For those who live according to the flesh are concerned with the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the spirit with the things of the spirit. St. Paul describes the Christian life as life in the spirit in contrast with life in the flesh. In another epistle he lists what life in the spirit consists of: love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. When he talks about living according to the flesh, besides the expected warning about “sexual excess and drunkness,” he seems most worried about how we treat one another since that list includes “hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy.” The current political climate in the United States seems to embody living according to the flesh. The calls in certain quarters to become a Christian nation (which history teaches is NOT a good idea) seem self-contradictory since they do not reflect the virtues of a life in the Spirit as outlined by St. Paul
