We receive the Holy Spirit at salvation (Gal. 3:2; 4:6). This begins a relationship that continues until we die or until Jesus comes back. But the sinful nature stays with us and a contest is set up between our nature and the Spirit of God, and both of them reside inside of us. We are no match for God, so it seems He would just eliminate any efforts to go against Him, but God has given us choice, so we can choose the forces of evil and sin over Him...and we do it all the time, vows and resolutions notwithstanding.
So the sinful nature and the Holy Spirit are in conflict. Gal. 5:17 says, “For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.” This verse follows verse 16, which instructs us to “live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Verse 18 then adds this: “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.” So living by...or in the power of...the Holy Spirit enables us to avoid the trap of gratifying sinful desires. And being led...or controlled by...the Holy Spirit keeps us from operating “under the law”. As we shall see later, living under the law is the same as being under the control of the sinful nature.
Living in the power of the Holy Spirit...being controlled by the Holy Spirit...gives us the ability to produce the “fruit of the Spirit”, which is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23a). On the other hand, the works of the flesh (sinful nature) are “sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like” (Gal. 5:19-21).
We will classify being controlled by the Holy Spirit as “spirituality”, and being controlled by the sinful nature as “carnality” (from the word “carnal”, or “related to flesh”). What, though, determines whether we are controlled by the Spirit or by the sinful nature? Obviously, if we are not “living in the light” and are thus “living in darkness”, we will not be controlled by the Spirit. This means that the control of the Spirit is related to our being “in the light”, or in fellowship. If we are in fellowship, we will be controlled by the Holy Spirit, and not by the sinful nature. This is central, and is why it is so important to stay “in fellowship”.
Sin disrupts fellowship and puts the sinful nature in charge, a condition that will last until we confess our sins and are restored to fellowship. Keep in mind that restoration is “immediate”, but so is loss of fellowship, which can happen in the blink of a wandering thought. Sin happens quickly, and with devastating effects that have been largely underestimated. Fellowship means control by the perfect God, while its absence means control has been passed to the sinful nature...in league with its insidious pals, the world and the devil. This is why confession must be a perpetual practice, because the margin between spirituality and carnality is so narrow, and these can change so quickly.
Control is crucial. Rom. 8:6b says, “...the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” Gal. 5:25 admonishes, “...keep in step with [meaning “walk by”] the Spirit.” When we are controlled by the Spirit, and “walking by Him”, we will be “living in the “light”. Eph. 5: 10 links living in the light with walking by the Spirit, showing that the fruit of the light and the fruit of the Spirit are the same.
To confirm this, compare Gal. 5:22-23, quoted earlier, with Eph. 5:10, seen here: “...for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.” Then compare Eph. 5:11-12 (deeds of darkness) with Gal. 5:19-21 (works of the flesh). See the connection? “Living in the light”, which we saw in the last section as “being in fellowship”, is equated to “walking by the Spirit”, or “being controlled by the Spirit”. “Living in darkness” is the same as “being controlled by the sinful nature”.
Maybe we’re getting bogged down, here. But the conclusion is simple: Being in fellowship results in spirituality, or the control of the Holy Spirit, while being out of fellowship is tied to carnality, or the control of the sinful nature.
Later in Eph. 5, we see a clear reference to the “control” of the Holy Spirit in verses 18 and 19, as follows: “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” That which fills us, such as alcohol, controls us. When the Spirit “fills” us, He controls us...and all of this is hinged on fellowship.
So which will it be: the sinful nature or the Holy Spirit? Which will we choose to control us? If it is the sinful nature, we do nothing...the sinful nature will do its dirty work all on its own. If it is the Holy Spirit, we must confess to stay in fellowship, to qualify us for the Holy Spirit’s control and leadership.
We will see over the course of our studies many benefits that emanate from the control of the Holy Spirit. We will cite a few of them here:
There is much more to this...and we’ll get to it. For enrichment or clarification of this pivotal study, refer to the chart, “Spirituality/Carnality Flowchart”, at the end of Chapter 28 in Bible Basics for Living: Essential Foundations.
So the sinful nature and the Holy Spirit are in conflict. Gal. 5:17 says, “For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.” This verse follows verse 16, which instructs us to “live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.” Verse 18 then adds this: “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.” So living by...or in the power of...the Holy Spirit enables us to avoid the trap of gratifying sinful desires. And being led...or controlled by...the Holy Spirit keeps us from operating “under the law”. As we shall see later, living under the law is the same as being under the control of the sinful nature.
Living in the power of the Holy Spirit...being controlled by the Holy Spirit...gives us the ability to produce the “fruit of the Spirit”, which is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Gal. 5:22-23a). On the other hand, the works of the flesh (sinful nature) are “sexual immorality, impurity, and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like” (Gal. 5:19-21).
We will classify being controlled by the Holy Spirit as “spirituality”, and being controlled by the sinful nature as “carnality” (from the word “carnal”, or “related to flesh”). What, though, determines whether we are controlled by the Spirit or by the sinful nature? Obviously, if we are not “living in the light” and are thus “living in darkness”, we will not be controlled by the Spirit. This means that the control of the Spirit is related to our being “in the light”, or in fellowship. If we are in fellowship, we will be controlled by the Holy Spirit, and not by the sinful nature. This is central, and is why it is so important to stay “in fellowship”.
Sin disrupts fellowship and puts the sinful nature in charge, a condition that will last until we confess our sins and are restored to fellowship. Keep in mind that restoration is “immediate”, but so is loss of fellowship, which can happen in the blink of a wandering thought. Sin happens quickly, and with devastating effects that have been largely underestimated. Fellowship means control by the perfect God, while its absence means control has been passed to the sinful nature...in league with its insidious pals, the world and the devil. This is why confession must be a perpetual practice, because the margin between spirituality and carnality is so narrow, and these can change so quickly.
Control is crucial. Rom. 8:6b says, “...the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.” Gal. 5:25 admonishes, “...keep in step with [meaning “walk by”] the Spirit.” When we are controlled by the Spirit, and “walking by Him”, we will be “living in the “light”. Eph. 5: 10 links living in the light with walking by the Spirit, showing that the fruit of the light and the fruit of the Spirit are the same.
To confirm this, compare Gal. 5:22-23, quoted earlier, with Eph. 5:10, seen here: “...for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth.” Then compare Eph. 5:11-12 (deeds of darkness) with Gal. 5:19-21 (works of the flesh). See the connection? “Living in the light”, which we saw in the last section as “being in fellowship”, is equated to “walking by the Spirit”, or “being controlled by the Spirit”. “Living in darkness” is the same as “being controlled by the sinful nature”.
Maybe we’re getting bogged down, here. But the conclusion is simple: Being in fellowship results in spirituality, or the control of the Holy Spirit, while being out of fellowship is tied to carnality, or the control of the sinful nature.
Later in Eph. 5, we see a clear reference to the “control” of the Holy Spirit in verses 18 and 19, as follows: “Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.” That which fills us, such as alcohol, controls us. When the Spirit “fills” us, He controls us...and all of this is hinged on fellowship.
So which will it be: the sinful nature or the Holy Spirit? Which will we choose to control us? If it is the sinful nature, we do nothing...the sinful nature will do its dirty work all on its own. If it is the Holy Spirit, we must confess to stay in fellowship, to qualify us for the Holy Spirit’s control and leadership.
We will see over the course of our studies many benefits that emanate from the control of the Holy Spirit. We will cite a few of them here:
- The Holy Spirit teaches us. (Jn. 14:25-26)
- He teaches us about the deeper things of God. (1 Cor. 2:10-11)
- The Spirit gives us competence. (2 Cor. 3:4-6)
- The Spirit provides and activates gifts that enable us to help each other. (1 Cor. 12, especially verses 7-11).
- The Holy Spirit produces fruit through us. (Gal. 5:22-23)
- He works miracles among us. (Gal. 5:3)
- He even prays in our place because we do not know what to pray for. (Rom. 8:26-27)
There is much more to this...and we’ll get to it. For enrichment or clarification of this pivotal study, refer to the chart, “Spirituality/Carnality Flowchart”, at the end of Chapter 28 in Bible Basics for Living: Essential Foundations.
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