Walking in the Flesh vs. Walking in the Spirit

Walking in the Flesh (Romans 7)

1. Focus on Self-Effort

   • Living by human ability and striving to obey God’s law through the flesh.

   • Romans 7:18 (AMPC): “For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot perform it [I have the intention and urge to do what is right, but no power to carry it out].”

2. Inner Conflict

   • Constant battle between the desire to do good and the inability to carry it out.

   • Romans 7:15 (AMPC): “For I do not understand my own actions [I am baffled, bewildered]. I do not practice or accomplish what I wish, but I do the very thing that I loathe [which my moral instinct condemns].”

3. Condemnation and Guilt

   • Feelings of failure and unworthiness dominate.

   • Romans 7:24 (AMPC): “O unhappy and pitiable and wretched man that I am! Who will release and deliver me from [the shackles of] this body of death?”

4. Dominated by Sin

   • The law of sin controls and enslaves.

   • Romans 7:23 (AMPC): “But I discern in my bodily members [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh] a different law (rule of action) at war against the law of my mind, and making me a prisoner to the law of sin that dwells in my bodily organs [in the sensitive appetites and wills of the flesh].”

5. Result: Defeat and Frustration

   • Attempts to live righteously fail due to the weakness of the flesh.

Walking in the Spirit (Romans 8)

1. Freedom from Condemnation

   • No condemnation for those in Christ who walk by the Spirit.

   • Romans 8:1 (AMPC): “Therefore, [there is] now no condemnation (no adjudging guilty of wrong) for those who are in Christ Jesus, who live [and] walk not after the dictates of the flesh, but after the dictates of the Spirit.”

2. Empowered by the Spirit

   • Living by the Spirit’s power rather than self-effort.

   • Romans 8:2 (AMPC): “For the law of the Spirit of life [which is] in Christ Jesus [the law of our new being] has freed me from the law of sin and of death.”

3. Mindset of Life and Peace

   • Focusing on the Spirit produces peace and life, while the flesh produces death.

   • Romans 8:6 (AMPC): “Now the mind of the flesh [which is sense and reason without the Holy Spirit] is death... But the mind of the [Holy] Spirit is life and [soul] peace [both now and forever].”

4. Victory Over Sin

   • By the Spirit, believers put to death the deeds of the flesh.

   • Romans 8:13 (AMPC): “For if you live according to [the dictates of] the flesh, you will surely die. But if through the power of the [Holy] Spirit you are [habitually] putting to death (making extinct, deadening) the [evil] deeds prompted by the body, you shall [really and genuinely] live forever.”

5. Led by the Spirit

   • Sons of God are guided by the Spirit, living in alignment with God’s will.

   • Romans 8:14 (AMPC): “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.”

6. Result: Victory and Freedom

   • Walking in the Spirit brings righteousness, peace, and empowerment to live victoriously.

Key Contrasts

Walking in the Flesh	Walking in the Spirit
Focus on self-effort	Dependence on the Spirit
Inner conflict and defeat	Peace and freedom
Controlled by sin	Empowered to overcome sin
Condemnation and guilt	Freedom and no condemnation
Results in death and frustration	Results in life and victory