
        
        1. Walk
        2. Not carry out
        3. Application, not thinking only!
    3. The promise is: you will not carry out the deeds of the flesh
    4. Introduces two implied questions￼_A tantalizing promise! But…_
        
        1. What is walking in the Spirit?
        2. Why does walking in the Spirit work? 5. The reason walking in the Spirit works (v17-24)
    
    1. The Spirit fights the flesh (v17)
        
        1. Desires that are diametrically opposed to one another￼_[Glory (movie) - final scene, Union army attacking the fort while Confederate army defends. Their desires were opposed to one another. The Union army desired to chase the Confederates from the fort while the Confederate army desired to stay firmly put. ]_
        2. Both have the same goal: shape your actions￼_[Glory (movie) - while both armies had opposing desires, they had the same goal: control of the fort. There was no room for compromise. One or the other was going to prevail. This is what Paul means when he says "that we may not do what we wish." There is no third option (our will), there is only following the flesh or following the Spirit.]_
    2. The Spirit frees us from the Law (vv18-24)
        
        1. Statement of truth (v18)
        2. Deeds of the flesh (vv19-21)
            
            1. Observations
                
                1. These are _deeds_ of the flesh, things that the desires of the flesh will lead you to do
                2. These are evident, or obvious, "pertaining to being clearly and easily able to be known".
                3. Categories of sin
                    
                    1. Abuse of ourselves (sexual, sensual sins)
                    2. Abuse of worship (idolatry, sins toward God)
                    3. Abuse of others (relational, sins toward men)
                    4. Abuse of things (alcohol, drugs)
                    5. Encompass all aspects of life
            2. Consequences, "Those who practice such things"
                
                1. Perhaps three ways to interpret
                    
                    1. These are things unbelievers do, so don’t be associated with them
                    2. There is real danger, as a believer, of practicing these things and losing reward
                    3. Or, those who practice such things, claiming to be a believer or not, prove they are not
                2. I favor #2 - real danger for believers
                    
                    1. It explains why Paul is warning them (and why this was not the only time!)
                    2. 1 Cor. 3:15
        3. Fruit of the Spirit (vv22-23)
            
            1. Categories
                
                1. Upward (gifts from God)
                    
                    1. Love: Romans 5:5
                    2. Joy: John 15:11
                    3. Peace: John 14:27
                2. Outward (patience, kindness, goodness)
                3. Inward (faithfulness, gentleness, self-control)
                4. These are developed in YOU as you walk in the Spirit. Walking in the Spirit does not necessarily produce fruit in others.
            2. Fruit belongs to the Spirit, these are not works￼
            
            The contrast between works and fruit is important. A machine in a factory works, and turns out a product, but it could never manufacture fruit. Fruit must grow out of life, and, in the case of the believer, it is the life of the Spirit (Gal. 5:25). When you think of “works” you think of effort, labor, strain, and toil; when you think of “fruit” you think of beauty, quietness, the unfolding of life. The flesh produces “dead works” (Heb. 9:14), but the Spirit produces living fruit. And this fruit has in it the seed for still more fruit (Gen. 1:11). Love begets more love! Joy helps to produce more joy!
            
              
            
            Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 1, p. 719). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.￼
            
            6. There is no Law against these things
                
                1. Explanation of first statement in v18
                2. The Spirit leads us to bear this fruit
                3. The Law identifies sinfulness of the fleshly deeds
                4. But the fruit is the exact opposite of the deeds.
                    
                    1. You can't be loving and jealous
                    2. You can't be peaceful and full of strife
                    3. You can't be joyful amidst outbursts of anger
                5. Therefore, you don't need to be under the Law to avoid the sins of the flesh--following the Spirit will exclude these sins￼_[Illustration: imagine you've been placed in a dark room, no lights on. Then you hear a voice telling you, "Don't run into the sofa, don't step on the kids' toys, don't trip over that chair. Now, make your way to the door." This is what it's like to be under the Law. To be led by the Spirit would be like have a lighted path shine in the room, guiding your right the door (think of airplane emergency lights). With the right path perfectly visible, you don't need "the Law" to tell you all the things you avoid--you know you'll be in danger of hitting them if you stray from the lighted path.]_
        4. Consider the flesh as crucified
            
            1. Not dead yet (still makes its presence known)
            2. Sure to die (conquered, no power) 7. Summary statement (vv25-26)
    
    1. We were made alive by the Spirit (salvation)
    2. We must not walk in the same way
        
        1. "Walk" not the same word as in v16
        2. "Keep in step", "follow", military connotation of walking in rank and file
        3. We joined this army by the recruitment of the Spirit, we are going to succeed only by continuing to follow that same Spirit
    3. Not giving into the fleshly desires
8. The meaning of walking in the Spirit
    
    1. Paul didn't define it
        
        1. He told us why it works, but not what it is
        2. Galatians already had experienced walking by the Spirit (Gal. 3:1-5)
        3. Paul didn't need to define it for the Galatians
    2. What it means
        
        1. One thing may be obvious: operate within the fruit of the Spirit
            
            1. Love
            2. Be joyful
            3. Be at peace
            4. Be patient, kind, good, faithful, gentle and full of self-control
            5. We usually know when we've not been loving or kind or gentle
        2. But…?
            
            1. What if we don't know how to be loving? (someone who's dealing with sickness)
            2. What if being loving will not result in peace? (confronting someone's sin)
            3. What if two fruits seem to conflict? (Jesus cleaning out the temple--not gentle, but faithful)
        3. How Jesus presented the Spirit to the disciples
            
            1. John 14:16-17
            2. John 14:26
            3. John 15:26
            4. John 16:7-15
            5. Truth is the Spirit's primary objective, even revealing things Jesus was not able to reveal to His disciples
            6. It seems many traditional habits are exactly what enable us to be walking in the Spirit--reading Scripture, going to church, praying, fellowship
    3. Can the Spirit lead through hunches, nudges and feelings?
        
        1. Of course, but we should be careful
        
        _[Dad's hunch to look for a German tutor again]_
        
        3. When we "feel" led
            
            1. Pray
            2. Search the Scriptures
            3. Ask more mature believers for advice
            4. Don't _only_ trust our feelings
          
        
9. Conclusion
    
    1. Paul gives us
        
        1. What walking by the Spirit promises: victory over the flesh
        2. The reason walking in the Spirit works
            
            1. It fights the flesh by having the opposite desires
            2. It frees us from the law by leading us in the fruit of the Spirit
    2. Our application is then to let the Spirit teach us how to walk through truth and let Him produce His fruit in us