5:16 Walk in the Spirit. The Christian “walk” is synonymous with the daily Christian way of living (compare John 8:12; Colossians 2:6). We have been indwelt by the Holy Spirit and are new creations in Christ, so we do not need the threatened penalties of the law to constrain us to refrain from sin. “The love of Christ constraineth us” (II Corinthians 5:14), and a conscious commitment to the leading of the indwelling Spirit by God’s Word will enable us to live in a way pleasing to Him who has saved us, not to yield to fleshly lusts.

5:16 the lust of the flesh. This phrase, “lust of the flesh,” is also used in Ephesians 2:3, II Peter 2:18, and I John 2:16. The conflict between the Spirit and the flesh is prominent throughout Scripture, first mentioned as such in Genesis 6:3.