Bulletins - First Baptist Church of Huntersville West Virginia

Adore
Galatians 5:16–26 CSB
16 I say, then, walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you don’t do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, 21 envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things—as I warned you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things. 24 Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
We cannot please God without the Holy Spirit.
The law was powerless to help us overcome our sins…
The Law functioned like a mirror. A mirror can show you dirt on your face, but it cannot clean you. You can stare at the mirror all day and never get clean. In the same way, the law revealed sin but gives no power to overcome it.
We may want to please God, but our sin nature continually pulls us into disobedience.
It is through the ministry of the Holy Spirit that we can win the battle between the old and new self.
The Holy Spirit does the cleansing and transforming of the believer.
Man’s flesh and the Holy Spirit are in opposition to each other.
Our flesh is not just our physical self
It is anything other than Good in which we place our trust - a trust that is reserved for God alone.
For Paul the law as being pushed by the Judiazers falls under the flesh.
Beware the fruit of the flesh.
Sexual Immorality - sexual sins covering fornication, adultery, and homosexuality
Moral Impurity - moral uncleanness in our though life, speech and actions
Promiscuity - “debauchery”, completely lacking in moral restraint (especially in regards to sexual sins)
Idolatry - worshipping of man-made images or anything worshipped other than God
Sorcery - aka witchcraft, fortune telling, casting spells (Wiccan - there is not such thing as a good witch)
Hatred, Strife, Jealousy, and Outbursts of Anger - How we interact with others is affected by walking in the flesh.
Selfish Ambitions, Dissensions, Factions, and Envy - Philippians 2:3–4 “3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility consider others as more important than yourselves. 4 Everyone should look not to his own interests, but rather to the interests of others.”
Drunkenness and Carousing (things like it) - Alcohol can lead to some issues, it controls people and distorts their thinking. .
Living in the flesh keeps you from the kingdom of God.
As a Christian we may intermittently get pulled into these sins… this is not what keeps us out of the kingdom
Those who live like it or “practice” such things - to continually live in sin indicates that one might not be a Christian.
Think of it this way - A healthy field may have weeds - but a field overrun with weeds reveals neglect. Christians stumble, but a life dominated by sin points to an unchanged heart.
Obedience to the Spirit produces beautiful fruit.
The original Greek word for fruit (karpos) is singular
Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control are not multiple fruits but layers of one singular fruit
We cannot produce this fruit in our strength - it is only through the Holy Spirit
We do have a part to play however, we must strive to live in faithful obedience
- - Galatians 5:16–26CSB
Just a Closer Walk with Thee

We cannot please God without the Holy Spirit.

Man’s flesh and the Holy Spirit are in opposition to each other.

Beware the fruit of the flesh.

Living in the flesh keeps you from the kingdom of God.

Obedience to the Spirit produces beautiful fruit.

Galatians 5:16–26CSB