Galatians 5:24

Commentary on Galatians 5:24

Galatians 5:24 (NKJV):
“And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

1. Theological Teaching of Galatians 5:24

This verse is a powerful declaration of Christian identity and sanctification. It teaches that true believers—those united to Christ by faith—have decisively turned away from the sinful nature. The phrase “have crucified the flesh” is not a call to action but a statement of fact. It reflects the believer’s participation in Christ’s death and resurrection, a theme echoed in Romans 6:6[i] and Galatians 2:20[ii].

The “flesh” refers to the sinful nature, not the physical body. It encompasses the corrupt desires and passions that oppose the Spirit. Crucifixion here symbolises a definitive break—a painful, public, and irreversible death to the old self. This is not self-improvement or moral effort; it is the fruit of union with Christ.

2. Context within Galatians 5

Galatians 5[iii] contrasts two ways of life: the works of the flesh (verses 19–21) and the fruit of the Spirit (verses 22–23). Verse 24 follows immediately after Paul lists the Spirit’s fruit, showing that those who bear such fruit do so because they belong to Christ and have crucified the flesh.

Paul’s argument throughout Galatians is that salvation is by grace through faith, not by works of the law. Chapter 5 urges believers to live in the freedom Christ has won, not returning to legalism or indulging the flesh. Verse 24 is a theological anchor: it explains why Christians can walk by the Spirit (verse 25)—because the flesh has been crucified.

3. Application to Modern Christian Living

For Christians today, Galatians 5:24 offers both assurance and challenge.

• Assurance: If you belong to Christ, your old self has been crucified. You are not enslaved to sin. This is not a future hope but a present reality. You are free to walk in the Spirit.
• Challenge: Crucifixion is not comfortable. It involves daily dying to selfish desires, resisting temptation, and embracing the Spirit’s work. This is not passive; it requires active dependence on God’s grace.

Sanctification is both definitive and progressive. Galatians 5:24 speaks to the definitive aspect—what has already happened in Christ. But it also fuels the progressive journey of becoming more like Christ, empowered by the Spirit.

4. Plain Language Summary

If you are a Christian, your old sinful self has been nailed to the cross with Jesus. That means you do not have to follow your selfish urges anymore. You can live a new life, guided by God’s Spirit. It might be hard, but you are not doing it alone. God is with you, helping you grow.

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[i] Romans 6:6

New King James Version

6 knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be [a]done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.

Footnotes

Romans 6:6 rendered inoperative

[ii] Galatians 2:20

New King James Version

20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.

[iii] Galatians 5

New King James Version

Christian Liberty

5 Stand[a] fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. 2 Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is [b]a debtor to keep the whole law. 4 You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.

Love Fulfills the Law

7 You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in you, in the Lord, that you will have no other mind; but he who troubles you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is.

11 And I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why do I still suffer persecution? Then the offense of the cross has ceased. 12 I could wish that those who trouble you would even [c]cut themselves off!

13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!

Walking in the Spirit

16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: [d]adultery, [e]fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, [f]murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 [g]gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. 26 Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

Footnotes

Galatians 5:1 NU For freedom Christ has made us free; stand fast therefore, and

Galatians 5:3 obligated

Galatians 5:12 mutilate themselves

Galatians 5:19 NU omits adultery

Galatians 5:19 sexual immorality

Galatians 5:21 NU omits murders

Galatians 5:23 meekness