Galatians 5
Questions answered from Galatians 5
Chuck Smith on Galatians 5
Verse by verse, taught on Sunday nights: the C2000 series, 1979 to 1985, and the C3000 series, 1985 to 1999. Permission granted by The Word For Today.
Sunday Nights, 1979 to 1985 (C2000)
Chapter introduction
Shall we turn now to Galatians chapter five. The whole concept is: how do I establish a righteous standing before God? Can I be righteous by keeping the law? Or am I righteous by my simple faith in Jesus Christ? Now, Paul taught righteousness through faith. There followed Paul teachers, Judaizers who brought another gospel, which was not really a gospel. For they were saying that was it was necessary to be circumcised and to keep the law of Moses in order to be righteous before God, to be saved.
Verse 1
And so Paul is standing against this teaching in his letter to the Galatians, and in chapter five, he said,
Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage (5:1).
Now, in the fifteenth chapter of the book of Acts, when this same issue had arisen in the church in Antioch, when certain of the brethren came down from Jerusalem and were hassling the Gentile saints in Antioch and said, "You can't be saved unless you are circumcised and keep the law of Moses," Paul and Barnabas and others from Antioch took these brothers right back to Jerusalem, because they came unto the pretense of, "We have the authority of the Jerusalem church to declare these things." So, they went right up to settle the issue, and the church had one of the first church councils gathered to settle a dispute, a problem within the church.
And in the fifteenth chapter of Acts, we read how that Peter stood up and told the brethren how that the Lord had called him to go to the Gentiles to the house of Cornelius. And how the Holy Spirit had come upon those of the house of Cornelius who had known nothing really of obedience to the law. And Peter said, "I suggest that we not place a yoke of bondage on them which neither we, nor our fathers were able to bear" (Acts 15:10). So, Peter uses this same phrase to describe the law as a yoke of bondage. He said, "We haven't been able to keep the law, why should we put them under it?" And so, Paul is picking up, now, the same phrase. 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."
Now, let us not believe or think that this liberty that we have is the liberty to do anything we might want to do in the flesh. That is not the liberty that we have as Christians. The liberty that we have is not to do the things of the flesh. Thank God Jesus Christ has set me free from my bondage to my flesh. I once was in horrible bondage to my flesh. But now I have liberty in Christ Jesus, for I don't have to follow after the flesh anymore. So "stand fast in that liberty wherein Christ has made you free." He has set you free from the power of the flesh. Don't be entangled again with rules, regulations, a yoke of bondage.
Verse 2
Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing (5:2).
That is, if you are circumcised ritually for the purpose of having a righteous standing before God. If that is the purpose, you're thinking that it's going to make you righteous before God, you think it's going to make you acceptable before God, Paul said, "Christ will profit you nothing," if that's your mental attitude towards your circumcision.
Verse 3
For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law (5:3).
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. For if a man "keeps the whole law, yet he offends in one point, he is guilty of all" (James 2:10). So "cursed is the man that continues not in the whole law to do that which is written therein" (Galatians 3:10).
Verse 4
Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you who are justified [or seeking to be justified] by the law; ye are fallen from grace (5:4).
Very powerful words for those who would seek justification through the law, through rules, through keeping rules, through keeping ordinances. If you're looking to that as a righteous standing before God, then you are not experiencing the grace of God in your life. Now, the whole idea is to be righteous before God in order that I might have fellowship with God. "What fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?" (2 Corinthians 6:14) How can I really fellowship with God if I'm unrighteous? So I must be righteous in order to have fellowship with God.
Now, there are two ways that I can be righteous. I can say, "Well, this, these are the rules of righteous living. You've got to do this, and this, and this, and this, and this. And you can't do this, and this, and this, and this, and this." And I can set up these rules, and I can get out my little gold stars. And at the end of each day, I can paste my gold stars on those that I've kept. But if I have a whole page of gold stars but yet there's one little point over here where I blew it and I can't put a gold star, then I'm unrighteous. I violated. "If you keep the whole law yet offended in one point, you're guilty of all."
Now, the other way to be righteous is through faith in Jesus Christ, receiving that grace of God through Him, where God accounts me, as He did Abraham, righteous because I believe. Now, that righteousness depends upon the work of Jesus Christ as my sacrifice, as my substitute. It is predicated upon the work of God. Therefore, that righteousness is perfect. It will stand. And it is given to me through my faith in Jesus Christ. That's what God accounts, the righteousness of Christ accounted to my account through my faith in Jesus Christ.
Now, because I can't keep the first, I have opted for the second. Because I can't and haven't kept the whole law, I'm thankful that God accounts me righteous and I can have fellowship with the righteous God because of Jesus Christ and my faith in Jesus Christ. Now, if you're trying to be justified before God or being made righteous before God by the keeping of the law, then Christ is of no effect to you. You can't be both.
Verse 5
For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith (5:5).
That's the position where we stand. By the Spirit of God, we're waiting for that hope of righteousness through faith.
Verse 6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision avails any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love (5:6).
So, I think Paul could also have included here baptism or no baptism as far as the physical immersion in water. He's talking about rituals and the power of rituals to make you righteous before God, and the issue is, they can't. 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. We have those that come around here. They're wanting to strive, they're wanting to argue; they're wanting to prove their points how that baptism is essential for salvation. And they want to get on our case because we don't run down every night and baptize people the moment they're saved. Because we wait to have our baptisms 'til the water gets warmer.
It's because baptism doesn't save. It's faith in Jesus Christ that saves. It's the operation of God's Spirit within our heart that works through love. Not contention. Not striving. But it works through love. And any kind of a relationship with God that causes me to strive with my brother, causes me to become contentious, is really something that I'm not interested in. Causes me to become judgmental. It's faith which works by love.
Verse 7
Now Paul said,
Ye did run well (5:7);
Again, you remember he said, "You did start well. What did hinder you? Ye did run well."
Verses 7–8
Having begun in the spirit, you did all right in the beginning, but
who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you (5:7-8).
In other words, you did not get this from God. I really like to say that to the Jehovah Witnesses that come to my door. "This persuasion didn't come from Him who called you." You couldn't believe the things the Jehovah Witnesses believe, unless you read their screwy attitudes and ideas in their books. I mean, you never get it from reading the Bible and waiting upon God. Your mind has to be bent in that direction through their writings. And so with the Mormons. You never come to believe in what the Mormons believe through reading the Bible. It comes by reading the book of Mormon. "This persuasion, this ideas that you have, they don't really come from God, from the One who called you. They are ideas that have been planted in your mind by men."
Now, a lot of times when people come to me with some weird concept, I'll say, "Where in the world did you get that idea?" And sometimes they'll lie to me. And they say, "Oh, well, I was just waiting upon the Lord and reading the Scriptures, and the Lord showed this to me." I said, "That's a lie." "Here, I'll show it to you in this book." "Have you been reading this book?" "Well, yeah, I read that book but, you know, God showed it to me." No, this persuasion doesn't come from Him who called you. You weren't persuaded to be circumcised because God was speaking to your heart and convicting you of this. These concepts, these heresies that develop within the church are passed on by men. They don't come to man from God.
And the Jehovah Witnesses, just the Arian heresy of the early church. The prosperity doctrines of the gnostic heresy of the early church. They're just warmed over, put in a new coat, and declared by a fresh voice, or sometimes the voices aren't so fresh, but they're things, concepts that . . . And you find that these people espousing them are plagiarizing from other people who have espoused them, and it goes back and back and back. But not from God. That is why I encourage you just to read the Bible. I am not at all worried about anything you will come to believe by just simply reading your Bible. I don't think you need anything more than the Bible to really know the truth of God. And I encourage you to just read your Bible.
Now, why is it that Jehovah Witness can't tell you that? Because you'll never come to their beliefs just by reading the Bible. Why can't the Mormons tell you that? Because you'll never come to their beliefs by just reading the Bible. So the minute I start peddling books and saying, "Now, to really understand the Bible, you better read my books, because you'll just, you know, read the Bible, you'll be in darkness. It's just, you know, too difficult. Just let our books explain for you." "This persuasion didn't come from God."
Verse 9
A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump (5:9).
You open the door for a little error, and it will soon magnify because you see, as you've opened the door for this error, then as you are challenged on the flaws of the error, you're going to have to develop further doctrines to cover or further concepts to cover, and pretty soon, you're going to be way out in left field.
There is a group called Jesus Only, and they believe that Jesus is the Father, He is the Son, He is the Holy Spirit. It's Jesus only. Unitarians. And they are quite zealous in their beliefs, very fervent in the proclamations of their beliefs. And I had some who were determined that they were going to convert me to their way of thinking.
And I would listen to them and listen to them and listen to them; I don't really make a practice of arguing scriptures. And so, I would listen to these fellows, and I listened, you know, and just said, "Well, you know, that's what the scripture says, you know," when they would quote scriptures. Well, they thought that they had me convinced to their way of thinking. And so, they started telling people, "Well, Chuck believes this." And so then I had to go out to them and say, "Hey, you haven't convinced me of the truth of what you're declaring. I don't believe that." And then they started to rail on me and prophesy my death and things of this nature.
And so I said, "All right, tell me, when Jesus was baptized, who spoke and said, 'This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:17)? Is He a ventriloquist? When in the garden, or when on the cross, Jesus cried, "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken Me?" (Matthew 27:46) Who was He crying to? "Oh, well, He laid down His divinity before He died." I said, "Oh oh oh oh oh," you see, "A little leaven leavens the whole lump." Now you're, you know, chopping Jesus up, and said, "Well, He is God here, and but, for a while He wasn't God and the universe was without God for a little bit here, or whatever. And, you know, I mean, you're having now go to . . . you've taken a position Jesus is the only One. Now you've got to defend it against the challenges and so you've got to start making up or taking positions that are thoroughly unscriptural in order to defend your position." And a little leaven soon leavens the whole lump.
Even though it might be a minor departure from the truth, be careful. Try and stay right on course. If, when I got on board a 747 at LAX heading for Honolulu, the captain would say, "Now, folks, we're having a little problem here with our navigation instruments. We're about one degree off, but we hope to correct this in flight or something." I'd say, "Open the doors and let me off." If your navigational instruments are one degree off, and you take your heading and you start for Hawaii, by the time you've gone that distance, you'll miss Hawaii by two hundred and forty miles.
Oh, by the time you get to Santa Barbara, you won't even notice anything. You know, you can look down and see the Channel Islands. You can see the Santa Rosa and San Miguel and San Nicolas and say, "Hey, hey, all right, we're right on course." One degree, and you've only gone hundred miles, you don't even notice. But you continue one degree off on out over the Pacific, and you can miss your destination completely. "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump."
Verse 10
Now Paul said,
I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded (5:10):
Now Paul is now saying, "Oh, who did hinder you, you know, and this teach and all. But I have confidence in you that you're not going to be persuaded by this. That you're not going to be otherwise minded."
Verses 10–11
but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offense of the cross ceased (5:10-11).
Now, evidently these Paul people were saying, "Well, Paul was circumcised and he's preaching circumcision. You ought to be circumcised, you know." And Paul said, "Hey, wait a minute. I have not. If I preach circumcision, then why would they keep persecuting me? The offense of the cross would cease." Paul was preaching that Jesus paid the complete price for your redemption on the cross. There's nothing that you can add to what Jesus paid. That it is His sacrifice for your sins that brings you redemption and the forgiveness of sins. No effort, no work on your part. You can't do anything to buy redemption. You can't do anything to buy forgiveness. The forgiveness of your sins and your redemption is totally predicated upon the finished work of Jesus Christ upon the cross.
These people were adding to it. "The death of Christ for you isn't sufficient. You got to walk the tight rope. You got to keep the law. You got to be circumcised." The message of redemption through the cross was offensive. People were trying to add to it. 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. You are saved through the finished work of Jesus on the cross. The cross paid it all."
Paul closes this little section on the idea of circumcision and all and he gets a little testy with those.
Verse 12
He said,
I would [wish that] they were even cut off which trouble you (5:12).
Or literally, "I wish they were castrated who trouble you. They're trying to cause you to be circumcised, I wish they were castrated." Naughty Paul. 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. And so, it was something that was quite familiar the castration. And of the priest of this pagan god. And so, the people of Galatia understood exactly what Paul was talking about. And let's go on. I could quickly get in trouble.
Verse 13
For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another (5:13).
Again, it is not a liberty to do anything I please. It isn't a liberty to live after my flesh. That is not what Christian liberty is about. And if you have interpreted it that way, you have completely missed the message of the scripture. "You've been called unto liberty." That is, liberty in Jesus Christ. Liberty from the law and from the bondage of the law, because that cannot make you righteous. But the liberty is not a liberty to indulge my flesh in anything that I may desire to do after the flesh. It is the liberty not to do those things which the flesh once forced me to do. So, "do not use your liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love," the real key is love, "serve one another."
Verse 14
For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself (5:14).
So, love is the fulfilling of the law. One of the lawyers one day challenged Jesus as to the greatest commandment. And Jesus said, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind and with all thy strength; and thy neighbor as thyself. And in these are all the law and the prophets" (Matthew 22:37-40). Love is the fulfilling of the law. If I am walking in the Spirit, if I am walking in love, then there can be no law to regulate my life. You see, laws are for unprincipled people.
If a person is living by right principles, he doesn't need any laws. He is governed by principles by which he lives. Laws are necessary to restrain unprincipled people. Now, if you're walking in love, supreme love for God and supreme love for your fellow man, then there is no law. All of the law is fulfilled. For what the law is actually saying to you is that you should love God supremely and love your neighbor as yourself. That's all the law is saying to you.
Verses 15–16
But if ye bite and devour one another, [you better] take heed that ye be not consumed one of another. This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust [desires] of the flesh (5:15-16).
So, Paul here exhorts us to walk in the Spirit and to live after the Spirit or on the spirit side of our lives. Now, man was created and by God as a living spirit. Created by God, in fellowship with God. God is a superior Trinity; man is an inferior trinity. The superior Trinity is made up of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The inferior trinity is spirit, soul and body of man. And it is in the realm of the spirit where man meets God. That's where I come in touch with God. That's where God touches me. In my spirit, in the realm of the Spirit. His Spirit bears witness with my spirit that I am a child of God.
"God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24). Now when Adam sinned, his spirit died just as God had warned, "In the day that you eat, you will surely die" (Genesis 2:17). His spirit died, and Adam broke fellowship with God. For God would not fellowship with man dominated by his flesh. And of course, that's exactly what the temptation led Adam to is fleshly domination. He saw that the tree was pleasant to look upon, it was tasty to eat and it would make him wise as God. "The lust of the flesh, the lust of the eye, and the pride of life" (1 John 2:16). And they ate, giving over to their fleshly appetites and in so doing, the flesh dominated. The flesh began to rule, and man's consciousness was now filled and absorbed with the body needs and the body appetites.
God did not intend man to live that way, because man living that way is alienated from God who is a Spirit. When the emphasis of man became on the physical fleshly side of him, he no longer was one with God, who is a Spirit and must be worshipped in spirit and in truth. And so in the fullness of time, God sent His Son to die for man's sin, in order that through Him man might be born again by the Spirit of God. And become again a spiritual being.
And so, when Nicodemus came to Jesus, Jesus faced him immediately with this issue. He said, "You've got to be born again." He said, "What do you mean? I can't go back to my mother's womb and be born again. What are you talking about?" Jesus said, "I'm not talking about that. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, but that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Don't marvel when I say, 'You've got to be born again.'" And Jesus talked to him about the spiritual rebirth, which takes place when a person by faith receives Christ as his Savior. There is a work of God's Spirit within his heart, and he is born of the Spirit, and now again has a spirit that is alive and is conscious of God. And this is the thing that you try to describe to people, and they don't understand.
The Bible says, "The natural man cannot understand the things of the Spirit: neither can he know them, they are spiritually discerned" (1 Corinthians 2:14). But he that is spiritual understands these things, though he is not understood. And to try to explain to people the things of the Spirit to the natural man, to try and explain the things of the Spirit has got to be one of the most frustrating things in the world. Because you have been born of the Spirit, you can see it, you can understand it; it's as plain as can be. But because they are not born of the Spirit and have no understanding of the spiritual dimension of life, you're talking riddles to them. You're talking nonsense.
It's amazing, isn't it, what difference being born of the Spirit really makes. In my attitude towards life. In my understanding of the word of God. In so many things. Suddenly, I have been born of the Spirit; things suddenly are illuminated. Things which were once a mystery and I couldn't understand are now very understandable. They're just revealed by the Spirit. The truth of God to our hearts.
So, you has he made alive who were dead because of your trespasses and sins. Who in times past you walked according to the course of this world. According to the prince of the power of the air, among whom we all had our manner of living. 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. But God has made you alive in Christ Jesus. And now your spirit is alive. And your spirit being alive, again you can experience fellowship with God, the joy, the blessing of fellowshipping with God.
So, "walk in the Spirit." That is, walk in fellowship with God. Walk on the spiritual side of your nature. And if you do, you will not be fulfilling the desires of your flesh. The flesh will not be ruling over you anymore. The fleshly desires will not be dominating your life, but your life will be dominated by the Spirit, and thus, by God.
Verse 17
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other; so that ye cannot do the things that ye would (5:17).
There is a warfare that goes on in the life of the believer. Once the spirit has come alive, now there comes this striving for the mastery of me. Will I be mastered by the Spirit or will I be mastered by the flesh? If I am mastered by the flesh, then I have the mind of the flesh. That is, my mind is constantly upon fleshly things. And the mind of the flesh is alienated from God; it cannot know God. The mind of the flesh is death.
But if my life is dominated by the Spirit, then I have the mind of the Spirit. And I'm thinking of God, and I'm thinking upon spiritual things, and the result of life and joy and peace in the holy Spirit. The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and joy and peace. The warfare going on. Am I going to yield to my flesh, or am I going to yield to the Spirit? And this comes up every day in many situations, and I have actually the choice in this situation. I can yield to my flesh and I can blow off steam and I can get in and I can fight and I can get into the striving and the whole issue. Or I can walk after the Spirit and say, "Oh Lord, it doesn't matter. Help me, Lord, to just keep the right attitude." And I can just go and pass it by.
And so, another issue arises in five minutes. Uh-huh, you did that five minutes. All right, you know. And I can choose whether or not to walk in the flesh, or then again, to commit it and walk after the Spirit. You see, it isn't a once-in-forever kind of a thing. It is once that I have reckoned myself to be crucified with Christ when I accepted Him. I was crucified with Christ, but now I have to reckon it in so many situations everyday.
"Hey, that old nature, that old Chuck is dead. Let him alone. Don't revive him. Crucified with Christ. Reckon that to be. That's just my old flesh that's upset. That's my old prideful nature. That's the old nature that wants its way, that wants to insist on its own way and all. That's the old nature, reckon that to be dead. That died with Christ. It doesn't really matter, I'm going to walk after the Spirit and I'm going to please God in this. I'm going to walk in love." And so, I have to reckon the old man to be dead each day, and oftentimes, many times through the day.
The flesh is lusting against the Spirit. The Spirit against the flesh. They're contrary, and I do not always walk after the Spirit. There are times when I lapse into the flesh. I get an attitude that is not of the Lord. I say something that is not of the Lord. Do you know what happens? Immediately the Spirit speaks to me and says, "That was wrong." "Yeah, but I had the right to do it." And I'll argue with Him for a while. "You don't know how long I've been taking it, Lord. I tried." And you keep dealing with me until I'll finally say, "Oh, God, I'm sorry. I was wrong. Forgive me, Lord. Help me, Lord. Thank You, Jesus, for Your forgiveness and for Your love and for Your grace to me."
And I'm washed and I'm cleansed and I go on. You see, I don't always do the things that I would. But when I do fail, the Spirit is right there, and that's why I know I'm a child of God. You see, if I weren't a child of God, He would just let me go. He wouldn't bother correcting me. It's sort of comforting, you know. David said, "Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me" (Psalm 23:4). The rod was the thing the shepherd used to hit the sheep on the flanks when they started getting out, you know, roaming out. All right, I'm still one of His sheep, you know. He's just whacked me with the rod. Oh, I'm comforted by that. I'm still His child. Don't despise the chastening of the Lord. "Whom the Lord loveth He chasteneth, and scourges every son whom He receives" (Hebrews 12:6).
Verses 18–19
But if ye be led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these (5:18-19),
And he gives to us here a listing, incomplete to be sure, because he ends it by saying, "And do such things." And so, such things leaves an unending list of things of the flesh. But he lists some of the works of the flesh. These works of the flesh, of course, are related to our body drives, so many of them.
Verses 19–20
Adultery, fornication, uncleanness [sexual impurities], [wantonness] lasciviousness, idolatry, witchcraft [drug abuse] (5:19-20),
The Greek word is pharmakeia, translated here witchcraft, because in the sorceries, they're into witchcraft. They often use drugs, potions; the potions that you'd take, you know, and it'd have their drug related experiences.
Verse 20
hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies (5:20),
Interesting to me that heresies is here mentioned as a part of the works of the flesh. And I was challenged by that for a while. I began to think it through and I thought, "Yes, it is a work of the flesh, because usually a person gets into heresy to attract attention to himself." 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. And the old flesh likes to get people excited and stirred up like that. And people to follow after me, you know. Here I've got this new twist on the scripture. No one's ever seen this before but oh, bless God, He's revealed it to us in these days. And you develop your own little following, which really appeals to your flesh. The works of the flesh.
Verse 21
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like (5:21):
So, the such like covers a lot of things.
of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God (5:21).
This is indeed strong language for you who want to live after the flesh. As we go down these things here, these are the things that God will exclude from His kingdom. These things are not allowed in the kingdom of God. If you want to be a subject in God's kingdom, then you cannot do these things. 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. And so, Revelation 21:8 if you want the reference on that. And then there's another reference also in Revelation, "but outside or the dogs and adulterers and so forth."
This is heavy. The works of the flesh. 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.
Verse 22
But the fruit of the Spirit (5:22)
Now, "walk in the Spirit, you'll not fulfill the lust of the flesh." Be led by the Spirit, you're not under the law. The law forbids these things, but the law of love also forbids them. "But the fruit of the Spirit"
is love (5:22),
Now notice, works of the flesh, works plural. So all of these things fall under the category of works of the flesh, but the "fruit of the Spirit," fruit is singular. So there's only one real fruit of the Spirit, that is love. These other words are defining what the agape love actually is. So, joy is love's consciousness. You ever seen a person in love and all of the joy that they have?
peace (5:22),
You remember as Paul defined love for us in I Corinthians chapter thirteen, he uses longsuffering. "Love suffereth long and is kind." This agape love is gentle; it is good. The word faith here is trusting. It is . . . it has a, perhaps, a naiveté 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." I'd rather trust and be burned than not to trust. True to the Spirit. This kind of love is a trusting love. Not to the place of being ridiculous. Some guy comes up and says, "Hey man, I got a watch, genuine made, you know. I need money to get home. Can you give me, you know, a hundred dollars for this watch?" I'm, you know, not stupid.
Verse 23
Meekness (5:23),
"Blessed are the meek" (Matthew 5:5).
temperance (5:23):
Now, the word temperance is one we have a little difficulty with. We don't understand that word too much. Let's use an opposite word, intemperant. A person doesn't lose his temper. He's temperant.
Now,
against such there is no law (5:23).
I mean, if you're walking in love, what rules can you lay down? What can you say to a guy? You see, you don't need any laws. All of the bases are covered. They're covered by the fact that you're walking in love.
Verse 24
And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh (5:24)
Paul had written in the earlier part, "I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me" (Galatians 2:20). Romans chapter six, "Know ye that the old man was crucified with Christ? Therefore reckon ye yourselves to be dead with Christ, but alive unto God through Him" (Romans 6:6,11). So, they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh.
Verses 24–26
with the affections and lusts [with its desires]. [For] if we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. Let us not be desirous of vainglory (5:24-26),
Now, these men who were coming with this teaching were really out to get notches on their belts. The kind that were always talking about numbers. "We had ten thousand souls saved last week. Look at all the notches on my belt." Men that have followed after my perverse teachings. "Desirous of vainglory,"
Verse 26
provoking one another, envying one another (5:26).
Glory, the glory of man is indeed empty; it's vain. Don't seek after it. You'll be disappointed. It will create a lot of enemies. It will create a lot of envy and a lot of provocation.
Sunday Nights, 1985 to 1999 (C3000)
Chapter introduction
It must have been difficult for those men who tried to sort of catalog the Scriptures into chapters and verses, to make the proper divisions as far as the chapters are concerned. In the book of Galatians, it is especially difficult, because Paul seem to be continuing on in the same thought, so each chapter, really, is directly connected with the other chapters. So in this idea of freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, that goes back to chapter four, where Paul tells us that we are not the children of the bondwoman but of the free.
So he starts chapter five by saying, Stand fast therefore Now we realize that the word, therefore, always has a preceding building up of thought. So Paul, dealing with this thought of the law being represented by Ishmael, the son of Hagar, and the walk in the Spirit being represented, the child by promise, of course, was Isaac. And the one was of the bondwoman and the other was of the free. And Paul likens it to those that are trying to attain a righteousness by the law versus those who have attained unto the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus and that freedom that we have from the law.
And so stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage. When Jesus was castigating the Pharisees, He said that you place heavy yokes upon men that neither you will try and carry yourself. In other words, you are great at putting a heavy burden on others. And he sort of was rebuking the Pharisees. Now Jesus said (Matthew 11:28), come unto Me, all you that labor and are heavy laden. I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn of Me because My yoke is easy, My burden in light. You can’t say that about the yoke of the law that they were trying to pull. My yoke is easy, Jesus said. So stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made you free. Don’t be entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
Now this was a real problem in the early church. Those that were called the judaizers. We do read in the Book of Acts that many of the priests had come to a faith in Jesus Christ. But though they had come to a faith in Jesus Christ, there was still sort of baggage from the Judaism that they brought in to the Christian experience. There was still that endeavor to keep the law. It was sort of an admixture of faith in Christ and the works of the law, by which they were seeking to have a righteous standing before God. So they were sort of opposed to the gospel of grace that Paul was teaching. And they felt some kind of obligation to go where Paul had gone and where Paul had brought people to Jesus Christ. They felt it was necessary for them to go and follow up Paul’s ministry by informing the people that faith in Jesus is not sufficient. You have got become a Jew by the rite of circumcision and by keeping the law of Moses in order to be saved.
So they were really a burden to Paul. As they were perverting the gospel of grace that Paul was teaching, salvation through faith and righteousness through faith in Jesus Christ. So Paul would go and preach this glorious gospel of Jesus Christ, how that God imputes to us the righteousness of Christ by faith. And these fellows would follow along and after Paul. They wouldn’t go before Paul. In other words, they weren’t out evangelizing. They were only trying to draw those who had been evangelized to their position.
This is true today in so many areas where people are aggressive in trying to proselytize. They don’t evangelize. They don’t go out to the world. But they seek to proselytize those who have come to a faith in Jesus Christ. Quite often we will have other churches that will send people down here to our parking lot on Sunday morning to put little flyers advertising their churches on the cars here at Calvary Chapel. Romaine will call them and (he’s designated to do that). He will properly question, why would you go to another church to try to draw people to your church? Why not to the malls? Why not to the beaches? Why would you know, go to another church’s parking lot to distribute your flyers?
We have special events at Calvary, but we don’t send our people over your church to plaster the cars with flyers. Why would you send your people here? And of course they never have a good answer.
But the thing is, the kingdom of God is not expanded by transferring people from one church to another or from one doctrinal persuasion to another.
So there are always those that will blaze the trail, that will be evangelistic, that will go out and reach the lost. Then there are always those who will follow up and try to proselytize those that have been saved.
The last fellow I almost hit was a wolf. I have a shepherd’s heart. It was after a baptismal service. He was cornering the kids and saying how where you baptized? Where you baptized in the name of Jesus only? The kids said I don’t know, I was just baptized. Well, if you weren’t baptized in the name of Jesus only, it isn’t a legitimate baptism. And he was confusing these kids. They only knew they loved the Lord and they were baptized. He was trying to confuse them. Well you’ve got to be baptized in the name of Jesus only. You weren’t really baptized unless you were baptized in Jesus' name. When I heard him, I grabbed him. I didn’t hit him. I wanted to. I mean there is no virtue in not. I should of, because I really wanted to. But I was so upset that he would come to these young babes in Christ and try and throw some kind of a trip on them.
And it just, I understand how Paul felt when he talks about, and we’ll get to it in a little bit, where Paul get a little crude actually about these people who were insisting on circumcision. And so Paul tells them, don’t be entangled with this yoke of bondage. It is interesting that when some of these fellows came from the church in Jerusalem, who were the judaizers, that is those that had an admixture of faith in Christ and the law, they came to the church in Antioch, where Paul was teaching. And they got hold of some of the believers and started saying to them, we are from Jerusalem, the mother church. We are here, sent by the leader of the church in Jerusalem, to tell you that if you want to really be saved, you’ve got to be circumcised and keep the law of Moses. They were again proselytizing these young babes.
So Paul got a hold of them. He said let’s go back to Jerusalem. We’ll settle this issue right now. So he came back with a group from the church in Antioch, to the church in Jerusalem to get this issue settled as far as the Gentile believers and what relationship they had to the law of Moses. Peter was one of the first to speak at the church counsel. He shared with the counsel how that God had called him to the Gentiles, to the house of Cornelius. Then Peter said, I don’t think that we should put upon them a yoke that neither we nor our fathers were able to bear. We haven’t been able to keep the law. Our fathers didn’t keep the law. Why should we put it on the Gentiles? So it was determined by that church counsel that the Gentiles were not really required to keep the Mosaic law per se, but they were recognized as brothers. Their sins were forgiven through their faith in Jesus Christ. Thus they weren’t placed under the yoke of the law. Now Paul is saying to the Galatians, don’t be entangled again. He calls it, a yoke of bondage, the bondwoman.
Verses 2–3
Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.
For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.
That is, if you are circumcised for the purpose of being righteous or being saved. If your motive in going through the rite of circumcision is thinking that that is what you need to do in order to be saved, then Paul said, Christ profits you nothing! Your faith in Christ is meaningless. You are either saved by your faith in Jesus Christ or by the works of the law. But by the works of the law, shall no man be justified. So your faith in Jesus Christ is voided if you try to mix that as far as salvation is concerned, with your adherence with certain rituals of the law.
Verse 4
Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.
You have actually fallen from grace. Because if you are circumcised for the purpose of adhering to the law, then Paul said, you are really under the obligation to keep the whole law. As he said earlier, that if try to be righteous by law, then you are under the curse of the law because it is written, cursed is everyone who doesn’t continue in the whole law to do all that is written therein. So if you take on one part of it as a basis for your righteousness, then you’ve got to take on the whole thing. If you are circumcised in order to fulfill the law, then, and feeling that, you know, you’ve got to be saved, or you’ve got to be circumcised to be saved, then actually you’ve taken on yourself to be a debtor to the entire law. You have actually fallen from grace! This glorious grace of God whereby our sins are forgiven, we’ve been washed and cleansed by our faith in Jesus Christ!
Verse 5
For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.
We are not under the bondage. We are not under the law, but through the Spirit, we are not under the works of the law. But through the Spirit, we wait in the hope of this glorious righteousness that is imputed to us by our faith in Jesus Christ.
Verse 6
For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.
It has nothing to do with your salvation! It’s of no value. It has nothing to do with your being saved. What is of value is your faith that works by love.
Verse 7
Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?
This is again one of those questions that Paul is quizzing the Galatians. You did start well. Who hindered you? Having begun in the Spirit are you going to be made perfect in the flesh? And so you ran well. You had a good start. Now who has hindered your progress that you should not obey the truth, that you should turn aside from the glorious truth of God's grace and mercy towards us through Jesus Christ?
Verse 8
This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.
This is a very important Scripture! There are a lot of people who have some weird interpretations of the Scripture. And when I talk to Jehovah’s Witnesses, I often say to them, where did you get this idea? Where did you get this concept? I can guarantee that you didn’t get it by just reading the Scriptures, because you could read the Scriptures forever and you would never come up with that crazy idea or interpretation. It isn’t logical and it isn’t Scriptural. Unless you had been taught it, you would have never come to that. It is true of Mormonism and so many other groups that have these aberrant theological positions. They are positions that are taught to them. They are not the positions that they have come to by reading the Scriptures. That is why they are constantly promoting their books because they now that if you would just read the Scripture, you won’t come to that persuasion. You would never get it, except you had read their books and you got the twisted interpretation through their books.
I encourage you to read the Bible. I’m not afraid of what you will come to believe by reading the Bible. Now the Jehovah’s Witnesses say, that if you just read the Bible, in two years you will be in darkness, but if you will read the Bible along with their books, you will be in light. Or you don’t even need to read the Bible, just read their books and you will be in light.
No, I’m not afraid of what you will come to believe by just reading the Bible. And I’ll say that to anybody. Paul said this persuasion, this idea, you would have never come to it. It didn’t come to you from the Lord, from the One that calls you. It’s from these false teachers who have come in and given their twist and their interpretation to the Scriptures. Because you would have never come to it on your own, by just reading the Scriptures.
Verse 9
A little leaven (Paul said.)leaveneth the whole lump.
He is talking about that starter kind of dough that they would put into that new batch of dough and it permeated through the entire lump of dough. A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. It is interesting how that in the Scripture, leaven is usually used as a symbol for sin because it permeates by rotting. It’s just takes the toleration of a little bit and it will permeate a large batch of dough. So it became a very apt symbol for sin. So Paul is using it here, just a little leaven will leaven the whole lump.
Verse 10
I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded:
That you are not going to be twisted, you are not going to be changed. They are not going to be able to pervert you from the gospel of Christ.
but he that troubleth you They can be of trouble. They, you know, are constantly haranguing and constantly trying to stir up people.
but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. That is an interesting warning, I feel, for those that are just looking to persuade people away from the faith or away from the solid teaching of the Word into some aberrant area of theology. They trouble the body of Christ and they will bear their judgment, whoever they be.
Verse 11
And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision,
Some of them were saying, well, Paul really preaches or believes in circumcision.
I’ve heard a lot of things about me. There is a rumor going around that I used to be a Jehovah’s Witness, you know. Not so! Anyhow it’s rumored, the Jehovah’s Witnesses started this rumor that I’m sort of a disenchanted brother or something, but no so.
But Paul said, if I preached circumcision, if that were true, why do I yet suffer persecution? You see, these Jews wouldn’t be persecuting me anymore. I wouldn’t be going through all of the heavy persecution, if I were actually preaching circumcision.
then is the offence of the cross ceased. Now the offense of the cross—the cross is offensive to people because the cross says that there is only one way to be saved. That offends people. Those who say that all roads lead to heaven, you know. No, they don’t! Most roads lead to hell. The Bible says that straight is the gate, narrow is the way, that leads to eternal life. Few, there be, that find it. Broad is the way, broad is the gate, that leads to destruction. There are many who go in therein. So the Scripture says that there is one way that leads to heaven.
Jesus said (John 14:6), I am the way, the truth and the life. And no man comes to the Father, but by Me.
Paul writes there is one God and one Mediator between God and man, the Man, Christ Jesus. And the cross declares that! Because if salvation were possible by the works of the law, then Jesus didn’t need to die on the cross. And in the Garden of Gethsemane as He was praying and sweating as it were, great drops of blood, falling to the ground, what was His prayer? Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me. If what is possible? The redemption of man, the entry into heaven by man. If it’s possible to come any way, if it can come by the law or whatever, Lord, let this cup pass from Me, nevertheless, not what I will, Thy will be done. God would not have sent His Son to the cross if we could be saved by the law, by the keeping of rules and regulations. But redemption came through the death of Jesus Christ for us. And there is no other way to be saved.
So the cross is an offense to people because it does say all of your religious systems in the world cannot save you, only by Jesus Christ can you be saved from your sins! Religion will never get you to heaven. Only Jesus Christ can bring you unto the Father. No one comes to the Father, except by Him!
The cross is an offense because it tells you that God will not accept your works no matter how good they are. All of your effort is not going to avail for your salvation. People are offended by that. Well, I’m a good person! You can be good but not make it to heaven. In fact, an interesting thing is that many good people go to hell. And many bad people go to heaven because they realize that I’ll never make it apart from the grace of God and the work of Jesus Christ. So coming to Jesus and receiving salvation through Him, casting themselves fully on Him, they are forgiven and saved, whereas those who are trying to do it on their own, Paul said, what shall we say?
The Gentiles have attained unto righteousness where the Jews did not attain to righteousness. Why? Because the Gentiles received by faith, whereas the Jews were trying by the law to be righteous. So what the Jews were seeking by keeping the law, they never attained, but the Gentiles have attained unto that righteousness, because they believed the promises of God and the righteousness imputed.
Verse 12
So Paul is upset that these false teachers would come in and stir up the believers there in the churches in Galatia and trouble them. So he said that
I would they were even cut off which trouble you.
Basically, he’s saying, I, you know, they want to be circumcised, I wish they were castrated, those who troubling you over this matter, you know. He gets a little tough.
Verse 13
For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
Stand fast in this liberty, wherein Christ has set you free. You have been called to liberty. But don’t use that liberty as an occasion for your flesh. You say, well, I’ve got liberty in Jesus, I can do anything.
Paul said to the Corinthians, all things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient.
Paul said, I’m pressing towards the mark for the prize of the high calling of God, which is in Christ Jesus. They which run in a race, run all, only one receives the prize, so run that you may obtain. So he is saying here, that we don’t use this freedom. All things are lawful but all things are not expedient. There are things that impede my progress towards the goal. So yes, I could do it, but it could hinder my running the race. I don’t go out there with heavy hiking boots to run the two twenty, because that would impede my ability to win.
All things are lawful for me, Paul said, but all things don’t edify. There are things that tear you down. They don’t build you up in Christ. There are things that you are free to do but they would draw you away from Him instead of drawing you close to Him.
All things are lawful for me, but Paul said, I will not be brought under the power of any. Many times, people, foolishly exercise their liberty in doing things that bring them into bondage. And in exercising your liberty in that fashion, you are no longer free because now you are under the influence or you are in bondage to this particular thing. You are bound by it. It’s gotten a hold on your life. You are no longer free. There is wisdom that needs to be exercised in the exercise of our liberty in Christ. Don’t use your liberty as an occasion to the flesh, because if you do, it’ll bring you into bondage. But instead by love, serve one another.
Verse 14
For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.
Jesus was asked one day by a lawyer, what the greatest commandment was. Jesus said to him, you shall love the Lord thy God with all your heart, and mind and strength and your neighbor as yourself. And in these two are all the law and prophets. The whole thing is summed up in this, loving God and loving your neighbor as yourself. You do that and you’ve actually fulfilled the law.
Paul said, he that loveth has fulfilled the law. So because love works no ill to its neighbor, therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. He wrote that in Romans, now he is repeating it here to the Galatians. The law is fulfilled in this, love thy neighbor as thyself.
Verse 15
But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.
I don’t know what gets into the hearts and the minds of people, to feel that they are called of God to try and tear down a ministry. This word in the works of the flesh, where he uses the word, emulations, that is trying to build up your position by tearing down others.
There are those who, I understand, I’m not really logged into their Internet, but I understand there are those in the Internet, and that is sort of a, I guess, it has the potential for a lot of evil. I understand why they call it the web. It’s easy to get really entangled in that thing. And people seem to, because of the anonymity of it, they seem to, you know, have no restraint on what they say. They can put out all kinds of lies and pollution and so forth on the net, you know. Who can challenge? Who can say? And so there are those that call themselves believers or Christians, and yet it seems like their whole sight is designed to just tear down and not to really build up the body of Christ. Biting and devouring. But if you get involved in that kind of a situation, where you are biting and devouring one another, soon the body of Christ has destroyed itself. I believe that it is a tool of the enemy and a trick of Satan, to get the church fighting against the church. And that is tragic! If we set ourselves to biting and devouring one another.
There are many, good, apologetic ministries. And some of the best minds are involved in the ministry of apologetics, but unfortunately, these fellows, and I think they are coming out of it now, but these fellows in the area and field of apologetics, begin to turn on each other. And use their brilliant minds for undermining the other apologetic ministers or ministry. And I’m sure that Satan was just sitting back chuckling, as he got them opposed to each other and tearing down each other. Biting and devouring one another, consuming each other. And you leave your primary purpose of defending the Christian faith to defending yourself against the attacks of these other fellows and all. You are no longer showing the problems with the theology of the Jehovah’s Witnesses or the Mormons or whatever, you’re busy just devouring one another. Be careful of that. Be careful of that!
Verse 16
This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.
Walking in the Spirit, you’ll walk in love. You’ll not bite and devour one another. The Spirit won’t lead you to do that, you see. That is a part of the flesh, emulation, trying to tear down others in order to build up your own esteem. Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lusts of your flesh.
Verse 17
For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.
Man is a trinity made up of body, mind, and spirit. Man, basically, is a spirit, living in a body, possessing a consciousness. Now my consciousness or my mind is going to be controlled by my fleshly desires or it will be controlled by the spiritual desires. If I am living after the flesh, on the fleshly side of my life, giving in to the passions and desires of my flesh, then the result of that will be that I will have a carnal mind or a mind of the flesh.
And Paul in writing about this in Romans eight, said the mind of the flesh is enmity against God. It is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. So that they who are living, the mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and it is peace. So my mind is either filled with the things of the Spirit or it is filled with things of the flesh. Now the Spirit wants to dominate my life, living, walking after the Spirit. The Spirit wants to rule, but my flesh rebels against the rule of the Spirit and my flesh wants to rule. And so with the Christian, there is a warfare that goes on, the flesh lusting against the Spirit and the Spirit against the flesh and these are contrary to each other. So that as Paul said, I don’t always do that which I would. I cannot always do that which I would, because there are times when the flesh takes over. So this problem, as long as I am living in this body, the problems of the flesh and the Spirit and the warfare that goes on, over the control of my mind. And it’s so easy to lapse into the mind of the flesh, carnal desires, carnal thoughts, filled with things of the flesh.
So Paul said we are to bring every thought into captivity unto the obedience of Jesus Christ. When we find our minds absorbed in the things of the flesh, it’s important to just take control and say, I don’t want to be thinking on those things. Start to sing a worship chorus or just turn mind towards the Lord. Get into the Scriptures. We want to live in the Spirit. We want to walk in the Spirit. If we do, we’ll not fulfill the lust of our flesh.
Verse 18
But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.
So with Paul, the whole issue here is, are we as believers under the law? Is it necessary for us to be circumcised and keep the law of Moses to be saved? Well, if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law, because the Spirit will guide you.
The Lord said, to Jeremiah, in those days, I will no longer write my law on the tables of stone, but on the fleshly tablets of their hearts.
When I am led by the Spirit, the Spirit is directing me. If I do something wrong, the Spirit will prompt me. He will convict me. He will show to me that that was something where I’d given over and given into the flesh. And I repent and I ask forgiveness. Led by the Spirit you are not under the law, you have now the guide of the Spirit to show you what God would have you to do and what is the right path to take. And how beautiful it is to be lead by the Spirit. He is so gentle. He is so gracious as He leads us and draws us to the Lord and to the things of the Spirit.
Now those that are under the law are under the works of the law. The works of the flesh, in order to try to keep the law.
Verses 19–21
Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like:
Now which of those things do you find very attractive to you? As we go down that list, we think that’s bad. Those things are bad. Well these things are all a part of the works of the flesh. Yes, the works of the flesh are evil.
I would suggest that you read this list in say the Amplified Bible, because in the Amplified Bible, they endeavor to broaden the words in order to sort of give you the idea that is in the Greek language which is so much richer than our English language. And the Greek words have a far richer meaning than do our words in English, and so in the Amplified version, by giving several words, they help you to get the picture of these characteristics of the flesh. If you have an Amplified Bible, go home and read it in the Amplified. Or a lot of times, some of the newer versions will give you sometimes a little more accurate kind of a understanding of these words, as they come to us from the Greek language. But it doesn’t make it prettier. It doesn’t make it nicer. It even shows you how bad these things actually are, the works of the flesh are rotten.
These things of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. You better go down that list again. If you are involved in adultery or fornication, sexual impurity, lasciviousness, idolatry, drug abuse, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envy, murder, drunkenness, partying, things like that, Paul said, I’ve told you before, I’m telling you again, that they which do such things, shall not inherit the kingdom of God! When Paul wrote to the Ephesians about these things, he said, don’t be deceived, it’s because of these things that the wrath of God is coming on the world. Don’t think that you can do these things and inherit the kingdom of God. Going back to, don’t use your liberty as an occasion for the flesh.
Verse 22
In contrast to the works of the law, we have the fruit of the Spirit. Works suggest a factory. Fruit gives you the idea of a garden. Works are a production, sweat, toil. Fruit is just natural. The natural outgrowth of relationships. It’s something that just develops naturally as the result of relationships. And if you have this relationship with Jesus Christ, just as a result of that relationship with Jesus, these are the characteristics that will begin to mark your life. And because the whole law is encompassed in the idea to just love. He who loves has fulfilled the law.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love,
This love, agape. There are not really nine fruits of the Spirit. There is one fruit of the Spirit and that is love! But this kind of love is not the Greek, eros, nor the Greek, phileo, but it is the word that was more or less coined for the Bible in the New Testament to describe a depth of love that was beyond man’s capacity to really develop. It’s an all-consuming love!
joy, And it is marked by joy. For if you have this love, you do have joy. That is one of the characteristics of this love.
peace, And you have peace!
longsuffering, This love is manifested in patience or longsuffering. Paul describes this love in 1 Corinthians, chapter thirteen. It might be well to go home tonight and read again the thirteenth chapter of First Corinthians. You will see the characteristics in chapter thirteen of 1 Corinthians, here in Galatians Five, because both of these are descriptive of what this agape love is about. They are both of them defining for you the Greek word, agape.
When a new word is introduced into a language, it is necessary to define that word. And so this new word, agape, introduced into the language, the definition of it, given by Paul—in 1 Corinthians thirteen and here in Galatians five.
Contrasting to the works of the law, you have the fruit of the Spirit. The works end up in hatred, variance, wrath, strife, but the fruit of the Spirit brings you joy and peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, It’s faithfulness. It’s not faith like we usually think of faith, but this is being trustworthy, fidelity.
Verse 23
Meekness, temperance
or moderation—self control:
against such there is no law. I mean if you are living like this as Paul said, the whole law if fulfilled in love. So there is no law. Laws are really made for unprincipled people. The law is not made for good people. Good people don’t a law. If you have high principles, you don’t need laws. But the laws are made for unprincipled people. They are necessary for unprincipled people.
And so if you are living in love, walking in love, the fruit of the Spirit in your life, there is no law. I mean you are living by a higher law—the law of love. And if you love your neighbor, you are not going to steal from him. You are not going to lie about him. You see if you love your neighbor as yourself, you are going to seek to benefit him and help him. If he is in need, you’ll reach out to him. So it’s really a higher standard than just, thou shalt not, and thou shalt.
Verse 24
And they that are Christ's have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.
Paul wrote in Romans, chapter eight, tells us that we by the Spirit, mortify the deeds of the flesh in order to live.
Paul in Romans, chapter six, talks about the old man, was crucified with Christ that the body of sin should not rule as king over us any longer. We need to reckon then the old life to be dead, crucified with Christ, that we might be freed from the desires of our flesh. They that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its affection and lust. I reckon that to be dead. I refuse to allow it to rule over me or to rule over my mind.
Verses 25–26
If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.
Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.
The glory of the world, those that are striving for the attention and the glory of the world, such envy, such provocation. Let’s just walk in love! Walk in the Spirit. Be lead by the Spirit. Live in the Spirit, that’s the answer to these things, the answer to a life of love and joy and peace and gentleness and goodness and meekness.
Father, help us. We read down the list of the fruit of the Spirit and how we desire and long for the fruit of the Spirit to be manifested in our lives, that Christ might be glorified in and through us. That we not live, Lord, for the applause and the glory of man, but that we live for Your glory and Your approval. Help us Lord, to live lives that are pleasing to you. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen.