On Friday's post I was dealing with the characteristics of the unregenerate man. I was mentioning some of the works of the flesh which is in Galatians 5:19-21 such as adultery, fornication, uncleanness, and the list continues. The post began with the statement that there are attributes that identify certain groups of people such as police officers and firefighters. Both police officers and fire fighter wear uniforms and drive vehicles which identify them with their occupation. In the spiritual realm there are certain characteristics that identify both those that are saved and those that are lost. Friday's post dealt with the works of the flesh. The works of the flesh are characteristic of the unregenerate man. Those that live to the flesh and aren't restrained by the Holy Spirit will live to the flesh. Those that are saved have the Holy Spirit dwelling within them. They have become a new creatures as II Corinthians 5:17 indicates. However, even as a saved person, they must make a choice whether they're going to walk in the Spirit or to allow the old man to have his way. They can choose to walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh, or they can allow themselves to drift away from God and allow themselves to let the flesh dominate to a point. However, Hebrews 12 says that a child of God will receive chastening from the Lord. If a Christian allows his flesh to rule, God will chasten him so he won't be identified with the world as well as to bring him into a right relationship with Christ. Whereas those outside of grace don't have the Holy Spirit to chasten them when they live in sin.
(Galatians 5:16-25) "This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murderers, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith. Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." In order for the fruit of the Spirit to be manifest in our life, we must walk in the Spirit. We must allow God to crucify our flesh and bring our mind captive. A Christian who possesses the fruit of the Spirit is a Christian that's walking in the Spirit. Notice it's not "fruits" of the Spirit but "fruit", which isn't plural. All the attributes of the fruit of the spirit are love, joy, peace, patience, longsuffering, and the list continues. They are all part of the same fruit. If you possess the "fruit" of the Spirit, all those attributes of that fruit will be manifested in your life. They come in a package deal.
A person who manifests the fruit of the Spirit in his/her life is a person that will live victorious. It's a sign that a person's been born again that manifests the fruit of the Spirit. That's something that comes from God above. It's a work of God that's manifested in the heart of man. It's crucially important that a saved person has the fruit of the Spirit manifested in his/her life. God's purpose for a saved person is to be conformed to the image of Christ. A Christian who's conformed to the image of Christ will exhibit the fruit of the Spirit.
What is the purpose of the fruit of the Spirit? First of all, a person that has the fruit of the Spirit manifested in his/her life is a sign that person has been saved. The fruit of the Spirit is manifested in a Christian's life as a result of trials and tribulations. One time I heard a message preached years ago entitled, "A Shaken Vessel." The crux of the message is that a Christian will encounter trials and tribulations in their life. You'll undergo pressures in your life. You'll undergo a process where you'll be tried. You'll be shaken. Whatever's inside you will come out. Two things trials will prove when placed to the test: It will prove to the saved man what he's made out of. Trials also will prove to the world what the save man's made out of. In order to know what's inside a person or to know what kind of material he/she's made of, they have to undergo trials to be tested. On a similar note in a school setting, students will be tested periodically on the subject material to show the instructor and to the student how well they've mastered their material. Without a test, there's no way for the instructor to gauge the knowledge of the student. That's the same with a Christian. In order for the world to know how real a Christian is, they must be put to the test. When a Christian faces trials and tribulations, whatever's inside their heart will be manifested. It will reveal to the Christian where they stand with God and the areas they fall short. It also reveals to the world how real we are. Trials will prove to the world whether we believe what we preach or it's just mere words. That's why it's so important for the fruit of the Spirit to be manifest in us.
Galatians 5:23 says, "Meekness, temperance; against such there is no law. A Christian must walk in the Spirit so the fruit of the Spirit will be manifested in their life. I've said in the last few posts that those that have been redeemed aren't under law but are under grace. Any Christian which has the fruit of the Spirit flowing in their life doesn't need the law. A Christian will live a life that's pleasing to God who has the fruit of the Spirit within them. Saved people will live a balanced life when love, joy, peace, patience, meekness, and temperance are abounding in their life. Those type of the people don't need the law because they're walking in the Spirit. The Spirit guides them in their daily lives. Those that are walking in the Spirit have crucified the lusts and the affections thereof. Those that walk in the Spirit and don't allow the flesh to dominate their lives won't be lacking. They'll live victorious lives that are yielded to God. A Christian can't be an effective witness without the fruit of the Spirit manifest in their lives. Love, joy, peace, patience, meekness, etc. are some of the characteristics that Christians are known for. The world needs to see the fruit manifested in our lives. The reason why the world doesn't have much regard for many "Christians" is because we don't walk in the Spirit and allow the fruit of the Spirit to be manifested in our lives. You can't be uniquely and distinctly different from the world if you're lacking these fruits. The world isn't going to be interested in our God if we're drinking dill pickle juice. I'm using a figurative term. They must see our lives filled with joy and peace. Those attributes distinguish us from the unregenerate.
Can saved people fall into the cateogry where they can committ some of the works of the flesh as described in vss. 19-21. If a Christian doesn't walk in the Spirit, they are capable of committing sin. As mentioned Friday, saved people have a dual nature in which they must contend with their new nature when they become saved vs. the old, Adamic, fleshly nature. The new nature doesn't take place until the new birth. However, the new birth doesn't eradicate the old nature. God saves our souls but our bodies are still corruptible. We'll live in these old corruptible bodies until we die or until the rapture takes place. That's why Galatians says we must walk in the Spirit so as not to fulfill the lusts of the flesh. We'll have to contend with the old Adam until we die or the rapture takes place. We have a responsbility to crucify the flesh. If our flesh isn't crucified, our walk with God will be hindered. Our flesh isn't pleasing to God. If we feed our flesh with the things of the world, then we can't walk in the Spirit nor will we have the fruit manifest in us. Even though we have the capacity to sin, we also have the capacity to deny ourselves and follow God. The Holy Spirit dwells within us. If we will yield ourselves to the Spirit of God and follow him, we won't fulfill the desires of the flesh. If we sin with our flesh, the Holy Spirit will deal with our hearts through chastisement. That is something the unregenerate man doesn't experience. Saved people have the capacity to sin because of their sinful flesh, but they also can have their flesh crucified. They can also live yielded, victorious lives. They have the Spirit within them so they can live and walk in the Spirit.
The works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit are the characteristics of two different sets of people. The unregenerate will live to the flesh because they are dead in sins and trespasses. They don't have the capacity to live for God in their sinful state. They are doing what's natural to them. Those that have been redeemed have the ability to walk in the Spirit because the Spirit of God dwells within them. Those that walk in the Spirit will possess the fruit of the Spirit. The fruit of the Spirit is the attributes of those Christians that have crucified the flesh and the lust and affections thereof. The fruit of the Spirit will reveal to the world that we are a Christian when we are tested through trials and tribulations. Which sets of traits best identifies you? Is it the works of the flesh or the fruit of the Spirit?
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