Passage Overview · Free · Galatians 5:16–18
Walk by the Spirit
Paul describes an inner and communal conflict between flesh and Spirit. The answer is not self-salvation by rule keeping but active dependence on the Spirit: “Walk in the Spirit.” Flesh and Spirit desire contrary things, but those led by the Spirit are not under law in the disputed covenantal sense Paul has been addressing. The paragraph prepares for the concrete contrast between the works produced by flesh and the fruit produced by the Spirit.