“HOW TO REALIZE YOUR FREEDOM IN CHRIST”

Galatians 5:16, 17

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.

The aspiration of every child is to grow to a place of responsibility - to come to the place where they are no longer hampered or controlled by parents and the confines of home environment; to come to the place of responsible freedom. Likewise, the desire of every child of God should be to come to the place of freedom in his life - responsible freedom. The greatest hindrance to the Christian’s understanding and enjoying real spiritual freedom is the flesh. To realize real freedom in your life is to learn to walk by the Spirit.

[Note a joint responsibility in these verses: The Christian exerts the effort to walk and the Holy Spirit energizes our effort and gives it dynamic.]

What is walking by the Spirit? Walking by the Spirit is learning to regulate your whole round of life according to the norm or standard set by the Holy Spirit. This is something you are constantly working on.

How do you learn to walk by the Spirit?

• Walking by the Spirit is as natural as learning to walk physically. Everyone eventually learns to walk.

• You learn to walk by walking! No one ever learned to walk just by observing others.

• You learn to walk by falling. You never reach the place in your life where you are not prone to fall. Making bad decisions in the process of life is all a part of learning to walk. You don’t quit because you fall. You get up and start over again. Stay involved!

• You learn to walk responsibly. You first “house walked” which was monitored by your parents (restricted freedom.) Then you “yard walked” which was monitored by the confines of a fence under the watchful eye of parents, big brother, etc. (still restricted freedom). Then you walked on your own (responsible freedom).

How does it work? In the process of learning to live a responsible Christian life, you are allowing the Holy Spirit to win you away from the controlling power of the flesh. Just as you learn to walk physically, you gradually pull away from the things of infancy (see Ephesians 4:11-16). You walk by the Spirit by leaning to regulate your life in the Word (Christ’s example is found in Luke 4:1-14, see also Ephesians 6:17). You become familiar with the Spirit’s voice in the Scriptures.

The objective of the believer is to:

Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage (Galatians 5:1).

Keep walking! God bless.

Love to you all.