Gal 4:1-20 — Son and Heirs, Example of Hagar and Sarah
Gal 5 — Christ Has Set Us Free, Walk by the Spirit
Gal 6 — Bear One Another’s Burdens, Benediction
Thoughts about serving others
This link includes a list of posts about Serving the Least, the Lost, and the Lonely.
My prayer is for you to join me on this journey. Subscribe to this blog below to get an email when a new post is available.
Let the Word evoke words. May your life encourage lives.
“So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir” (Galatians 4:7). When we stop and think about the significance of this concept, we should be filled with excitement and anticipation for what God has in store for us. Not that we deserve it, but that he freely gives and gives with great joy. As a dad, it brings me great joy to present a gift to one of our daughters, something special, perhaps something handmade or picked out specifically for her. When she receives is and tears of happiness fill her eyes, my joy is complete. We are crafted in his image. I can only imagine what it will be like when we finally enter into his courts.
We are no longer slaves to sin, we should not act like it! Paul is “perplexed” (4:20) about his spiritually young church of Galatians. They are being led astray, “Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may have zeal for them” (4:17). Forgive me for this side note, but last night we watched the football game and I was amazed at the extent to which many of the fans went to cheer on “their” team. It’s great to have fun and relax, but to this extreme? Wow! Some days I feel like a true foreigner. We are “brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise” (4:28). “Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery” (5:1).
“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth?” (5:7). Paul provides a great reminder using words that we can relate to even in this day, though I don’t think he knew road rage like we see it portrayed on our highways! His words, no less, are pretty extreme. If they continue to preach circumcision is the way to God, “I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!” (5:12). Ok Paul, we’re paying attention now!! Just after this announcement, Paul reminds us to, “love your neighbor as yourself” (5:14).
The fruit of the Spirit is “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control” (5:22-23). This scripture was the key text in a song I wrote for Vacation Bible School in 2004, a full decade ago. Still, I remember the stage full of some 300 children singing through “Fruity Blues” with sign language, especially the last fruit: self control. The official sign for this is to act like you’re hold the reigns of a horse in a motion to stop him, whoa horse, whoa. Self control. That still resonates with me a decade later. Lord, I pray that this fruit would be more evident in my life each day. Help me to walk in your Spirit, “let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other” (5:25-26).
One final note: “to the Israel of God” (6:16) caught my eye. At first I misread it to say, the God of Israel, but no, it is indeed one final plea to God’s chosen people, the ones he loved so much that he provided for in extremely difficult times. Lord, may I be part of the Israel, the chosen people, those who please you every day. Help me to take every opportunity to “do good to all people, especially to those who belong tot he family of believers” (6:10). And always, to give you the glory in all things!