There is the sense here, nearing the end of this letter to the Galatians, that Paul is saying, as one engages in the sins of boasting, of envy, of challenging, that the heart is convinced that the war in which it is engaged is a battle against one another. That we must strike others down in order to win. That others oppose us, and therefore, we need to oppose them! The heart has been deceived that the battle is against flesh and blood. And so, Paul is writing, "You are mistaken". Do not think and act as though you are in a war against one another; do not think that your battle is in the flesh. For these are deeds of the flesh. Boasting, challenging, envying are, at least in part, those sins which flow out of a heart which understands that battle which we are engaged in as being fleshly. Walking by the Spirit then is just the opposite. Walking by the Spirit is first and foremost humbling yourself before God and others. Restoring others . . . bearing the burdens of others, first requires one, by the Spirit, to humble self. |
