Morning Moments

(contined)
H. The Proof (of faith) 5:15-26
What you devour will either develop you or destroy you. If you you bite and devour one another Paul says in vs 15, you will be consumed of one another. Contrariwise, if we feed on the things of the Spirit such as the Word of God, noble thoughts, love of God and one another we build each other up in the most holy faith. One destroys, while the other develops.

In vs 17 we see the battle that rages within us between the flesh and the spirit and we cannot travel both directions. Consider the example of a dog fight. Suppose you feed one dog and starve the other and provoke them to fight. Who is the obvious winner? The one you fed. It is no different with the flesh and the spirit. Who are you feeding? If you are feeding the flesh you are living under the law and breaking it. If you are feeding the spirit, you are living under love and pleasing God.

Both flesh and spirit are craving because they starve to be fed, so the choice for the feeding is yours. And how do we know which a person is feeding? How do we know whether one is living under law or grace? How can we tell if one is pleasing God or not? By the lifestyle as described in verses 19-23.

There is a clear distinction between the spiritual life and the natural life. One may appear to be spiritual but the heart can only be changed by God. Otherwise the feelings and thoughts are consistent with those works of the flesh which are always for self.

Notice that the results of the flesh is referred to as "works" and are manifest (made known, visible, plain): 5:19-21

1. Adultery - the illicit intercourse by a married partner.
2. Fornication - the illicit sexual relations of any kind.
3. Uncleanness - Any kind of moral impurity including motive.
4. Lasciviousness - wantonness or licentiousness, extreme shamefulness or sinfulness.
5. Idolatry - allegiance to anyone or anything other than God.
6. Witchcraft - drugs often associated with magic. Potions, mixtures
7. Hatred - hostility or war against, even to the extent of wishing death.
8. Variance - contentions, alterations including lawsuits and disputes
9. Emulations - strife to excel at the expense of another. Unholy zeal.
10. Wrath - turbulent passions, disturbing harmony, producing domestic and civil disruption.
11. Strife - Disputations about words, janglings, strife over words.
12. Seditions - Divisions into separate factions, parties in Church or state - undermining authority.
13. Heresies - false teaching that separates and divides.
14. Envyings - Pain felt, malignity conceived at excellence of happiness.
15. Murders - intentional taking or destruction of human life. Begins in the heart.
16. Drunkenness - state of intoxication regardless of cause.
17. Revelings - Obscenities in partying, songs, music, or whatever.
18. And such like - Everything else that comes from evil passions of fallen man at enmity against God.

It is important to understand that the lifestyle of the Christian is consistent with that of the fruit of the Spirit, but the lifestyle of the non-Christian is that of the works of the flesh.

BLESSINGS!