Galatians 5:16-18 – But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Imagine someone drowning in the water, flailing wildly, clearly on the brink of death. Now, also imagine a life guard jumping in to rescue the drowning person. The worst thing that can happen in this scenario is that the drowning victim fights and flails against the lifeguard. If that happens, they both may drown.
When it comes to salvation, God is the lifeguard and we are the drowning victim. Any effort to save ourselves only hastens our doom. Our only hope is to surrender, trusting our Lifeguard to do all the work to drag us safely to shore. This is what it means to “walk by the Spirit” and be “led by the Spirit”. Practically, it means that whey you feel tempted to surrender to sin, you instead surrender to the Spirit who brings you to safety.
What does this look like? This is very personal and practical. It is important to spend time each day in God’s presence with Scripture, worship, prayer, journaling, and other helpful habits to cultivate our personal relationship with God. This also includes stopping to welcome the Holy Spirit into your temptations, trials, troubles, and traumas and seeking to surrender to God’s will for your life in that moment.
Is there anything in your life that needs to be surrendered to God that is not yet surrendered?