Galatians 5:1-15 English Standard Version
Christ Has Set Us Free
5 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
2 Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. 3 I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. 4 You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified[a] by the law; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.
7 You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? 8 This persuasion is not from him who calls you. 9 A little leaven leavens the whole lump. 10 I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. 11 But if I, brothers,[b] still preach [c] circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. 12 I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!
13 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. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.
The Word of God for the Children of God.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Freedom Found in Faith
As we immerse ourselves in the profound wisdom of Apostle Paul’s letter to the Galatians, we are immediately confronted with the idea of liberty.
This liberty, Paul tells us, is not a worldly freedom, but a spiritual one.
It’s a freedom that Christ has granted us, a freedom that we are urged to stand firm in.
This is not a freedom that comes from our own efforts or deeds, but a freedom that is found in faith.
In the world we live in, we often associate freedom with the ability to do as we please.
But the freedom that Paul speaks of is not a license for self-indulgence.
It’s a freedom from the bondage of sin, a freedom from the law, a freedom that allows us to live in the Spirit.
This freedom is not something we earn or achieve, but something we receive through faith in Christ.
Paul warns us not to become entangled again with the yoke of bondage.
This bondage, he explains, is the law.
The law, in this context, refers to the Old Testament laws that the Jews were required to follow.
These laws were numerous and meticulous, covering every aspect of life.
But they were also impossible to keep perfectly.
As a result, those who tried to live by the law were constantly in a state of guilt and condemnation.
But Christ has set us free from this bondage.
Through His death and resurrection, He has fulfilled the law on our behalf.
We are no longer required to live by the law, but by faith in Christ.
This faith is not a passive belief, but an active trust in Christ’s finished work on the cross.
It’s a faith that acknowledges our inability to save ourselves and our total dependence on Christ for salvation.
As we live by this faith, we experience a freedom that is both liberating and transforming.
We are liberated from the guilt and condemnation of the law, and we are transformed into the likeness of Christ.
This transformation is not a result of our own efforts, but the work of the Holy Spirit in us.
As we yield to the Holy Spirit, we begin to bear the fruit of the Spirit, which includes these: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. (Galatians 5:22-23)
This freedom, however, is not an excuse for self-indulgence.
Paul warns us not to use our freedom as an opportunity for the flesh.
The flesh, in this context, refers to our sinful nature, our natural inclination to sin.
If we use our freedom as an excuse to indulge in sinful behaviors, we are not truly living in the freedom that Christ has given us.
Instead, we are abusing this freedom and turning it into a form of bondage.
Instead, Paul urges us to use our freedom to serve one another in love.
This is the essence of Christian freedom.
It’s not freedom for self, but freedom for others.
It’s a freedom that compels us to love our neighbors as ourselves, to put their needs above our own, to serve them with the love of Christ.
This is the freedom that Christ has called us to, a freedom that is found in faith, a freedom that is lived out in love.
True Faith Leads to Freedom Leads to Humble Service
Galatians 5:13-15 The Message
13-15 It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?
Paul was astonished at how quickly the Galatian believers were giving up on the gospel he had brought.
And it wasn’t for an easier freedom; people were going back to being burdened with rules and rituals.
Apostle Paul’s message: the freedom bought by Christ’s blood must not be forsaken so quickly and so readily.
It’s infinitely too precious!
It’s a freedom designed to lead to showing Christ’s love to others by humbly serving in whatever ways we are gifted.
Living as people who are freed in Christ, we’re called to walk the “narrow road,” avoiding the ditches of legalism on one side. lawlessness on the other.
Either ditch leads us astray.
Either ditch leads us directly into the stagnant waters and the mud within it.
There might even me a million mosquitos per square inch and a snake or two!
Freed from sin’s yoke, we’re free to serve neighbors—showing Christ’s love!
In doing so, we humbly honor God for the precious freedom we have in Christ.
When we serve one another in love, we’re following Christ’s example and we are obeying his command (John 13:34-35).
John 13:34-35 New American Standard Bible 1995
34 A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. 35 By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
This can include a willingness to literally go the extra mile and take someone to an appointment for example.
Or to mentor a teenager, young adult, or do outreach, or teach Sunday school.
Or to serve in another way we are gifted.
Fueled by grace, our freedom leads to serving others gracefully.
Led by God’s Spirit, we’ll find ways to express our freedom by being a blessing.
And in doing so, we too are blessed!
In the name of God, the Father and God the Son and God the Holy Spirit,
Let us Pray,
Psalm 40 The Message
40 1-3 I waited and waited and waited for God.
At last he looked; finally he listened.
He lifted me out of the ditch,
pulled me from deep mud.
He stood me up on a solid rock
to make sure I wouldn’t slip.
He taught me how to sing the latest God-song,
a praise-song to our God.
More and more people are seeing this:
they enter the mystery,
abandoning themselves to God.
4-5 Blessed are you who give yourselves over to God,
turn your backs on the world’s “sure thing,”
ignore what the world worships;
The world’s a huge stockpile
of God-wonders and God-thoughts.
Nothing and no one
compares to you!
I start talking about you, telling what I know,
and quickly run out of words.
Neither numbers nor words
account for you.
6 Doing something for you, bringing something to you—
that’s not what you’re after.
Being religious, acting pious—
that’s not what you’re asking for.
You’ve opened my ears
so I can listen.
7-8 So I answered, “I’m coming.
I read in your letter what you wrote about me,
And I’m coming to the party
you’re throwing for me.”
That’s when God’s Word entered my life,
became part of my very being.
9-10 I’ve preached you to the whole congregation,
I’ve kept back nothing, God—you know that.
I didn’t keep the news of your ways
a secret, didn’t keep it to myself.
I told it all, how dependable you are, how thorough.
I didn’t hold back pieces of love and truth
For myself alone. I told it all,
let the congregation know the whole story.
11-12 Now God, don’t hold out on me,
don’t hold back your passion.
Your love and truth
are all that keeps me together.
When troubles ganged up on me,
a mob of sins past counting,
I was so swamped by guilt
I couldn’t see my way clear.
More guilt in my heart than hair on my head,
so heavy the guilt that my heart gave out.
13-15 Soften up, God, and intervene;
hurry and get me some help,
So those who are trying to kidnap my soul
will be embarrassed and lose face,
So anyone who gets a kick out of making me miserable
will be heckled and disgraced,
So those who pray for my ruin
will be booed and jeered without mercy.
16-17 But all who are hunting for you—
oh, let them sing and be happy.
Let those who know what you’re all about
tell the world you’re great and not quitting.
And me? I’m a mess. I’m nothing and have nothing:
make something of me.
You can do it; you’ve got what it takes—
but God, don’t put it off.
Glory be to the Father,
and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost;
as it was in the beginning,
is now, and ever shall be,
world without end. Amen, amen.
Loving God, Living God, Loving Hope, Living Hope, Loving Living Life His Way! "Many things are possible for the person who has hope. Even more is possible for the person who has faith. And still more is possible for the person who knows how to love. But everything is possible for the person who practices all three virtues." - Brother Lawrence (1605-1691), Practicing the Presence of God (1692). 