“But I say, walk in the Spirit, and you will not gratify [please] the desires of the flesh,” Galatians 5:16.
The desires of the flesh are the expressions of the old man, the old nature, and your old life. Paul teaches the church at Galatia to not be governed by your live in the flesh, but to walk by the Spirit and you will not desire the lust of the flesh. In the spirit we live a life of holiness unto God and we move away from the inclinations of the flesh that will cost you eternal life. Paul defines the lust of the flesh, or the cravings of the flesh as: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, envy, drunkenness, causing divisions among people, having wild and wasteful parties, and other such things. This is why you must perfect holiness in the fear of God with producing the fruit of the spirit. The fruit of the spirit includes: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their own sinful selves. This is way we are not only to cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh, but crucify our sinful selves completely and live the new life by sanctifying our bodies in the fear of God. This does not mean to be afraid of God, but to reverence Him with respect, love, and devotion. The Greek word ‘epiteleo’ means to complete yourself, perfect yourself, and accomplish yourself in God and in true holiness. This is a cleaning up of your life, not just the outside but also the inside by allowing God’s implanted word to remove all filthiness from within you. For the word of God has cleansing power to wash us and to clean us from all unrighteousness.
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life,” John 6:63.
The natural man cannot comprehend divine truth because the natural man is bound by human viewpoints of human perspectives. This is why we need the Holy Spirit to enable us to understand divine truth and have the guidance of God. It’s the spirit that gives him life in Christ who is our redeemer. We live by His quickening spirit because God has made this provision for the soul of mankind to be saved. The flesh profits us nothing; the human nature of mankind profits us nothing. The profit is in the union with the Son of God unto divine nature with righteousness and obedience. We must make this change to live a complete life, not just any life. We are the sons and daughters of God and should live this life before Him each and every day. The releasing of the word of truth will help us live this Christian life. God says to the spirit that is dwelling in us, He will give you a fitting life, a connected life, and a life surrendered to God that will show forth His essences. Just remember that you are the church of God, the saints of God, and the people of God.
