The Holy Hieromartyr Timothy, Bishop of Prussa.
Apostle’s Fast. Abstention from meat and foods that contain these ingredients.
Romans 8:2-13; Matthew 10:16-22.
Read Romans 8:2-13
Saint Paul contrasts life according to the sarx — usually translated “flesh” — with life according to the Spirit. By sarx, Paul does not simply mean the human body itself, as though the body were evil. In the biblical sense, sarx refers to the fallen, self-centered human condition that lives apart from God. It is a way of thinking and living focused only on earthly desires, ego, passions, and self-will. In contrast, life according to the Spirit means allowing the Holy Spirit to shape our thoughts, desires, decisions, and actions according to Christ.
Practically speaking, living according to the Spirit begins in the small and ordinary moments of life. It means choosing prayer over indifference, forgiveness over resentment, humility over pride, generosity over selfishness, purity over passions, and truth over convenience. It means asking not simply, “What do I want?” but “What leads me closer to Christ?” A person living according to the Spirit gradually learns to see others not as obstacles or tools, but as persons loved by God. Even suffering begins to be approached differently — not with despair, but with trust and perseverance in Christ.
Saint Paul emphasizes that the Spirit dwelling within us gives life. Through baptism and life in the Church, the Christian is no longer enslaved to sin and death. Yet this remains a daily struggle. The spiritual life is not automatic. Every day we choose either to nourish the Spirit through prayer, Scripture, the Eucharist, repentance, and acts of love, or to nourish the passions through selfishness and neglect of God.
A beautiful reflection on this comes from Saint John Chrysostom, who wrote: “The Spirit comes not to destroy nature, but to correct the will.” This is important. Christianity does not destroy our humanity; it restores it. The Holy Spirit does not erase personality, freedom, or human life, but heals and redirects them toward communion with God.
Romans 8 reminds us that true freedom is not doing whatever we desire, but becoming capable of living in Christ. The more we live according to the Spirit, the more the life of Christ becomes visible within us.