Who Is Leading Your Life?

“But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” (Galatians 5:18, ESV)

Leadership means a lot. In most cases it means everything. In my adult life, I have served in various leadership positions. I also have worked under many leaders. Some of the leaders I have served under and observed were very good. Yet some were poor. I observed that people followed the good leaders and generally were motivated and content with their vocation. Alternatively, those who worked for bad leaders were generally of poor morale, performed poorly, and were discontented in their work.

The leader that you follow makes a big difference. Poor leadership eventually results in poor performance. Good leadership produces good results. It is the same in the Christian life. Yet here I am not speaking of the pastors of the church. I am speaking of the leadership that is found in the heart of every believer.

Previously Paul had explained that those who were under grace were not slaves to the law. In fact, he explained that they were free from the law. Yet one might ask, “How can this be? Does not man need the constraint of rules and regulations to live a godly life?” The answer to the question is both simple and complex. Paul here gives us the straight answer, “if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.” It is a matter of leadership.

A person who is led by the flesh is prone to error and to display ungodly behavior. This person definitely needs the constraint of the law, but the law will be ineffectual in consistently constraining behavior and producing the qualities of godliness.

The believer has a new leader, the indwelling Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God in the believer will always work to lead the believer on the path of godliness.

In the subsequent verses (v19-24), which I will cover in the next devotion, Paul laid out the contrasts between the things the flesh produces in the believer and the things the Spirit will produce. The issue for the believer is this. Every believer is faced with a choice of a leader. The believer can either be led by the flesh or the Spirit. The flesh is a poor leader, but the Spirit is an awesome leader. The flesh will lead to selfish-indulgence, sin, and sorrow while the Spirit will lead to victory, godliness, and joy in the Christian life.

The complex part of this is in learning how to differentiate between the leading of the flesh and the Spirit, and how to follow the leading of the Spirit. I will cover this in the next two devotions.