"... of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God." - Galatians 5:21
I want to encourage fellow-believers to never forget that we have the Holy Spirit inside of us (1 Cor. 6:19), and because of that, we can obey the Apostle Paul when he said, "this I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh" (Gal. 5:16).
Every one of us has committed most of the works of the flesh, and for a time, we felt justified and enjoyed ourselves even though we knew what we were doing was wrong. That pleasure only lasted for a season (as it does with everyone - see: Heb. 11:25), and soon, we found ourselves depressed and addicted to those feelings. The Apostle Peter phrased what happens when a believer gets entangled with sin after being set free by Christ:
"For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning." - 2 Peter 2:20
I want to conclude this study on the Works of the Flesh with an encouraging verse and two reminders:
1) We cannot lose our salvation! Once Saved, Always Saved
2) If we stay mired in sin, though we are forever saved, there will be shame when we see Him. Treasures in Heaven
"If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." - 1 John 1:9