Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?

  • Galatians 3:3 (KJV)

Paul’s pointed question to the Galatians strikes at the heart of a persistent struggle in the Christian life: the temptation to replace Spirit-led living with flesh-driven performance. His incredulity is palpable: how could those who began their Christian journey through the supernatural work of the Spirit now think they could reach spiritual maturity through their own efforts?

The Law As Schoolmaster

The apostle reminds us that “the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith” (Galatians 3:24, KJV). The law served its divine purpose: it revealed our sinfulness and our desperate need for a Savior. But once Christ came, once we were brought to faith, the schoolmaster’s role was complete. To return to the law as our guide for Christian living is to misunderstand both the purpose of the law and the sufficiency of Christ’s work.

The Flesh’s Desire for Rules

Our fallen nature craves concrete rules and measurable standards. There’s something deeply satisfying about checking boxes, meeting quotas, and demonstrating our spiritual progress through visible acts. We want to know exactly what to do, how to do it, and when we’ve done enough. This desire isn’t entirely wrong, structure and discipline have their place in the Christian life.

However, when this legitimate desire morphs into our primary approach to spiritual growth, we’ve fallen into the same trap that ensnared the Pharisees. We begin to measure our spirituality by external performances rather than internal transformation. We start to take pride in our spiritual accomplishments, subtly shifting from gratitude for grace to confidence in our own efforts.

The Pharisee’s New Clothes

The tragedy is that the very legalism we were saved from can resurface in seemingly spiritual forms. Instead of boasting in our adherence to ceremonial laws, we might boast in our prayer time, our Bible reading consistency, our service activities, or our theological knowledge. The packaging changes, but the poisonous principle remains the same: the belief that our flesh can contribute to our spiritual perfection.

Paul’s rhetorical question cuts through this deception: if our fleshly efforts could make us more spiritual, then why did Christ need to die? If spiritual maturity could be achieved through human performance, why didn’t God simply provide a more comprehensive list of dos and don’ts? The cross itself testifies that what the flesh cannot do, God did by sending His Son in the likeness of sinful flesh.

Led by the Spirit

Our new life in Christ is meant to be led by the Spirit rather than driven by flesh-based performance metrics. This doesn’t mean we abandon all structure or discipline, but rather that our motivation, strength, and guidance come from the Holy Spirit working within us. The Spirit produces fruit naturally the fruits of love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, and temperance without the artificial forcing that characterises fleshly effort.

Walking in the Spirit means:

  • Depending on His power rather than our willpower
  • Listening for His guidance rather than following rigid formulas
  • Allowing Him to produce godly character rather than manufacturing it ourselves
  • Finding our identity in His work rather than our performance

The Ongoing Battle

This doesn’t mean the struggle is over. The flesh continues to war against the Spirit throughout our earthly pilgrimage. But recognising this battle helps us understand that spiritual growth is fundamentally a work of God in us, not a work we perform for God. We cooperate with His work, we yield to His leading, we position ourselves to receive His grace, but we cannot perfect ourselves through our own efforts.

Our Walk

Let us heed Paul’s warning to the Galatians and examine our own hearts. Are we seeking to be made perfect by the flesh? Are we falling back into performance-based spirituality, even if it wears the mask of genuine devotion?

The Spirit who began the good work in us is faithful to complete it. Our role is not to take over His work, but to yield to it, walk in it, and trust in it. In this yielding, we find both true spiritual growth and lasting peace.

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

  • Galatians 5:16 (KJV)