Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion, whoever that may be, will have to pay the penalty. Brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love. For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.

• Galatians 5:1-26

Noted Biblical Scholars, Teachers, and Preachers Comments

Galatians 5:1 ‘good character needs no rules’: “Albert Camus once said, ‘Integrity has no need of rules.’ Think about that. Rules are designed to keep behavior in order. If someone has strong character and lives with integrity, the rules are unnecessary. That person will act consistently with his or her values.
“That’s one reason I never had many team rules for our players. (We looked for players who had high integrity, who held themselves to a high standard.) They knew where I stood and what I expected of them.  As a leader-of both my football team and my family-I realize that people have to grow into their values and learn to be accountable not to me but to their own character. It’s important to give people a certain amount of freedom, as well as the responsibilities that go with it, to allow them to grow. If they develop an inner life committed to honor and integrity, they have no need of my rules or anyone else’s. They live from the core of who they have become.
“Don’t focus on keeping the rules. Focus on becoming the kind of person who is so strong in character that the rules aren’t even necessary.”

• Tony Dungy, Uncommon Life – Daily Challenge (excerpt from devotion for 29 October)

Galatians 5:6 ‘a sort of antiritualism’: “All ways of justification by human works and outward forms are set aside by the apostle. In one sentence he closes up every road that is cast up by man and opens up the way of the Lord, even the way of salvation by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Some hope to be saved by ritualism. On the other hand, many are relying on their freedom from all ceremonies and place their reliance upon a sort of antiritualism. The outward-whether decorated or unadorned, fixed or free-touches not the saving point. The only thing which can save us is faith in Jesus Christ, whom God has set forth as a propitiation for sin.“

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

Galatians 5:10 ‘confidence in you’: “Paul expresses encouraging assurance that the Lord will be faithful to keep His own from falling into this gross heresy. See John 6:39, 40; 10:28, 29; Romans 8:31-39; Philippians 1:6, 7. They will persevere and be preserved (Jude 24). judgment. All false teachers will incur strict and devastating eternal condemnation. See … 2 Peter 2:2, 3, 9.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Galatians 5:14 ‘all the law’: “The ethics of the OT law are the same as those of the NT gospel as indicated in the quote from Leviticus 19:18 (see … Rom. 7:12; 8:4; cf. James 2:8-10). When a Christian genuinely loves others, he fulfills all the moral requirements of the Mosaic Law concerning them (Matt. 22:36-40; cf. Deut. 6:5; Rom. 13:8-10). This is the ruling principal of Christian freedom (vv. 6-13).”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Galatians 5:16 ‘Walk in the Spirit’: “All believers have the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit (cf. Rom. 8:9; 1 Cor. 6:19, 20) as the personal power for living to please God. The form of the Greek verb translated ‘walk’ indicates continuous action, or a habitual lifestyle. Walking also implies progress; as a believer submits to the Spirit’s control-that is, responds, in obedience to the simple commands of Scripture-he grows in his spiritual life (see …  Rom. 8:13; Eph. 5:18; Col. 3:16). the flesh. This is not simply the physical body, but includes the mind, will, and emotions which are all subject to sin. It refers in general to our unredeemed humanness. See … Romans 7:5; 8:23; cf. verse 13.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Galatians 5:19-21 ‘Paul mentions the symptoms, not the sin’: “ Sin has symptoms and manifestations, just as cancer has certain manifestations: I’ve seen a few cancer victims in my-time; my own father died of cancer. They have symptoms, but the symptoms are not the cancer; if you clear up the symptoms, you still have the cancer. Sin also has manifestations – many manifestations. Paul gives a list of them in Galatians 5:19-21.
“And yet, he didn’t tell us sin at all, he told.us the symptoms of sin. These things are all symptoms of something deeper: our asserting self.  It is asserting my created and derived self, putting myself on the throne and saying, ‘l am self; I am that l am.”
“I have read books on existentialism.  I could shudder and grieve that men can be so tragically mistaken as they are, and yet I knew they were because I read my Bible. Existentialists say that man is-man wasn’t created; man just is-and he has to start from there. He has no Creator, no planner, nobody that thought him out: he just is. They make man say what only God can say: ‘I am that I am.’ Man can say, in a modest humble voice, ’I am,’ but only God can say in capital letters, ‘I AM THAT I AM.’ Man has forgotten that and that is sin.”

• A. W. Tozer, Who Put Jesus on the Cross?

Galatians 5:19 ‘evident’: “The flesh manifests itself in obvious and certain ways. fornication. The Greek word is porneia, from which the English word pornography comes. It refers to all illicit sexual activity; including (but not limited to) adultery, premarital sex, homosexuality, bestiality, incest, and prostitution. lewdness. The word originally referred to any excessive behavior or lack of restraint, but eventually became associated with sexual excess and indulgence.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Galatians 5:20 ‘sorcery’: “The Greek word pharmakeia, from which the English word pharmacy comes, originally referred to medicines in general, but eventually only to mood­ altering and mind-altering drugs, as well as the occult, witchcraft, and magic. Many pagan religious practices required the use of these drugs to aid in communication with deities. contentions … heresies. Many of these sins manifested in the area of human relationships have to do with some form of anger. Hatred results in ‘contentions’ (strife). Jealousies (hateful resentment) result in ‘outbursts of wrath’ (sudden, unrestrained expressions of hostility). The next four represent animosity between individuals and groups.”

• John MacArthur, John MacArthur Commentary (quoted Scripture without bold/italics)

Galatians 5:22-23 ‘who we really are’: “Some football players aren’t sure who they are when they retire. For years they have been validated and valued for what they do and how well they do it. Their self-esteem has been based on statistics and wins. They are talked about very publicly in terms of performance and treated as a commodity-easily expendable when their worth to the team declines. Sometimes their wives fall in love with their high-profile role and lifestyle.
“If they have found their identity in their profession, they face an identity crisis as soon as their accomplishment-oriented profession ends. If they have found their sense of self in their achievements, they don’t know their real selves when the achievements are over. Their careers have come to define them, and they don’t know who they are deep down inside.
The apostle Paul described the fruit of the Spirit as internal characteristics. They have nothing to do with wins and losses, standards of performance, or accolades. They shape us from within and are expressed outwardly toward others. These inner qualities don’t always fit well in a competitive world. They aren’t oriented toward winning. But in God’s eyes these are the characteristics that shape who we are and make us successful in His Kingdom When we find our identity in Him, we find fulfillment in what­ ever His Spirit does within us. That’s a sense of self that always grows and can never be taken away.
God created you for more than a competitive advantage against His other children. He didn’t design you to ‘get ahead in the world.’ He doesn’t define you by what you do, how you earn a living, how well you perform or impress others, or what kind of accolades you receive. He defines you by the value He assigns to you as His child, and He shapes you by the Spirit working within you.”

• Tony Dungy, Uncommon Life – Daily Challenge (excerpt from devotion for 16 November)

Galatians 5:22 ‘the singular Joy’: “Many children of God, even when driven away from the outward means of grace, have, nevertheless, enjoyed such visits of God, such rivers of divine love that they have wondered from where such joy could come. In the wilderness, waters leap forth as do streams in the desert. Believers are not dependent on circumstances. Their joy comes not from what they have but from what they are, not from where they are but from whose they are, not from what they enjoy but from what was suffered for them by their Lord. It is a singular joy, then, because it often buds, blossoms, and ripens in wintertime when the fig tree does not blossom and there is no herd in the stall.“

• Charles H. Spurgeon, from sermon notes

Galatians 5:22 ‘Impatiently trying to be patient’: “If you find patience hard to give, you might ask this question. How infiltrated are you with God’s patience? You’ve heard about it. Read about it. Perhaps underlined Bible passages regarding it. But have you received it? The proof is in your patience. Patience deeply received results in patience freely offered …
“God does more than demand patience from us; he offers it to us. Patience is a fruit of his Spirit. It hangs from the tree of Galatians 5:22: “The Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.’ Have you asked God to give you some fruit? Well I did once, but … But what? Did you, h’m, grow impatient? Ask him again and again and again. He won’t grow impatient with your pleading, and you will receive patience in your praying.“

• Max Lucado, A Love Worth Giving

Galatians 5:24-26 ‘Actions speak louder than words’: “Whenever something goes wrong, either on the football field or at home, the first words that come out of my mouth are usually, “You’ve got to be kidding me!” So I shouldn’t have been surprised when I heard the same words come out of the mouth of one of my sons when another son broke his toy. He sounded just like me. He even put the right emphasis on got.
Children are imitators. They learn by watching the people around them, especially the authority figures closest to them. What we say as parents may be important, but it’s not nearly as important as what we do. When our actions are inconsistent with our words-and kids will notice because they are uncannily perceptive-kids will almost always ignore our words and follow our actions.
True obedience is not just a matter of words but of action and follow-through.

That’s not only true of obeying God; it’s a fact in every area of life, especially our leadership. And it’s never more true in our leadership than in our relationships with our kids. Words are powerful, but actions are much more so.
Actions speak louder than words. The most effective lessons you teach are the ones you live before others, especially your children.”

• Tony Dungy, Uncommon Life – Daily Challenge (excerpt from devotion for 25 December)

My Thoughts

If Christ has set us free, why do we subject ourselves to the yoke of slavery?  Paul’s point is not to let the Judaizers circumcise you.  Once circumcised, you are subject to the entire Law.  But this can apply to any faith plus concept.  Many denominations have something that signifies that the person is saved, something besides faith in order for the church to consider you “saved”, like a certain ritual, saying certain words, exhibiting certain gifts of the Spirit, or simply becoming a member of the church.  It make deathbed conversions almost impossible.  How can you lift the person, then immerse them in a tub of water, and then present them to the church congregation when they a bedridden?  I know, many of these denominations that require such things for salvation have backdoors, which introduces inconsistency.  When God never changes, why should the rules change?

Whether circumcision or another faith-plus concept, this addition has no value.  We are saved by faith and that faith is expressed in love.  What more do we need? Nothing.

Paul then makes the comment that they have run a good race, so why let someone cut in on you?  It seems Paul either ran races or he watched a few.  I was a mile runner in high school.  Really, I would have been better at longer distances, but our school did not have cross country racing.  But the first quarter mile was staying with the jack-rabbit starters, or in contact with them.  The next two laps were maintaining the momentum with long gliding strides.  I found these laps relaxing.  But then the last lap was on the balls of the foot, never the heels, like a sprinter, but the actual sprint was the last 100-200 yards.  The hundred yard difference was based on whether someone was ahead or not.  The point that Paul is making is that it is demoralizing when you have led or in the lead pack for three and a half laps and then, it’s as if someone was sitting on the sidelines resting and they immediately jump in front to win the race.  This was done in the 1980 Boston Marathon.  Rosie Ruiz ran a short distance, left the race to take the subway to the finish line and then hopped from the crowd and ran across the finish line, pretending to be exhausted.  Her time and lack of total exhaustion caused people to question the results.  But whether it is cheating or if someone passes you legitimately having a better “kick” than you have at the end, it is hard having someone “cut in on you.”

Jesus uses the yeast analogy and Paul repeats it here.  It is why he says that being circumcised leads to be subjected to the entire Law.  With a little yeast spoiling the entire batch, what rules of the Law have then been satisfied by Christ and which have not?  Not knowing, then all apply, and Christ died for no reason.

Then in the final verses Paul has the two comparative lists, plus one.  He makes the point that the Spirit and the Flesh are in conflict.  We should walk in the Spirit so that we do not fall prey to the Flesh.  The flesh is characterized by “sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.”  Too many of us stop at sexual immorality in our definition of the “Flesh.”  It is much more than that.  And if you have no temptations along the sexual point of view, you might fall prey to the other forms of living in the “Flesh” while focusing on how wonderful you are to resist temptation in an area that you simply are not tempted.  As Rev. Tozer mentioned, these are symptoms of us making ourselves to be God.

Then Paul lists the fruits of the Spirit as “love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”  The terms regarding what the Spirit gives us are confusing.  Charles Stanley wrote in his book The Wonderful Spirit Filled Life about how fruits of the Spirit were one thing, but gifts of the Spirit was something else, and then there were motivational or sign gifts.  Some things come immediately when we accept Jesus.  Others take a while.  And the gifts are extra things, either as needed or in the role that you take in ministry.  But we should all have some evidence of the fruits.  In focusing on those fruits and keeping our eyes on Jesus, we can avoid the characteristics of the Flesh.

But then, Paul adds a third list.  What if half the things on Paul’s “Flesh list” are things you are not tempted with.  Maybe you can work with “self-control” to handle most of the rest, only slipping occasionally with that one troublesome area, but only in private.  Then, the concept of being self-righteous comes into play.  Paul’s third list is being conceited, provoking, and envying.

Wait!  Do those go together?  In a way they do.  You are conceited, but you secretly know that you are conceited by a house of cards that you have around you.  You are envious of the Christians around you that “look more Christian than you portray yourself.”  And how can you get them to not look so “Christian”?  Provoke them to anger, entice them with temptations, or slander them with falsehood.  It’s the old concept of making everyone else look bad so that by comparison, you look better.

That concept does not work with God.  He knows the truth.

Some Serendipitous Reflections

Galatians 5:1-15 Freedom in Christ 1. What ‘spiritual yardstick’ does your church use to see who measures up? How does it compare to verse 6?
“2. How have you seen Christian freedom abused? How is verse 6 an antidote to those who think their freedom in Christ gives them license to do anything they wish?
Galatians 5:16-26 Life by the Spirit1. Which spiritual fruit are ‘blossoming’ for you? Which are in the ‘bud’ stage?
“2. Which sinful acts are ‘dead and buried’? Which are ‘mortally wounded’? ‘Alive and well’?
“3. How can you and the Spirit grow the one and kill the other?”

• Lyman Coleman, et al, The NIV Serendipity Bible for Study Groups

Galatians 5 is divided into two sets of questions.

Substitute whatever group for any reference to a small group or ask who could come to your aid.

If you like these Thursday morning Bible studies, but you think you missed a few, you can use this LINK. I have set up a page off the home page for links to these Thursday morning posts. I will continue to modify the page as I add more.

Soli Deo Gloria.  Only to God be the Glory.