The Parable of the Switch

Have you ever tried to turn a light switch on or off at the same time? It is totally impossible to do so. You can either turn it on or off. As I thought of this simple concept, I remembered the conversation a convert of Christ, Paul, had with certain people called the Galatians in the Bible. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh (Galatians 5:16).

This principle of the switch is still in operation today. You can either live according to the Spirit of Christ or the world’s standards, but not both. There is no vacuum, and each of these lifestyles produce results or fruits.

Fruits never work hard to grow out of a tree. They simply and effortlessly grow out because the tree is nourished. In the same light, behavioral patterns do not just happen. Instead, they are the results of our lifestyle, depending on which one we choose—Spirit of Christ or the world’s standards.

The fruits of a lifestyle in Christ are love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. In other words, as the Message Bible puts it, we develop affection for others, exuberance about life, and serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely (Galatians 5:20-21). These traits are demonstrated through us effortlessly by the Spirit of Christ. The Spirit of Christ is the Holy Spirit, who nourishes us to reveal godly and exemplary characteristics.

On the contrary, when we live according to the world’s standards we display behavioral patterns such as repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community (Galatians 5:22-23).

Do you see something amazing here? If you identify with any of these characteristics, then you know where your nourishment comes from! Are you stuck with addictive behavior such as addiction to sex, alcohol, drugs, pornography, violence, to mention a few? If you want to change it, switch it! The Parable of the Switch explains that you can operate on either one but not both. My suggestion? Choose a lifestyle in Christ and you will begin to see remarkable changes. Switch it!

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:16

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