In the movie “Cast Away,” Tom Hanks played the role of Chuck Noland, a Fed Ex executive who was stranded in an uninhabited island because of a plane crash. During his 1,500 days in that lonely island, he made an imaginary friend out of volleyball. He named it “Wilson.” There was even a scene where Chuck wailed for losing Wilson in the sea. I pray that none of us need to come up with an imaginary friend just to cope with life. In his “The Never Alone Church,” David Ferguson wrote, “The world needs a relevant, vibrant body of believers who will serve as a shelter in the storm, a refuge from the pressures of life, a sanctuary of hope where hurts can be healed and spiritual needs can be met.” We want our church to be that body of believers. It can only happen when we obey the “one another” commands of the Bible.
Let us open our Bibles in Galatians 5:13-25. We will focus on “serve one another in love.”[1] Someone wrote, “The only people who will really enjoy life are those who have sought and found how to serve.” That’s why this morning we will talk about “Enjoy Life Together.”
How do we enjoy life together? First, we are to ENJOY our freedom in Christ with each other. Freedom in Christ is the main idea of the book of Galatians. Chapter 5 verse 1 says, “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Based on this key verse, we can divide Galatians into two. First, look at the upper portion of the verse: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” We became free when we trusted in our Lord Jesus as our Savior. From chapters 1 to 2, we see our freedom in Christ defended. From chapters 3 to 4, we see our freedom in Christ explained. Before we were slaves to sin. Now we were set free in Christ. This means that we are free to be what God has created us to be. Note that all of us were set free. This is something we have in common. That implies that what is important is not how we look at a person or what people think of us. What is important is how God looks at us and what He thinks of us. We are free from trying to impress each other. Christ had set us free to enjoy our freedom in Christ with each other.
Now, look at the lower portion of the verse: “Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” Note the word “then.” Now that we are free in Christ, therefore we are to stand firm in this freedom. From chapters 5 to 6, we see our freedom in Christ demonstrated.
One version goes like this, “Christ has freed us so that we may enjoy the benefits of freedom.”[2] How do we then enjoy our freedom and avoid going back to slavery? Look at verse 13. “You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” The New Living Translation translates verse 13 like this, “For you have been called to live in freedom, my brothers and sisters. But don’t use your freedom to satisfy your sinful nature. Instead, use your freedom to serve one another in love.” This is how we demonstrate our freedom. We are free to serve one another.
John Stott wrote, “[Our] freedom in Christ is not to be used as a pretext for self-indulgence. Christian freedom is freedom from sin, not freedom to sin.”[3] We are not supposed to use our liberty as license to sin. Instead, we are to EXPRESS love through serving one another. As I’ve said we were set free so that we would no longer try to impress each other. We were set free to express our love by serving one another in love.
We serve one another in obedience to the second greatest commandment, that is, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Chuck Swindoll wrote, “Christian freedom is not freedom to exploit others. Christian freedom is not freedom to disregard the needs of others. We’re to love God and one another, fulfilling the heart of God’s Law.”[4]
Thus, we are to care for one another, not to contradict or to compete against each other. Verse 15 says, “If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.” Are you using your freedom for selfish reasons? Do you insist on your rights? Or do you give up your rights for the sake of others? For example, when there’s a conflict, do you focus on your hurts? Or do you go beyond and reach out in forgiveness?
I read somewhere that, after world-famous psychiatrist Dr. Karl Menninger gave a lecture on mental health, a person asked, “What would you advice someone to do if he felt a nervous breakdown coming on?” Most people expected the doctor to say, “Consult a psychiatrist.” Instead he said, “Lock up your house, go outside, find someone in need and do something to help that person.” Dr. Menninger knew that those who serve others have less mental and psychological problems. The best way to bring on a heart attack or a mental, emotional breakdown is to think about yourself all the time.[5]
I like how The Message version puts it all together: “It is absolutely clear that God has called you to a free life. Just make sure that you don’t use this freedom as an excuse to do whatever you want to do and destroy your freedom. Rather, use your freedom to serve one another in love; that’s how freedom grows. For everything we know about God’s Word is summed up in a single sentence: Love others as you love yourself. That’s an act of true freedom. If you bite and ravage each other, watch out—in no time at all you will be annihilating each other, and where will your precious freedom be then?” We were saved to serve.
Serving one another goes against our selfish, sinful nature. That’s why we read in verses 16 to 17: “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other, so you are not free to carry out your good intentions.”[6] To serve one another in love, we are to EXPERIENCE the power of the Spirit together. When we put our trust in our Lord Jesus as Savior, we received the Spirit in our lives. “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”[7] Now, we have to learn to be guided by the Spirit. It simply means to live in obedience to the Word of God. As we step out to obey, we can rest assured that the Spirit empowers our every step. We are in a partnership with the Spirit.
On our own, we desire to be served. “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God.”[8] There are times we think that the so-called “acts of the sinful nature” are limited to extreme sins such as immorality and murder. Note that the Bible listed even those that were considered “acceptable” or “respectable” sins, such as envy and hate. These sinful attitudes are due to our lack of dependence of the Spirit.
When we depend on the Spirit, He bears fruit in our lives. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.”[9] This is the way The Message version translated these verses: “But what happens when we live God’s way? He brings gifts into our lives, much the same way that fruit appears in an orchard—things like affection for others, exuberance about life, serenity. We develop a willingness to stick with things, a sense of compassion in the heart, and a conviction that a basic holiness permeates things and people. We find ourselves involved in loyal commitments, not needing to force our way in life, able to marshal and direct our energies wisely.” With the help of the Spirit, we would desire to serve. We would not think of ourselves only but also of others. Rick Warren wrote, “You are never more like God than when you serve.”[10]
Brothers and sisters let us…
ENJOY our freedom in Christ with each other
EXPRESS love through serving one another
EXPERIENCE the power of the Spirit together
Someone wrote about a person who called a preacher to say he wants to become a church member. But, he went on to insist that he wants a church where he does not have to worship every week, study the Bible, visit the sick or serve as a volunteer. The minister told the caller that the church he was looking for was located in another part of town and gave the address. When the caller went to that address, he came face to face with the result of his own attitude of not wanting to be involved. There stood an abandoned church building, boarded up and ready for demolition.[11]
Let us enjoy life together. Christ had set us free to serve one another in love through the power of the Spirit.
Let us pray…
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[1]Galatians 5:13. All Bible verses are from the New International Version unless otherwise noted.
[2]GOD’S WORDÓ to the Nations Translation
[3]The Message of Galatians: Only One Way
[4]Galatians: Letter of Liberation
[5]From the illustration database of http://SermonCentral.com
[6]New Living Translation (NLT)
[7]Galatians 5:25
[8]Galatians 5:19-21, NLT
[9]5:23-25
[10]The Purpose Driven Life
[11]Sermon Central.
