“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
—Galatians 5:16
Recently, while I was practising, someone said something to me that I felt was deeply offensive and disrespectful.
Immediately, my mind began formulating answers that would put him to shame. My ego was fuming. Thankfully, I did not react in the heat of the moment. I remained calm and said nothing damaging.
But although I had remained silent outwardly, I was far from silent within.
On the way home, my mind kept running the same script. I returned to things that had happened in the past. I imagined what I should have said. I rehearsed what I might say the next time. Back and forth my thoughts went, each one adding more fuel to the anger already burning inside me.
The incident itself was over, but I was keeping it alive.
Then, in the middle of all that noise, I suddenly became aware of what was happening.
What am I doing?
Am I allowing my thoughts and feelings to lead me away from who I am as a follower of Christ?
I did not like where I was heading, so I prayed:
Holy Spirit, I am angry and hurt. I do not trust where my thoughts are taking me. Please guide me. Show me what is true and help me respond in a way that honours Jesus.
That moment reminded me of something I have gradually been learning through Scripture: beneath many of the choices I make each day, there is one deeper choice.
Will I follow the way of the Lamb, or will I accept the way of the serpent?
The Choice Beneath Our Choices
Every day, we make countless decisions.
Some involve work, family, friendships, money, desires, habits, and the way we respond to people. Many appear ordinary. Others carry consequences we can recognise immediately.
Not every everyday decision is a direct choice between good and evil. Choosing what to eat or what colour shirt to wear is not necessarily a spiritual battle. Nor does every thought or feeling come from the devil.
But whenever our trust, obedience, motives, or treatment of another person is at stake, two ways often open before us.
We can surrender the moment to Christ and allow the Holy Spirit to lead us. Or we can let our fallen desires, fears, pride, and assumptions take control.
This is what Paul describes in Galatians:
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”
—Galatians 5:16
Paul wrote these words to churches in Galatia that were struggling to understand Christian freedom. Some were being drawn back toward religious rule-keeping as the basis of their standing with God. Paul reminded them that freedom in Christ was neither slavery to religious performance nor permission to satisfy every desire. Christian freedom is a life directed by the Holy Spirit and expressed through love.
The Greek word translated “walk” is peripateō. It often describes the way a person conducts his or her life. Paul is not speaking about one spiritual experience. He is describing a continuing way of living—one step, one response, and one decision at a time.
Walking by the Spirit means learning to place each step under His direction.
What Does Paul Mean by “the Flesh”?
When Paul speaks about “the flesh,” he is not teaching that our physical bodies are evil.
The Greek word is sarx. Depending on its context, it can simply mean physical flesh. But in passages such as Galatians 5, Paul uses it to describe fallen human life operating independently of God.
The flesh is the part of us that wants God’s gifts without God’s authority. It wants freedom without surrender and desire without restraint. It places the self at the centre and asks, “What do I want?” before asking, “What honours Christ?”
Paul explains:
“For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh.”
—Galatians 5:17
He then describes what the flesh produces: sexual immorality, idolatry, hostility, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, envy, division, drunkenness, and other destructive works.
By contrast, the Holy Spirit produces:
“Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.”
—Galatians 5:22–23
The question is not whether I experience emotions. The question is whether those emotions will govern me.
Anger may arise. Fear may speak. Desire may pull. But none of them has to become my master.
The Serpent’s Ancient Invitation
The serpent first appears in Genesis 3.
His temptation was about far more than eating forbidden fruit. Beneath his words was an invitation to distrust God.
“Did God actually say?” he asked Eve.
He questioned God’s Word, contradicted God’s warning, and suggested that God was withholding something good. The serpent offered humanity the possibility of deciding good and evil independently of the Creator.
The temptation was, in effect: Do not trust God to determine what is good. Take that authority for yourself.
That ancient invitation continues to reach us.
It may sound like this:
I know what Scripture says, but my situation is different.
I have a right to hold on to this anger.
If I forgive, the other person will think I am weak.
My desires must be satisfied.
I know what is best for my life.
The serpent’s way leads toward distrust and self-rule.
But Scripture introduces us to another way—the way of the Lamb.
When John the Baptist saw Jesus, he declared:
“Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
—John 1:29
Jesus lived in complete trust and obedience to His Father. In Gethsemane, knowing the suffering before Him, He prayed:
“Nevertheless, not My will, but Yours, be done.”
—Luke 22:42
The serpent says, “Take control for yourself.”
The Lamb says, “Trust the Father.”
The serpent invites us to place ourselves at the centre.
The Lamb leads us into surrender.
When Anger Enters the Heart
On my way home that day, my anger was doing more than reminding me that I had been hurt. It was becoming a story.
In that story, I knew the other person’s motives. I knew what he thought of me. I knew what he might do in the future. I became the judge, the prosecutor, and the injured party, while he had no opportunity to explain himself.
Some of my concerns may have been legitimate. What was said may truly have been disrespectful. Following Christ does not require us to deny that something hurt us or pretend that wrongdoing is acceptable.
But I was no longer simply recognising what had happened. I was feeding it.
James describes how our desires can draw us toward sin:
“Each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin.”
—James 1:14–15
Something may happen to us in a moment, but we can keep it alive for hours, days, or even years through the stories we repeatedly tell ourselves.
Paul does not say that Christians will never feel anger. Instead, he writes:
“Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil.”
—Ephesians 4:26–27
Anger may enter the heart, but we must not give it a room in which to live.
Bringing Our Emotions Before God
Walking by the Spirit does not mean suppressing our emotions.
God already knows what is happening within us. We gain nothing by pretending to be peaceful while resentment grows beneath the surface.
Instead, we can bring our emotions honestly into His presence:
Holy Spirit, I am angry.
I feel afraid.
I am jealous.
I feel wounded and want to retaliate.
I am being pulled toward something I know is wrong.
Please show me what is true and guide me in the way of Christ.
When I prayed that day, the situation did not instantly disappear from my memory. But its control over me began to weaken. I started to remember that I, too, have spoken carelessly. I considered that I might not fully understand what the other person intended. I became more interested in reconciliation than retaliation.
This does not mean the Spirit will always tell us to remain silent.
Sometimes He may lead us to overlook an offence. Sometimes He may ask us to wait until we can speak without hostility. Sometimes He may expose our misunderstanding or pride. At other times, He may lead us to address a genuine wrong clearly and courageously.
Goodness is not the same as being agreeable. Gentleness is not weakness. Forgiveness does not require us to call evil good.
But when the Spirit leads us, our aim is no longer revenge or humiliation. We begin to desire truth, repentance, protection, reconciliation, and restoration.
Instead of asking, “How can I make this person pay?” we ask, “How can Christ be honoured in what I do next?”
Recognising the Spirit’s Guidance
We should also be careful when saying, “The Spirit told me.”
Not every inner impression comes from the Holy Spirit. Our desires can sound very convincing, especially when they tell us what we already want to hear.
The Holy Spirit will never guide us contrary to Scripture or the character of Jesus.
He guides through God’s Word. He convicts us of sin, renews our minds, and gives wisdom as we pray. He may also use mature believers to correct us or help us see what we cannot see for ourselves.
His guidance will not always make us immediately comfortable. He may lead us to apologise when we want to defend ourselves. He may call us to forgive when resentment feels justified. He may ask us to tell the truth when silence would be easier.
Rather than asking only, “Do I feel peaceful about this?” we should also ask:
Is this consistent with Scripture?
Does it reflect the character of Jesus?
Is it producing love, truth, humility, goodness, and self-control?
Am I seeking God’s will, or merely asking Him to approve mine?
The Spirit does not simply make us feel better. He makes us more like Christ.
What If I Have Already Reacted?
Sometimes we recognise the choice only after making the wrong one.
We answer too quickly. We say something damaging. We act from anger, fear, pride, jealousy, or lust. By the time we recognise what has happened within us, someone may already have been hurt.
Even then, another choice stands before us.
We can defend ourselves, blame the other person, and harden our hearts. Or we can return to Jesus.
After Adam and Eve accepted the serpent’s invitation, they hid from God. Shame still tells us to hide. The Lamb invites us into the light.
The Spirit may lead us to confess, apologise without making excuses, repair what we damaged, or seek reconciliation. This is not weakness. It is repentance.
And this is where Jesus becomes far more than an example of good behaviour.
Jesus is not merely the Lamb whose obedience we try to imitate. He is the Lamb who carried our sin.
When we fail, He does not tell us to repair ourselves before coming back. He calls us to confess, receive His forgiveness, and walk with Him again.
“If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”
—1 John 1:9
The Christian life is not the story of people who never choose wrongly. It is the story of people who, by grace, keep returning to Jesus.
One Step at a Time
This choice does not appear only when we are angry.
It appears when lust promises satisfaction apart from holiness.
It appears when fear tells us to trust what we can control rather than the God we cannot see.
It appears when envy makes another person’s blessing feel like our loss.
It appears when pride tells us that admitting we are wrong will diminish us.
It appears when greed promises that possessing more will finally make us secure.
In each moment, the serpent repeats the ancient invitation: Distrust God and take control for yourself.
The Lamb continues to say:
“Follow Me.”
Walking by the Spirit is not one dramatic decision made at the beginning of the Christian life. It is a life of repeated surrender.
The choice is not between having emotions and having none. It is not between being human and being spiritual.
It is the choice between allowing our inner life to be ruled by the flesh and surrendering it to the Spirit of Christ.
There may be thousands of decisions before us. But beneath every spiritually significant choice, we should pause and ask:
Am I reaching for control, or surrendering to Christ?
Am I feeding my fear, pride, anger, or desire—or bringing it into the presence of God?
Am I accepting the serpent’s invitation to distrust God, or following the Lamb who trusted His Father even unto death?
The serpent says, “Become your own master.”
The Lamb says, “Follow Me, and I will give you life.”
This is the choice beneath every choice.
“If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.”
—Galatians 5:25