The Breath of Life - Breath and Fire Week 5
September 20, 2026 - Galatians 5:16-25

Can people really change? Not adjust or adapt. Change. Most of us have enough personal evidence to vote no. The temper we promised to get rid of keeps raising its ugly head. The habit we quit in January was back by February. We have tried guilt and shame. We've tried willpower. But when we look at our lives, we still see bare, fruitless branches. It is frustrating and discouraging.

Here is what you have to know this morning. It may sound too good to be true. Jesus is still in the business of changing people. But He doesn't do it the way we keep trying. Paul shows us how in Galatians.

That is not a threat. It is a promise.

Flesh, by the way, doesn't mean our bodies. It refers to our old sinful nature. That old nature (sometimes Old Adam) twists us up and often turns every good gift into something selfish. It is a real fight. But that struggle is not proof our faith is broken. It proves the Holy Spirit is at work in us.

Paul calls what the flesh produces "works":

We produce all of that naturally. Fits of rage on 1604? Envy scrolling through someone else’s vacation pics? Lustful thoughts? That list is a mirror!

But then Paul makes a dramatic change in direction.

Don’t miss the grammar. Fruit. Singular. One fruit with nine different flavors. And whose life does it describe? Jesus'. So, Paul is talking about Jesus' life showing up in the lives of His followers.

So how does fruit grow? To start with, nobody guilts or shames a plant into blooming. The Holy Spirit grows what we can't. Drive out to Fredericksburg in July and walk through a peach orchard. The branches sag with fruit. The tree holds on to the branch and sends everything needed to produce peaches. That is what Jesus is describing.

The difference is not effort. It is connection.

But we still keep striving. And it is usually one of two programs. The "Guilt Program": We beat ourselves up until we behave. Or the "Self-improvement Program". Resolutions. Streaks. White knuckles. Both have us at the center doing all the work. It's not that effort is evil. It’s just not how we really change.

How many of our resolutions really last? How long did the last guilt trip change what we wanted to change? It is exhausting! And when those engines sputter, the devil whispers. You are hopeless. You will never change. That is a lie. That isn't the voice of God.

Paul asks a better question.

Believing. The Holy Spirit came as a pure gift. We came to faith as a gift. And we continue in the Holy Spirit the same way.

Then Paul asks another question.

That question hits home (again). We trust Jesus for forgiveness. Then we try to finish the job on our own. We treat grace as a starter and act as if our efforts are the engine that makes it go. That is the trap. Grace is not just how the Christian life begins. Grace is how it runs.

Jesus doesn't give us a self-improvement plan. He joins us to Himself.

His cross is our forgiveness. His Spirit is the sap. The fruit that grows on our branch is His.

That happened at our baptism. God joined us to Jesus' death and resurrection. Our old nature went to the cross with Him. Luther taught that we should return to our Baptismal water every day. Every morning we should confess what the flesh produced yesterday. And every morning we are reminded that Jesus forgives... over and over. The daily fight is real. The outcome does not wobble. We fight from victory, rather than for victory.

So how does a branch stay connected? The Vine does all the holding. Jesus comes to us in His WORD. He comes to us in the Lord’s Supper. He gives His own body and blood for our forgiveness.

We don't have to pray perfectly. Jesus holds on to us. The Holy Spirit grows what we can't.

And be patient with your orchard. Fruit takes seasons. Some of us are discouraged. Our growth seems painfully slow. Please hear me. Slow is not dead. Slow fruit is still real fruit.

Some of us aren't just in a slow season. We are in a pruning season. Something is being cut away. A plan we thought was great. A relationship we thought was solid. A body that used to work. Jesus speaks to that too.

Please hear me. Pruning is not punishment. The Gardener only prunes branches He intends to keep.

This week: Every morning, before you read the news or check your messages, let’s read John 15. Even read verses 4 and 5 out loud. Then pray: Jesus, I am the branch. You are the Vine. Grow what only You can grow. Every morning.

If you are fighting something enormous: addiction, anxiety, or depression, do not fight it alone. Come see a pastor this week. Professional help is a gift from God, not a failure of faith. I have seen AA work! I've seen counseling work! I have seen it with my own eyes. Often, when we admit our struggles and seek help, the Holy Spirit’s fruit blooms.

So, can people really change? That was the wrong question. It should have been, "Can Jesus change people?" Two thousand years of spiritual fruit says yes. Every forgiven sinner in this room says yes. The Holy Spirit grows what we can't.