“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh” (Galatians 5:16).
The Apostle Paul has written this letter to the Galatians to encourage them to remain faithful to Jesus and not to return to the teachings of the law of Moses. At this point in his letter, he expands his teaching to include some moral principles by which they are to live.
In His beginning point, Paul comes forth with a rather direct statement: he tells them that by “walking” in the Spirit, they will automatically guard themselves against “fulfilling” the lust of the flesh, implying the two actions are not compatible. They cannot do both and please God.
“Walk,” in this instance, refers to the way someone behaves or conducts his life. The Galatians would walk in the Spirit by conducting their lives in the way the Spirit has directed. It could be stated that they would walk in the Spirit by allowing the inspired teachings of the Spirit to train their human spirit about how to live.
By “fulfilling” the lust of the flesh, the Galatians would be allowing themselves to conduct their lives without the benefit of moral restraints, ignoring common ideas of consideration for others and allowing their fleshly nature to be in control.
Of course, this teaching comes through to people in every century. If we want to please God, we, too, must conduct our lives in such a way as to allow the teachings of the Spirit to mold our “spirit” so that we live according to the laws of God.
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