13/04/2026
The Struggle of the Flesh
Galatians 5:16-26
16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[a] you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, or**es, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
In Galatians 5, Paul uses the term “flesh” to describe the part of our lives that stands in opposition to God. The fruit of the Spirit, or the evidence of Christ’s life in us, includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The evidence of the flesh includes: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissension in our relationships, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these.
The flesh is not so much tangible in nature as it is revealed in our attitudes, desires, and lifestyles. Never think that just because you serve the Lord you won’t be caught up in the trappings of the flesh. A person can serve God, make a wonderful public impression, and still be living in the flesh.
The central focus of the Spirit-filled life must always be Jesus Christ, while the primary focus of the flesh is self – self-will, self-assertion, self-love, self-indulgence, self-pity, self-reliance, self-consciousness, self-righteousness, and self-glorification.
However, we do not have to serve the desires of the flesh. As children of God, we have been given the power to say no to our old way of living and thinking. Ask the Lord to reveal any evidences of the flesh in your life. Be willing to allow Him to strip away all that does not glorify Him.