• We often try to defeat the temptation of sin by trying hard not to sin. 

    Galatians 5:16-17 (NLT)
    So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.

     

    Galatians 5:24-25 (NLT)
    Those who belong to Christ Jesus have nailed the passions and desires of their sinful nature to his cross and crucified them there. Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives.

     

  • It is only when we replace the desires of our flesh with a relentless attention to the Spirit of God, that we can experience the victory over sin and ultimately walk in the freedom that comes from following Jesus.
  • Living the Christian life is not difficult; it is impossible—that is, without the power of the Holy Spirit.
  • The Holy Spirit enables us to live in this sinful world without being enslaved by it.
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    Romans 7:25 (ESV)
    . . . So then, I myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.

 

  • Salvation is not a shield from sin, it provides an alternative to it. It provides a tool to beat it – The Holy Spirit.
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    Romans 8:1–2 (ESV)
    There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.

     

  • The Spirit-led life is a life free of sin and one in which we follow the Holy Spirit in a personal way.
  • The Holy Spirit comes into the lives of those who accept Christ’s forgiveness and yield themselves to him, freeing them from the power of sin and from its end result of spiritual death.
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    Romans 8:5-8 (ESV)
    For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

     

    Romans 8:9-11 (ESV)
    You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.

     

    Romans 8:12-14 (ESV)
    So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

     

    How do we fight the flesh?

  • Read scripture.
  • Pray for help.
  • Listen to The Holy Spirit.
  • Use scripture to remind us of His promises.
  • Lean on others who can speak the truth of The Holy Spirit into our lives.
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    Questions:

    1. What did you hear from the Holy Spirit?
    2. What will you do because of it?
    3. How can we pray for you?

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