Rules and Relationship January 25, 2009
Galatians 5:16-26
Not under the law, but led by the Spirit
Recap
- Series because of some passages in the novel, “The Shack” that speak about rules verses relationship.
Young gets something, but it needs further investigation
Galatians – convinced that to be truly Christian, you must follow the Jewish religious law.
Paul says No!
You are not “saved” by behaving, but by believing
You are not given the Spirit and the gifts of the Spirit because you behave well, but because you Believer in Jesus.
You are Free from the Law!
Don’t use your freedom to sin – Last week
What Paul does is take a relationship that is bound by rules, and presents a rule (love) that is bound by relationships.
This week, he takes it a bit further
Sinful nature verses Spiritual Nature
Flesh verses Spirit – explain
We are “saved” not just FROM our sins and their punishment, we are saved INTO life in the Spirit
- out of Egypt, into the promise land
Egypt – Slavery to the Law, slavery to sinful behavior
Promise Land – The ways of the Spirit
Since we are talking about the geography of the heart, we still live in both Egypt and the Promise land – the flesh and the Spirit are both present in our lives – and they fight each other.
Two Dog Story
Paul’s personal experience of the Struggle: Romans 7:15-25
I do not understand what I do. For what I want to do I do not do, but what I hate I do. And if I do what I do not want to do, I agree that the law is good. As it is, it is no longer I myself who do it, but it is sin living in me. I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
So I find this law at work: Although I want to do good, evil is right there with me. For in my inner being I delight in God’s law; but I see another law at work in me, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within me. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!
So then, I myself in my mind am a slave to God’s law, but in my sinful nature a slave to the law of sin.
By the power of the Spirit, we are able to choose whether we live by the old sinful nature, or by the Spirit.
Paul says it’s easy to figure out which is which.
Verse 19 – the acts of the sinful nature are obvious.
If you have a nagging feeling that you are sinning & you don’t know how, you are likely not – the acts of the sinful nature are obvious
Sometimes we can have feelings of shame that are not connected to any present sin – Shame and Grace
Sometimes we have Job’s friends who tell us that we must have some unknown sin or else all this bad stuff would not be happening
– this verse tells us that both of these thoughts are wrong – the deeds of the sinful nature are obvious.
Sometimes they are not obvious to us – Ed Silvoso says that pride is like bad breath – everyone knows you have it but you!
- good to have friends who will let us know when we are going down the wrong path – the difference between conviction and condemnation.
But just in case, Paul gives us a list of problem behaviors.
sexual immorality, Sex outside of Marriage
impurity, - Pornography, dirty jokes
Ephesians 5:3-4
But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for the Lord’s people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.
*debauchery - lustful pleasures, - “a love of sin so recless and so audacious that a man has ceased to care what God or man thinks of his actions.” – W. Barclay
idolatry, - not to much actual idols for us – Hinduism, but if you treat anything, person, institution… like you should only treat God, that is idolatry
witchcraft - sorcery, - controlling others by our religious actions – some prayers come close to this!
hatred - hostility, if you seethe when the person is around, you’ve got this.
discord - quarreling, (Argument sketch – it’s funny because we know contrarians like this.)
jealousy, possessiveness of people and things
fits of rage - outbursts of anger, - I know some people who see their outbursts of anger as a strong point – “it gets things done,” “it lights a fire under people” – they are wrong.
selfish ambition, “it’s all about me”
dissension, poisoning the atmosphere at work, going behind the boss’s back…
factions - division,
envy, - wanting what others have
drunkenness, - don’t be drunk on wine, but filled with the Spirit – includes all intoxicants – don’t try to wiggle
orgies - wild parties, - to the younger people, you might say that you don’t take part in the wildness, but you shouldn’t even be there
and other sins like these. – not a complete list, but enough so you can get the idea of what he means when he says don’t use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature.
This is not a list of don’t as much as it is a description of what happens when we are living by the sinful nature.
He says that people who do these things will not inherit the Kingdom of God – not as a transaction, but if you are controlled by these things, it proves that you have not stepped into the new live of the Spirit, the new life of the kingdom fully. _ some of the behaviors might be easier to kill than others – some of them are like a chicken with their heads cut off: they’re dead, they just don’t know it yet.
Paul says that when we came to faith, we killed these behaviours on the cross with Jesus. In Ephesians he tells us to take off the old self,(like a dirty shirt) and put on Christ!
But the fruit of the Spirit is:
love,
joy,
peace,
patience,
kindness,
goodness,
faithfulness,
gentleness
and self-control.
Notice that the bad list is things that we do, whereas the good list are things that the Spirit grows within us.
A tree cannot force fruit out, but if it is right relationship with the environment, fruit will grow.
Jesus says “I am the vine…Abide in me..
Paul calls us to stay in step with the Spirit.
These fruit of the Spirit are not a new Law, they are a natural outgrowth of our relationship with God through Jesus, by the Spirit.
Remember…What Paul does is take a relationship that is bound by rules, and presents a rule (love) that is bound by relationships.
How do we stay in step with the Spirit, or abide in the true vine?
Do all the relational things – pray, worship, meditate, read scripture…
Whatever is true…
Feed the good Dog – don’t feed the debauchery, the anger…
The metaphor of fruit should not be pushed too far though – we do have a responsibility to grow good fruit, but it is only in relationship with the gardener that we can do this.
We can try to Love more, and better
We can try to be joyful, peaceful…
Rules and relationship – God is not looking for a transactional relationship, where “we don’t break his rules and he gives us good stuff and doesn’t kill us.” He wants a relationship of true love and affection. But that relationship is proved by our behaviour – we let the sinful nature die; we let the fruit of the Spirit grow.
