Galatians 5:24-25
Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.
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The apostle Paul had written earlier in this letter that “I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” {Gal.2:20} That is a truth that applies to all of us who have been born again of the Holy Spirit and are now 'new creations' in the Lord, the old things have passed away. {2Cor.5:17}
However long you had lived prior to that great event, your salvation purchased so dearly by Jesus on the cross, you were being trained by the world to lean on your own understanding {Pr.3:5} among a multitude of other things contrary to the Word of God! All of mankind will trust in and learn from one of two things: The Word or the world. And yes, there is an 'L' of a difference between the ways of the world and the righteousness of God! It is a conflict between the flesh and the Spirit. That is truly made clear in this letter as Paul defines the deeds of the flesh versus the fruit of the Spirit. {Gal.5:19-23}
So very long ago the Lord spoke through the prophet Jeremiah, who indeed was living a life that was surrendered to the will of God, to command us not to learn the ways of the world. {Jer.10:2} Parents, I would encourage you to prayerfully consider that as you put your children on a school bus back 'to Egypt' where they will be taught the ways of the world for hour after hour! God commanded His people that the fathers were responsible to train their children in the words of God. {Deut.6:4-7}
It says that God's Word is profitable for training in righteousness {2Tim.3:16} and the Lord did exactly that as He taught His disciples (including all who would follow) in righteous attitudes and behavior in what we now call the Sermon on the Mount. {Mat.5-7} Over and over He said to them 'You have heard it said, but I say to you..." It was a transition for His people to go from religious to righteous!
It would not be unreasonable for me to say that all of the New Testament following that is commentary or an example of what Jesus said that day. It was all intended to change the way we think and to train us to walk by the Spirit. It is a process. When we were born we did not know how to walk—usually a lot of falling over along the way. In the same way we have to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ just as Peter wrote. {2Pt.3:18} And he was speaking from experience! The idea is to desire and to work at getting better at it day by day.
“For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food is for the mature, who because of practice have their senses trained to discern good and evil.” (Hebrews 5:13-14)
TEST EVERYTHING BY THE WORD OF GOD
