Gratitude in Action: A Galatians 6:6-10 Devotional

⁶ Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. ⁷ Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. ⁸ For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. ⁹ And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. ¹⁰ So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Galatians 6:6-10 [ESV]

Throughout the earlier parts of Galatians, Paul spoke to the Galatian Christians about the only necessity needed for salvation – faith in Jesus Christ. He taught against what the Judaizers told them they must do to be true Christians. They said the Galatian Christians had to become Jews before they could be Christians. In essence, the Judaizers told them they had to undergo circumcision.

With chapter six, Paul arrived at his concluding words to the Galatians. He wanted to give them a few other practical bits of advice, too. The first two verses told the Galatian Christians to address their sinning brothers and sisters and bring them back to the way of the Lord, but to do it with love, walking with them to help carry their burden and make temptation powerless. Verse two is where Paul told them to bear each other’s burdens.

Paul offered a second piece of practical advice with verse six. He told them to share all good things with their teachers. Those who God appointed to teach other people of His Word and Gospel are to focus on that ministry. God expects His children to share of every the good thing He gave them with the teachers so they receive God’s provisions, too.

Verses seven through ten bring us to the thematic statement of this part of Galatians. Paul summarizes it in verse ten when he said, “So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.” Doing good is taking care of, providing for, walking with a burdened brother or sister, and loving other people. Jesus Christ lived this life style.

Paul reminded the Christians in Galatia whatever one does for God’s purposes would bring them blessings in eternal life. Yet if they live only to meet their own human desires, they would receive in return only things that affect them in this life. Their rewards would be corrupted and not carry on into eternity. Because of that, Paul encouraged the Galatian Christians not to grow weary in doing good, for it would pay off for them throughout eternity with God’s blessings for their good deeds.

Unlike the Judaizers, who sought to increase their fame while on earth by converting people to their way of faith, Paul taught Christians to “sow to the Spirit.” That means doing those things that are holy, right, honorable, pure, loving, true, and worthy of praise. These things are from the Lord through the Holy Spirit residing within each believer. Paul wrote about them in Philippians 4:8. Notice Paul did not say doing any of these good deeds gave Christians salvation.

They are just actions, like circumcision. Doing good things cannot save a person from the judgment due because of his or her sins. Only belief in Jesus Christ, the son of God, as the Savior who bore the judgment by crucifixion for every person can give salvation and eternal life with God. Actions are not required for salvation, but they show the love of God within a person to others and show love to God as gratitude lived out.

The challenge today for Christians is live out your love and gratitude to God in acts of goodness to other people. Show the world the love of God put in you through the Holy Spirit’s indwelling when you became a believer in Jesus Christ.

The challenge today for non-Christians is to ask God to make Himself real to you. He will answer your call and show Himself to you. Then you have to make a decision: will you believe in Jesus Christ as your Savior?

God leaves decisions up to each of us.

Will you rise to the challenge?

Led by the Spirit: A Galatians 5:16-26 Devotional

¹⁶ So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.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 you want. ¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.¹⁹ The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; ²⁰ idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions ²¹ 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.²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness and self-control. Against such things, there is no law. ²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵ Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other. Galatians 5:16-26 [NIV]

Paul spent this letter teaching the Galatians once again faith in Jesus Christ was what gave them salvation and eternal life. Other teachers had been in Galatia teaching them they had to obey the laws of God including the law that all men must undergo circumcision. These Judaizers added a works element to the salvation of the Gospel. Paul told them nothing of the flesh could give them salvation, but only by God’s grace through faith could they receive salvation.

In chapter five, Paul continued his comparison of living by the Law and living in the Spirit. He taught that living according to the Law was living in the flesh. It was based on what the person did or could do. Because it relied upon a person’s actions, which were often sinful – self-centered, arrogant, self-seeking, etc – living by the flesh could not save them nor give them right relationships with God and other people. Paul taught that living according to the Spirit of Christ, whom God puts in each new believer, was living with the love of Christ in them – love for other people and love for God. Paul said what is of the Spirit is contrary to what is of the flesh. What a person wants often goes against what God wants and what is best for every person affected.

In verse fourteen, Paul reminded the Galatians the Law is summed up in one word, “love.” Since people are sinful, they do not keep the laws God gave. The love of the laws is warped often because a person wants what he or she wants more than what God wants. Because of this, Paul gave the Galatians a list of actions and attitudes that are contrary to God and the intent of His Law. These actions are self-focused and break relationships between people and between the person and God. These acts of the flesh he identified in verses nineteen to twenty-one.

The love God seeks to implant into people, which the Law could not instill because of the sinfulness of humankind, comes through the Spirit of Jesus Christ who dwells within each believer. This love is not twisted by the machinations of a human mind or greed, but is pure and from God. Paul listed some of the attributes of a person in whom the Holy Spirit lives in verses twenty-two and twenty-three.

If you compare these two lists, you will find the second list builds relationship among people and with God, and develops a person’s sense of worth based on the value God places on the person. The latter listing of attributes and characteristics are in line with the purpose and intent of God throughout the whole Bible and align directly with the two greatest commandments Christ taught His disciples and followers. The intent of the Bible is for people to be in a love relationship with God. This love relationship then affects the relationship of people with each other. Jesus said, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and mind, and love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:36-38 [NASB]).

Paul’s point to the Galatians, once again, was they were not to be tied to the Law for salvation because it could not give it. It provided bondage because the flesh is sinful. Instead, live by the Spirit, the freedom Christ put into each believer. By living in the Spirit, the person lives in the manner of Jesus Christ – with love for the Father and love for other people. By doing this, people will not become enslaved to their sinful, human selves. By becoming enslaved to their own desires people become self-focused, envious, and provoke envy. These do not lead to harmony and love, but to chaos and self-seeking.

Paul taught the Galatians they received salvation by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ, not by following the Law. By seeking to follow the laws, they tried to earn salvation, which no one can earn because of human sinfulness. Besides this, striving to earn salvation puts self-seeking ahead of the needs and care of other people. Jesus summed the Scripture when He said we are to love the LORD God and our neighbor. Self-seeking does not put other people first, but second or last. By allowing the Spirit to lead us instead of trying to earn salvation, we allow the love of God to show in us, care for others, and develop a deeper relationship between God and us in our hearts.

Today we each need to stop and consider if we are trying in our strength to be what God wants us to be – to love people, to do for them, to make sure we are walking in the right direction, etc. We need to stop and see if our focus has shifted from God and developing relationship with Him to a focus on ourselves and how we can do more for God. If we are focused on God and our relationship with Him, He will lead us in our daily steps. We will not have to wonder if we are doing what He wants us to do. We can get so caught up in working for God that we lose sight of our relationship with Him and then no longer hear Him as vividly.

Today, take a moment and stop to focus on God. Ask Him to guide you to know if you have walked away from your close relationship with Him. Return to your quiet time with Him reading His Word, praying for closeness and guidance, and walking from that quiet time with His Spirit guiding you. Focus more on being in relationship with God and less on doing. Your relationship with God and with other people will be renewed so that you follow the two greatest commandments as Jesus said in Matthew 22:36-38.

Be led by the Spirit.

No Addition: A Galatians 4:9-20 Devotional

Focal verses: 9, 12, & 16-20

⁹ But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable forces? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?

¹² I plead with you, brothers and sisters, become like me, for I became like you. You did me no wrong. 

¹⁶ Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?

¹⁷ 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. ¹⁸ It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always, not just when I am with you. ¹⁹ My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, ²⁰ how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you! Galatians 4:9, 12, & 16-20 [NIV]

Paul wrote this letter to the Galatian Christians to combat new teachings of which they became aware. The new teachers said before the Galatians became true Christians, they had to become Jews first by following the laws God set up for the Israelites. The outward expression of being part of God’s chosen people was circumcision. Paul explained in the first seven verses of this chapter that no works by man could help them gain their salvation from sin and death. The other thing he said was by choosing to follow the Law for salvation, they chose to enslave themselves again instead of accepting the freedom God gave them by His grace through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

Beginning with verse nine, Paul beseeched them not to turn back from the way they knew God and were known by Him to the old way, the laws of God given for the establishment of His nation, Israel. Those laws, Paul said, were “weak and worthless elemental things.” They enslave people to trying to earn salvation by working for it. Yet salvation can never be attained by the works of human hands since humankind is fallible and sinful, but Jesus Christ is not. That makes God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ perfect.

In verse twelve, Paul begged the Galatian Christians to be as he was just as he became as they were. This verse can confuse us so let us consider it closer. Was Paul saying he became doubters and waffled on the means of his salvation? No, he was not. He meant in this verse that the Galatians became as he was when he spoke to them about salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. They realized they did not have to be Jews to become Christians, but that God gave His grace for every person. Paul, who once was a chief Jew, a Pharisee, gave up his tradition of keeping the laws of God to accept God’s grace gift by faith in His Son, Jesus Christ. He understood that the Law could not provide salvation and he taught that to everyone, including the Galatians. So then what did Paul mean when he said he became as the Galatian Christians were? He meant that instead of making them become as he once was, a Jew, he, by believe in Jesus Christ, became as the Galatian Christians were, non-Jewish believers. Paul did not rely upon the laws to make him a Christian, but only the grace and mercy of the Father through His Son, Jesus Christ. Paul gave up his Jewish-ness to become a Christian. In that way, he became like the Galatian Christians who were never Jews and became Christ-followers.

Paul was adamantly against the teachings the Judaizers brought to the Galatian Christians. Why did he say they were teaching this added step to become a Christian? Paul said in verse seventeen, “They eagerly seek you, not commendably, but they wish to shut you out so that you will seek them.” The teachers who taught contrary to what God provided, salvation by grace through faith, wanted to be commended by other people for understanding better and deeper what it meant to be a follower of Jesus Christ. They added on more things to become a Christian hoping to gain notoriety and fame. Do we have any preachers in our day who do this? Do they preach you must give more money to be blessed more by God? Do they say you must worship or fast a certain number of times a year, month or week, for example, to be in God’s will? We must stop and seek God for ourselves to determine if what they teach is in line with God’s revealed Word, the Bible, or if it is contrary to God’s teaching. When the veil tore upon Jesus Christ’s death on the cross, we each we enabled to speak to God for ourselves to ask Him His way. Listen, if someone teaches something that sounds odd and off from what you have read in the Bible, seek God to understand if it is truth or manmade rules. This is what the Judaizers were doing with the Galatian Christians. They added rules for a person to become a Jesus follower. God did not require these rules for them to become Christians.

In verses nineteen and twenty, Paul expressed that he continued to labor for the Galatian Christians even though he was not with them. He wanted them to be formed into the image of Christ – for them to grow in Christlikeness. Paul expressed his concern and stated he was “perplexed” about the Galatians. He reacted like a teacher, even a parent. These people were Paul’s children in Christ. He taught them and brought them before the Lord Jesus. Paul corrected them and showed them God’s way verses manmade ways to salvation and eternal life with God. He wrote and encouraged them and prayed for them. Paul desired to be with them to protect them from false teachings. We can identify with these feelings. If you have children whether young or adult, you continue to raise them in a moral and, hopefully, Christian way so they will grow up to be strong Christians and good citizens in the world. Teaching is not a one-off event, but requires encouragement, explanation, prayer, intervention, and sometimes punishment to convince the child of the necessity and purpose of the godly lifestyle and walk.

Perhaps you had people intervene in your life in the past who taught you about God and the salvation He gives through His Son, Jesus Christ. You probably did not hear about the Gospel once and then lived a perfect life from that point forward. God sent people into your life who helped you mature in your walk. Maybe they even corrected and chastised you to help you get back on the godly path. God used these people in your life as He used Paul in the lives of the Galatian believers. The Christians whose lives intersected with yours, cared and prayed for you. Some may still remember you and pray for you when the Holy Spirit prompts them. This is most definitely how Paul felt about the Galatians.

On the other hand, maybe you have never stopped to hear and consider or no one came into your sphere to tell you about the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Today and this week with these lessons, you have heard the Gospel. Because of the sinfulness of humankind and the inability for imperfect humans to work their way to perfection to be in the presence of Holy God, God provided the perfect sinless sacrifice for our wrongs/sins so we could be in His presence. The sacrifice He gave was His Holy Son, Jesus Christ who was sinless and perfect. His life paid the price for the just judgment we deserve for our sins. God provided this sacrifice because He loves you and each of us. He wants to be in a relationship with you but could not because He, being holy, cannot be in the presence of sin. With His Son’s sacrifice, sins are removed, people are cleansed from evil, when they admit they are sinners, believe Jesus Christ is God’s Son given as the sacrifice for their sins, and confess Jesus Christ is Lord of their lives. That is the simple Gospel. You can do nothing to earn salvation, but because God loves you, even as you are now with your sins, He provided the sin sacrifice through His Son’s death. God provided a way for you to be with Him forever with His Son’s resurrection from death. When you believe in Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, you inherit the kingdom of God – power over sin and death, and eternal life with Him.

Do not let people of the world tell you you must do more and be more for God to love you and accept you. God loves you already and is waiting for you to turn to Him. Maybe you need to confess your sins to Him because you are already His child, but have let your sins build a wall between you and God. Or, maybe you have not trusted in Jesus Christ and you need to do that now accepting Him as your Savior and Lord, giving Him your life. Whatever you need to do, now is your time to choose. What will you decide?