C: In this lesson we can use the Holy Spirit ot have victorious lives as Christians. There are four keys.

1. Recognize the struggle

Galatians 5:16-24
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature.
17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want.
18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery;
20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions
21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires.

C: What are v16-18 talking about? [Our sinful nature wants one thing and God's Spirit wants another. There is a battle going on inside of our hearts]

Q: have you ever felt that battle going on inside of your heart? Was there ever a time you were struggling, trying to decide whether or not to give in to a sin? {Let one or two people share and share yourself}

C: The first step to pure living is to recognize the spiritual struggle between the Spirit and the sinful nature. We must make sure to let the Spirit win in our lives.

C: V19-24 shows us how we can know if the Spirit is winning in our lives. If the sinful nature is winning, then we will be committing some of the sins in v19-21 and will go to hell. But if God's Spirit is winning, our lives will be full of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

C: Think about this list. Does this describe your life? If it doesn't then you are not letting the Spirit work in your character. Surrender your character to Jesus and let him change you.

C: Sometimes people talk a lot about the Holy Spirit, yet they forget that the most important thing the Spirit does is to change our lives. If someone is trying to argue about the Spirit, you will quickly see that they don't have the peace, gentleness, kindness, joy and love that v22-24 talk about. If they really had the Spirit in their lives, they wouldn't want to argue.

2. Evangelize through the Spirit

Acts 8:26-30
26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Go south to the road--the desert road--that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza."
27 So he started out, and on his way he met an Ethiopian eunuch, an important official in charge of all the treasury of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship,
28 and on his way home was sitting in his chariot reading the book of Isaiah the prophet.
29 The Spirit told Philip, "Go to that chariot and stay near it."
30 Then Philip ran up to the chariot and heard the man reading Isaiah the prophet. "Do you understand what you are reading?" Philip asked.

We see an angel directing Philip to a particular road. The angel sent Philip there to evangelize. And he saw a man going on the road, sitting in a chariot. V29 says that the Holy Spirit told Philip to go near the chariot. Philip ran up to the chariot (v30) and this guy was totally open.

C: When you go out to preach, the Holy Spirit will point out the open people to you if you pray and listen.

Q: Have you ever had a time when you were evangelizing or just riding a bus or wating for a bus, when you knew you had to invite someone? {Let them share and share yourself}

C: When your heart is telling you, "invite that guy" or "talk to that woman", then do it. That is the Holy Spirit prompting you. The Holy Spirit loves to preach the word.

1 Thessalonians 5:19
Do not put out the Spirit's fire;

The above scripture warns us not to put out the Spirit's fire. The Holy Spirit is burning inside of you. It wants to evangelize. Be sure to fan into flame.

3. Attack sin with the Spirit

Romans 8:1-4
1 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus,
2 because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.
3 For what the law was powerless to do in that it was weakened by the sinful nature, God did by sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering. And so he condemned sin in sinful man,
4 in order that the righteous requirements of the law might be fully met in us, who do not live according to the sinful nature but according to the Spirit.

C: It says here that there is no condemnation for us as Christians, because God's Spirit has set us free from the law of sin and death. The first key to overcoming sin is to realize that "you can change". God is with you. You don't have to sin anymore.

Romans 8:5-8
5 Those who live according to the sinful nature have their minds set on what that nature desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.
6 The mind of sinful man is death, but the mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace;
7 the sinful mind is hostile to God. It does not submit to God's law, nor can it do so.
8 Those controlled by the sinful nature cannot please God.

C: When we are not disciples, our minds are set on sin. But when we become disciples, we change our minds and set them to what the Spirit desires. It is like a TV set. Before we are disciples, it is on dirty channels with violence, selfishness and sex. But when we get baptized, we change channels.

C: Unfortunately, sometimes we accidentally switch back to the old, sinful way of thinking. Thing about our mind. Have your thoughts been pure? Are they pleasing to God's Spirit? Would you be happy if your thoughts could be shown to this group on video?

Romans 8:9-11
9 You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ.
10 But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness.
11 And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.

C: This is one of the most important passages in the Bible on the Holy Spirit. The Spirit teaches here that every Christian has the Holy Spirit living inside of us (v9-11). We received this gift when we were baptized.

Acts 2:38
Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Anyone who does not have the Spirit living in them is not a Christian (v9). All of us who were baptized have a weapon, with which we can conquer sin.

Romans 8:12-14
12 Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation--but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it.
13 For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live,
14 because those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God.

C: Paul explains here that through the Spirit we can "put to death" our sins (v13). This is great news. We've got to attack sin with the Spirit.

C: Suppose there is a cockroach or a bug in your room.

Q: How do you kill it? [You turn on the light. You chase it. You corner it. You hit it with a shoe or newspaper or something]

C: Well the Holy Spirit is a light that shows you the sin that you must kill. You then chase that sin, identify it by talking with your disciplers and then smash it with the Holy Spirit. The Spirit allows us to have victorious Christian living. And if someone is arguing about doctrine, talk to them first about sin in their lives. If they have the Spirit, then they won't be controlled by sin.

4. Live in peace with the Spirit

Ephesians 4:29-32
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.

C: This is a great passage. It talks about getting along with other disciples. We should always be encouraging, not gossiping or critical (v29). Even for some of us, we need to hear that. If you have been negative or complaining, stop it. It is not right. And it says we must get rid of bitterness, anger, malice, etc. We should be kind, compassionate, forgiving. V30 is specially important. It says we should not "grieve the Holy Spirit of God". The Holy Spirit is unhappy when we don't get along with other people.

C: The Bible teaches that the Spirit lives inside of our hearts. Well in a house, if people are not getting along with each other, then everyone in the house will be unhappy. In the same way, if we are not getting along with people, the Spirit who lives with us feels sad. Let's not make the Spirit sad. Let's make every effort to have great relationships with everyone we know and everyone in this group.

Conclusion

The four points we've covered spell REAL. The Holy Spirit is real and can have a real effect in our lives if we let it. The challenge this week is simple. Have a meeting with everyone you live with. Talk about what you think you need to do better in your relationships with them. Then let them share what they can improve. Then everyone must forgive and encourage each other. No challenging allowed, just confession and repentance.