Gal. 6:7–Whatever Is Sown Will Be Reaped

Galatians 6:7–"Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap."

This is one of the most basic truths of life, that we reap what we sow.  Most of us understand this truth and we live our lives loosely attempting to abide by it.  To be sure, it is so ingrained into our lives that it can be seen in nearly every facet of life: water the garden and the plants will grow, empty the fuel tank and the car will stop, pay the bills and the lights stay on, and so on and so forth.

But Paul adds this qualification: God is not mocked.

What does he mean by this?  How is God mocked by sowing and reaping?

The truth is, how often do each of us sow one thing but pray to God for a different harvest?  I readily admit that I have sowed on thing while earnestly asking God for another.  This is the essence of this verse.

We should never forget the reality of sowing and reaping.  God does not bless the sowing of sin with righteousness, just as He does not bless a harvest of holiness when it is sown in unrighteousness.

But to sow righteousness is the very joy and task of the Christian.  In so doing we will reap a harvest of eternal life.

Amen!

Gal. 5:13–Freedom To Do What?

Galatians 5:13–"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."

Freedom can be a controversial word in the American church.  The reason for this is two-fold.  Firstly, Americans have been raised with a specific understanding of what freedom is.  As a result, we bring our American definition of freedom to bear upon the Scriptural meaning of freedom.  We struggle, sometimes, to take our American lenses off, meaning that we confuse Christian freedom with American freedom, even going so far, unfortunately, to use the terms synonymously.

But Christian freedom is different.  It is the freedom to love one another, the freedom from sin, the freedom to do what is right in God's eyes, the freedom to obey the commands, and, lastly, the freedom to live a life of submission to God's will in our lives.  It is in this way that we have been called to freedom just as we have been blessed with freedom.

Let us not forget this. And let us not use our freedom in Christ to serve ourselves but, rather, to love each other more!

Galatians 5:22-23–Fruit of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22-23–"But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

This passage and its content present the fruits of the Spirit, which are held in contrast to the fruits of the flesh.  To be sure, the point here is that those who are in Christ and have submitted to the Holy Spirit's presence in their lives will exhibit certain personality and behavioral traits: the fruits of the Spirit. One of the struggles with this passage as it pertains to Christians is that some who would think themselves worthy of receiving these fruits yet have found them oddly absent in their lives have wrongly assumed that in order to possess them they need to somehow try harder–as if by trying to be more joyful we would receive the spiritual fruit of joy, etc.  But this attitude couldn't be further from the truth.  Rather, the fruits of the Spirit are simply a direct result of our adoring devotion to God through Jesus.  It is this and this alone that incurs the presence of the fruits at all.  For this reason, we should not focus too much on the fruits as if by possessing them we would enhance our devotion to the Lord.  Instead we should strive to love God with all our hearts, soul, and mind, and trust that God will bless us with spiritual fruits in our lives.

Gal. 6:9–Let Us Not Cease in Doing Good

Galatians 6:9–"And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

O how easy it is to grow weary in doing good!  But this weariness is a sufficient reason to cease in doing good. How often do we cease in writing a letter simply because our hands may feel sore, or do we easily stop comforting a friend because we may need a drink of water? No!  The test of our resolve, the crucible of our convictions is the lengths we will go to protect our faith when it is under fire.  Would a good gardener stop watering the seedlings because they do not sprout in day?  In the same way, we must persist in doing good, understanding that it is in our persistence that our conviction is refined and proven.

But praise be to God who does not let us alone in the process of doing good though we may grow weary!

Galatians 6:7-8–Do Not Be Deceived: Reap What's Sown

Galatians 6:7-8–"Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.  A man reaps what he sows.  Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, form the Spirit will reap eternal life."

In many ways the reality of this passage seems so obvious to us as if it were a simple matter of arithmetic.  However, the assertion itself necessitates that the one who sows would live an observed life, that is, that the sower would be cognizant and self-conscious enough to recognize the priorities of his/her labors in this life.

Because this appears to be the case, rather than praying that we would sow correctly, we should first pray that we would be able to recognize where we're sowing already and, if the aim of our cultivation is one of the flesh, that we would then be reordered to plant in the Spirit.  This is about perspective as much as it is about prioritization, in focusing devotion as much as in transforming tastes.

Ultimately, the Christian life is about radically ordering our lives to the singular goal of glorifying God in everything we are.  Sowing in the Spirit turns out to be the primary mode for this occurring.  We would do well to make it our primary mode for life too.

Gal. 5:16–Walk by the Spirit

Galatians 5:16–"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh."

One of the foremost and important questions that every Christian needs to answer is: how am I suppose to live now?

In reality, most of the New Testament deals with this very thing.  And while there is a depth to this endeavor that goes far beyond the scope of this post, however, the above verse offers a wonderfully succinct exhortation to the task of Christian life.  The essence of this verse, and the Christian experience as a whole, can be summarized as living a life that is compelled and controlled by the Spirit.  In addition to that, while we are living by the Spirit, we will no longer be living for our flesh; that is, we will no longer be living to gratify our sinfulness.  Needless to say, the whole concept of 'walking by the spirit' has been the topic of encyclopedias of Christian theology, but it is a topic for every Christian to put into practice in their own lives.  Let us thus make this the very core of who we are and how we live as we strive to live lives of utter obedience and adoration to Christ!

Galatians 4:4-5–God Sent Forth His Son at the Right Time

Galatians 4:4-5–"But when the fulness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who are under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons."

In all facets of life, there is something to be said about the importance of planning.  But even the best laid plans can be for naught if they are attempted before the appropriate time.  Think of all the great plans that we ourselves have considered or contemplated that, for whatever reason, were too-poorly timed to come to effective fruitions.

That is one of the many remarkable things about the gospel.  Not only is it God's perfect plan, but the perfect timing of the divine plan is a masterful stroke of eternal genius.  God waited centuries, from the sin of Adam to the birth of Christ Jesus for His plan to be put into effect.  This is utterly marvelous, absolutely incredible.

We should not forget this important part of the Christmas story, that it was God's great timing and plan that Christ would be born to save sinners.

Praise be to God!

Galatians 6:2–Bearing One Another's Burdens

Galatians 6:2–"Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ."

It is one of the definitive marks of Christian fellowship that we would bear one another's burdens.  In many ways, this is one of the most natural extensions of our Christianity; however, at other times, this can seem like an immensely difficult undertaking, particularly when people don't often or easily share their burdens with others.  Coincidentally, this is precisely why we should be willing to share with our brethren the struggles we may be facing.  Only if we are willing to reveal our burdens will those we entrust them to be able to bear them with us.  It is, in the end, a matter of give and take, but also of honesty and fellowship.  In this way we can be sure to fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:9–Do Not Grow Weary in Doing Good

Galatians 6:9: "And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

Doing good with perseverance is the very essence of giving ourselves fully to Christ.  But we do good with a resolute hope that our steadfastness in godliness will reap a harvest.  And this harvest is not one of financial blessing or prosperity in wealth; it is a harvest of souls won for Christ.  Our good is not done because we expect to receive some sort of monetary reward. We persist in doing good for the sake of eternity.  That is why we do not give up and why we do not taint our goodness by disillusion or weariness of our perseverance in goodness.

Let us then remember:
Do not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up."

Freedom in Christ, but for what purpose?

Galatians 5:13: "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."

Christianity exalts freedom, claiming utter freedom in Christ.  But this freedom, this liberty is a liberty not merely from that which enslaves (sin).  This freedom is also to that which is God (love).  However, there is a tendency to equate freedom with the ability to do whatever one desires at any feasible time.  This is a deformed caricature of freedom, more aligned with novel-Americanism than the Word of God.

For what good is freedom if it is only used to isolate and individualize personal egos?  Instead, freedom is purposed for love, for devoting one another to more intimate fellowship.  Yet, as asserted by this verse, freedom is not a gift, as it were, it is a calling.  We would do well, then, to treat it as such and to live as such and to understand our freedom not as mere license for flesh and sin but as a privilege  calling us obedience and devotion.

Galatians 2:20–Crucified With Christ

Galatians 2:20: "I have been crucified with Christ, it is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me.  And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me."

When reading this verse, my thought is: "What if I haven't been crucified by Christ?"  The truth is, in order for Christ to live in me, as this verse asserts, I must be brought into His crucifixion.  Unless I take part in Christ's death, I can have no business in His life.  It is by way of His death that we are given His life eternal.  In the eternal sense, you cannot have life without death.

This is the depth of the second part of this verse.  It is by faith in the Son of God that life is imparted to the believer.  But this faith is not faith in some abstract sense and it is certainly not a faith spiritualizes, as in, a faith that spiritualizes Christ without considering the historicity of His life, death, and resurrection.  No.

Faith of the right sort is a faith in the crucified Messiah, the risen Lord.  This faith forms the foundation for a life lived by faith, one that is dependent on the reliability of the Word of God and the historicity of Jesus of Nazarene.  The risen, living self is thus founded on the risen, living Lord just as the sin flesh is put to death in the crucifixion of Christ Jesus.  Amen to God that He has orchestrated such an amazing wonder as this!

How Well are You Caring for the Fruits?

Galatians 5:22-23: "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."

I make no claims to be a great agricultural mind, however, in my limited experience and rudimentary research I have learned a few basic things about the process.  There is, it turns out, a very basic rule about growing anything desirable and it is this: there are only enough nutrients and space for one thing.  For instance, an oak and a daisy cannot be planted in the same spot.  Inevitably one of them will win out the fight for food and sunlight and the other will die.

You cannot have a healthy plant and a diseased plant in the same space.  You can, however, have diseased portions of healthy plants, in which case the diseased part must be cut off so that the host plant may be able to heal and become healthy again.  Additionally, in my experience (admittedly limited) the best soil is quite adept at growing the most voracious weeds; meaning that well-tilled,-well-watered soil is just as likely to grow weeds as it is to grow desirable flowers.

It takes an active hand on the part of the farmer or the gardener to prevent the weeds from sapping the nutrients from the healthy plant. It takes an intentional effort to ensure the health and prosperity of the fruit so that it may grow into its full, ripe state.  It cannot occur passively.  Think of how miraculous it seems to walk through an overgrown forest and find a desirable flower or raspberry bush; we would immediately discern that either a great biological oddity has taken place or an active agent has, in fact, planted and tilled that flower, protecting it from the overgrowth of the more resilient and capable plants.

This is what fruits of the Spirit are all about.  In Christ, the soil of our souls has been tilled, renewed by the restoration of Calvary; what was a lifeless soil has now been made alive and fertile in Christ.  But this soil is just as capable for growing great fruits of the Spirit as it is to grow despicable fruits of flesh and death.  The point is that we play an active role to encourage the growth of fruit in our lives as well as to preserve those fruits from the wickedness of the world.

To be sure, all of this is done by the empowering presence of the Holy Spirit but it is a joint partnership.  He works within us that we might work with Him in obedience to His will  in our own lives and, by extension, to affect the whole world.  Let us then take serious the call to farm the fruit of our souls with all the fervor and care of the most decorated blue-ribbon farmers!