THE BOOK OF GALATIANS – CHAPTER 5:7-11 MESSAGE 18 – DISOBEDIENCE; DIVISION; STUDY OF LEAVEN; STUMBLING BLOCKS
We continue this vital study of Galatians so that our faith is secured in the realities of faith, and not pushed around by the whims of men and false teaches. These Galatian Christians nearly broke Paul’s heart by wandering away and into false doctrine that would negate their faith. Let us continue in Chapter 5.
[A]. NOW IT IS TIME TO FACE THE MUSIC
{{Galatians 5:7 “You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?”}}
In chapter 1 Paul condemned those who had brought these Galatians into the snare of slavery – {{Galatians 1:8-9 “Even though we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to that which we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, SO I SAY AGAIN NOW, if any man is preaching to you a gospel contrary to that which you received, LET HIM BE ACCURSED.”}}
The repetition here means a strong emphasis and Paul makes no bones about this. Those wanting to bring these believers under the slavery of the Law of Moses, opposed faith and substituted works. Making them keep the Law of Moses and the Sabbath and circumcision is the exact opposite of what Paul was preaching.
Just picture if Paul was in their midst. He would look disappointingly at them and ask who had hindered them; who had pestered them to lead them astray? At the heart of this departure was disobedience to the truth. Adam was disobedient to the truth. Romans and Galatians are closely connected especially Romans 4 and 5.
The word hindered means to obstruct; to cut into the flow and disrupt it; to impede your progress. The first part of the verse confirmed the state that the Galatians had deserted the truth. They ran well; walked well with the Lord. Now they go in the opposite direction. Paul would line them up and ask who had done this to them, but of course he knew. This was to cause the Galatians to examine themselves.
One of the names for Satan is Beelzeboul, lord of the flies, or lord of the dung heap, and it stands for putridness and contamination. That is the destruction and division the enemy causes. The good seed has been sown and the enemy creeps in to sow the tares among the wheat (new converts). It is the same everywhere.
We have the same today. A certain group comes in and says you must keep the Sabbath day. Another comes and tries to force experience and emotionalism and a second blessing, a second baptism, on the people. Others come along, of Paul, of Apollos, of Peter, to carry the saints away in a certain direction. We must be very vigilant.
[B]. GOD IS NOT THE AUTHOR OF DIVISION/HERESY
{{Galatians 5:8 “This persuasion did not come from Him who calls you.”}}
Of course, the Lord is not to blame for disruption in the church or among the flock. The sheep are settled for the night in the sheepfold and the enemy of souls creeps in and causes mayhem among the saints with heresies and deception. {{2 Corinthians 2:11 “in order that no advantage be taken of us by Satan, for we are not ignorant of his schemes.”}} I have a series on Sermon Central on this very subject and here is the link if you want to look at various ways the devil uses to achieve his purposes of corruption.
https://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon-series/we-are-not-ignorant-of-satans-devices-or-schemes-sermon-series-from-ron-ferguson-23578
Whether it is the behaviour of people inside the church, or practicing things that are not biblical, or destructive heresies, do not attribute any of that to God because – {{1 Corinthians 14:33 “for God is not a God of confusion but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints.”}} Verse 8 above says that it is God who calls you. But sadly, it is Satan’s agents that are whispering in your ear with all sorts of heresies, and diversions and practices not edifying to the work of the Lord.
[C]. LEAVEN – INFILTRATION – PERMEATION - INSIDIOUSNESS
{{Galatians 5:9 “A little leaven leavens the whole lump of dough.”}}
This is only a small verse but its meaning is deep. The teaching of leaven is a key theme in scripture and its relevance has been marked all through history.
In the bible leaven is a type of evil. Consistent and accurate always, and I would like to trace a few instances of that.
(a). 13 times in the 12th chapter of Exodus, leaven occurs in the verses. The association of leaven as a symbol of evil begins here and it was stressed over and over that the Passover feast in Egypt was to consist of unleavened bread. The very first reference in scripture is here – {{Exodus 12:8 “They shall eat the flesh that same night, roasted with fire, and they shall eat it with UNLEAVENED BREAD and bitter herbs.”}}
Only one other reference I will add from this chapter – {{Exodus 12:19 “For seven days THERE SHALL BE NO LEAVEN found in your houses for whoever eats what is leavened, that person shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he is an alien or a native of the land.”}}
Before we proceed any further with this, it may be asked, “What is this insistence of no leaven (yeast)? Why is it?” The bible is full of types and symbols, eg., fire = cleansing and judgement; white = purity; leprosy = sin. Well, by its very nature, leaven is that which infiltrates and spreads throughout, as mentioned in the Galatians verse – a little leaven will go right through and leaven the lot.
In a bible study of mine some 50 years ago, I remember when speaking of this, a man said the following – one good apple in a case of bad apples will not turn the bad ones good, but one bad apple in a case of good ones will turn all the rest bad. That is a good example of the nature of leaven. It is a symbol of sin, and the way sin will spread through the human race and in any place it finds entry.
That is why Paul was insistent on correct teaching and conduct in doctrine and behaviour.
(b). When it comes to the services and sacrifices in the Tabernacle great care was to be taken ensure no leaven was present in any way. {{Leviticus 2:4-5 “Now when you bring an offering of a grain offering baked in an oven, it shall be UNLEAVENED cakes of fine flour mixed with oil, or UNLEAVENED wafers spread with oil, and if your offering is a grain offering made on the griddle, it shall be of fine flour, UNLEAVENED, mixed with oil.”}} (The offerings had to be without yeast/sin as they are types of Christ’s sinless offering.)
This absence of leaven was equally important in the temple also. There was to be no “sin” present with the sacrifices because all the Old Testament sacrifices were types of the sinless, spotless Lamb of God who would come as the sin offering for the whole world.
(c). Coming to the New Testament we have a lot of references but I will be selective. The first one is here – {{Matthew 16:11-12 “How is it that you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? But beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees.” Then they understood that He did not say to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.”}} The application is to the evil of the Pharisees and Sadducees and the way that evil spreads. This is the same sense Paul is applying in the Galatians verse we are considering.
(d). The next one is this – {{Mark 8:15 He was giving orders to them saying, “Watch out! Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and THE LEAVEN OF HEROD.”}} What Jesus says is that Herod’s leaven was an idolatrous evil. Those in government, especially today, are more and more evil and bring in wickedness like abortion and homosexuality and socialism and climate change and whatever it is they put their hands to. Jesus would say beware (be careful, very careful) about the policies of ungodly politicians. Beware the leaven of Biden/Obama and the United Nations, etc. The permeation of government policies is insidious and dangerous.
(e). The next one is just as important – {{1 Corinthians 5:6-8 “Your boasting is not good. DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT A LITTLE LEAVEN LEAVENS THE WHOLE LUMP OF DOUGH? Clean out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, just as you are in fact UNLEAVENED, for CHRIST OUR PASSOVER also has been sacrificed. Let us therefore celebrate the feast, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the UNLEAVENED BREAD OF SINCERITY AND TRUTH.”}}
The symbol of sin is most apparent here and there is another reference to the leaven and dough. We don’t have the time to explore this Corinthian passage any more than that, apart from saying that the mention of Christ our Passover is emphasising the spotlessness of His sacrifice – a sacrifice without sin (that is why Paul mentions “you are in fact unleavened”).
(f). We do one more to end this very brief study of leaven. This one is greatly misunderstood. {{Matthew 13:33 “He spoke another parable to them, The kingdom of heaven IS LIKE LEAVEN which a woman took and hid in three pecks of meal until it was all leavened.”}}
The terribly wrong teaching associated with leaven here, is that of leaven being the gospel that spreads through the whole world. It comes from the reformation teachers but is very wrong. One important fact about symbols in the bible is that they are ALWAYS consistent. If leaven always means evil, then you are not going suddenly to have one case where it is good. Impossible! It always stands for evil.
What the Matthew parable is really saying is that evil spread throughout. To understand this parable you need to look at all 7 parables as they relate to church history (a huge subject we will do one day), and this parable speaks of the time in history of the rise of the Roman Catholic church when the evil teachings of Babylon took root and spread throughout. We will leave that one at that.
[D]. NOW THE POSITIVE SIDE THAT TOOK 5 CHAPTERS TO REACH
{{Galatians 5:10 “I have confidence in you in the Lord, that you will adopt no other view, but the one who is disturbing you shall bear his judgment, whoever he is”}}
This is the first time Paul breaks from the disappointment and distress of what the Galatians had done and speaks of his confidence in them to put matters right. We do not know the outcome because there is no follow up letter, but I feel sure the Galatians would have taken stock of themselves and turned around to begin afresh. After all, this letter is so full of arguments from the Holy Spirit that they would not resist in any way – surely.
Paul says they could not adopt a different viewpoint because there was no excuse for their falling into error and the Apostle was confident they would see reason through the Holy Spirit who would lead them back into the truth.
Paul turns to the Lord for his confidence is in the Lord. Through the Lord he then has confidence in the Galatians that they will see the truth clearly, and adopt no other view than what Paul has been setting out to them in many different ways.
Isn’t it a blessed thing when the Holy Spirit takes our hands when we fall into sin and gently leads us back through repentance and into renewed fellowship with the Lord again? Do you recall this verse – {{John 16:7-8 “but I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Helper shall not come to you, but if I go I will send Him to you, and He, when He comes, will convict the world CONCERNING SIN, AND RIGHTEOUSNESS, AND JUDGMENT –“}}. Although Jesus speaks of the world, we can also take those verses and apply them to us. Many of us need to be convicted of sin even though we belong to Christ. The leaven of unrighteousness can also do its hidden and evil work in us, making us weak in the kingdom of God. We need to repent and be refreshed again.
Here are two stanzas of a poem of mine that would cover this –
Relieve me, Lord; in my distress, now listen.
Be gracious to me, and for You, set apart.
Wash me to cleanse all those hidden recesses.
Now wash me with hyssop applied to my heart.
Lift up with light, your countenance upon me.
Now let the daystar of love conquer darkness.
Create in me a clean heart and right spirit,
The joy of salvation in clear, pure starkness.
No one can trouble God’s sheep without coming under judgement. He shall bear his own guilt going to judgement. I don’t like saying that but God does. The purity of His people is paramount to the perfection God wants in us. There was a man called Achan who took some cursed things in the battle of Jericho in disobedience to God and affected God’s nation by his leaven. As a result many soldiers died and Israel was defeated in the next battle. Achan had to be found and then taken out of the way. That is how serious matters were. Achan was called in 1 Chronicles 2:7 “the troubler of Israel”. Let us be very careful that we don’t allow leaven to be brought into the meal for it will cause destruction and chaos among God’s people.
[E]. THE OFFENCE OF THE CROSS
{{Galatians 5:11 “but I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? Then THE STUMBLING BLOCK OF THE CROSS has been abolished.”}}
Something was on Paul’s mind to cause him to state this condition suddenly without reference to what he had just been saying. Maybe some charge had been made against him. The verse is open to speculation, but rather than do that I will give what Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges has said –
[[ Another abrupt transition of thought, rendering the connection obscure and uncertain. It is however evident either that a charge of inconsistency had been brought against St Paul, or that the possibility of such a charge flashed across his mind. He could find no language too strong to condemn those who submitted to circumcision, and yet it was an admitted fact that he had himself circumcised Timothy. Did he not ‘yet’ (still) virtually preach circumcision, as he had insisted on it before his conversion? This was a specious, and if unrefuted, a fatal objection. Based on a fact, it must be met by an appeal to fact - the fact of persecution. ‘If I still Judaise, why do the Judaisers still persecute me?’ ]]
I don’t like saying it, but persecution is a way of life for Christians because the offence of the cross will not cease until heaven.
DR MARTYN LLOYD-JONES gave a sermon on Galatians 6:14 titled “The Offence of the Cross” and this is the Sermon Breakdown of that message –
* The apostle Paul makes a statement in Galatians 6:14 that he glories in nothing but the cross of Jesus Christ.
* The context of this statement is Paul contrasting himself with false teachers who were glorying in circumcising Gentiles. Paul says he will only glory in the cross.
* The word "glory" means to boast or brag. Paul is saying the cross of Christ is the only thing he will boast about.
* The cross is either an offense to people or the only thing in which they will glory. There are only two categories.
* To the non-Christian, the cross is an offense. The preaching of the cross has always been offensive. If preaching of the cross does not offend, it is not being preached properly.
* The cross offends the mind because it cuts across human ideas and philosophies. It says we are not saved by human wisdom or understanding.
* The cross offends human pride because it says all people are sinners, all people are equally sinful, and all people are helpless to save themselves. This contradicts human belief in self.
* The cross offends the human will because it says human will and effort cannot save. Salvation is by grace alone.
* Christians glory in the cross. They do not just believe in it or accept it intellectually. They exult in it. It is everything to them.
* Christians glory in the cross alone. Nothing else compares to the importance of the cross.
* Christians glory in the cross because of what they see in it. They have gazed at and surveyed the cross.
* In the cross, Christians see the glory of God displayed. They see the paradox of the immortal God dying, the sinless one being punished, the all-powerful one dying in weakness.
* Most of all, in the cross Christians see the love of God in giving His Son to die for sinners, rebels, and enemies. The cross shows God's love for humanity.
* If we have seen even a glimpse of what the cross means, we must glory in it. It demands our all.
Paul had taken up the matter of personal persecution against him in several places in the letter. He poses the question of why still the persecution if he still preaches circumcision. The fact is he preached to the Gentiles and set aside the Law for salvation, which made the Jews hostile and it was they who persecuted Paul. They were the enemies of the cross. What Paul is saying is clearly, is that because he is persecuted, then he does not teach the Law for salvation. The Galatians must realise that salvation is by faith alone.
Paul explains something of serious note. He says that if he preached the Law and the doctrines of the Jews for salvation, then there would be no trouble, in other words, there would be no stumbling block for the Jews. This word, “stumbling block” means scandal. The cross was a scandal. It was a scandalous thing to preach about a Man nailed to the cross for atonement with God. This death was worse than being hanged on the gallows and was a death reserved for slaves and the worst of criminals. No Roman could be hanged on a cross.
The cross was a shameful thing but the Lord took the shame of the cross in order to rescue us. Paul was not ashamed of the significance of the shameful cross as he explained to the Corinthians – {{1 Corinthians 1:23-24 “but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews A STUMBLING BLOCK, and to Gentiles FOOLISHNESS, but to those who are the called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”}} The cross was to the Jews a scandal. The word means the stick in a trap to which the bait is fastened, but in time it came to mean the trap or snare itself. Generally it is translated stumbling block like a stone in the road over which you stumble. A scandal is something over which you stumble and want nothing to do with. The Jews wanted nothing to do with the cross. To a Christian though, that shameful cross is the way of reconciliation. The Jews fought against it; the Christians embraced the teaching.
