HOW TO WALK IN THE SPIRIT
How does one stop doing the sinful works of the flesh?
First: Repent of your sin and have faith towards God through accepting Jesus Christ as personal Savior: Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (II Corinthians 5:17)
God does not take sinful man and give him a self-improvement course. He creates a new creature. The old things pass away. The works of the flesh are to be replaced by the fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Second: Be filled with the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit who will enable you to walk in the ways of the Spirit instead of the sinful ways of the flesh: This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. (Galatians 5:17)
Third: Realize you cannot be freed from the works of the flesh and walk in the Spirit through your own effort. The Apostle Paul described the struggle he had in his own effort to live a Godly life: For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. (Romans 7:15-19)
Paul experienced the difficulty of living a holy life but he continued to pursue this goal despite his failures. Ask God to put a desire to be holy in your heart. Whenever you fail and sin, confess it immediately and ask the Holy Spirit to help you overcome it. This is how you learn to walk in the Spirit and… There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death… That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So then they that are in the
flesh cannot please God. But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. (Romans 8:1-9)
The fruit of Christ-like qualities only develop as you walk in the power of the Holy Spirit.This is why it is so important for believers to understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit.
