THE HOLY SPIRIT FIGHTS FOR YOU AGAINST THE SINFUL FLESH
Luther’s Small Catechism includes questions to help a person prepare for receiving the Sacrament. The final question deals with why we should receive it often: “But what if a person is not aware of such trouble that lies heavy on him and feels no hunger and thirst for the Sacrament?” The answer begins: “To such a person no better advice can be given than to put his hand into his bosom and feel whether he still has flesh and blood and by all means believe what the Scripture says of [his flesh] in Galatians 5.”
Today we’re hearing these very words from Galatians 5, in which St. Paul lists “the works of the flesh.” But he also lists the “fruit of the Spirit.” The main point is what a struggle this is and how we should think of it.
Sermon Text, Galatians 5:16-24 (ESV). But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to keep from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunken-ness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentle-ness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
Lord, this is Your Word and these are Your words. Sanctify us by the truth. Your Word is truth. Through this hearing of Your Word, in which we hear about the struggle in each person between the sinful flesh and the Spirit, we pray: Teach us to our great need to be led by the Spirit, who always leads us to the Savior who forgives. Amen.
Dear fellow redeemed in Christ: Grace be unto you and peace from God the Father and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
In the final portion of many of Paul’s epistles, he gives instruction for living a Christian life. Here we are in the second-to-last chapter of Galatians, so once again this is emphasizing our life of sanctification. Sanctification in the narrow sense is our life of good works. It’s living the Christian life. This is about the fruits of faith, which here St. Paul calls “the fruit of the Spirit.”
This way of picturing it as fruit goes back to Jesus, when He said, “Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit” (Mt 7:17). In this picture, fruit coming from a healthy tree illustrates how good works result from faith. Jesus’ picture goes back to Psalm 1, which says a righteous person is like a tree – nourished by a stream, so, a healthy tree – that “brings forth its fruit.” So true faith results in good works. John the Baptist said to “bring fruits in keeping with repentance,” that when there’s repentance and faith, you should see fruits – life or actions – in keeping with repentance and faith. Being thankful, as we heard in the Gospel today, is one of those fruits.
We have to keep in mind this connection between faith and its fruits so we can see where “works of the flesh” and the “fruit of the Spirit” come from. The temptation is to focus on the obvious part, what you see on the outside. So in verses 19-21 we naturally have big reactions to such things as “sexual immorality, impurity … fits of anger … jealousy, envy, drunkenness, and things like these.” These are actions you want to hide, or habits you want to change. “You need to stop doing that,” you might say to someone – or yourself. We also have big reactions on the positive side in verses 22-23, with such things as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness,” etc. Trying to be more loving, kind, patient, joyful, etc. you never seem to get there. “You need to be more loving, you need to be kinder,” you might say to others – or yourself.
But these fruits you see on the outside – whether it’s the sins or the virtues – are the result of an inner struggle. If we think again of the picture of the tree, the “fruit” on the outside is really a result of what’s going on in the roots, which the stream of God’s Word is either feeding, or the roots are becoming dead. This is about your inner life.
In the Bible, God reveals that – for Christians – you have two selves. One is “the flesh,” the sinful flesh or Old Adam; call it your sinful self. The other is the new man, or your new nature; call it your forgiven self. When Paul speaks of “the Spirit” here, he’s speaking of your new spiritual life, but it’s more personal than that. It’s the Third Person of the Trinity, the Spirit, capital S, the Holy Spirit. He’s emphasizing how the Spirit leads and guides you.
God reveals to us here in St. Paul’s words that this is a battle, a struggle, and of course you know this from how difficult it is to carry out your good intentions. We feel like we know what is going on in this struggle. You feel it as fighting against yourself. You wonder why you don’t do better even when you know better. Where does such sinful pride come from? Why do I think only about how everything affects me, or is hard on me? Why is it so easy to talk poorly about others? Why do you feel the need to talk about yourself to gain the approval of others? Why can’t you be content and you must envy others? Why do you still struggle with worry so much? Don’t I know better?
But listen to what St. Paul says. He reveals that this is beyond your ability to control and develop better habits. It’s this inner battle that starts with the flesh, your sinful self. You have an enemy that’s part of you, it’s inside you, the sin in you. It wants to do these sins. It wants its own way. It’s the want-er inside you, it’s these wants and desires that are the problem.
Paul says it’s not only the sinful flesh but in point of fact it’s “the desires of the flesh” that are the problem. This word “desire” is also translated “lust” but this isn’t only sexual lust. Each commandment exposes sinful desires specific to it – for the 1st 3 commandments, which teach love of God, the sinful desires involve pride and putting other things first; with the 4th commandment (“honor your father and mother”) the desire or lust is rebellion against authority; 5th commandment lust is anger and serving self (“you shall not murder”); 6th commandment lusts are the sinful sexual desires. With the 7th commandment (“you shall not steal”) the sinful desire is laziness or greed; 8thcommandment lust is bitterness that comes out in gossip; and the lust of the coveting commandments is envy, or always wanting more.
This seems like something we’ll never get on top of, and that’s the point. You can’t do it yourself. You need Someone to fight for you. That Someone is the Spirit. So “the desires of the flesh” are not left to take over. St. Paul writes: “For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other.”
This is incredible. Here God tells us that not only do the desires of the flesh oppose themselves to what God wants, to the Spirit; but the Spirit, the Holy Spirit Himself, opposes our flesh, your sinful self. He does not oppose you, He loves you! He opposes the sin inside you. The Holy Spirit doesn’t leave you being overwhelmed by sin and Satan. He fights for you, from within you! The Holy Spirit fights against the evil desires, with His good and holy desires. Yes, the Spirit has desires. The Spirit has wants. The Spirit wants things – for you, for your good. He wants you. He wants you to be saved. He desires your salvation, for you to belong to God. He wants to make it so your sins don’t cause you to “not inherit the kingdom of God,” He wants to make it so that even though you sin, your sins don’t harm you eternally.
The Holy Spirit does this through the forgiveness of your sins. This is the first way He sanctifies you. This is the first way He opposes your sinful self and defeats what it does: He takes away “the works of the flesh,” all the sins. He can do this because Jesus took your works of the flesh to be His own, to be punished for them instead of you. The Holy Spirit brings this to you, He brings Jesus to you, in His Word and in the Lord’s Supper. He gives you faith in Jesus. By faith God sees that you have no sins, no works of the flesh.
Secondly, by this gift of faith the Holy Spirit creates something new in you – the new man in you, your new nature, your forgiven self. This is the part that’s exactly the opposite from “the flesh.” This is the part of you that wants what God wants, wants to do His will. This part of you has no desires except what pleases God. This part of you – propelled by the Spirit – actually does what the Ten Commandments say to do, and says no to all that they forbid.
Isn’t it something, that the Spirit who came to you in Baptism never leaves you, especially because of your sinful flesh? Far from forsaking you because of your sins, far from being disappointed in you and turning away, the Spirit will stay with you exactly because you need Him so much.
The work of the Spirit in this area is twofold: first He works to restrain us from doing the works of the flesh – and when we do them, He works through His Word to bring us to hate our sins as a grievous foe – and second He works through His Word to produce the fruit of love, joy, peace, etc.
You know where the Holy Spirit especially produces love, joy, peace, patience? You know where He produces kindness, gentleness, faithfulness and self-control? He does this in the Lord’s Supper. These are additional benefits of the sacrament. Along with the forgiveness of sins, He produces the fruits that go along with it. We can’t produce these ourselves; He not only strengthens our faith, but brings forth love for one another, and all the other fruits. Being thankful, and giving thanks to God, is a big part of it.
This is a great promise we’re given today for our spiritual struggles, that the Spirit fights against our sinful flesh, to push it down. Martin Luther said, “No one should be surprised to feel this conflict of flesh against the Spirit, but should fortify himself with these words of Paul” that the Spirit opposes the desires of the flesh. The sinful flesh will be an obstacle for us; but the good news, the true comfort, is that the Spirit fights for us, so that by His grace and help we do fight back, and conquer, and will always “belong to Christ Jesus.”
As we sing: “With Your help, O Lord, our battles we win.” (ELH 446:2). Amen!