What are the Works of the Flesh?

A Wrong Understanding of Grace: Antinomianism

Being saved isn’t something we earn because of our personal works or achievements of the flesh. That’s absolutely true. Salvation is a gift that God gives through faith in Christ. That’s what the Bible teaches. Yet there’s a common way that people can misapply these truths in how they live.

Some people say since salvation doesn’t depend on what we do, but it’s a free gift of God’s grace, then once I’m saved, I can do whatever I want. They say I might as well keep on living a life full of sin; it doesn’t matter. Because I’m saved by grace and not by works. This way of thinking is called antinomianism, which is a fancy word that basically just means anti-law. They imagine God’s grace is an excuse we can wave around, for why we don’t have to care about God and his rules.

But that conclusion is wrong. It totally misunderstands what God’s salvation is – what God’s grace saves us into. When Jesus went to the cross, he died, not just to remove the consequences of our bad deeds and our mistakes, but also to remove sin’s control over our hearts and minds. He is rescues us out of corrupt thinking, and self-centered living, and he enables us to live in alignment with real rightness – righteousness. And God’s saving power reaches even further than that. Because there’s a day coming when he will even save us from the very presence of sin in his future kingdom.

And this means that if we understand what God’s salvation is – if we truly want it, then we should be serious about leaving sin behind. We shouldn’t have any sort of passivity toward evil passions in our hearts. We shouldn’t nurture any positivity toward things that are obscene or unholy. Instead, God has saved us from the power of sin, to bring us under his power instead, for our good. And when He’s at work in us, by his saving grace, we won’t be bringing forth the works of the flesh anymore. Instead, we’ll bear the fruits of His Holy Spirit.

This evening, we’ll be starting a new sermon series, focusing on the Fruits of the Spirit that are described in Galatians, Chapter 5. Over the next several weeks, we’ll identify what each of these fruits are, and what it practically looks like to bear them. Tonight, though, I’ll be dealing with the context of this passage, that explains why the fruits of the Spirit are so good, and so necessary.

So grab a Bible that’s near to you, and please turn with me to Galatians, Chapter 5. If you’re using one our church Bibles, you can find our text on page 916. I’ll be reading from Galatians, Chapter 5, verses 19 through 23. But before I read our text tonight, please pray with me, and let’s ask for God’s help together:

[Pray and Read Text]

From Works of the Flesh to Fruits of the Spirit

This part of the Bible, the book of Galatians – it was written by one of Jesus Christ’s servants, named Paul. For much of this letter, Paul has been explaining how we’re made right with God by faith, and not by works of the law. But now, Paul wants to make sure that the churches in Galatia still understand that good works are important. God’s saving grace is intended to bring us out of the old ways of our flesh, and to bring our lives in line with the good fruits of His Spirit.

So as we come to our text tonight, I want to make sure it’s clear how bad off we’d be if we were left to ourselves – to the promptings of our flesh. And I want to highlight how kind it is of God – how wonderful, that he would pour out his Spirit on his people, to bring forth spiritual fruits. So as we come to the text, there are three key elements that I want to touch on. First, the default condition of humanity. Second, the dire consequences of our sin. And third, the divine kindness of God’s Spirit.

The Default Condition of Humanity (Works of the Flesh)

So first, the depraved condition of humanity. You’ll notice in verse 19, that Paul speaks about the works of the flesh. And this makes sense, because human beings are embodied beings. We physically have flesh and blood. And God has given us a specific design, in our physicalness. It makes us distinct from animals on the one hand, and angels on the other. We have human flesh, that corresponds to our human brains and human passions.

And so when Paul speaks about “the works of the flesh,” he’s talking about the kinds of works that naturally arise from all of us. He’s talking about the default condition of our human impulses and instincts – from our flesh. This isn’t to say that everyone expresses or experiences these impulses in exactly the same way, to exactly the same degree. But Paul wants us to understand our human condition – what we are naturally inclined toward – in our embodied existence. And as Paul points out here, our compulsions and cravings produce all kinds of actions – works of the flesh – that are profoundly corrupt and depraved.

Paul explains that these works that naturally flow out of our human nature are evident. And they include: “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.”

Paul doesn’t intend for this to be an exhaustive list. He adds that phrase at the end “and things like these,” to make sure you and I understand – there are many other selfish, flawed things that could be added to the list. We could add deceit, oppression of widows and orphans, greed – and many other things. But I want to work with the list that God has supplied here.

You’ll notice in this list, some of these works of the flesh that are listed are really similar to others. So rather than elaborate on each one of these things, individually, I think there are four general categories of corrupt impulses that naturally flow out of the human heart.

The first of these would be physical indecency. This would include the first three items on the list: sexual immorality, impurity, and sensuality. For someone to carry out acts of physical intimacy with an animal, or a person of the same sex, or a close family member, or a child, or to physically engage like this with anyone outside of God’s institution of marriage – those would be examples of sexual immorality, impurity, and sensuality. But even beyond that – having impure thoughts, looking at explicit images, laughing about profane things – those fall into this category, too. And Paul identifies them as serious moral issues.

Now I understand, in some ways, these things may seem very natural. It shouldn’t surprise us if they do. After all, these are connected to our natural impulses, as enfleshed human beings. They’re works of the flesh. But Paul’s point here is to say these things are against God’s will – against God himself. Even though some of these things might feel good, regardless of how they feel, these things are not good. Instead, they’re expressions of rebellion against God’s good design and authority.

And there’s a second grouping in the list that’s just as offensive to God: a grouping related to idolatry. Both idolatry and sorcery, here, are ways that people deny God’s eternal power and divine nature. The issue of idolatry here isn’t just about making statues, or bowing down before a big image of Buddha. But idolatry is when we put anything from our lives ahead of God. For some of you, the thing you’re living for might be something physical, like money, or some sort of addictive substance, or some form of entertainment – like video games, or television shows. But our idolatry can revolve around intangible things, too – we might live for the approval of someone we care about, or we might live to achieve some sort of sense of inner satisfaction through a career, or we might be driven in life by a hunger for power. But in any case, whenever we take something that isn’t God, and we love it most, and we live for that thing – that’s idolatry.

And sorcery is similar. It’s an attempt to make ourselves God. Whether we’re talking about medieval sorcery – or our modern attempts to control our future which go by a different name – all of it is a form of godlessness, marked by prayerless self-love. And at the heart of these things is a desire to subvert God’s authority, rather than to submit with humble trust.

But there’s a third category of these works of the flesh that includes a longer list than all the other categories: “enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, [and] envy.” Wrapped up in all of these things is animosity. Even in jealousy and envy, we’re caught up in thinking, “I wish that you didn’t have that thing, and that I did.” These are expressions of ill-will and rivalry toward other people. And Paul reminds us – it’s very natural of us to get angry and angsty against other people – but that shouldn’t be the case!

But there’s one more category of these works of the flesh that are brought up at the end of the list, related to “unrestrained self-indulgence” – these two things: drunkenness (unrestrained consumption of alcohol), and orgies (unrestrained pleasure-seeking events) – these are also pointed out as being works of the flesh.

So think about these four types of issues that are listed out for us – physical indecency, idolatry, animosity, and that lack of discipline in self-indulgence. Those are things that our flesh naturally gravitates toward. And I think we can see some of these things in ourselves – inclinations like these in our hearts. And God, in his mercy, points these things out to us because he wants us to beware – to be watchful over our hearts.

You and I can’t boast, as though we’re better than this – as though we’ve graduated into some sort of upper level of Christianity that makes us immune from these things. Because for as long as we’re in the flesh, which has fallen into corruption ever since Adam and Eve’s first sin back in Genesis 3 – for as long as we’re in this flesh, there will still be something in us that finds these depraved customs familiar and even favorable (to a limited extent).

And so a list like this is a gift from God. It reminds us what he’s saving us from. It reminds us where we would be, apart from his grace. It reminds us of our neediness for the work of His Spirit. And he provides us with a warning, of what these things lead to.

The Dire Consequences of Sin (Will Not Enter the Kingdom)

And that brings me to the second element of this text, which is the dire consequences of our sin. After Paul lists out the works of the flesh, notice the warning that he gives in the second half of verse 21: “I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

Paul doesn’t hold back any of the punches here. This is a strong warning. “Those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” Paul isn’t saying that every person who does these things will receive God’s forgiveness and acceptance, as long as they aren’t quite as bad as Hitler was. And Paul also isn’t saying that people who do such things will need to spend a few extra years in purgatory to burn off some of their infractions – that’s an invention of Roman Catholicism – no such place exists. Instead, Paul insists “those who do such things will not get into God’s kingdom. For people who aren’t mindful of God, loving him and trusting him, but who are instead living for fleshly intimacy, for false idols, for furious individualism, and for futile indulgences – people who practice such things will be cut off from the kingdom. They will forever remain a violator of God’s law, an enemy, a villain. And they’ll be punished accordingly.

These are heavy words. But in God’s great love and concern for his people, he wants us to understand them. We need to be careful that we aren’t just listening to what God says, but living in the realization that it’s true! And I’d imagine, that there are some sincere Christians here tonight, who might be a bit concerned by the way this verse is written. You might wonder – what if I’ve already done something on this list? What if I’ve already gotten drunk? What if I’ve already been jealous and envious of someone? Does that mean I won’t inherit the kingdom of heaven?

It’s important to point out that when the text says, “those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God,” this word do here means to “make a practice of something,” or to “engage yourself in a certain activity.” It isn’t just referring to a one-time action. But Paul’s point here is that, “those who are making a practice of these things won’t enter the kingdom of heaven.”

So he’s not pronouncing hopeless doom and gloom on everyone who has ever sinned. Because if it was really that hopeless, then no one would be able to inherit the kingdom, and Jesus’s death would have accomplished nothing. Instead, Paul’s giving a warning, here, to people who misunderstand God’s grace. He’s speaking to the type of person who’s continuing on in his sin, who’s thinking, “Sure, I know that it’s wrong, but I’ll fix it tomorrow. I’ll just tell God I’m sorry later. If I go on sinning, it’s not a big deal, because I’ll just ask God to forgive me.” Paul wants to shake these people awake. He’s trying to snap them out of their fantasy world where sin is okay. And he wants them to see that God sent His Son to die, to bring you out of that way of life. God’s grace has been given to set you free from the works of the flesh.

So God’s saving grace in our lives doesn’t make us more complacent about our sin. The opposite is true. God’s grace increases our disgust with sin. It intensifies our determination to oppose sin, to view it as garbage, to throw it away. People who put away the works of the flesh – who put them to death – they show evidence that God’s saving grace is at work in their lives. Those are the people who will inherit the kingdom of God. But for people who are practicing the works of the flesh – they haven’t actually accepted God’s saving grace, to bring them out of their sin – not in the way the Bible teaches. Instead, they’re opposing God by making peace with sin. They’re pushing grace away, and continuing to practice the corrupt works of their flesh. And the Bible’s warning here is that this type person won’t make it into heaven. I hope this helps you see, how needy we are for God’s grace to work in us, to save us.

The Divine Kindness of God’s Spirit

And it’s in the context of these reminders and warnings that Paul points the Galatians toward the work of the Spirit. This is the third and final element of the text I want to direct our attention to tonight: The Divine Kindness of God’s Spirit.

In our humanness, what we naturally produce are those nasty works of the flesh – the very sorts of things that defile us and disqualify us from heaven. But in God’s kindness, he has provided a Savior, Jesus Christ, to suffer the penalty for our sin. And in addition to this, He’s given us a new spirit – His Spirit – to live in a way that reflects his own true righteousness and holiness. By doing this, God has done a critical work we could never have done for ourselves, to make us new, and to produce good in us. God has countered the gross immorality of our flesh with the great influence of His Holy Spirit in our innermost being.

The God who grants us faith, to turn from sin to Jesus, is the God who is, right now, actively growing fruit in our lives, by His Holy Spirit. And so healthy Christians, who are on track with Jesus – they will not be practicing the works of the flesh. From time to time you and I might give in to temptation. But because of God’s grace, you no longer have to go along with the slavemaster called sin. You don’t have to produce the works of the flesh anymore.

Because God has given us a new Spirit, we can live in a way that visibly displays his excellence, virtue, and glory. We can start living according to the customs of our new country, under the rule of King Jesus. We can grow in our assurance that we’re redeemed children of God, as we see the ways that he’s changed us. We can fend off those old enticements toward sin, when God fills our hearts with a growing love for His character and fellowship. I think we miss how extraordinary of a privilege it is, that God’s own Spirit is at work in us. And it’s because of God’s Spirit – only because of Him – that we’re able produce those diverse, delectable fruits mentioned here in Galatians 5: the fruits of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control – all of this is a profound gift.

Over the next several weeks, let’s be thankful as we consider what God has saved us into. And let’s prepare our hearts to consider what these fruits of the Spirit are, and how the Lord might work in us to make our church in Mt Pleasant even more fruitful in the months ahead, according to his great kindness. Let’s pray: