Devotion:
For an audio version of this devotion, click here.
Read Galatians 5:16-25.
This is another of my “go-to” passages of Scripture, a key piece that describes what it looks like to be the people of Jesus Christ. Four different (yet very similar) phrases emphasize our life in the Spirit (“walk by the Spirit…led by the Spirit…live by the Spirit…keep in step with the Spirit”).
Then there are the contrasting lists of what life by the ways of this world versus life in the Spirit looks like. The Holy Spirit produces a life that goes against the ways of the world. Life “in the flesh” is mostly focused on pleasure, power and chaos, whereas life in the Spirit is all about what is good for everybody (not just the individual) and creating unity and harmony in the world.
It is another place in the Bible where a clear choice is offered. We are encouraged to stay in touch with the Holy Spirit that will guide us into life at its best or we will be carried about by the seductive, yet empty ways of the world. Which choice are you making each day?
Personal Worship Option:
In 1979, Fred Pratt Green wrote these words that became a hymn:
Of all the Spirit’s gifts to me, I pray that I may never cease to take and treasure most these three: love, joy and peace.
We go in peace, but made aware that, in a needy world like this, our clearest purpose is to share love, joy and peace. Amen.
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