How Doth One Sow To The Spirit?

We must feed on the Word of God, it will change us. We must cry out to God with our whole heart, He will change us and save us.

Psalms 119:10-20 KJV
(10) With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments.
(11) Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee.
(12) Blessed art thou, O LORD: teach me thy statutes.
(13) With my lips have I declared all the judgments of thy mouth.
(14) I have rejoiced in the way of thy testimonies, as much as in all riches.
(15) I will meditate in thy precepts, and have respect unto thy ways.
(16) I will delight myself in thy statutes: I will not forget thy word.
(17) GIMEL. Deal bountifully with thy servant, that I may live, and keep thy word.
(18) Open thou mine eyes, that I may behold wondrous things out of thy law.
(19) I am a stranger in the earth: hide not thy commandments from me.
(20) My soul breaketh for the longing that it hath unto thy judgments at all times.

Psalms 119:169-175 KJV
(169) TAU. Let my cry come near before thee, O LORD: give me understanding according to thy word.
(170) Let my supplication come before thee: deliver me according to thy word.
(171) My lips shall utter praise, when thou hast taught me thy statutes.
(172) My tongue shall speak of thy word: for all thy commandments are righteousness.
(173) Let thine hand help me; for I have chosen thy precepts.
(174) I have longed for thy salvation, O LORD; and thy law is my delight.
(175) Let my soul live, and it shall praise thee; and let thy judgments help me.

Hi Approved!

I read through Ephesians a few times today and wondered why. In Ephesians there are four major steps one has to take to pursue God that you might finish the race in strength. The first is to repent of the lusts of the soul and flesh. The second is to submit yourself to the authority of God. The third is to submit to the human authorities He has put in place. Finally, you are to resist the Devil by standing firm in the Faith.

The battle is the Lord's and if we are to walk in His victory we must walk in His kingdom. To do that we must turn away from carnal desires that place ourselves as king, exalting ourselves in pride. God hates pride because it says that His perfect will and foreknowledge are not sufficient to our needs, that good is not good.

Submitting to God's authority means humbling ourselves of the hideous pride that mankind has borne since the Fall. If we are not submitted to God neither can we be truly submitted to those He has placed in authority over us. The people of Israel demonstrated this when the Lord Jesus came in the flesh. Because they had not humbled themselves and submitted themselves to God by seeking His will, they rejected His Messenger just as they had all those who had come before. If we have not submitted to the Word of God, even if one were to be raised from the dead we would not hear his testimony.

The next test to sow to the Spirit is to place our trust in God that even those ungodly people He has placed over us are there to fulfill God's will, or fruit, in our lives. This is why we are to submit to worldly authorities and to live at peace with all mankind as best we are able. Doing our own thing because we do not "like" the actions of a saved or unsaved demonstrates that we are out of the will God because we are doing our own thing. This is the reason we are to do all things as unto the Lord. If it is not unto the Lord, it is not unto His Spirit either.

This is very important because our true life is in the Spirit and for the Spirit.

If we live for the flesh that is subject to judgement and destruction, we will perish with it. Even those who yet remain when the Lord returns will be given a new body when they meet Him in the air.

By doing these things, we demonstrate to the prince of the air and the powers and principalities that we are not of their kingdom because we trust God for our life. This then opens us up for direct attack of the enemy to keep us from bearing fruit unto God. When we do not fight man, we demonstrate that our battle is with the invisible but even in this battle, our hope remains in the Lord. We are to use the weapons and armor He has provided but we are to fight and stand our ground. The Evil One will try to push us back or lure us forward to ambush us but we must continually be submitted to the will of the Father or we will be out on our own and subject to defeat because He will only fight for those who are with Him.

As an encouragement, the entire book of Galatians is about walking in the Spirit, and sowing to the Spirit through faith. If you were to trisect the verse, "The just shall live by faith," and disperse it through the three epistles of Romans, Hebrews, and Galatians, it seems that Romans emphasizes "The Just." Hebrews would most emphasize, "By Faith." And Galatians would emphasize, "Shall Live." I have heard this taught before, and have concluded it to be very very true through my own personal study of the three epistles.

When Paul says at the end that we are to sow to the Spirit, this is not just some addendum at the end of the epistle, it is the conclusion of his thesis that he has been building the whole letter.

This will be the only verse I will quote outside of Galatians to make the point but in 1 Timothy 1:16 KJV, Paul said, "Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on him to life everlasting."

The important thing to note is that Paul's life is a pattern for every believer to follow, so long as we have believed on Christ to life everlasting.

Since Galatians is all about walking in the Spirit so as to be perfected, the clincher passage of the whole book, and the whole reason for the first two chapters was to ask the rhetorical questions he asks in chapter 3:1-3.

In the first chapter, you will find numerous examples of a Spirit filled life in the pattern of Paul. The following are just a few examples:

1.) Chapter 1:6...Paul had a deep desire to see people walk according to the gospel, and encouraged them to that affect.

2.) Chapter 1:10...Paul was a man who did not minister to the end that he pleased men, but rather, had a disposition toward God alone as his Lord. (He reiterates this thought as an encouragement to the hearers in 6:3-5.)

3.) Chapter 1:11...Paul did not preach a Gospel of "man" rather it was the revealed gospel by Jesus Christ.

4.) Chapter 1:13-14...Paul was a man who did not give his flesh and the devil much glory by making his testimony all about his life before Christ, but rather spends two verses on the B.C. days and spends the rest of the chapter, and the whole second chapter talking about how God transformed him, and how He was using him.

5.) Chapter 1:16...Paul was both called, and not hasty. He did not get the cart before the horse. His apostolic inclination was to get alone with God (as Greg mentioned.) He was a fervent man of private prayer and spiritual reception.

6.) Chapter 1:17...Paul was not eager to rub elbows with the more popular brothers. He was hesitant, even somewhat reticent to do so (verse 19.) However, when he did finally go to preach the Gospel Christ had revealed to him, he did so respectfully, and privately so as to not hinder the Apostles work at Jerusalem (he would have run in vain had he not done so, chapter 2:2)

7.) Chapter 1:20...Paul was ever a man before God. Before he exposed himself to men, he was beholden to God. I think this is a good habit.

8.) Chapter 2:1...Paul was never ever devoid of disciples, it seems that everywhere he went, he was bringing brothers along in the ministry. Building them up, encouraging them, showing them the ropes. Here we see his brother in ministry Barnabas, and the younger gentile Titus. To whom Paul would later write too concerning the purpose of the Grace of God.

These are just a few examples inductively derived from the context in which Paul makes his statement. I think I went through and counted nearly thirty five "things" in Galatians alone that could be considered sowing to the Spirit. Not to mention the most important thing emphasized in the whole book which is basically walking in the Grace of Christ wherein you were called. Having the same honesty before God, and reliance upon him for perfection or sanctification that you had in the beginning when you relied on him for salvation.

Galatians is all about "living" by the Spirit. May we all grow in this brothers and sisters. And may none of us ever think we have "arrived" and become something, for we are nothing, but Christ is all in all.

One sows to the spirit by walking in love.

Sorry, here is the scripture: Galatians 5:14-17

For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

The most that I have heard on sowing is on tithing.

I cant believe it. We have many threads here on tithing, which we can refer to.

I believe there is more to this than the almighty dollar.

There are surely much better things that that as many brothers have put forth.

I simply understand this as meaning:
1/ Being sensitive to the voice of the Holy Spirit in our daily life.(Gal 5:16)
2/ By Obeying the voice of the Holy Spirit in our daily life. (Gal5:16)
3/ By taking up the Cross daily, denying ourselves daily, putting to death the deeds of the body by the Holy Spirit.(Luke ch9, Matthewch16)
4/ Living for eternity- with eternity principles in view (Colossians3)
5/ Living by the Power of the Holy Spirit.

And other means of grace, as bro. Greg put forth.

Here is another scripture, Notice the last part "If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit." So this tells us what walking in the Spirit is.

The fruit there is not multiple fruit but one fruit as you will see in the original language the singular was used for fruit.

Galatians 5:22-25

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

Hi Approved,

The simple answer is to walk in the Spirit. To walk in the Spirit you must first be filled. So the question you need answer is if you are filled and, if not, how it might be? In your example of receiving an angry attack, the Spirit can lead you in several different ways but none will contradict the character of God. The point is that the reaction is not your own but what comes by letting the Spirit lead by your humbility before God.

I have enjoyed this very much. This has greatly helped me to understand the difference between "sowing to the spirit" and "walking after the flesh".

I appreciate this website for putting this up because it tears down the traditions of men. This website must love God's approval more than man's approval or they would not have this series.

15 part series.
https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/mydownloads/viewcat.php?cid=521&min=20&orderby=titleA&show=20