Oct 14, 2026 · 4 min · 3 segments
Works of the Flesh, Fruits of the Spirit, preached on October 14, 2026
Robert McTeigueHost
And when we think about Thanksgiving dinner, we inevitably think of the stroke of midnight when begins the legendary Black Friday, where hordes of people have been gathering outside the doors of Walmart.
They trample over the po- the poor Walmart greeters to spend money they don't have on things they don't need to impress people they don't like because, you know, bargains.
And the behavior of these bargain hunters has become so legendary that there are videos of people making wide and generous application of bear spray to block out aisles so that other people can't get to the bargains before they do.
So when you think of these things, and it happens every year, it's really not a stretch of the imagination when Paul lists the works of the flesh.
Lewis' original sin is one of the, the dogmas for which there's vast empirical evidence.
And as you see people stepping over the bodies of people they trampled to get electronic junk from China, we would have to ask ourselves, "Do you think those folks in that moment could just by an act of the will start living fruits of the Holy Spirit?" And you'd have to say, "Nah, probably not." But now I have to stop because we're this close to praying the prayer of the Pharisee.
Lord, I give you thanks that I am not like other shoppers, you know, and we think of the folks at Walmart.
But rather say, if it's true of others that others are capable of the works of the flesh, is it not likely, is it not probable that I too am capable of the works of the flesh? And if it's not possible for them to go from the flesh to the spirit, is it not true also of me that by my good intentions and my resolutions and my sheer act of the will with gritted teeth, because this time it'll be different, if-- isn't it also the case that I need a savior, that I need to be saved on my savior's terms and not on mine, and that I too need emergency infusions of the Holy Spirit? It's true of all of us.
We're prone to the flesh, and God in His mercy says, "Let me help you with that." And then He takes it on a greater step and says, "You should really help each other with that too, uh, by good example and by intercession and by charity," because after all, we really are in this together.
And when we think about Thanksgiving dinner, we inevitably think of the stroke of midnight when begins the legendary Black Friday, where hordes of people have been gathering outside the doors of Walmart.
They trample over the po- the poor Walmart greeters to spend money they don't have on things they don't need to impress people they don't like because, you know, bargains.
And the behavior of these bargain hunters has become so legendary that there are videos of people making wide and generous application of bear spray to block out aisles so that other people can't get to the bargains before they do.
So when you think of these things, and it happens every year, it's really not a stretch of the imagination when Paul lists the works of the flesh.
Lewis' original sin is one of the, the dogmas for which there's vast empirical evidence.
And as you see people stepping over the bodies of people they trampled to get electronic junk from China, we would have to ask ourselves, "Do you think those folks in that moment could just by an act of the will start living fruits of the Holy Spirit?" And you'd have to say, "Nah, probably not." But now I have to stop because we're this close to praying the prayer of the Pharisee.
Lord, I give you thanks that I am not like other shoppers, you know, and we think of the folks at Walmart.
But rather say, if it's true of others that others are capable of the works of the flesh, is it not likely, is it not probable that I too am capable of the works of the flesh? And if it's not possible for them to go from the flesh to the spirit, is it not true also of me that by my good intentions and my resolutions and my sheer act of the will with gritted teeth, because this time it'll be different, if-- isn't it also the case that I need a savior, that I need to be saved on my savior's terms and not on mine, and that I too need emergency infusions of the Holy Spirit? It's true of all of us.
We're prone to the flesh, and God in His mercy says, "Let me help you with that." And then He takes it on a greater step and says, "You should really help each other with that too, uh, by good example and by intercession and by charity," because after all, we really are in this together.
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