#4 “But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh;” This freedom is true freedom. Why don't you choose to be led by the Spirit and so escape the erratic compulsions of a law-dominated existence? Positively: "For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'" And the self-love they assume is not self-esteem but self-interest: all people want to be happy, even if they often don't know what will really make them happy. Galatians 5:13-15 Delivered 05/29/2005. When faith in Christ is overthrown peace and unity come to an end in the church. Christian liberty. The Apostle exhorts all Christians to practice good works after they have embraced the pure doctrine of faith, because even though they have been justified they still have the old flesh to refrain them from doing good. 5:13-15) Paul brings his argument back full circle. Though the conscience hurts when we fail to fulfill this commandment in every respect we are not overwhelmed by our failure to bear our neighbor sincere and brotherly love. Paul knows how to explain the law of God. If salvation is not a matter of doing why should we do anything for the poor?" CTRL + SPACE for auto-complete. Satan tries to make serving others feel like a burden, but it’s actually the exact opposite: we have freedom through serving. All of our resources exist to guide you toward everlasting joy in Jesus Christ. These ministers desert our poor and maligned Christ, involve themselves in the affairs of the world, seek advantages for themselves and not for Christ. Let nobody think that he knows all about this commandment, "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself." For the avoidance of discord Paul lays down the principle: "Let every person do his duty in the station of life into which God has called him. The one thing He requires of you is that you believe in Christ whom He hath sent. Next time you experience negative attitudes, serve that individual with kindness! My neighbor is every person, especially those who need my help, as Christ explained in the tenth chapter of Luke. Let everybody perform the duties of his station and vocation diligently and help his neighbor to the limit of his capacity. 5:13 repeats the emphasis upon freedom found in 5:1. But here Paul says you can give everything away and even lay down your life and yet not be acting in love. They appreciate this spiritual liberty and stand ready to serve others in love and, though their number is small, the satisfaction they give us far outweighs the discouragement which we receive at the hands of the large number of those who misuse this liberty. Paul and Moses (Leviticus 19:18) and Jesus (Luke 10:27) assume that all people love themselves; they don't command it: "You shall love your neighbor as you (already) love yourself." The secret of love is freedom, and the secret of freedom is utter confidence in the love of God. First of all, we have been set free from slavery to sin. But lest anyone make the mistake of thinking that God does not care how we act, Paul is quick to remind his readers that our freedom is not intended to cause us to sin, but rather to love God and one another, to be humble, and to serve. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. Paul’s great contribution is to explain the doctrine of freedom in Christ by faith in his death and resurrection for the forgiveness of our sins. Love is an essential part of the process of salvation. Legalism is helpless in bringing this about; it only gets in the way. Galatians 5:13, ESV: "For you were called to freedom, brothers.Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." 5:1) and says it again here in v.13. I am doing this in order that you may understand that the silly ceremonies of which the false apostles make so much are far inferior to the works of Christian love." Reason takes offense at the brevity with which Paul treats the Law. Hi Sandy! Galatians 5:13-15. Even if a person has done me some wrong, or has hurt me in any way, he is still a human being with flesh and blood. Upon this foundation the Apostle erects the structure of good works which he defines in this one sentence: "Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.". If you do this, you fulfill the whole law; if you don't, you destroy yourselves. They complain about the ministry, they maintain they cannot live on their salaries, they whimper about the miserable treatment they receive at the hand of those whom they delivered from the servitude of the law by the preaching of the Gospel. Subscribe to the Spectrum Magazine newsletter for email updates! Ultimately, Galatians 5:13 highlights the way our #ActionsMatter. There is not a harder command in the Bible than this one. You will never lack people to whom you may do good. Commands are good and should be seen as a summons to have the obedience which faith produces. It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Locate the Passage 5:13-26 is the second preaching unit in Galatians 5. It jars us because Jesus said, "Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13); and he taught that one of the ways to love our enemies and do good to those who hate us and bless those who persecute us is to give freely of our possessions (Luke 6:27–30). This isn't the first time I have warned you, you know. The Greek says only “brothers,” but it is not wrong to assume “sisters” in the same way that mankind includes womankind. All rights reserved. Galatians 5:13-26 It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. For all the Law is fulfilled in one word. There is no contradiction between saying God brings about love in our hearts and saying that one of the ways he does it is to remind us of love's importance with commands. It means: Want to find your neighbor a job as much as you are glad you have a job. © American Christian Television Services, Inc. | 1844 Baty Road | Lima, OH 45807 | 419.339.4444. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that's how fr... Read verse in The Message Bible #1 “You, my brothers and sisters,” Paul is addressing fellow Christians. These two ways of life are antithetical, so that you cannot live at times one way and at times another way according to how you feel on any given day. When God frees us from guilt and fear and greed and fills us with his all-satisfying presence, the only motive left is the joy of sharing our fullness. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love. Jesus said that it was for freedom that he came. We have no right to conceal or revoke this liberty proclaimed by the Gospel. As image-bearers of God, saved and set free, filled with the Holy Spirit, we must still make choices in our freedom, choices for which we will be held accountable. I would like to download “Five Things We Get From Serving Others” but I could not find the “short form.”. He started off by saying Christ has set us free for freedom (Gal. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. It is enslaved to one futile desire after another in its effort to fill an emptiness which only Christ can fill. They have an off-putting attitude and they carry a sense of “anywhere else but here.”.
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