God Speaks
Contrasting Childhood and Maturity, Spiritual Slavery and Freedom, the Flesh and the Spirit, the Law and Grace
Verse of the Day: Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A [person] reaps what he [or she] sows. Whoever sows to please their flesh [natural human desires], from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal liife. (Galatians 6:7-8 NIV 2011)
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We Respond
Reflection: The author of this blog is again indebted to Dr. Warren Wiersbe* for an understanding of the truths being conveyed in Galatians chapter 4. Chapter 4 discusses a series of contrasts:
- children vs servants The servants in a household where a parent is absent or has died have authority over the children until those children are old enough to make decisions on their own (a time set by the parent). The Jewish people were under the authority of the law until Jesus their Messiah came and fulfilled it.
- servants vs sons Servants obey their masters out of duty or fear, while sons obey their fathers out of love.
- embracing Paul and his message vs rejecting him and his teachings At first the Galatians joyfully received Paul and his teaching about freedom in Christ, but then the Judaizers tried to convince the Gentile believers that they must follow the Jewish religious laws in order to be “real” Christians, causing confusion.
- ordinary birth vs being born again by faith in the promises of God Paul gave Ishmael as an example of an ordinary birth to Abraham and Hagar. Abraham trusted God for 25 years before he received the son God had promised, Isaac. We must hold on to the promises of God, especially about salvation in Christ, no matter what happens.
*The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, by Warren W. Wiersbe, pp. 564-570.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord God for making those who believe heirs of all things in Christ Jesus. Until Christ came to earth, we were held in bondage under the constraint of the laws governing all mankind (even God-given ones like the Ten Commandments), but we could not and/or did not keep them. Then, at just the right time, “[You] sent [Your] Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” Now that, by faith, we are declared children of God, You have sent the Spirit of Your Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba, Father.” Since we are no longer slaves, but adopted children, help us live as heirs by the faith and obedience given to us by You, the Triune God. Help us to honor the leaders, like Paul, that You have placed over us by being enthusiastic about what is good. Help us to reject and put away the attitudes and actions of the flesh and/or the law–like Hagar, child of slavery, and the old Jerusalem. Instead, help us to accept and put on the attitudes and actions of the Spirit and freedom in Christ–like Sarah, the child of the promise, and the Kingdom of God. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will thank God that He accepts me as His child by faith in Christ Jesus, not by obedience to the Jewish laws.
- I will exercise the authority I have been given as an adopted child of God and co-heir with Jesus Christ, especially in prayer.
- I will support and encourage those (like Paul) who teach the true word of God.
- I will research and memorize at least ten verses that convey the promises of God to His adopted children.
Galatians 5
Reflection: Jesus Christ has set us free! What does this mean? Are we set free from something or to something? Both. We are set free from slavery to sin, self, and Satan and from struggling to obey the laws of God or man. Out of the love that the Holy Spirit is producing in our lives, we will willingly obey them. We will joyfully seek to meet the needs of others. By faith in Christ and cooperation with the Spirit, we will be free to love our neighbors as ourselves. After experiencing the forgiveness and love of Christ, we will be empowered to love our enemies. We will also be free not to participate in “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies,” or any other things like these. This is true even though our old sinful nature used to drag us into them. We will be free to enjoy the true joy, peace, and patience that comes from being “obsessed” with the true and living God.
Prayer: Thank You, Lord God for setting us (all who genuinely believe) free in Christ. Please help Your people to stand firm in that freedom and not to get drawn back into slavery. Don’t let us be deceived by rules or ideas that seem right at first glance but really pull us away from depending on Christ and His righteousness. Help us to love our neighbors as ourselves by living in the power of the Holy Spirit, not by our own human nature and inclinations. Give us the courage and strength we need to cooperate with the Spirit in putting away from our own lives “sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these.” Instead, may the Holy Spirit produce the evidence of His presence in our lives: “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.” No one could ever make a law against such things. May we live by the Spirit because we belong to Christ Jesus. In this way, we will not “become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” We will be living for Your glory, LORD. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will do something today that demonstrates the fruit of the Spirit living out through me to benefit other people.
- I will look expectantly at myself and other believers to find out what kind of fruit the Holy Spirit is producing.
- I will pull away from following anyone who is trying to get me involved with sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry (worshiping anything other than God), sorcery, hostility (violence), quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfishness ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness (or drugs), wild parties, and other things like these.
- I will memorize Galatians 5:22-23.
Galatians 6
Reflection: Dr. Wiersbe contrasts the legalist versus the Spirit-led Christian in how they deal with a believer who sins. The legalist condemns and shames (sometimes only on the basis of rumors and suspicions), while the spiritual person seeks to restore as in setting a broken bone. The legalist is seeking to use the erring brother “to make himself look good.” (emphasis in the original) * “The legalist lives by competition and comparison and tries to make himself look good by making the other fellow look bad…. It takes a great deal of love and courage for [a Spirit-led believer] to approach an erring brother and seek to help him.” Dr. Wiersbe explains that there is no contradiction between Galatians 6:2 and 5. Two different words are used in the original Greek. In Galatians 6:2 it is a heavy burden (one that is difficult for a person to carry alone), whereas Galatians 6:5 uses the word for a soldier’s backpack. “We should help each other bear the heavy burdens of life, but there are personal responsibilities each man must bear for himself.” Each believer in Christ should seek to “sow to the Spirit” and not give up until they see a harvest of goodness in their own lives and in the lives of others around them. We should be like Paul where the only boasting we do is in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. As Galatians 6:15 says, “What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation.” (NLT) May the peace, mercy, and grace of God rest on the readers of this blog so that we all live out the principles taught in the book of Galatians.
* The Wiersbe Bible Commentary, by Warren W. Wiersbe, pp. 576-582.
Prayer: Thank You, Father God, that You do not abandon us when we sin, but You gently convict, firmly correct, completely forgive, and carefully restore. You want us to do the same starting with ourselves. Please help us not to sow to the flesh, but to the Spirit. Then we will produce a good crop, if we don’t give up. Let us take every opportunity to do good to everyone, especially to those in the household of faith. Whatever dispute we are in contact with, please show us Your perspective and how to live in light of the peace, mercy, and grace You supply through Jesus Christ. AMEN
Action: (Ask God, the Holy Spirit, if He wants you to work on one of the suggestions below or something else more personal that He points out.)
- I will “carry my own load,” meaning I will take personal responsibility for how I relate to Jesus and other people.
- I will help someone else “carry their burden,” meaning I will reach out to help and/or teach someone else some of the tips I’ve learned that help me follow Jesus more closely.
- I will ask myself the next time I need to make a decision, “Am I sowing to the flesh (doing things in my old human way) or sowing to the Spirit (doing things the way the Holy Spirit is directing and empowering me)?”
- I will not give up on anything or anyone I know is right according to the scriptures.
Share: I plan to share what I’ve learned with __________.