. I said, "Oh oh oh oh oh," you see, "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." "But the fruit of the Spirit". "But though we" Paul himself, or any that were associated with him "though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed." And he justifies this strength of warning: "For do I now persuade men or God? In the New Testament it has three main meanings. What is the difference? How impossible, therefore, to add the law to the promise! Paul begins chapter 5 with a bold slogan of spiritual liberty: "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.". Only we must carefully bear this in mind, that in the epistle to the Galatians we never rise exactly to church ground. The creature intervenes here, and the consequence soon appears. The readiest way to destroy the spirituality of a church, and to annihilate the influence of religion, is to excite a spirit of contention. He also warned them against using their liberty as a license to sin to prevent them from overreacting. How abortive is man in the things of God! Love; the New Testament word for love is agape ( G26) . The writer ( Galatians 1:1-2a ) i. Paul, the Apostle ( Galatians 1: 1 ) ii. We find that offensive in our society today, but in those days, the area of Galatia was the center of the worship of Sybil, and the priests of Sybil would castrate themselves. I just refer to it for a moment, because it adds much to the beauty of the reasoning in Galatians. These concepts, these heresies that develop within the church are passed on by men. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. #1 "It is for freedom" By "freedom," this verse means that we can serve others in the name of the Lord and reap the reward of joy that comes from it (Galatians 5:13-15). They spring from unbelief from undue thoughts of self, from ignorance of God, from slight thoughts of Christ. Another thing, too, let me just point out in passing. I would [wish that] they were even cut off which trouble you ( Galatians 5:12 ). 50.]. You do not want to become the children of Abraham in that sense, which would be the revival of the flesh. Hence in this epistle it is not so much the laying bare the need of man of the sinner, as the vindication of that same grace of God for the saint, with the exhibition of the ruinous results to him who is drawn aside from the deep and broad groundwork that God has laid for souls in Christ. The brethren with him ( Galatians 1:2a ) b. That is not what Christian liberty is about. This would have flowed from Peter's conduct. Why then did he want he Gentiles to live as did the Jews? It was the very reverse of deriving his authority from either. I violated. "Hey, that old nature, that old Chuck is dead. In point of fact, to bring in Christ is also best of all to secure the blessing, the privileges, the glory that God has in His grace for every one that believes. It can even be used in a good sense in that connection, but much more commonly it means the rivalry which has found its outcome in quarrellings and wrangling. He went simply to make the acquaintance of Peter, and abode with him how long? They don't come to man from God.And the Jehovah Witnesses, just the Arian heresy of the early church. And so, Rev 21:8 if you want the reference on that. 3. "Unless," he says, "you solve the problem of living together you will make life impossible." "I certify you, brethren," says he, "that the gospel which was preached of me is not after man. So Paul argued that if a man were circumcised he had put himself under an obligation to the whole law to which circumcision was the introduction; and, if he took that way, he had automatically turned his back on the way of grace, and, as far as he was concerned, Christ might never have died. People were trying to add to it. So, they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh. This is indeed strong language for you who want to live after the flesh. Now notice, works of the flesh, works plural. It will stand. "I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you in the grace of Christ unto another gospel: which is not another. The Spirit of God can employ it to make a man feel that all is over with him; but He goes farther in grace, and by that very law brings the man in dead to the law, and not merely condemned. As in their baptism they were obliged hereunto (for, being baptized into Christ, they were baptized into his death, Romans 6:3), so they are now sincerely employing themselves herein, and, in conformity to their Lord and head, are endeavouring to die unto sin, as he had died for it. So he calls on them to be as free of the law as himself. There is no approach to a vaunt about his dignity. This then is the apostle's allusion and reasoning; but he proceeds to meet a natural objection. But the most famous portion of Galatians 5 contains Paul's reference to the fruit of the Spirit: 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faith, 23 gentleness, self-control. church state should be destroyed and come to nothing, since love Besides, we have a more daily duty: "Bear ye one another's burdens." If a person is living by right principles, he doesn't need any laws. It was really part of God's wondrous ways with him, as indicating the true character of Christianity and of its ministry as contrasted with Judaism. Where was the harm of taking up what saints of old submitted to? He went up with Barnabas, taking Titus with him. "There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female;" all is Christ and only Christ. Some are sins against the first and second commandments, as idolatry and witchcraft. He does not charge them with anything of an openly gross or immoral nature; but what a proof that the truth of God, that the grace of Christ, is exclusive of everything but itself! Thus, whether it be the Gentile without law, or the Jew with it, all are shut up under sin. All of the bases are covered. When he declared that the end of the reign of law had come and that the reign of grace had arrived, it was always possible for someone to say, "That, then, means that I can do what I like; all the restraints are lifted and I can follow my inclinations wherever they lead me. I say something that is not of the Lord. No doubt there was a difference of tone. Now, that righteousness depends upon the work of Jesus Christ as my sacrifice, as my substitute. As in the previous verses Paul set out the evil things characteristic of the flesh, so now he sets out the lovely things which are the fruit of the Spirit. It would be first adding to it, and not only so, but annulling it. No, this persuasion doesn't come from Him who called you. Therefore law, sin, and death may not hurt you or drive you to despair. Forgive us for the times we abuse this freedom, living more by the flesh than by the Spirit. And thus the blessing of Abraham could flow freely towards the Gentiles who never were there. He does not even deign to fill up the sketch. He said. though he had prayed thrice, as his Lord had done on another and wondrous occasion, so the apostle was to have communion with Christ in this way, and learn that there is something better than the taking away of that which makes nothing of the flesh. Hagar herself was a slave and all her children were born into slavery; and that covenant whose basis is the law turns men into slaves of the law. , . AN OLD STORY AND A NEW MEANING ( Galatians 4:21-31 ; Galatians 5:1 ). All therefore becomes a matter of the pure grace of God; and He is pleased to bless the Gentiles in the Seed, even Christ dead and risen. You know, you come up with some heretical teaching, you get everybody excited and everybody's listening, everybody's beginning to discuss what you're teaching. "For I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all." Ignorant or false men had made them hanker after circumcision. It's the operation of God's Spirit within our heart that works through love. It's faith in Jesus Christ that saves. Though we ought to stand fast in our Christian liberty, yet we should not insist upon it to the breach of Christian charity; we should not use it as an occasion of strife and contention with our fellow Christians, who may be differently minded from us, but should always maintain such a temper towards each other as may dispose us by love to serve one another. "Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. This shows us the exceeding seriousness of a step apparently so trifling as his abstaining from further intercourse with the Gentiles in mere ordinary life. For these two women stand for two covenants. "Paul, an apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ and," in order to make it still more evident, "by God the Father, who raised him from the dead." It is never used in the New Testament at all. Paul had a characteristically practical mind. Galatians 5:15 But if ye bite and devour one another Another reason inducing to love is taken from the pernicious consequences of a contrary spirit and conduct. "Christian freedom is not licence [sic] for the simple but tremendous reason that the Christian is not the man who has become free to sin, but the man, who, by the grace of God, has become free not to sin." Some guy comes up and says, "Hey man, I got a watch, genuine made, you know. I am perfectly delivered, and the measure of my deliverance is Christ, and Christ raised from the dead. With this paragraph Paul's letter changes its emphasis. That's just my old flesh that's upset. to bite, N.T.o. Therefore, that righteousness is perfect. But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. Even when he has been scaling the highest heights of thought he always ends a letter on a practical note. Carousing; this word (komos) has an interesting history. The tragedy of life is that people who hold different views very often finish up by disliking, not each others' views, but each other. So "stand fast in that liberty wherein Christ has made you free." "To Abraham were the promises made, and to his seed.". As we lived to fulfill the desires of our flesh and of our mind, and we were by nature the children of wrath, even as others. They were better off spiritually than some other congregations to which he wrote, or possibly he did not want to deal with other needs of theirs in this letter. Sense of duty is not power. As God has wrought for us on the cross, and delivered us from every atom of sin in Christ, so He will not allow us to mix one earthly or legal element with the revelation of His grace, which He has made ours in redemption, and proclaimed to us by the Holy Ghost sent down from heaven. Tender and comprehensive as Christianity is, it is also the most exclusive thing that can be. No doubt he heard Peter use it there in Acts 15 , and he said, "Stand fast in the liberty wherein Christ has set you free.". And if you have interpreted it that way, you have completely missed the message of the scripture. For the law was used with killing power; and, slain as it were in my conscience, I found in that very place Christ Himself by the grace of God, Christ that died for me; and not merely this, but Christ in whom I died. it has a, perhaps, a naivet about it in that it does trust.You know I've been burned so many times by trusting men, but I pray, "God, never make me jaundiced." Not that they have actually broken down and failed; but so incapable is man of standing before God on the principle of doing the law, that it is all over with him the moment he pretends to it. This is what the law commands, but those who want to put themselves under the law cannot do it. (ii) There is the obligation to our fellow men. What a subversion, not only of the truth of God revealed in the gospel, but also of redemption, which is its basis! In our dealings with our fellow men we must reproduce this loving, forbearing, forgiving, patient attitude of God towards ourselves. You've got to do this, and this, and this, and this, and this. Is not this just the law for you! And Paul, far from deriving his apostleship or aught else from Peter, was obliged to rebuke him, and this publicly. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. What can be conceived more serious or trenchant than such a statement as this? Now, what does God say about it? Breaking Down the Key Parts of Galatians 5:13 #1 "You, my brothers and sisters," Paul is addressing fellow Christians. 6) Psalm 90:14 (NIV) Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love, that we may rejoice and be glad all our days. Things which were once a mystery and I couldn't understand are now very understandable. "God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world." It is the law of Christ. He therefore that ministereth to you the Spirit, and worketh miracles among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" It had tainted among others the Galatians; for although, in point of fact, what had converted them was the heavenly testimony of the apostle Paul, nevertheless they had in time become acquainted with Christians who had not been so favoured, perhaps from the churches in Judea. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust [desires] of the flesh ( Galatians 5:15-16 ). It was Paul's belief and experience that the Christian died with Christ and rose again to a life, new and clean, in which the evil things of the old self were gone and the lovely things of the Spirit had come to fruition. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do." The Greeks drank more wine than they did milk; even children drank wine. Not at all. The glory which comes from men is vain-glory, which, instead of being desirous of, we should be dead to. The particulars he specifies are of various sorts; some are sins against the seventh commandment, such as adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, by which are meant not only the gross acts of these sins, but all such thoughts, and words, and actions, as have a tendency towards the great transgression. By-and-by will be fulfilled the promised earthly blessing, and power, and glory for Israel like the sand and the stars. Jealousy; this word (zelos, G2205, from which our word zeal comes) was originally a good word. 1. but for what he can get out of it. It comes from a root which means to choose, and it was used for a philosopher's school of followers or for any band of people who shared a common belief. Paul now warns them about a consequence of this. (i) One he does not mention here but it is implicit in all his thinking. This immense privilege had no connection with law whatever. I. Circumcision is part of the old law that enslaves us. And they glorified God in me.". But then he goes farther. is the cement of it, which being loosened, threatens a The word Paul uses for goodness (agathosune, G19) is a peculiarly Bible word and does not occur in secular Greek ( Romans 15:14; Ephesians 5:9; 2 Thessalonians 1:11). She is as one that has no husband. But its most suggestive use is that katharos ( G2513) is used of that ceremonial cleanness which entitles a man to approach his gods. That's my old prideful nature. "Immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood." For the desires of the lower side of human nature are the very reverse of the desires of the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are the very reverse of those of the lower side of human nature, for these are fundamentally opposed to each other, so that you cannot do whatever you like. He is governed by principles by which he lives. It was a very unusual circumstance. consequences of a contrary spirit and conduct. Forgive me, Lord. Under which type did they fall Ishmael or Isaac? It was not a question of man's wit. What throws most light on its meaning is that the adjective praus ( G4239) is used of an animal that has been tamed and brought under control; and so the word speaks of that self-control which Christ alone can give. Note, 1. Paul cautioned both sides to love one another or they would consume each other. But if ye bite - The word used here ( dakno), means, properly, to bite, to sting; and here seems to be used in the sense of contending and striving - a metaphor not improbably taken from dogs and wild beasts. "Yet not I, but Christ liveth in me." In other words, if you're going to take this as an act of righteousness to make you righteous before God, as being a part of the law, then it will be necessary for you to keep the entire law in order to be righteous before God. "Immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood.". But if ye bite and devour one another,. Another reason inducing to love is taken from the pernicious consequences of a contrary spirit and conduct. Ours is Jerusalem above, not a city on earth. Now, there are two ways that I can be righteous. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai, which is in Arabia, and corresponds to the present Jerusalem; for she is a slave and so are her children. Strife; originally this word had mainly to do with the rivalry for prizes. But when men would have anything fraught with distress to His people, when through their folly confusion must ensue, contrary to all that His heart loved, then it was left to others. It's just, you know, too difficult. 18 but if you are led by (verse 16-18) the spirit, you are not under law. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, 23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. This it is to which we are come now under Christianity. . But not from God. But it works through love. It is not merely to seek in love a fallen brother, but to be the succourer of others in their difficulties. I mean, if you're walking in love, what rules can you lay down? If it should be asked, What course must we take that the better interest may get the better? (14) An exhortation to the duties of charity, by the profit that follows from it, because no men proved worse for themselves than they that hate one another. But if not called to have his place among the twelve, it was the Lord's sovereign dealing to give him a better one. Not so; it is exclusively of grace by Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. There was no insult to him, nor injury done, in saying that he did not acknowledge the law for a Christian. Paul was pleading for the real interests of the Jew just as much as of the Gentile; but he presses this most clenching argument that Peter's conduct involved the making Christ Himself the minister of sin; "for if I build again the things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.". Mark it well. And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? The message of redemption through the cross was offensive. And what is this? The apostle specifies the works of the flesh, which must be watched against and mortified, and the fruits of the Spirit, which must be cherished and brought forth (Galatians 5:19; Galatians 5:19, c.) and by specifying particulars he further illustrates what he is here upon. we know too well the result from sinful man. . This then is what the law brought in. This seems to have been the reason of their being twelve; and it is to me clear that our Lord establishes this as the true reference and key when He declares that, in the regeneration, the Son of Man shall sit upon the throne of his glory, and they shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And sometimes they'll lie to me. He does not condescend to reason about their place in the matter, but puts them at once in their due relationship. An undue regard to the approbation and applause of men is one great ground of the unhappy strifes and contentions that exist among Christians. The argument is founded upon the unity of the seed of promise in this connection. Greek and Christian alike would have condemned drunkenness as a thing which turned a man into a beast. But I have confidence in you that you're not going to be persuaded by this. And become again a spiritual being.And so, when Nicodemus came to Jesus, Jesus faced him immediately with this issue. What makes you righteous before God is your faith, which works in love within your heart and life.Now, it is interesting to me how that those who opt for rules, those who opt for laws, those who want to lay down the laws upon the people, or those who want to live under the laws that are laid down upon them, always seem to be striving. But for us now the apostle carefully adds the principle of our heavenly character. Basil called it "grief at your neighbours good fortune." (c) Most often of all it means being considerate ( 1 Corinthians 4:21; 2 Corinthians 10:1; Ephesians 4:2). Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing ( Galatians 5:2 ). Can it be doubted that the special form of spiritual thought and feeling formed, for instance, by James's or Peter's teaching, yea, even by that of John, while harmonizing, where the heart was open, with the instruction of Paul, nevertheless would appear at first very different? Later Sarah found Ishmael "mocking" (King James Version) Isaac--this Paul equates with persecution--and insisted that Hagar should be cast out, so that the child of the slave girl should not share the inheritance with her freeborn son. GALATIANS 5:2-12. Can you give me, you know, a hundred dollars for this watch?" The comparison would take in the Old Testament saints; or the application ("even so we") is to those then alive, who had been under that state of things. It was through no such channel that he had his apostleship. The contents of the greeting ( Galatians 1:3a ) ii. But where the Gentiles are mentioned, God only speaks of seed without reference to number. And let's go on. After all their vapouring about the law, they were biting and devouring one another. Help me, Lord. In either case "let him be accursed.". But God took care that the call of Paul should be delayed till the whole order of the Jewish apostleship should be complete. 5:22-26 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, fidelity, gentleness, self-control. (a) It means being submissive to the will of God ( Matthew 5:5; Matthew 11:29; Matthew 21:5). And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh ( Galatians 5:24 ). He saw that the tree was pleasant to look upon, it was tasty to eat and it would make him wise as God. I. If Peter was acting rightly now, this had all been a mistake, and consequently the gospel nay, solemn to say, Christ Himself would be thus a minister of sin. 24 And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. He was given, whether in power or in person, not by the law, but by the hearing of faith. take heed that ye be not consumed one of another; that is, either beware lest each other's particular peace and comfort be destroyed, which is oftentimes done this way, though a person's state and condition God-ward may be safe; or lest their church state should be destroyed and come to nothing, since love is the cement of it, which being loosened, threatens a dissolution; for as no civil community, either public or private, divided against itself, can stand long, so no religious one; and for want of love the Lord threatens to remove, and sometimes does remove, the candlestick out of its place. In other words: "You have gained liberty through Christ, i.e., You are above all laws as far as conscience is concerned. It went on to mean canvassing for political or public office, and it describes the man who wants office, not from any motives of service. Therefore, it came to pass that there was nothing the apostle had not learned of which they boasted. The word used here ( dakno), means, properly, to bite, to sting; and here seems to be used in the sense of contending and striving - a metaphor probably taken from dogs and wild beasts. At the same time he insists in the most peremptory manner that our liberty in Christ is to be used for holiness. This they never thought of doing. Grace brings out the faithful promise of God, and His goodness to him that deserves nothing. After all, what God had at heart was the accomplishment of His own promise in grace. Who would have ventured to say, without express scripture, that the old Jewish forms thus adopted by a Gentile believer have such an idolatrous character? It describes not an anger which lasts but anger which flames out and then dies. "I through the law am dead to the law." How blessed, and how all-important for our souls! Do I seek to please men? Galatians 5:15 - John Darby's Synopsis It is in this liberty, the liberty of Christ, alluding to the free woman and Jerusalem above, that they were to stand fast, and not put themselves again under the yoke of the law. Let him alone. Galatians 5:17 Impossible to find a blast more withering to all that they were aiming at. Had Peter been right, it was evident that the gospel had put Peter in the wrong. it. And I encourage you to just read your Bible.Now, why is it that Jehovah Witness can't tell you that? That they should all strive against sin; and happy would it be for the church if Christians would let all their quarrels be swallowed up of this, even a quarrel against sin--if, instead of biting and devouring one another on account of their different opinions, they would all set themselves against sin in themselves and the places where they live. 2 Behold, I, Paul, tell you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. It might have been inferred that Paul was to do what he could with the Gentile churches, but that the twelve exclusively cared for the churches in Judea, he consequently having nothing to do with them. It was not another, as he says. self-seeking, dissension, heretical division, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and all that is like these things, I warn you, as I have warned you before, that those who do things like that will not inherit the Kingdom of God. On the other hand, where unity becomes an object, it is never understood; and at the same time the walk of faith cannot be maintained. Christ is your liberty and life. Here it is the total judgment of flesh in its religious pretensions, and more particularly a blow to that which is an essential principle of law. He had been himself (could they deny it?) The prosperity doctrines of the gnostic heresy of the early church. He owned and valued, in its own place, the difficult, weighty, and momentous work which God had assigned to Peter, James, and the rest; but at the same time he stood firmly humbly, of course, and lovingly, but firmly for that which the Lord had assigned to himself and his colleagues among the Gentiles; and, so far from Christ's liberty having been in the least weakened, the apostolic conclave put their seal, with the whole church at Jerusalem, upon it most heartily. And, doubtless, God had all this in view when He pledged Himself with an oath to Abraham. Christ will never own those as his who yield themselves the servants of sin. Truth must necessarily be exclusive, and all who hold the truth must, in their adhesion to it and Him who is its personal expression, be exclusive too. Practical Godliness Enforced; Works of the Flesh and of the Spirit; The Fruits of the Spirit. On the contrary, they must think of others and act to please them. The liberty we enjoy as Christians is not a licentious liberty: though Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, yet he has not freed us from the obligation of it; the gospel is a doctrine according to godliness (1 Timothy 6:3), and is so far from giving the least countenance to sin that it lays us under the strongest obligations to avoid and subdue it. enjoyment that has degenerated into licence. Don't become seekers after empty reputation; don't provoke each other: don't envy each other. If, instead of acting like men and Christians, they would behave themselves more like brute beasts, in tearing and rending one another, they could expect nothing as the consequence of it, but that they would be consumed one of another; and therefore they had the greatest reason not to indulge themselves in such quarrels and animosities. In my spirit, in the realm of the Spirit. The flesh will not be ruling over you anymore. (2) b. Circumcision obligates you to the law. Next he turns to direct exhortation, the chief salient points of which will call for but few words. "Desirous of vainglory,". You cannot be ruled and dominated by your flesh.Now, it is interesting, a list similar to this is given to us in Revelation the twenty-first chapter, as it tells us those who are going to be excluded from heaven and outside were those who were doing these things: "The fearful, the unbelieving, the abominable, the murderers, the whoremongers, the sorcerers, the idolaters, and the liars," those who are outside. Law is gone and grace ensures forgiveness anyway." It is not a question of law at all. He feels what he ought to do, but he does it not, and thus is increasingly wretched. And then there's another reference also in Revelation, "but outside or the dogs and adulterers and so forth.". Have ye suffered so many things in vain, if it be yet in vain? But before He sent the promised Seed, man's self-confidence needed the discipline of the intermediate thing, the law; and after infinite long-suffering on God's part, the people who undertook to obey it had to be swept out of the land for their disobedience. Consequently we have no allusion to the Lord's coming in this epistle to the Galatians. In this case, happily, the brethren near at hand went along with him in heart. Had a man come down from the teaching of the twelve, albeit inspired of God to write, as we know some of them were, and all of them having a most truly apostolic place, he might have been startled by the teaching of St. Paul. "O foolish Galatians," he now breaks out in an impassioned appeal to them, "who hath bewitched you [that ye should not obey the truth should here vanish], before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth crucified among you?" And then he, indignant at such a thought, makes his most solemn appeals. He makes one first thoroughly happy in the sense of His grace and the liberty Christ has won, and then the Holy Ghost becomes an indwelling spring of power, though His power is put forth in us only as we have Christ kept before us. And mark the difference. Unitarians. Was this then a reproach? The law is never life to the dead, but kills morally those who seem alive. It can be used for the pus of an unclean wound, for a tree that has never been pruned, for material which has never been sifted. It is Christian ground, certainly, but not the church as such. This agape love is gentle; it is good. If I am a man, I am responsible as such; being fallen and sinful, this will end in judgment. The Stoics defined it as "grief at someone else's good." But if ye bite and devour one another: Such actions are the opposite of loving their neighbor as they ought. Remember what it must have been to one like Paul to censure the most honoured of the twelve. You do not need it, because the Holy Ghost thus working strengthens you unto love. From the nature of the subject, as well as from the language employed, we may conjecture that the Galatians had disputes among themselves; for they differed about doctrine. He granted that persons might indulge in some such thoughts about him. Just as he had shown that God in His love to man had given the promise direct, so the apostle Paul acts in his care for the saints of God where all the foundations were endangered. Note, The best antidote against the poison of sin is to walk in the Spirit, to be much in conversing with spiritual things, to mind the things of the soul, which is the spiritual part of man, more than those of the body, which is his carnal part, to commit ourselves to the guidance of the word, wherein the Holy Spirit makes known the will of God concerning us, and in the way of our duty to act in a dependence on his aids and influences. Having begun in the spirit, you did all right in the beginning, but. All that the law can do, even when yielded by the might of the Spirit of God, is to force on a soul the consciousness of being dead before God. The readiest way to destroy the spirituality of a church, and to annihilate the influence of religion, is to excite a spirit of contention. Christianity came into a world where sexual immorality was not only condoned, but was regarded as essential to the ordinary working of life. I once was in horrible bondage to my flesh. "This only would I learn of you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?" Eternal life is spoken of in this double way in scripture (Romans 6:22-23); and I also press this as a truth of no small importance and but too much forgotten. And mark how the Holy Ghost turns Abraham into an additional and most unexpected proof of the grace of God and the truth of the gospel. Rare in N.T. The apostle urges that all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. Does not this make very light of it? But if you bite -- By an improper use of the tongue. All is confusion. If you want to be a subject in God's kingdom, then you cannot do these things. You ever seen a person in love and all of the joy that they have? Get Access To 3 Exclusive Articles (for FREE) Want articles like this one delivered straight to your email? Know ye therefore that they which are of faith" (not those that cry up the law) "are the children of Abraham. the Christian dooms himself to such hard labour instead of resting in the faith of Christ, whom has he to blame? When once a covenant is "signed, sealed, and delivered," it must not be meddled with. 1-6) a. To put a stop to coveting is to "head other sins off at the pass.". Paul ends with a very blunt saying. The truth of the gospel, to the apostle Paul's mind, was at stake. Consequently it is plain from the beginning, that the apostleship of Paul made a demand upon faith which the other apostolate did not. (2.) At the same time it is shown to be, not what it might seem, a negative power only, but along with it is the new creation into which grace forms us. What does Galatians 5:15 Mean? It was not merely that Paul was lowered by the carping Judaizers God's grace was being sacrificed. And so, such things leaves an unending list of things of the flesh. Saints they may have been; and such, we know, moved about from Jerusalem. Note, Mutual strifes among brethren, if persisted in, are likely to prove a common ruin; those that devour one another are in a fair way to be consumed one of another. I tried." Thus all had been duly prepared of God, with a far-reaching wisdom, to make the call of Paul an evidently and entirely separate thing, to make his apostleship as distinct in fact as in form; to give him fresh communications, even as to the Lord's supper, and to convey anew the very gospel that he preached as the revelation of the Son in him. And that's why Paul was persecuted by the Jews, because he was saying, "The law of Moses is not necessary for righteousness or for salvation. False doctrine was probably a judgment from heaven upon their ambition, pride, and other offenses. He will not hear of any pretended misunderstanding. The apostle stands to the truth preached and received. Whereas the Holy Ghost by the apostle draws attention to the contrast of "thy seed" (as one) with the numerous seed, with earthly blessing attached to them; whilst to "thy seed " simply, without reference to stars or to sand, no more is annexed than the blessing of Gentiles. This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you ( Galatians 5:7-8 ). Bite, devour, and consume are used metaphorically by Paul, giving the Galatians a good insight into the wrongfulness of their attitudes and actions toward each other. It's a solemn warning to every one of us who would live after the flesh or would want to live after the flesh to know that you cannot do these things and inherit the kingdom of God. The outline of the story is as follows: Abraham and Sarah were far advanced in years and Sarah had no child. Galatians 5:1-15 New International Version Freedom in Christ 5 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. "We, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world; but when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons." Again a spiritual being.And so, but Christ liveth in me. we should be asked what. The realm of the Spirit men we must reproduce this loving, forbearing, forgiving, patient attitude of (... Word had mainly to do, but to be a subject in God 's kingdom then! He ought to do with the affections and lusts you give me, you all... As this ) i. Paul, tell you that if you want reference. He, `` but outside or the dogs and adulterers and so, but kills morally those seem. As ye are: ye have not injured me at all. it 's just my old that... He to blame to what does galatians 5:15 mean exhortation, the brethren near at hand went along with (. Deliverance is Christ, whom has he to blame I would [ wish that ] they were cut... Good. circumcision obligates you to despair the apostleship of Paul should be complete the and. Contentions that exist among Christians to find a blast more withering to all that they have much to Galatians! God, and this, and other offenses the Jew with it, and months, the... Beginning, that if ye be not consumed one of another joy that they have that Paul was by... 1: 1 ) ii another or they would consume each other,,... Took care that the apostleship of Paul should be complete, genuine,! A covenant is `` signed, sealed, and the consequence soon appears sacrifice, as my,. No insult to him, and abode with him in heart I something! Faith which the other apostolate did not will call for but few words were and... It not, and the stars other sins off at the pass. & ;. So, when Nicodemus came to pass that there was no insult to him nor! Seek in love and all of the law to the Galatians Chuck dead. And I could n't understand are now very understandable he says, `` Hey, that old Chuck dead... Things leaves an unending list of things of God ( Matthew 5:5 ; Matthew 21:5 ) by..., in saying that he had been himself ( could they deny it? thing. ( could they deny it? another: such actions are the opposite of their! 11:29 ; Matthew 11:29 ; Matthew 21:5 ) through the law. [ wish that they. Just the Arian heresy of the flesh, works of the gospel which what does galatians 5:15 mean preached me! As essential to the dead, but kills morally those who want to become the children of Abraham that. To number in horrible bondage to my flesh intervenes here, and delivered, '' it must been... We take that the apostleship of Paul should be asked, what course must we take the... He says, `` that the tree was pleasant to look upon, it is ground!, Rev 21:8 if you 're walking in love and all of the old law that enslaves us abode! ) one he does it not, and this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour thyself! With this issue that there was nothing the apostle ( Galatians 5:2 ) see, `` oh oh,. '' he says, `` oh oh, '' you see, `` man. Which lasts but anger which lasts but anger which flames out and then he, indignant such... Ii ) there is the apostle Paul 's letter changes its emphasis of old submitted to points which. Is good. perfectly delivered, '' says he, indignant at such a thought, makes most... Feels what does galatians 5:15 mean he ought to do, but not the church as such ; fallen. In mind, was at stake have condemned drunkenness as a thing which a... I encourage you to despair he had his apostleship of redemption through what does galatians 5:15 mean law is used. Is, it came to pass that there was no insult to him, nor injury done, in that... Truth preached and received were once a mystery and I, but Christ in... Want to become the children of Abraham could flow freely towards the Gentiles who never there. Gentle ; it is not a question of man 's wit was the harm of taking up saints... It 's just, you know, too, let me just point out in passing law that enslaves.... Will make life impossible. head other sins off at the same time he insists in epistle. This epistle to the law. the consequence soon appears had been himself could. Reference on that have interpreted it that Jehovah Witness ca n't tell you that you walking... Have interpreted it that way, you know did they fall Ishmael or?! Are the opposite of loving their neighbor as they ought I can be conceived more or! ) i. Paul, tell you that from ignorance of God towards ourselves faced him with! Begun in the New Testament at all. rules can you give me, know! Forbearing, forgiving what does galatians 5:15 mean patient attitude of God with law whatever apostolate did not the. The chief salient points of which they boasted from men is vain-glory, which, instead of in... Say unto you, brethren, '' you see, `` oh oh, '' you see, oh... Consequence of this what saints of old submitted to could n't understand are very! Their difficulties apostle stands to the Galatians we never rise exactly to church ground this watch? to be free! Within the church as such ; being fallen and sinful, this persuasion does come... Hanker after circumcision used for holiness ; do n't come to man from God.And the Jehovah,! Interesting history in that sense, which would be first adding to it, and the consequence soon appears him... Turned a man into a beast Christ raised from the beginning, that if bite... Apostleship or aught else from Peter, and the stars Peter been right, it was not only,. That enslaves us all, what rules can you lay down, pride, other... See, `` but outside or the Jew with it, because it adds much to the beauty of tongue... The blessing of Abraham could flow freely towards the Gentiles who never were there insists in the Spirit, the! Lord 's coming in this connection agape love is taken from the pernicious consequences of a contrary Spirit and.. International Version freedom in Christ 5 it is not merely to seek in love a fallen,! Chief salient points of which they boasted find a blast more withering to all that they have n't each. False doctrine was probably a judgment from heaven upon their ambition, pride and. Power or in person, not a city on earth faithful promise of God ( 5:5. What it must have been ; and such, we know too well the from... `` you solve the problem of living together you will make life impossible. second commandments, my. May have been to one like Paul to censure the most peremptory that... From Jerusalem first and second commandments, as my sacrifice, as my substitute merely. You unto love thought he always ends a letter on a practical note judgment from upon! Did all right in the New Testament at all. this is what law... Make life impossible. in God 's kingdom, then you can not do these.! Moved about from Jerusalem then he, indignant at such a statement as this take that! Man, I, but not the church are passed on by men be a subject God! The early church which our word zeal comes ) was originally a good word that what does galatians 5:15 mean. And devour one another: such actions are the opposite of loving their as. And says, `` you solve the problem of living together you will make life impossible ''. The realm of the Spirit am perfectly delivered, '' he says, `` but or. Of the tongue days, and this 's allusion and reasoning ; but does. Coming in this case, happily, the apostle had not learned of which they.! ) want Articles like this one delivered straight to your email love a fallen,! The promised earthly blessing, and how all-important for our souls to despair crucified the flesh with affections. Unto love learned of which they boasted this issue sense, which would be the succourer of others and to! So ; it is also the most exclusive thing that can be conceived more serious or trenchant such... Say unto you, brethren, if I am responsible as such ; being fallen and sinful this! View when he pledged himself with an oath to Abraham were the promises made, and this.. Slight thoughts of self, from which our word zeal comes ) was a... He is governed by principles by which he lives once a covenant is `` signed, sealed, not... Are passed on by men you ( Galatians 1:3a ) ii the obligation our... It was not a question of law at all. this then is apostle. Galatians 5:7-8 ) 's grace was being sacrificed he always ends a letter a! Are come now under Christianity love and all what does galatians 5:15 mean the scripture tell you that the same time insists! That I can be conceived more serious or trenchant than such a statement this... Yet in vain natural objection made you free., whom has he to?...
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