• Up until this point, Paul has repeatedly emphasized the unity of the church in message, mission, love, and freedom
• Last week, he emphasized that Christ has set us free, and its up to us to live in that freedom

*A identifying marker of the Christian is freedom! If you asked people the first words that come to mind, would “free” be one of them?

Galatians 5:13-18

¹³ You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh^[a];

*The Real Problem: We love our sin but hate the consequences of our sin

• Remember, Paul is not writing to people of the world, but rather to the church! People who are in God’s family, who have put their faith in Jesus…but even they abuse their freedom!
• Our freedom does not make us free to sin, but rather free from the flesh that leads us to sin!
  • If you think the gospel frees you to sin, to hurt people, to act in the flesh, then you are not really free! Slavery has kept you in the flesh

*Many don’t want to be free from their sin, but free from the consequences of that sin

 rather, serve one another humbly in love. 

• This is the antidote for the flesh
  • The flesh wants people to conform to us, but does not care about others
  • Serving people is how you conquer flesh!
    • Vows, commitments, and promises does conquer it, serving people does

*Jesus had complete liberty in His life and completely conquered flesh. How? HE SERVED OTHERS IN HIS FREEDOM!

Example: Evil superman movie

¹⁴ For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”^[b] 

• Again, the Torah is not evil, but acted as a babysitter until Jesus was revealed. What did he reveal? That if you love your neighbor as yourself you satisfy the entire law.
  • The Galatian church who is being pressured and tempted to get circumcised according to the Law, Paul quotes Jesus and says, “Love your neighbor as yourself” and you keep the entire Law!
• How do you love your neighbor as yourself?
  • I love myself enough to not go to bed hungry, so I should feed someone
  • I love myself enough to cloth and sheltered myself today…so love others that way
  • If I’m in trouble or a need and want help, then go help someone in need
  • Martin Luther said, “How to know how to love people? Ask yourself how much you love yourself”

*We like to measure spiritual maturity by how beautifully someone prays, preaches, teaches, or biblical literacy, but Jesus says your maturity is measured in how you love others as yourself

¹⁵ If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

• When people in church use their liberty to get others to conform to their agenda, then they will begin to devour one another. Use liberty to love!
  • Paul is most likely concerned about the potential for violence, not just metaphorical

¹⁶ So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.

• The counter-argument to Paul, “if they don’t follow the Law, then they will go sin crazy”…but Paul says, “You don’t need the Law to keep you from sin, rather walk in the Spirit”
• People have unique walks (my Marines in Afghanistan/Youth Camp Director)
  • Your spiritual walk is the same. People can see what your walk looks like

 ¹⁷ 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^[c] you want. 

• Paul does not live a “pie in the sky” Christianity, but very practical. Do we not live this verse every day?
• I’ve heard a woman say, “God led me the man I had an affair with. I could tell the Spirit wanted to me to be with Him” No! The Spirit is in conflict with the flesh

*Think how you naturally WANT to respond in annoying or difficult situations, and you’ll know what the Spirit does NOT want you to do

¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

• If you have the Spirit, you have the guarantee of the inheritance as Children of Abraham
• If you have the Spirit, you are free from the flesh and slavery
• If you are NOT walking in the Spirit, then you don’t have the guarantee, you are in slavery, and you ARE under the Law

*The solution to the flesh is a Positive Solution (something you do), not a negative solution (something you don’t do)

Weekly Challenges

1. Build a habit in your life of saying “no” to yourself. Choose something this week of little importance and say no to it (if you can deny yourself of the little things that don’t matter, you can say no to yourself in the big things that do matter)
2. Starve the Flesh
3. Feed the Spirit

Questions for Guided Discussion

1. In this section of Paul’s letter to the Galatians, Paul addresses the danger we all possess in our freedom in Christ’s grace. Think about some sin in your life. Do you really want to be free from that sin, or just its consequence? Have you sincerely repented of that sin, or simply regretted the consequences?
2. The antidote for the flesh is serving others in love. Are you currently serving others in love? If not, are you finding victory in your battles with the flesh? Share areas, ministries, or ways you can begin serving others in love.
3. If we need to remember and focus on what rule or law, it would be to love others as ourself. First, think about the people you already love. Do you love them as deeply as you love yourself? Second, think about people near to you. Do you love them as deeply as you love yourself? Third, think about the “undesirables” in society. Do you love them as deeply as you love yourself?
4. As a group, have everyone share at least one discipline you will do this week to “Feed the Spirit.”
5. As a group, have everyone share at least one way you will begin to “Starve the Flesh.”
6. As a group, have everyone share a commitment to start the habit of “saying no to yourself.”