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 you from doing the things you want to do [cf. Romans 7:15-20]. 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, drunkenness, 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, gentleness, 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.
Galatians 5:16-24
How do we walk by the Spirit? Paul lays it out by labeling what the Spirit’s fruits are over against the lusts of the flesh. We need not cover every single one of these, but a few are worth mentioning, beginning with the works of the flesh.
Idolatry: Luther describes this as “Every religion which worships God in ignorance or neglect of His Word and will” (Luther, 196). This would be every false religion thinking they are worshipping the true God but in truth are worshipping air, as well as those who know who the true God is but outright reject His Word and His will. This also includes false Christians. They might say they believe in God, but their so-called faith is “after their own fashion” rather than God’s Word, for example, the spiritual-but-not-religious crowd, so-called Christians who believe the Bible is not the Word of God but simply “contains” God’s Word (in other words, they don’t believe His Word is inerrant and infallible), and those who cherry pick the Bible whenever it denounces their pet sins.
Sorcery: This includes not only witchcraft and other occult practices, but also the “bewitching” of idolatry, just as Paul lamented earlier, “O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?” (3:1). And lastly, divisions, which we can simply label as heresy, which are false doctrines that jeopardise one’s salvation (e.g., Jesus is not the Son of God, Jesus didn’t rise from the dead, God is the author of evil, etc.).
As for the fruit of the Spirit, the first one is love, which “embraces all the fruits of the Spirit” (Luther, 197). Thus, just as all the Commandments flow from the first one (“You shall have no other gods”), so all the fruit of God’s Spirit flow from the first one of love.
Joy: This is far from happiness, which wavers depending on the circumstances. Joy can be thought of as the “sweet thoughts of Christ, melodious hymns and songs, praises and thanksgiving, with which Christians instruct, inspire, and refresh themselves” (Luther, 198). As Johann Sebastian Bach said near the end of his life when asked why he dedicated his life to music, “The aim and final end of all music is nothing less than the glorification of God, and the refreshment of the soul.” Joy is the sound of rejoicing even where there is sadness. The quintessential sound of this is the singing of an Easter hymn at a funeral.
Peace: Another word we use all the time but is difficult to define, Luther sees this as “Not argumentative, not hateful, but thoughtful and patient” (Luther, 198). This is most important in our age of outrage. Hop on any social media platform, and both Christians and unbelievers alike are launching thoughtless invectives at each other for simple disagreements that don’t matter, and they’re worse with issues that do matter. Such outrage belongs to the works of the flesh, “enmity, strife… fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions.” Rather, as Christians, we are to be peaceful toward one another, even those with whom we disagree, no matter how significant or insignificant the subject matter.
Patience: This is “that quality which enables a person to bear adversity, injury, reproach, and makes them patient to wait for the improvements of those who have done them wrong” (Luther, 198). When a person does you wrong, or offends you, or you must wait longer than expected, instead of reacting with wrath, you exercise restraint. Even though you may be angry, you keep a muzzle on your mouth. “I said, ‘I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, so long as the wicked are in my presence'” (Psalm 39:1).
Goodness: This is a willingness “to help others in their need” (Luther, 199). As our Confessions say concerning faith and good works, “[Faith] does not ask whether good works are to be done, but before the question is asked, it has already done them, and is constantly doing them” (FC SD IV, 11).
Faithfulness: Rather than faithfulness to God as we normally use this word, Luther surprisingly describes it as “faith in men” (Luther, 199), that is, putting the best construction on things just as the 8th Commandment bids us do. Thus, when we hear a gossip, we exercise faith in that person by believing the best about them rather than the lie or the slander that is being spoken, and thus come to their defence.
Gentleness: This is meekness “in conduct and life.” We are “not sharp and bitter, but gentle, mild, courteous, and soft spoken” (Luther, 199). In a word, this is what being patient with others looks like.
Self-control: Our last fruit of consideration, this is living “sober and chaste lives” (Luther, 200), just as the 6th Commandment bids us do. Nothing more need be said about that, insofar as we understand what the work of the flesh, sexual immorality, entails. This means we avoid adultery, fornication, homosexual activity, crude jokes, transgenderism, pornography, “orgies, and things like these” (v. 21). And, of course, avoiding drunkenness and “fits of anger.”
“Against such things there is no law” (v. 23), meaning we produce the fruit of the Spirit not because the Law demands we do them, but freely out of love for Christ, the proper response to the Gospel.
Bibliography
Luther, Martin. Commentary on the Epistle to the Galatians. Translated by Theodore Graebner.
The Lutheran Column 