1. Galatians 5:13-25 Page 992 in Pew Bibles
For you are called to freedom, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.
GALATIANS

2. For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.
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3. I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.
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.
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4. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
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5. Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity,
idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions,
envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar…
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6. …about which I tell you in advance—as I told you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
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7. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith,
gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law.
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8. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
If we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit.
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9. GALATIANS

10. GALATIANS The Danger of Slavery
Vs. 1 “Christ has liberated us into freedom. Therefore stand firm and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery.”
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11. But What About the Danger of Freedom?
Can’t freedom be a dangerous thing?
People can cast off all moral restraint and call it freedom
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12. Freedom isn’t a Problem Provided It’s the Right Kind of Freedom
Vs. 13 “For you are called to freedom, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.”
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13. Love Drives Everything
Vs. 13 “…Don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.”
Flesh is selfish, using and consuming others
Love is self-giving and serving
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14. Only Love Empowers Anything
Vs. 6 “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through love.”
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15. Love as the Driving Principle is Consistent with the Law
Vs. 14 “For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”
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16. When It’s Legalism Instead of Love
Legalism degenerates into scorekeeping
Scorekeeping degenerates into rivalries and grudges
Vs. 14 “But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another.”
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17. Two Models for Controlling the Power of Sin in Our Lives
Willpower: Keeping the rules in my own strength (flesh) by sheer willpower
Relying on the Holy Spirit’s Power…
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18. GALATIANS By the Spirit
Vs. 16 “I say then, walk by the Spirit and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.”
Vs. 18 “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”
Not merely having the direction pointed out by the Spirit (like someone giving you directions)
Nor being picked up and carried by the Spirit.
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GALATIANS

19. Ongoing Battle; Intense Desires
Vs. 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.”
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20. The Best the Flesh Can Do
Vs. 19 “Now the works of the flesh are obvious…”
Obvious: Manifest, Seen externally
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21. Flesh
Flesh: R. Jewett: The flesh was Paul’s term for everything aside from God in which one placed his final trust (New American Commentary)
Us, in our natural condition, apart from the supernatural power of God.
John White: “The beast in the basement”
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22. GALATIANS Works of the Flesh
Vs “Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar…”
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GALATIANS

23. Works of the Flesh: Sensuality
Sexual immorality— Word from which we get pornography
Moral impurity– Barclay: “Used of… ceremonial cleanness…. Impurity, makes a man unfit to come before God”
Promiscuity— Casting off all moral restraint
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GALATIANS

24. Works of the Flesh: Spiritual
Idolatry – Worship of man-made gods instead of the true God. The Bible calls materialism idolatry.
Sorcery– Using magic potions to control life circumstances instead of trusting the sovereign God
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25. Works of the Flesh: Interpersonal
Hatreds– Personal animosity
Strife– Debating & quarrelling, contentious
Jealousy– Barclay: “The desire to have what someone else has, wrong desire for what is not for us.”
Outbursts of anger– The blow-up kind
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26. Works of the Flesh: Organizationally
Selfish ambitions— Being in it for personal gain and ready to step on another to reach the top
Dissensions– Splits, everyone taking a side
Factions– Unable to disagree agreeably
Envy– Disappointment at someone else’s success
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27. Works of the Flesh: Organizationally
Vs. 26 “We must not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”
This kind of fleshly thing is seen in the lives of false teachers.
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28. Works of the Flesh: Debauchery
Drunkenness— plural, drunkenesses
Carousing– Wild parties with drinking and with unrestrained behavior
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29. GALATIANS A Strong Warning
Vs. 21 “about which I tell you in advance—as I told you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”
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30. GALATIANS The Fruit of the Spirit
Vs. 19 “But the fruit of the Spirit is…”
Fruit, not works
Is, singular
Of the Spirit, not from your human resources
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31. GALATIANS The Fruit of the Spirit
Vs “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, gentleness, self-control…”
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32. Fruit of the Spirit Inward
Love– Ready to meet the other person’s need at my expense
Joy— Joy comes from God and not from external circumstances
Peace– Not the absence of action, but the absence of anxiousness or guilt
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33. Fruit of the Spirit Outward
Patience– The ability to put up with the annoyances of others without retaliation
Kindness– To be pleasantly considerate of others
Goodness– A righteous generosity, extended whether people deserve it or not
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34. Fruit of the Spirit Upward
Faith— Faithfulness; staying true to God and being trustworthy with men
Gentleness— A submissive and teachable spirit before God
Self-control— Living a disciplined life with one’s passions and desires under control
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35. The Spirit Life Better Than Law
Vs. 23 “…Against such things there is no law.”
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36. Flesh is the Problem And Must Be Dealt With Decisively
Vs. 24 “Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”
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37. Sinclair Ferguson What then is this killing of sin?
It is the constant battle against sin which we fight daily—the refusal to allow the eye to wander, the mind to contemplate, the affections to run after anything to draw us from Christ. It is the deliberate rejection of any sinful thought, suggestion, desire, aspiration, deed, circumstance or provocation the minute become conscious of its existence.
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38. Lifestyle
Vs. 25 “If we live by the Spirit, we must also follow the Spirit.”
Literally, To march in rank -> To keep in step
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39. GALATIANS