"THE CHURCHES OF GALATIA MUST LIVE BY THE POWER OF THE SPIRIT OF PENTECOST"

Singing: (Psalms and Hymns are from the "Book of Praise" Anglo Genevan Psalter)
Hymn 36:1,2
Psalm 130:2,4
Hymn 37:3,4
Psalm 143:6,7
Psalm 25:2 and Hymn 38:1,2

Beloved Congregation of the Lord Jesus Christ!

Year by year we remember the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. We know the meaning of the event: holy God in the Spirit was pleased to make His home in the hearts of sinful people, old or young, male or female, Jew or Australian. It’s a miracle for which we thank God repeatedly; we know it’s a marvel that God should come to live in sinful hearts, in our hearts.

But, my brothers and sisters, of what consequence is the Spirit’s presence in our hearts? Ought His presence to have any bearing on the way we live, act, speak, think? Again, we know the answer: Yes, indeed, His presence ought certainly to have a bearing on the way we live, act, speak, think. We know: where the Spirit is, change occurs, so much change that such people no longer carry out the desires of sinful hearts. And here is where we struggle, for there remains so much sin in our lives....

I proclaim to you today the gospel of Pentecost, the gospel concerning the power of the Holy Spirit in the lives of God’s people. It’s a gospel that lays before us both a promise and an obligation. I summarize the sermon with this theme:

Our text this morning, brothers and sisters, begins with the words: "I say then." With these words the apostle Paul announces his intention to elaborate on what he has written in previous verses. For us to understand, then, what Paul means in our text, we shall need to come to grips with what he’s just written. That, at the same time, will fill us in on the background of the instruction Paul gives in our text.

The apostle reminds the brethren of Galatia in the first verse of chap 5 to "stand fast...in the liberty by which Christ has made [them] free." The point of that reference to "liberty" is that Christ’s work on the cross resulted in the fulfillment of the Old Testament law, with as result that "the ceremonies and symbols of the law have ceased..., so that the use of them ought to be abolished among Christians." Instead of being bound by the various instructions of that law, God’s New Testament people are free. But see, in the churches of Galatia arose preachers who insisted that the saints had to be circumcised; unless they were circumcised, said these preachers, you cannot belong to God’s people. These preachers insisted that one needed the blood of Jesus Christ, O yes, but you needed more; you needed to be circumcised before you could benefit from Jesus’ blood on Calvary.

It was this teaching of the Judaist preachers that prompted Paul to write what he did in his letter. Says Paul in vs 2 of chap 5: "...if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing." And in vs 3: "I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law." Paul’s point: it’s Christ or the law, not Christ and the law. You cannot maintain that Jesus Christ has fulfilled the law of the Old Testament, and at the same time insist that you still need to be circumcised.

It will not be necessary today to say more about the teachings of the Judaizers, for this teaching is no longer what Paul writes about once He gets to our text. In our text, Paul busies himself with another point, and that is the effect of the teachings of the Judaizers in the congregation. For it appears that this teaching of the Judaizers resulted in quite some discussions in the congregations of Galatia, heated discussions, even controversy. We receive in vs 15 a glimpse of the atmosphere in the churches: members of the congregations were "biting" and "devouring" one another. This reference to being at one another’s throats and tearing each other to pieces receives more color with the words of vs 20. The particular "works of the flesh" (as Paul calls them) listed here are not mentioned because these and these only are the sum total of the works of the flesh; these particular "works of the flesh" are listed here because these were the attitudes and behavior patterns common at the time in the churches of Jesus Christ in Galatia. As a result of the teachings of the Judaist preachers about the need for circumcision, there were in the churches of Galatia "contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy"; the Christians of Galatia were biting and devouring each other as they fought for doctrinal integrity, as they sought to convince each other of what was right and what was not…. In the words of vs 26: some were "becoming conceited, provoking one another, envying one another." And –to go back for a moment to the vss 19-21- while the one brother was pushing his wheelbarrow this way and another seeking to gain influence by pushing his that way, while the one was jealous of the influence of the other and the other angry because of the victory of the one, others in the congregation in turn followed these examples of selfishness, and gave themselves to other expressions of selfishness and self-gratification: there developed in the congregation also fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, drunkenness, orgies and the like. And justification for this conduct was found in the teaching (insisted on by some) that Christ had fulfilled the law, and so we are free, free to do as we will for we belong to Christ anyway….

It’s over against this selfishness in the congregation –brothers using the discussions that be to push their own wheelbarrows, others following their example of selfishness to satisfy their own sinful desires, and all of that together justified by the conviction that "Christ has set us free"- it’s over against this selfishness in the congregation that Paul placed the instruction of vs 13: "...you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." Says the apostle: it’s true that Christ has set you free, you need not keep all the sacrifices and ceremonies of the law, you need not be circumcised in order to be saved. But, adds Paul, this freedom does not mean that you can do whatever your sinful flesh desires. Rather, that freedom means that you are to "serve one another" for "love" is the bottom line of the law and that command very much remains. So, "through love serve one another", or (as the text literally says) in love be slaves for each other, in love do for each other the work of a slave. That’s the instruction Paul gives over against the biting and devouring currently rife in the churches of Galatia.

This, then, is the instruction for which Paul wants to give an elaboration in the words of our text: "I say then," says the apostle, "walk by the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lusts of the flesh." With those words Paul expands on the instruction of vs 13, expands on that instruction not to "use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh", expands on the instruction rather "through love [to] serve one another."

That brings us to our second point: what’s the content of the instruction Paul gives in this situation of biting and devouring, of selfish ambition and outbursts of wrath?

Says Paul in his elaboration: "walk by the Spirit". The term "walk" comes from the Old Testament, where "walking" was a reference to one’s ethical behavior, one’s lifestyle. God told Abraham, for example, to "walk before Me and be blameless" (Gen 17:1). That was a reference to the lifestyle God demanded of Abraham; with that command to "walk before Me", Abraham was told to live in an ethically upright fashion.

Paul casts the word "walk" into the form of an imperative. It’s a command given to these factious Christians of Galatia; they’re told (never mind their circumstances!) how to live, how to walk. How that is? They’re to "walk in the Spirit." Paul does not say that his readers are to snap out of their biting and devouring by carefully keeping the law, doing this and doing that; Paul instead says that they are to "walk in the Spirit". Paul knows the doctrine of Good Friday, knows that on Calvary Christ has indeed fulfilled the Old Testament law so that the people of God are set free from the law as their guardian, their tutor (3:23ff). That, though, doesn’t mean (Paul knows) that the redeemed of God can now live as they want, for there’s also the reality of Pentecost. The Holy Spirit has been poured out to live in the hearts of all those for whom Christ died on Good Friday, and that Spirit does not sanction the desires of the flesh; the Holy Spirit rather draws out the opposite (vs 17); I’ll come back to that in a moment.

"Walk in the Spirit," says Paul, and hence not in the desires of the flesh. With that term "flesh" Paul refers to one’s life before and outside of Jesus Christ. It’s the life in which the sinful heart determines one’s actions. It’s the life characterized by selfishness, and so the life in which biting and devouring the other has a place, the life where the "works of the flesh" of vss 19-21 are possible. This is the life where "self" has such an over-riding dominance, the life where the desires of the flesh produce those works of the flesh as fornication, licentiousness, contentions, jealousies, selfish ambitions, dissensions, envy, hatred, etc. It’s a life driven by sin, and that’s why those who "practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God" (vs 21).

But to a world dominated by, driven by, that sinful flesh, to a world filled with "works of the flesh", God had given His Holy Spirit: Pentecost. Now the instruction of the apostle to these Galatians who produce such tragic "works of the flesh" is that they are to "walk in the Spirit". That is: these Galatian Christians are to make a point of walking by means of the Spirit, walking through life empowered by the Spirit. So: they are to do what the Spirit wants, not what the flesh wants. They are, then, not to live as if they are still heathens, are instead to live in the reality of Pentecost.

What it is that the Spirit wants? How might the Holy Spirit of Pentecost empower the Christians of Galatia to live? The Holy Spirit, brothers and sisters, would have God’s people to live according to the law. O yes, that law is fulfilled in Jesus Christ; the saints of the New Testament need no longer keep the ceremonies and symbols of that law. Nor ought these New Testament saints to think that their careful obedience to the Ten Commandments somehow earns them points with God. No, Christ has fulfilled the law for us, and so obedience to the law earns us nothing whatsoever. Yet that does not mean that the saints of the New Testament can now give themselves to whatever passions might arise in them. Rather, the Galatians –and it’s true of all Christians everywhere- are to "walk in the Spirit", live as the Holy Spirit directs. And the direction the Spirit gives is precisely the direction outlined in the law Jesus fulfilled. Recall: in the words of vs 16 Paul wishes to expand on what he’s said in the preceding verses. What he said in the preceding verses was this: "through love do the work of a slave for one another," and Paul could give that instruction because –vs 14- love is the fulfillment of the law. The law requires love, and precisely that concept of love is what the Spirit empowers one to perform. Vs 22: the "fruit of the Spirit" is first of all love. And no, beloved, the love required by the law, the love worked by the Spirit, is not a good feeling in oneself, it’s not (as some greeting cards would have it) that "feeling you feel when you feel you’re going to feel a feeling you’ve never felt before." The love worked by the Spirit, the love required by the law, is the action of vs 13: "serve one another", literally: do the work of a slave for another. That is love, the love that’s the fruit of the Spirit: you set yourself aside in order to be slave for another, for his or her benefit. That’s what Paul’s instruction to "walk in the Spirit" boils down to. Instead of biting and devouring each other, instead of being jealous of each other and getting angry with each other in the midst of the discussions resulting from the Judaist teachers, Paul tells these Christians to serve one another, be slaves for each other, ie, to "walk in the Spirit", do as the Holy Spirit directs.

This "fruit of the Spirit", though, doesn’t stand by itself. This basic requirement of the law, worked as it is in sinful hearts by the Holy Spirit, comes coupled with other distinctive fruit. You cannot have a long face as you in love do the work of a slave for another, and so "joy" also is a fruit of the Spirit. You cannot in love do the work of a slave for another with strife and tension in the air, and so "peace" is also a fruit of the Spirit. You cannot in love do the work of a slave for another while you are filled with impatience toward the other, and so "longsuffering" too is a fruit of the Spirit. And so on. Kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control: all of these cannot be absent if one is in love to serve another in the congregation as a slave serves his master.

"Walk in the Spirit", says Paul to churches torn by internal dissension, Christians at each other’s throats. The point is that they, in their atmosphere of dislike and suspicion, are consciously to walk, to live, to act contrary to the impulse of the flesh (the sinful self), are instead consciously to walk, to live, to act in agreement with the Spirit and under the leadership of the Spirit.

In that atmosphere of dislike and suspicion it strikes us as an impossible instruction; how, we feel, shall folk who’ve given themselves to contentions, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambition, etc, turn around and give themselves to serving one another, in love with joy and peace and patience and kindness doing the work of slaves for those who’ve just yesterday tried to bite you in the throat?! Yet that, beloved, is the instruction.... And yes, it’s also possible to obey the instruction, for the Spirit is not just a nobody; the Spirit is God Himself; He can empower the sinner to produce "the fruit of the Spirit". That brings us to our third point: the promise of the instruction of our text.

Notice, congregation, what is said in the last part of vs 16: "and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." That’s a promise, beloved, it’s a statement of fact: walk by the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh (or, as we can better translate: the desire of the flesh; the reference is definitely not to sexual desires only, as the word "lust" suggests). Such, says Paul, is the power of the Holy Spirit poured out at Pentecost: those who walk in this Spirit, who give themselves to do what the Spirit wants, who follow His leadership, shall not fulfill, shall not carry out, the lust of the flesh. Truly, what a promise!

We tend to think in terms of the sin still dwelling in us to be so strong that we can’t help sinning from time to time, hour by hour. We know we shouldn’t blow our top, but the discussion gets so heated and the pressure so great that we loose it. We know we shouldn’t be jealous of the positions others have in the church, but we just can’t help it: we envy the brother and find it difficult to look him in the eye, respect him, speak well of him. The sin within us, we say, is too strong; time and again it gets the better of us. And we can quite imagine the saints of Galatia speaking in similar terms in the midst of their strife and struggles; we think it natural, understandable, inevitable that there’s going to continue to be heated outbursts in their midst as they come to grips with the doctrinal discussions about keeping the law, yes or no….

But we’re to realize, beloved, that that thought is contrary to what the apostle Paul writes! What he says is not open for misunderstanding: "walk by the Spirit," he says, "and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh." Those desires of the flesh need not ever dominate any Christian; to sin in any particular circumstance is never inevitable! That promise stands on the authority of God Himself: "walk by the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the desire of the flesh."

I hear you say: but what about vs 17. That verse says that the flesh and the Spirit battle within us, with as result that we don’t end up doing the things we’d like to do, don’t end up doing the good we’d like to do. But that, beloved, is not what vs 17 says. Yes, the flesh has desires contrary to the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit poured out upon us has desires contrary to the sinful flesh; in fact, these two are very much opposed to each other. But the result is this, says Paul, that we do not do the things that we, the self as we by nature are, that we would like to do. Instead, we do what the Spirit within us wishes us to do. In the words of vs 18: if you are led by the Spirit (and you are), you are not under the law, not compelled to fulfill the Old Testament system of do’s and don’ts (circumcision!) as a means to earn your salvation (as the Judaists said). Instead, if the Spirit leads you, you will do what the Spirit wishes. Notice also vs 24: "those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." That’s a big statement: those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh; the desires of that sinful self no longer rule the Christian!

So, beloved, let it be clear in your minds: Christians, persons led by the Spirit of Pentecost, can "walk in the Spirit", Christians do not have to bite and devour one another, Christians can in love do for each other the work of a slave. Stronger: Christians, persons led by the Spirit of Pentecost, shall "walk in the Spirit", Christians shall not bite and devour one another, Christians shall in love do for each other the work of a slave! That’s the point of the apostle’s words in our text! In the midst of their strife and struggles, the churches of Galatia were told to "walk in the Spirit", and with that instruction Paul straightaway added the promise: the Spirit will empower you so that you do not carry out the desires of the flesh! It may well be that this promise of our text raised some eyebrows in the churches of Galatia, it may well be that one experienced very much that sin was time and again triumphing in oneself, but that doesn’t take away from the fact that Paul’s words here are too clear to be misunderstood: "walk in the Spirit" and the results shall be there; to give in to the desires of the flesh is not inevitable.

We understand quite well that this word from the apostle for the Galatians, busy as they were in serving the self and so sinking their teeth into each other, had quite some clout for these Galatians. The reality of Pentecost condemned their actions, demanded change, repentance. Equally, then, this text has much clout for us too. We also live in the dispensation of the Spirit, we even thank God for Pentecost. So there is –in the midst of the discussions that be in the churches- no room for contentions and jealousies and outbursts of wrath and selfish ambitions. In fact, across the board –be it in our families and marriages, be it on the job or in the bus- there is no room for contentions and jealousies and outbursts of wrath and selfish ambitions; to walk in the Spirit poured out at Pentecost is to be slaves for each other, in love actively busy seeking the welfare of the other in marriage, in school, on the job, in the church, on the sport’s field.

I know: there is evidence of the opposite in the midst of the churches. In the churches, in our families, on the soccer field words are thrown at each other in anger, and so are chairs and fists. The example given by the selfishness apparent in such outbursts of wrath, the example given by refusing to serve the other, bears tragic fruit in the lives of others of us – for such behavior encourages others to satisfy the desires of their sinful flesh in different ways (the human heart is O so inventive!). Children, for example, see their parents give in to their latent selfishness by giving in to anger, selfish ambition, contentions…, and the children follow that example of giving in to selfishness by satisfying their appetite for fornication and uncleanness…. The common factor in both instances is selfishness, giving in to the sinful urges within. No, brothers and sisters, we’re not an ounce better than were the Christians of Galatia so long ago. And we too are told, vs 21, that "those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God."

But just as they of long ago, beloved, so also we today are told –again- of the gospel of Pentecost. "Walk in the Spirit", be empowered by the Spirit, be driven by the Spirit, do what the Spirit in Holy Scripture has told you to do, and then –says the Lord- "you shall not fulfill the desires of the flesh." Empowered by that Spirit of Pentecost, you are able to deny the self, to do for each other in love the work of a slave, to serve each other for the other’s benefit! So, beloved, let us do it. In the church, in our families, in all our interactions with others, there is room –through the strength of the Spirit of Pentecost- there is room only for serving each other, in love with joy and peace and patience and gentleness and kindness doing the work of slaves for the benefit of the other.

We thank the Lord for the gift of the Holy Spirit on the day of Pentecost. We understand it now: the outpouring of the Holy Spirit on Pentecost invariably has distinct effects on the lives of God’s people. This Spirit causes Christians to live and speak and act and think in a way that actively benefits those whom God places on our path. With confidence, therefore, we resist the urge within us to think of the self, to satisfy the self; with boldness instead we give ourselves to each other, with joy and gentleness, kindness and patience seeking the other’s benefit. We believe: it is not inevitable that we fulfill the desires of the flesh; God gives us power to "walk in the Spirit".

And soon, soon Christ shall return, and then the renewing work of the Spirit of Pentecost will be perfected; then all desires of the flesh shall be gone…, and there shall be only delight in serving one another, encouraging each other eternally in the service of the Lord of Pentecost. Amen.