Walking by the Spirit: The Battle Between Flesh and Freedom

The internal struggle between desire and duty represents one of humanity’s most universal experiences. Every person, believer or not, senses the pull of competing impulses. But the Christian encounters this struggle at a depth unknown to the unconverted, for something new has entered the equation. In Galatians 5:16-26, Paul addresses this very conflict, acknowledging the tension between fleshly impulse and spiritual conviction while providing concrete instruction for resolution through the Holy Spirit’s guidance.

Paul has spent the preceding chapters establishing the believer’s freedom from legalistic adherence to the Mosaic law. However, this liberty must never be misconstrued as moral license or permission for unrestrained indulgence. Freedom from law does not mean freedom from righteousness. It means a higher righteousness, one produced from within rather than imposed from without.

The New Covenant Promise: Law Written on the Heart

Paul’s transition into practical application reflects a theological principle rooted in Old Testament prophecy. When God delivered the law through Moses, He simultaneously promised a superior covenant wherein these same moral principles would be inscribed upon human hearts rather than stone tablets. The prophet Jeremiah anticipated this transformation:

“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people.” (Jeremiah 31:33, KJV)

Paul conceptualizes this shift as the movement from external constraint to internal guidance. The law previously functioned as an external guardian supervising spiritual children who lacked internal moral knowledge. Like a tutor correcting and redirecting wayward students, it provided necessary external boundaries. However, once spiritual maturity develops through the indwelling Holy Spirit, believers graduate beyond dependence on external supervision, having internalized divine guidance through the Spirit’s presence.

The Flesh-Spirit Conflict

Paul establishes the foundational principle with his imperative:

“This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” (Galatians 5:16, KJV)

This command introduces the central reality of Christian existence: an internal division that emerges precisely at the moment of spiritual regeneration when the believer receives God’s Spirit. Prior to conversion, the unregenerate person experiences no such internal conflict. The flesh, aligned with worldly desires, operates in complete harmony with the natural spirit. Both components work together toward the same destructive end.

Conversion introduces radical transformation. In salvation, the believer receives a new spirit from God that fundamentally opposes fleshly inclinations. Where once harmony existed, now opposition defines the relationship. This creates an unprecedented internal struggle absent from unregenerate experience. Paul elaborates:

“For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.” (Galatians 5:17, KJV)

There is an old saying that captures this well: “One will never know how evil one really is until one tries very hard to be good.” The moment a person attempts Spirit-led living, fleshly opposition manifests with startling intensity, revealing the depth of remaining corruption. These forces cannot coexist peacefully or find compromise. Believers experience internal battles completely foreign to unregenerate existence.

Spirit-Led, Not Law-Bound

Paul continues:

“But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.” (Galatians 5:18, KJV)

The Spirit-guided believer serves God not through external rule systems but through internal convictions established by the Spirit Himself. This represents the fulfillment of Ezekiel’s prophecy: “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes” (Ezekiel 36:27, KJV). The Holy Spirit places specific convictions within believers’ hearts, impressing divine guidance regarding particular decisions, even when such direction proves difficult to explain rationally.

Consider a believer offered a significant promotion. Outwardly, the opportunity appears excellent, and declining might seem foolish to observers. Yet if the Spirit impresses upon the heart not to accept, the believer must follow that inner conviction. The unregenerate mind cannot comprehend this guidance, dismissing it as fanaticism. However, Spirit-filled Christians immediately understand such experiences. When one believer explains, “I simply feel led not to take it,” no further explanation proves necessary among those familiar with the Spirit’s leading.

The Works of the Flesh

Paul then catalogs what fleshly dominance produces: “Now the works of the flesh are manifest” (Galatians 5:19, KJV). Rather than providing exhaustive cataloging, he offers representative examples enabling easy recognition. Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings. Each practice unmistakably represents fleshly works belonging to worldly systems, never mistakable for Spirit-produced fruit.

Paul’s teaching gains fuller comprehension when viewed through an eschatological framework. Christ’s first coming did not establish the visible kingdom in comprehensive glory but came to prepare citizens for that future kingdom. He accomplishes this preparation through inward transformation via the Spirit’s work, shaping believers’ hearts to reflect heavenly character.

This reality prompts a penetrating question: how does heaven conduct itself? Behavior contradicting heaven’s nature certainly proves inappropriate for kingdom preparation. Does adultery exist at God’s throne? Certainly not. Hatred? Never. Therefore, Christ prepares His people to reflect that heavenly order presently.

Paul concludes with solemn warning:

“Of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:21, KJV)

The Fruit of the Spirit

Beginning in verse 22, Paul contrasts fleshly works with a shorter yet infinitely richer catalog of Spirit-produced fruit. When examined carefully, this list presents nothing less than a portrait of Jesus Christ Himself, revealing how the Spirit conforms believers to Christ’s character.

“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.” (Galatians 5:22-23, KJV)

Love stands first, as the wellspring from which all other graces flow. When the Spirit enters a life, He begins producing love where none existed naturally. Joy follows: not circumstantial happiness but a settled gladness independent of external conditions. Peace represents the steadiness that sustains the heart even when others experience upheaval.

Longsuffering is the ability to endure patiently difficult circumstances over extended periods. Something within Spirit-led believers enables them simply to bear hardship. Others may express amazement: “I do not know how that person endures that.” The believer may respond: “I do not fully understand either. What once would have overwhelmed me no longer does.” The reason lies in the Holy Spirit’s production of longsuffering capacity.

Gentleness represents the opposite of quarrelsome spirits. Goodness describes comprehensive moral character evident to all observers. Faith, or faithfulness, represents life marked by trusting God. Meekness is frequently misunderstood in contemporary culture. Many equate meekness with weakness. Biblically, however, meekness means strength brought under control. Moses exemplified this quality, called the meekest man who ever lived (Numbers 12:3), yet he possessed immense authority. He parted the Red Sea, called down plagues upon Egypt, and struck rocks to produce water. His power could have served personal advantage. Yet Moses restrained it all and yielded it to God for others’ benefit. This is true meekness.

Finally, temperance is the ability to exercise self-control. Paul then declares: “Against such there is no law” (Galatians 5:23, KJV). Never in human history has any society or religion forbidden love, longsuffering, or goodness. Why? Because no need existed. Those living by Spirit fruit require no external law. Such life so far exceeds law’s demands that regulation becomes unnecessary.

Crucifying the Flesh

How does one attain such life? Paul answers directly:

“And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.” (Galatians 5:24, KJV)

This crucifixion represents not merely a one-time event but a daily act of obedience. Consider someone who struggled with violent temper for years. When that temper begins rising again, the believer takes it to the cross and declares, “No.” He nails it there and refuses to let it reign. Through daily repetition of this process, the Spirit transforms the heart so that sinful nature no longer dominates.

An old illustration captures this well. A missionary once converted a chief, and a year later returned to ask how he was faring. The chief replied, “Chief finds two dogs inside, one black and one white, always fighting.” The missionary asked, “Which one wins?” The chief answered, “Whichever one chief feeds the most.” That simple wisdom reflects Paul’s teaching. Crucify the flesh. Do not feed pride. Do not feed the desire always to be right. Do not feed the urge to argue merely for the sake of winning. God did not call His people to win arguments. He called them to win souls.

Application: Walk as Called

Paul closes with both exhortation and warning:

“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:25-26, KJV)

Here lies the difficulty with much modern Christianity. Many embrace the truth that believers are not under the law while neglecting the essential corollary: there must be an internal law written upon the heart by the Spirit. Consequently, freedom frequently becomes twisted into license for indulgence. But Paul insists otherwise. If believers are free from law, then they must be led by the Spirit. If they are led by the Spirit, then they will walk in the Spirit.

The practical application is plain. Believers must examine the fruit of their lives. What is being cultivated? Is the heart nurturing love, peace, and joy? Or is it still clinging to former habits? Each day should begin in dependence upon the Spirit. One must acknowledge from the outset that faithful representation of Christ is impossible without His help. When facing stressful situations, especially those in which one has stumbled before, the Spirit’s help must be sought. Dependence upon His strength, His leadership, His comfort, and His power must be openly acknowledged. Feed the Spirit. Starve the flesh. This is the only way to live the life Christ purchased for His people.