Galatians 5 16-21
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you
shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts
against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do
not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the
Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are:
adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred,
contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions,
heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell
you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those
who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
It is amazing how we can read Bible verses and not truly
know what we are reading. We know the “fruits of the Spirt” verse so well yet
we skip over these important scriptures. How can we read Galatians 5:19-21 and
think that it does not apply to us as believers in Jesus Christ? Can we truly comprehend the meaning of these
verses, especially as it relates to the entrance into the kingdom of God? Can we afford to think that this doesn’t
apply to us? Galatian 5:16-21 is a warning to all believers and unbelievers and
we can’t afford to ignore this warning, because the things we practice here
lead to spiritual issues, emotional, physical sicknesses, and disease which are
curses. What we practice results in conflict with others and ourselves.
We must understand what kingdom the Word of God is talking
about. The words of what we call the
Lord’s Prayer confirm this understanding of the kingdom of God. Jesus taught his disciples to pray: “Your kingdom come. Your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven” (Matt 6:10). Notice that we are to pray for the
kingdom to come. This verse does not talk about where we go after death. Jesus roughly equates the kingdom with the
will of God. Currently, in heaven, God reigns and therefore His will is done.
We are to pray for God’s kingdom to visit us, for His will to be done on earth
as it is in heaven. If we continue to
practice these things that don’t align with God’s kingdom, we will not be able
to experience the fruits of the Spirit her on earth which are His blessings.
Adultery –
There are two types of adultery in the Bible. 1. Committing adultery whether
man or women (Leviticus 20:10 ‘The man who commits adultery with another man’s
wife, he who commits adultery with his neighbor’s wife, the adulterer and the
adulteress, shall surely be put to death).
2. The other is spiritual adultery (Ezekiel 23:37 For they have
committed adultery, and blood is on their hands. They have committed adultery
with their idols)
Fornication
– Consensual sexual intercourse between two persons not married to each
other. God’s wants us to be pure up to
the time we are married. Fornication
with others causes soul ties to be brought into the marriage. 1 Corinthians 6:18 Flee sexual
immorality. Every sin that a man does is
outside the body, but he who commits sexual immorality sins against his own
body. Or do you not know that your body
is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you
are not your own?
Uncleanness
– Morally or spiritually impure. Ezra
9:11 which You commanded by Your servants the prophets, saying, ‘The land which
you are entering to possess is an unclean
land, with the uncleanness of the peoples of the lands, with their abominations
which have filled it from one end to another with their impurity
Lewdness –
Depicting or referring to matters in a way that is filthy, wicked (Iniquities),
and unacceptable. Ezekiel 24:13 In your filthiness is lewdness. Because I have
cleansed you, and you were not cleansed, you will not be cleansed of your
filthiness anymore, Till I have caused My fury to rest upon you.
Idolatry –
Excessive admiration of or devotion to a person, place, thing or habit and
especially our own thinking (self). Examples: Tattoos, phones, money, internet,
cars, houses name brand clothes, sports, diets, exercise, etc. Most cause us to be consumed with being great
in the eyes of man and self. No matter what we are told in God’s word, we
continue to be stubborn and stubbornness causes idolatry; 1 Samuel 15:23 And
stubbornness is as iniquity (wickedness) and idolatry. Colossians 3:5
Therefore put to death your members which are on the earth: fornication,
uncleanness, passion, evil desire, and covetousness,
which is idolatry.
Sorcery – Sorcery
is an attempt to bypass God’s wisdom and power and give glory to Satan instead
through spells, divination, or speaking to spirits. Interestingly, the New Testament Greek word
translated “sorcery” (Strong’s 5531) is pharmakeia, which is the source of our
English word pharmacy. In Paul’s day, the word primarily meant “dealing in
poison” or “drug use” and was applied to divination and spell-casting because
sorcerers often used drugs along with their incantations and amulets to conjure
occult power. We are a nation of drug
users and we have put way too much trust in drugs. Sorcery will be practiced to
the end of the age and the light will not shine in those that do. Revelation 18:23 The light of a lamp shall
not shine in you anymore, and the voice of bridegroom and bride shall not be
heard in you anymore. For your merchants were the great men of the earth, for
by your sorcery all the nations were deceived.
Hatred –
Is a very strong feeling of dislike causing bitterness which is the deepening
effect of un-forgiveness. Hatred is
contrary to the word of God. Galatians
5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word even in this: You shall love your
neighbor as yourself.
Contentions
– People likely to cause disagreement or argument. They are aggressive, agonistic, combative,
confrontational, belligerent, and quarrelsome.
1 Corinthians 11:16 But if anyone seems to be contentious, we have no such custom, nor do the churches of God.
Jealousies
– An unhappy or angry feeling of wanting to have what someone else has or
someone you love is liked by someone else. James 3:16 For where there is jealousy and selfish ambition, there
you will find disorder and evil of every kind.
Outburst of Wrath
– An intense emotional state of displeasure with someone or something. Wrath can manifest in rage/anger at all
levels. I see it quite often with people
that have been rejected and feel unloved or have been offended. Most often a person will blame someone else
for their anger and wrath, but in reality, anger is a choice and one must look
at self. Proverbs 19:19 A man of great wrath will suffer punishment; For if
you rescue him, you will have to do it again.
Proverbs 29:8 Scoffers set a city aflame, but wise men turn away wrath.
Selfish Ambitions
– Is putting yourself first.
Philippians 2:3-4 NLT Don’t be selfish; don’t try to impress
others. Be humble, thinking of others as
better than yourselves. Don’t look out
only for your own interests, but take an interest in others, too. A thought came to me that is a good
example. Selfishness is thinking that
your salvations is all that you have to think about, but we should be thinking
about bringing others to salvation.
Verse 5 says “You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.” Philippians 2:3 Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in
lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself.
Dissensions
– Disagreement that causes the people in a group to argue about something that
is important to them. Especially
partisan and contentious quarreling.
Titus 3:9 But avoid foolish disputes, genealogies, contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable
and useless.
Heresies –
A belief or opinion that does not agree with the official belief or opinion and
may be contrary to church dogma. Too
often, one will interpret what the Bible says and try to sell it to anyone that
will listen even though it is obvious it is contrary to God’s word. 2 Peter 2:1 But there were also false
prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who
will secretly bring in destructive heresies,
even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift
destruction.
Envy –
Painful or resentful awareness of an advantage enjoyed by another joined with a
desire to possess the same advantage.
Many times envy turns in to bitterness and un-forgiveness. These three will destroy your health. Proverbs 14:30 A sound heart is life to the
body, but envy is rottenness to the
bones. The bone marrow is where white
cells are produced. In basic terms, it
is the bone marrow that produces the white cells that fight off sickness and
disease. Once the immune system is
compromised, the immune system does not produce enough white cells to fight off
sickness and disease.
Murderers
– Most tend to pass over this subject. After all, we are not murderers, or are
we? We can easily build a record of
wrongs against people in our lives. With
this comes slander, backbiting, and the destruction of one’s reputation that
can never be restored one hundred percent.
This is called murder of the tongue.
The Thesaurus describes murder as something that causes great suffering
and unhappiness. Psalm 5:9 My enemies cannot speak a truthful word. Their
deepest desire is to destroy others. Their talk is foul, like the stench from
an open grave. Their tongues are filled with flattery. Psalm 10:7 Their mouths are full of cursing,
lies, and threats. Trouble and evil are on the tips of their tongues. Psalm 34:13 Then keep your tongue from speaking
evil and your lips from telling lies! Proverbs 18:21 The tongue can bring death
or life; those who love to talk will reap the consequences. Proverbs 25:23 As
surely as a north wind brings rain, so a gossiping tongue causes anger!
Proverbs 21:23 Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay
out of trouble.
Drunkenness
– There are many believers that are filling their emptiness (rejection and
feeling unloved) with alcohol and other substances. Proverbs 23:29-35 Who has
woe? Who has sorrow? Who has contentions? Who has complaints? Who has wounds
without cause? Who has redness of eyes? Those who linger long at the wine, those
who go in search of mixed wine. Do not look on the wine when it is red, when it
sparkles in the cup, when it swirls around smoothly; At the last it bites like
a serpent, And stings like a viper. Your eyes will see strange things, and your
heart will utter perverse things. Yes, you will be like one who lies down in
the midst of the sea, or like one who lies at the top of the mast, saying:
“They have struck me, but I was not hurt; They have beaten me, but I did not
feel it. When shall I awake, that I may seek another drink?”
Revelries
– This is one subject most do not consider or know much about. Revelry is daydreaming. How many time have we all been lost
daydreaming about winning the lottery, a bigger house and car, wanting a
position that we know we can never attain, wanting recognition at church,
wanting to be the star athletic, wanting to marry the most popular and most
beautiful women in town, wanting be rich and famous, etc. etc. etc.………… Romans
13:13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife
and envy.
Conclusion
Isn’t amazing how thorough God is in covering all the things
that He does not want us to practice in verses 19-21? The crowning moment is what will happen if we
continue to practice these things?
“just as I also told
you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the
kingdom of God”
This is a powerful scripture to digest. Are we to believe that just because we are
saved, we can continue to sin and experience the kingdom of heaven? God’s word
is not contrary to itself. Rather, scripture
supports scripture. 1 Corinthians 6:9-Do you not know that the unrighteous will
not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor
idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor
covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the
kingdom of God. Matthew 7:21-23 “Not
everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but
he who does the will of My Father in heaven.
Many will say to Me in that day, ‘Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in
Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?’
And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who
practice lawlessness!’
The Good News is there is hope for all of us. God does not expect us to be perfect, but he
does expect us to obey and make progress in our walk with the Him. He does not
want us to continue in our wicked ways.
He wants us to recognize and acknowledge our sin. He wants us to repent (turn away from sin)
and ask Him to forgive us for the things that are contrary to Him.
Psalm 51:17 The sacrifice you desire is a broken spirit. You
will not reject a broken and repentant heart, O God.
Acts 17:30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but
now he commands all people everywhere to repent.
2 Corinthians 12:21 lest, when I come again, my God will
humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have
not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have
practiced.
Revelation 2:5 Remember therefore from where you have
fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and
remove your lampstand from its place—unless you repent.
Brothers and Sisters, what I have to say is not what is
important. Matter of fact, much of the commentary that I wrote will be
forgotten, but the scripture will remain embedded in your being. There is a lot of scripture and it is the Word
of God that will resonate in your spirit, soul and body. When spreading the
Gospel as a writer, teacher, preacher, etc, we must flood the message with the Word
of God. If not, you become just a story
teller and your story will be quickly forgotten and have little or no impact.
Lastly, each person will be accountable on Judgment Day for
his own actions. No one can boast when
he measures himself and his work against the standard of God’s
requirements. Galatians 6:3-5 For if
anyone thinks himself to be something, when he is nothing, he deceives
himself. But let each one examine his
own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in
another. For each one shall bear his own
load.
It is my prayer that you will apply what you read in this
article and change your habits that don’t align with God.
Coram Deo,
