In my previous post, I explained my belief in the Bible’s claim of a global flood that nearly eradicated humans from the face of the earth. The Bible reports that God preserved a remnant of eight people to repopulate the earth. Significantly, it also states that God gave the rainbow as an evidence that he would never again flood the earth as a form of judgment upon its inhabitants.
Skeptics scoff at this, explaining the rational process for the presence of rainbows. I don’t disagree with these explanations. However, I would suggest that the logical, scientific explanation for rainbows does nothing to discredit the faith belief in what that particular rainbow represented (and what all subsequent rainbows have the ability to remind us). The explanation of a rainbows existence and the rationale for why rainbows exist are at least partially exclusive. But I digress.
Despite the phenomenon of rainbows, we – almost predictably – experience flooding. Sometimes on a widespread scale. While the list of floods in the last fifty years is impressive, it’s interesting to note that there is no record of any second global flood. (Note: while many efforts have been made to discredit the account of the original flood, much historic, geological, and anthropological evidence supports the biblical claim.)
God never promised that there would never be another flood. He promised that he would never use flooding waters as an expression of global judgment. Some people want to suggest that God brings hurricanes, earthquakes and their subsequent floods as judgment upon a nation or its people for its pagan beliefs.
While, I’m not qualified to declare unconditionally and authoritatively that this is or is not an expression of God’s judgment, I personally don’t believe that natural disasters are are a picture of God’s wrath. If it is, the United States should be in a collective state of woe for the impending judgment awaiting it (as a self-identified nation “under God”). Rather, I go back to previous statements (made in prior posts) that we now live in a broken world with a significantly larger quantity of water cycling through its closed system. Consequently, catastrophic floods are a periodic and unfortunate phenomenon.
My hope, then, is to draw attention back to Jesus’ declaration that all people turn to God before the next storm hits. Whether it is literal or figurative, and whether you face it alone or with your community, I invite you to turn to God and call upon him for rescue.
In my previous post, I mentioned that I believe there were two events that radically altered the earth’s environment. The first event was the original rebellion of man against God. That rebellion changed the earth from its utopian origins to its dystopian present, replete with destructive storms.
This first event was the precursor to the second event. After the first event, humanity moved forward in its “new normal.” A family became a clan, the clans divided and claimed new territory. Populations grew and generations passed.
Every person and every generation existed in the “new normal.” Each person’s death recalled the original rebellion. As the population expanded and generations passed, the story was changed or forgotten. As time passed, people grew more distant from God.
The Bible reports that after ten generations, God determined to judge the world’s population for its rebellion (and the details of his judgment can fill an entirely different post). He chose a global flood of waters as his means of judgment.
Giving 100 years of warning, he set aside one lone family to escape the judgment. The patriarch of this family, Noah, began to build a boat (as God commanded) to withstand and endure the judgment. He did so in a world that possibly, had never seen rain fall from the sky. Who knows what people thought of Noah or even said to him over that 100 years of ark-building. That no other people were allowed to join him on the boat allows for the fair assumption that they likely reasoned that the world could never exist differently than how they had experienced it. Then the time arrived.
On the 17th day of the second month of Noah’s 600th year, waters fell from the sky an a way unprecedented in world history.
It would be inadequate to think only that it rained. Instead, imagine a drenching rain where you’ve sought refuge under a tarp, tent, or canopy. You see the canopy sag as it becomes water-logged. At first, a few beads of water soak through, dripping overhead. Then, suddenly, without warning, the canopy rips with a load tear and you are blanketed by a sheet of water that literally knocks you off your feet.
This is what the Bible says happened, except on a global scale. The Bible says that in the creation, God had blanketed the earth with a canopy of water. At this time of judgment, God released this canopy and its waters plummeted upon the earth. The volume of water overwhelming the earth is unimaginable, even in light of our modern-day comparative calamities.
Compounding the disaster, the Bible says that God caused the waters under the earth to spring forth. These were no bubbling brooks of natural springs. Its appropriate to think of violent earthquakes, oceanic volcanoes, and tumult that results in landscapes like Colorado’s Flatirons mountains. This was happening on a global scale. Oceans of waters from above. Geysers of waters from the ground.
Chaos.
With each new violent storm, we see a new library of videos of violent winds pushing walls of water, sweeping parking lots of cars into and then through buildings. Homes, offices, and stores instantly are deconstructed as the unrelenting force of the waves pushes against and ultimately over them. Stories are shared of a man being found on a roof six miles out in the ocean, or of a dolphin rescued one mile inland.
In light of this modern evidence, I have no problem reconciling why I will find an unbalanced boulder atop a mountain in the middle of the rockies, or sea life fossils in the middle of the continental land mass. In this, I see evidence of God using nature as a means of both judgment and new beginnings.
When disaster strikes, there are a few predictable negative responses, theologically speaking:
“If God is in control, he made this happen.”
“God (the cosmic clockmaker) isn’t in control, so he’s not worth worshipping.”
“This is evidence that there is no God.”
Among the many shortcomings of us humans is our tendency toward dichotomous thinking. Black/white. Either/or. We presume that only two options are correct, that it cannot be somewhere in between…or somewhere completely outside of the two. We tend to think that if God exists, everything should be good all the time. So if something bad happens, the foundational thoughts on God are flawed. The reality of bad *must* mean that God is not good, God is not God, or that God simply is not real.
Yet, God’s role in adversity this not hindered by the limits of human reasoning.
Presuming God exists, if he is also sovereign, this means he is in control. In this respect, God bears the responsibility for any (and every) event that humans would label “bad,” “tragic,” or “disastrous.” If we lived in an edenic/idyllic/perfect world, this would mean that God is exceedingly cruel and is not at all good.
We don’t live in a perfect world.
The fact is, we live in a chaotic world. It is characterized by an ever-increasing frequency of earthquakes, destructive winds, demolishing storms, eruptions, and devastating waters. Ours is a world that is obeying the laws of thermodynamics and moving rapidly toward a state of increasing physical disorder. It exists in a universe that is perpetually expanding toward disorganization, too. It’s a world that appears destined for destruction and is growing increasingly unstable and volatile.
If we can agree that the world is becoming increasing disorganized and unstable, it’s appropriate to ask why this is so. There is no shortage of conjecture about human complicity in the not-small matter of global destruction, but I retrospect for the sake of maintaining focus on the question of God’s role
Two significant events changed the world from its original conditions to the ones within which we currently exist. Both are relevant to the current conversation; this writing addresses the first event’s role in explaining contemporary calamities.
The first event that changed the global environment is humanity’s original rebellion against God. Originally…according to the Bible…was created good, even perfect. God and humans enjoyed a close relationship. Yet, that relationship was destroyed when the first humans were deceived by evil, distrusted God and rebelled against him. The consequence of that rebellion was the eventual death of every person and, among other things, a curse upon the earth. This rebellion tainted the environment, altering the world from its utopian origin into a dystopian state, with ramifications and implications into the natural order that followed and is, even today.
Jesus reflected this reality in his teachings. He acknowledged we live in a world governed by natural laws. He didn’t blame God. In Luke 13, he spoke of a tower in Siloam fell, killing 18 people. We don’t know if it was a natural disaster or a man-made mistake. We we do know that Jesus went out of the way to say that the people weren’t victims expressly because they were in rebellion to God. He refuted the “cruel God” argument. In the very next breath, though, Jesus said, “but unless you turn to God, you too will die!” In this, he undergirds the reality of God, not entertaining a notion that God is not real.
His point is that everybody dies in a broken world and the only hope for anyone is found through faith in God. Whether it’s by being crushed under a tower, swept away in a storm, or asleep in bed after a long, quiet life, death comes to every person….and every death is tragic. Furthermore, Jesus defuses the “uncaring God” argument with his declaration that turning to God is the sole means to escape the tragedy of death, and that it is available to every person, without exception.
The effort to reconcile God’s role in disaster is actually more about man than it is about God. The only way a person can lob accusations against God, suggesting that he is cruel or lazy, is if that person assumes that he sits in an authorized position of judgment. While this doesn’t mean that humans have no right to exercise genuine inquiry to ask “why?”, those who are asking should have a proper understanding about themselves before they can ever hope to have a right understanding about God. If people are intrinsically good and in right standing with God (or even in judgment over God), this explains the speculation and conjecture about tragic calamities and the implications thereof.
However, if (as Jesus taught and the Bible reports) that people exist in an intrinsic position of rebellion against and defiance to God, the question changes. Instead of asking, “Why?” the more reasonable question is “Why not?” If humans are, by their nature, in a state of opposition to God, and live on a realm barreling toward its total destruction, why wouldn’t there be regular, periodic, and increasingly numerous of escalating upheavals? Indeed, if humans live in a judged state of rebellion on a judged world of destruction, it makes sense that humans should expect to endure natural disasters on an increasing frequency. Accordingly, a lack of forewarning and the potential for each to claim any unpredictable number of lives is likewise reasonable.
Because of the utter impossibility to prevent or avoid these natural disasters, the best (only) hope is to properly view the bigger picture with the perspective offered by the one person who authoritatively spoke with the divine insight. This is why Jesus said, “repent now!” when talking about the Siloam tower. He acknowledged that disasters will happen in a fallen world destined for judgment. Even so, death before reconciling with God is the biggest disaster.
Not the RSVP roster for the upcoming family reunion, but a partial list of hurricanes in the last 50 years (that each did $25B+ in damage).
My first thoughts are always, always, always of the current victims. In two different events, I’ve experienced total loss of our family possessions and also the sudden, unexpected loss of a loved one. In another event, I’ve also experienced being blindsided by my world being turned instantly upside down. I’ve also had the first-hand experience in providing aid to Katrina overcomers back in 2005. Despite all this, I can’t fathom the exponentially more dreadful magnitude of experiencing all these experiences at the same time, like those who survive these storms. Every survivor story is poignant, every effort to find loved ones is heroic, every loss is heart-breaking and every attempt to make sense out of this chaos is noble, even when it is seemingly frustrated or, worse still, fruitless.
Before continuing, first things first…get ahead of the storm and help the hurting in any way you are able.
Philemon Overview – Philemon was a leader of the church in Colossae (spelled Colosse in Immerse). Philemon had a former slave named Onesimus who had run away, but was now returning as a deliveryman of Paul’s letters. Paul sent this letter as a guide/encouragement for their impending face-to-face meeting.
Paul also intends for this letter to be read by the church that is meeting in Philemon’s house.
Paul commends Philemon for his faith, for his love of God, and his generosity.
He asks a favor of Philemon (mentioning that he could demand it, because what he’s asking is the right thing to do). He asks Philemon to show kindness to Onesimus.
He reminds Philemon that Onesimus is no longer a slave to him, but that he is now a beloved brother.
understated point: we offer more to one anotheras kin in Christ than we do in any earthly relational dynamic.
Colossians overview – Colossae was a Roman province of Asia (modern day Turkey). Religious heterodoxy was prevalent and continually evolving. Paul emphasized the preeminence of Jesus and the consequential expressions of loving relationality.
Paul commends their faith, that a good report has become their reputation.
Paul desires for them to have a complete knowledge of God’s will that gives to them spiritual wisdom and understanding. Having this, they will be able to live honorable, spiritually productive lives that please the Lord.
Even more important to Paul is that while this maturing happens, the people of Colossae will grow relationally with God, getting to know him better.
This hope of Paul is effectual, too, evidenced in his expression that the Colossians will be strengthened with God’s power to give them the resources necessary to endure with patience all that will come before them in the context of the challenges that they will face as faithful followers of Jesus.
With this patience, Paul prays for them to be filled with joy that, regardless of circumstance or adversity, overflows because of their being rooted in Jesus who has reduced them. It is no small thing that Jesus purchased our freedom and forgives our sins.
Paul then extols who Jesus is (to this community who has been given erroneous teachings on him, because of their spiritually eclectic culture):
Jesus (alone, exclusively) is the visible image of the invisible God.
He is eternal.
He pre-existed before creation
He is sovereign over all creation
He is the creator (because he part of the triune God).
He created everything in the heavens and on the earth
He made everything that we can see and cannot see (macrocosmic to microcosmic, from physical to spiritual)
He made all kingdoms, rulers, and authorities (human, ideological and spiritual)
Everything he created, he created for his own purpose
He holds all of creation together – Not only did he create everything, but he sustains and maintains all things (including you)
Jesus is the head of the church
The church is his body
He is pre-eminent in all things
He is the full embodiment of God.
Through Jesus, God recoiled everything to himself.
Jesus brought peace to everything in heaven and earth by his spilt blood through crucifixion.
understated point: this includes you, who were once far away from God. You were his enemy, but now you have been reconciled to God through Jesus. Now you stand before Godwithout a single fault. So stand firm in this truth and don’t drift away from it.
Paul is compelled by God to communicate this life-changing message.
It has been kept secret for centuries, but has been revealed to God’s people.
This is the secret: Christ lives in you, which gives you the assurance of sharing in Christ’s glory!
This is why Paul so passionately preaches Jesus to everyone wherever he goes.
He wants to present every person to God, perfect in their relationship with Jesus.
To accomplish this, he depends wholly on Christ’s power working in him.
He wants the Colossians to be firmly established in the truth of who Jesus is and who they are in Jesus, and who the broader community of true faith is because of (and through) Jesus.
Paul exhorts the Colossians to continue in Jesus, just as they first trusted in him. He desires that they grow deep roots of faith.
He warns against their being misled by “empty philosophies” and “high-sounding nonsense that comes from human thinking and the spiritual powers of the world, rather than from Christ.”
When people come to faith in Christ, he excises our spiritual nature, and we identify with Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection.
Having been spiritually vivified by Jesus, you are no longer subject to the powers of earthly spiritual authorities.
Therefore, you don’t have to be shamed by anyone for your disagreement with their ceremonies, rituals, or commemorative dates. Nor should you let anyone condemn you for not participating in pious self-denials or unbiblical practices like the worship of angels.
These extra or non-biblical practices don’t help in your own spiritual development.
bad theology is trash
You, though, because you have raised to new life in Jesus, can affix your sights on Jesus.
Think about the things of heaven, not about the things of earth.
Put to death the sinful things lurking within you.
Instead, put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator Jesus and be more like him.
With this mindset, you can realize it doesn’t matter where you came from, or how you might be categorized by your current situation or circumstances.
understated point: Jesus Christ is all who matters and he lives in everyone who puts their faith in him.
Because God chose you to be part of the holy people that he loves, your life should be characterized by:
tenderhearted mercy
kindness
humility
gentleness
patience
forgiveness
love – above all, because love binds us together in perfect harmony.
peace – the peace that comes from Christ alone should rule in your heart.
gratitude – be thankful!
the message of Christ – in all its richness, let it fill your life.
teaching and counseling others with the wisdom that God alone gives.
praise
bottom line – whatever you do or say, do it as a representative of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father.
some contextual examples of how this plays out:
wives – these instructions are realized in the practice of relational submission with husbands.
husbands – these instructions are realized in the love and gentle treatment with wives.
Children – these instructions are realized in the determination to obey parents.
Dads – these instructions are realized in the encouraging, positive parenting of children (“do not aggravate” them)
Slaves – these instructions are realized in the determination to obey masters in all things, by being hard-working and consistent, with the mindset that they are ultimately working for the Lord and not a person.
Paul expresses the depth of the sincerity of his convictions in the truth of the Gospel, explaining his willingness to be accursed (separated from God) if it meant that his fellow Jews would be saved.
Paul’s selflessness overwhelms me every time I read this declaration
He explains that God’s love for Israel has been evident in many ways:
He chose them as his adopted children.
He revealed his glory to them.
He made covenants with them
He gave them his law
He gave them the privilege of worshipping him.
He gave them the opportunity to trust in his promises.
He gave them a spiritual heritage through the generations
He arrived incarnationally through this lineage, as Jesus.
Truly, Israel is God’s people.
BUT…not all of Abraham’s physical descendants are included in as God’s children.
The promise of God is issued to the descendants of Isaac because he was the child of promise.
Isaac and his wife Rebecca were the parents of twin sons (Jacob and Esau). God, for his own reasons and completely apart from anything either of these boys would ever do, chose Jacob for the continuance of his promise.
God is not unfair in this (this reinforces that God’s grace is based on who he is, not on who we are or what we do or do not do). He has mercy on who he will, and we cannot choose it nor work for it.
Likewise, God revealed to Pharaoh that he had chosen the ruler for the purpose of displaying God’s divine power in him, and for making himself known throughout the world through his dealings with the ruler.
The example of Pharaoh shows that God shows mercy to some, but to others he does not. A key to understanding this dynamic is the exposition of Romans 1, where God judges fallen people by giving them over to their fallenness. Here, hardening of the heart and mind are seen as aspects of that same type of judgement.
Paul predicts the argument against this truth (perhaps he’s heard it a time or two…hundred). So he rebuts it.
We (humans) are in no position to judge God, because he is the creator and we are the creation.
God has every right to judge man. Yet, he does show unmatched patience in dealing with us.
He demonstrates this patience by saving some of the Gentiles.
He has not abandoned Israel despite it rebelliousness and insistence on being justified by the law (which cannot justify, but only condemn).
Paul reiterates his fervent desire that the people of Israel be saved by trusting in Jesus as Messiah.
He understands their zeal, but clarifies that it is misplaced. Their trust should be in Jesus alone.
The message is plain: If you openly declare that Jesusis Lord and believe in your heart that Godraised him from the dead, you will be saved.
Belief makes a person right with God.
and by openly declaring that belief you are saved.
anyone who trusts in him will not be disgraced.
Jew and Gentile alike can trust in this promise.
everyone who calls on Jesus will be saved.
The message is here…believe!
Paul then reasons with his Roman audience…
He asks, “How can they call on Jesus unless they believe? And how can they believe if they’ve never heard about him? And how can they hear unless someone tells them? And how will someone tell them unless they are sent?”
This chain of rhetoric is addressed with the prophetic message, “how beautiful are the feet of the messengers who bring good news.”
He acknowledges, though, that not everyone receives the Gospel as good news, which he answers with Isaiah’s prophecy, and summarizes this:
understated point: faith comes by hearing the good news about Jesus.
Paul explains that the Jewish people have indeed heard this message because it has gone throughout the earth.
And that the people of Israel understood it and largely rejected it, so the message was extended to the Gentile people.
In no way did God reject his own people. He chose them from the beginning.
Still, many of them have rejected God. But not all (and more than might be assumed).
Consequently, those who have rejected God have had their hearts hardened.
Even so, in extending the Gospel invitation to the Gentiles, the opportunity to be saved still exists to the Jew.
Paul earnestly desires that his fellow Jews will trust in Jesus.
Paul compares the family of God to a tree.
He explains that the Jews are branches, but some of them have been broken off because of their unbelief.
Gentiles were branches from a different tree, but some of these branches were grafted on the root of God.
This imagery shows both the kindness and severity of God.
Paul offers understanding to this mystery of God (in saving Gentiles and in his dealing with the Jewish people).
This should result in humility, not in pride amongst the Gentiles.
There is a finite number of Gentiles who God has determined will respond to this invitation.
The Jewish people will largely turn to Jesus in the future.
This is the promise of God.
God knows and tells how this all will unfold.
Because of the reliability of these promises, Paul begs the Romans to give themselves over to God. Living in holiness is a type of “living sacrifice” that God finds acceptable, and is a way to worship him.
Don’t be like the world. Conformity = bad
Instead, be different. Transformation = good.
Change the way you think, and in so doing, you can know the good will of God.
Be humble. Be honest in your self-evaluation, using the faith God gives you.
See your part in the “body” of the church.
Use the spiritual gift that the Lord has given you for the service to the Body.
Love others.
Hate the wrong.
Love the good.
Take delight in honoring one another.
Don’t be lazy. Work hard.
Rejoice in the hope of the Lord.
Be patient.
Keep praying.
Help those in need.
Be hospitable.
Bless those who persecute you.
Be happy with the happy, and cry with the sad.
Live in harmony with others.
Hang out with normies, and be cool about it.
Don’t be a know-it-all,
Don’t repay evil with evil.
Live at peace with everybody.
Don’t take revenge (vengeance is only found at God’s pay grade and you aren’t there).
Don’t be conquered by evil.
Conquer evil by doing good.
It helps Frank…maybe it will help you, too.
Submit to governing authorities (not just the ones you like).
Government leaders are in their roles by God’s appointment.
Rebelling against them, then, is rebellion against God.
Similarly, pay your taxes.
Don’t accumulate debt.
Honor your obligation to love your neighbor. This fulfills the requirement of God’s law (in all its commandments)
Realize how close/near salvation is for you, and it grows ever nearer. So don’t participate in evil.
Accept others who are of weak faith, and don’t argue about non-essential things.
Don’t get side-tracked about ceremonies, dates, or food rules (all as examples)
You will stand before the Lord regarding your own convictions and actions, not for those of someone else.
Live in a way that doesn’t cause another person to stumble.
Prioritize living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Living this way serves Christ, pleases God, and wins the approval of others.
Live in harmony with others as much as it is possible
Accept others just as God in Christ accepted you.
Paul’s prayer: that God the source of hope, will fill you completely with joy and peace because you trust in him. Then you will overflow with confident hope through the power of his Holy Spirit.
Paul’s interest is in presenting the Romans as complete, recognizing that the Holy Spirit alone makes them holy.
He solicits their prayers for his efforts there and abroad.
He sends his regard for dear friends and beloved partners in his ministry.
He gives a final warning against divisive people, and to be obedient to the Lord.
Overview – Dated AD 56. Paul writes this letter to arrive before he does, to a mixed audience of Jewish and Gentile believers. First part (11 chapters) is comprehensive doctrinal teaching, including the salvific history of God through Israel being extended to all people. The second part of the letter (last 5 chapters) is the practical application of these theological riches.
Paul is writing this letter because God chose him to be an apostle to preach the good news that God has for the world. This good news is the person of Jesus – Jesus is God’s son, a fact that is proven by his resurrection from death by the power of God’s Holy Spirit.
He is Jesus Christ our Lord – Jesus is the Christ (the Greek word for the Hebrew concept of Messiah, the God-anointed and -appointed Savior who would rescue people). As Christ, he is the Lord over all people (boss, king, sovereign, ruler…pick your synonym).
Through Christ, God had appointed people (including Paul) to spread this message of who Jesus is and what God is doing for people (in saving them), which will cause people to believe in Jesus, and bring glory to (a positive report) to his name.
The audience of this letter is all who live in Rome and have been called to be his own people (the Christians in the region).
Dear Romans…
Paul loves the Roman Christians, prays for them, longs to visit them. He wants to encourage them, and to be encouraged by them.
Paul felt a spiritual burden to all people, regardless of their spiritual heritage (or lack thereof)
This burden catalyzed an eagerness in him to share the Gospel of Jesus with all people.
He was completely unashamed of the Gospel because its existence and efficacy were the demonstration of the power of God – to save anyone who believes in Jesus.This salvation is accomplished exclusively and totally by faith – faith which brings life those who believe.
But this message is communicated in the context of the real world:
This world filled with people who experience God’s anger instead of God’s favor.These people receive his anger because they, by their wicked deeds, suppress God’s truth.God’s truth is both knowable and known because God has made the truth about himself known to all of his creation from the beginning of time, from the evidence of creation itself.
The totality of God’s creation demonstrates/evidences/manifests God’s invisible attributes; namely, his eternal power and divine nature. So nobody has an excuse for not believing in God (or functioning in life without faith in him)Despite knowing that God is real, these people determined not to worship him or even give thanks to him. Instead, they created their own false gods, created by their own imaginations. The result of this foolishness was that these very same people became confused and limited by their own wayward thinking. When they spoke about these false gods and errant beliefs, they thought themselves to be pretty awesome, but showed themselves to be utter fools.
St. Ron – The Patron Saint of Bloviation
Not only were they saying foolish things, they worshipped (showed reverence, devotion, and spiritual hope) the things that God created rather than God himself, which they made idols out of as a way to direct this worship.
God further judged this idolatrous worship, by giving them over to the desires that controlled them (See Ps. 81:12).
The consequence of this judgment against them was excessive indulgence in these activities with one another.
These actions demonstrated that they exchanged the truth of God for lies of their own creations.
In doing this, they demonstrated that they were worshipping created things rather than the creator.
Because, in their foolish thinking, they thought it foolish to worship God, he showed his judgment against them by giving them over to the license they created for themselves.
Lives of unbelievers became characterized by every kind of wickedness, sin, greed, hate, envy, murder, quarreling, deception, malice, and gossip.
They hate God, back stab one another, and are insolent, proud and boastful. They are rebellious and are creative only in finding new ways to do wrong. They are stubborn-minded, promise-breaking, heartless and unmerciful.
They do all this, knowing that doing it deserves punishment. Worse still, they encourage this behavior among others.
sin leading to judgment leading to sin leading to judgment…
Yet, Paul warns the audience not to break their arm patting themselves on the back, because…”you are just as bad and have no excuse!”
It isn’t enough just to say these things are bad and do the very same things yourself.
God is kindly revealing truth to lead you out of these sins that God has judged and will ultimately judge.
But refusal to stop doing evil is storing up impending judgment, on the day when God judges all deeds done by all people.
Good deeds will be rewarded by those who seek the good things that God offers (through Jesus).
But for those who live for themselves, they can expect God’s anger and wrath because they refused to obey the truth and lived wickedly.
God will give his judgment and justice fairly and impartially (both good and bad).
The people who had the law (the Jews) are accountable because they had the law.
The people who didn’t have the law (the Gentiles) are still accountable because their lives demonstrate that God’s law was “written on their hearts” because their consciences either affirmed them for doing right (by the law) or condemned them (by their offenses against the law).
Regardless, there is a day of judgment coming for all people, when God will openly judge the things that were assumed to be secret (or unknown)
Religious heritage offers no deliverance from this judgment.
Everyone is under the power of sin.
no one is righteous.
not one.
no one is wise.
no one (on their own) seeks God.
All have turned away
all are useless (on their own)
No one does good.
not a single one.
nope, not even one.
Consequently, people (without God) did horrible things and didn’t fear God in anyway whatsoever.
The purpose of the law isn’t to give an attainable standard that even one person could meet.
It was to show that nobody would have an excuse.The entire world is guilty before God.
Clear back in the time of Moses, God showed his plan to make people righteous apart from the law, through trusting in Jesus.
This way was available to all people, everywhere.This way is available exclusively through faith, apart from any work a person could do.
Only when we have faith do we fulfill the law.Abraham exemplifies this truth – his faith (not his deeds) was credited to him as righteousness.Wages are what people earn for their work. Wages are not a gift, they are earned. Righteousness is a gift, not something earned (wages).Abrahams’ circumcision was not a deed that earned his righteousness; rather it was an expression of the gift of righteousness that God had already given him before he could do anything to earn it.
His example offers inclusion to non-religious people who trust in Jesus, apart from religious rituals or ceremonies.His example offers inclusion to the religiously observant people, but only if their faith is like that of Abraham’s.God’s promise to Abraham (and his descendants) is based on faith, not on works.
understated points: these promises are reliable because they are given by the God raises the dead and creates things out of nothing. We believe in God and we trust his promises.Abraham trusted God, even when there was no hope. He and Sarah were too old to become parents, yet God kept his promise to them.
They kept trusting, even when it made no sense. And God blessed their obedience (their faith trust in his promise).That same faith is what’s necessary to believe in Jesus, who died to forgive our sins and who was resurrected and will return again.
The same faith that makes a person righteous is the faith that brings a person into peace with God.
Having confidence that a person is at peace with God makes it possible to live amidst daily adversity and to look forward to the future fulfillment of God’s promises.
Facing adversity offers opportunities to develop endurance.Endurance matures strength of character.Strength of character instills confidence in the expectant hope for the future.This hope will not be disappointed.The presence of the Holy Spirit is evidence of God’s love for us.We are utterly helpless without Jesus because of our sins.Jesus met us in our pit of helplessness and saved us.
This is remarkable because most people won’t die for someone else, even for a really good person.Rarely, someone might be willing to sacrifice their own life for someone who is extraordinarily good.
understated point: God’s love is shown in this most profound way: when you were at your worst (as a sinner), Jesus did the most by dying on the cross for your sins.
Christ’s sacrifice made us right with God.
This saves us from condemnation.
This restores relationship with God.
Through Jesus, we are friends of God.
total coincidence that a Stallone movie is on while I’m writing this.
The sin problem, unpacked and addressed:
Sin entered the world through the sin of the first person, Adam.
That sin brought death, so death spread to everyone; so, everyone sinned.
Sin was in the world even before the law was given.
So even though the sin was not imputed on people because the law hadn’t been given, the evidence that sin was in the world was demonstrated in the fact that all people died (the consequence of sin).
So the sin wasn’t merely the violation of Mosaic law, it was the rebellion against God that spread from Adam to all people.
Adam, though, serves as a symbol of sorts who points to Jesus.
Just as how sin spread from him singularly to all people is symbolic how salvation spreads to all who believe from the singular source of Jesus.
Adam’s sin brought death to many (because all earn it through our own sins)
Jesus’ gift is far greater because it is God’s grace extended, giving forgiveness to all who receive him.
Adam’s sin led to condemnation.
Jesus’ gift leads to righteousness.
The law’s role in this is to show humanity its sin problem.
As sin becomes more prevalent, God’s grace is more glorious.
God’s grace doesn’t give license to keep sinning, or to sin more abundantly.
Instead, Christians who identify with Jesus is baptism must remember that they identify with him in his death. Baptism is a picture of being buried with Christ, and it is a picture of being resurrected with Christ, too.
Because of this, we are no longer slaves to sin.
Dying with Christ set us free from the power of sin.
We are now alive in Christ.
lil Jon gets it.
If you’re alive in Christ, don’t be a slave to sin.
Don’t give in to sinful desires.
Instead, give yourself fully to God – mind, body and soul.
understated point: live under the freedom of God’s grace.
(The next extended passage reiterates and restates this in the context of slavery and freedom…I’m jumping ahead)
The law is good because it reveals sin. The good law “inflames” the sinful nature of man, and makes known the sinful, fallenness afflicting every person.
Sin uses what is good (the Law) to bring about death. It uses God’s own commands for evil.
Paul understands that the problem isn’t with the law because the law is good.
Rather, the problem is with Paul (or, more accurately, with each and every one of us).
On our own, we are slaves to sin.
We don’t really understand ourselves.
We want to do the right thing, but we don’t.
We don’t want to do the wrong thing, but we do.
Conviction over these dilemmas demonstrates that the law exists and that it is intrinsically good.
This contradictory behavior is the sin present in us, doing these wrong deeds.
Paul says it succinctly: I know that nothing good lives within me; that is, in my sinful nature.
Loving God’s law isn’t enough.
The power of sin enslaves all and overcomes even the best intentions.
Paul’s great lament: who will free me from this body of death?
Explains the human condition, Yoda does.
Thankfully, Paul’s message doesn’t end with this lament.
“Thank God!” Paul proclaims, “the answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord!”
The body is a slave to sin, but the mind (redeemed in Jesus) is a slave to Christ.
There is no condemnation for anyone who belongs to Jesus.
By belonging to Jesus, the life giving power of the Holy Spirit frees the person from the death-bringing enslavement to sin.
God did what the law couldn’t do – bring life to the person sentenced to death by sin.
Jesus’ death on the cross fully satisfied God’s wrath against sin.
So now we no longer follow the sinful nature, but the life giving Spirit of God.
Live then, according to the Spirit.
Being dominated by the flesh brings death,
Submitting to the Spirit brings life.
You are no longer any obligation to your sin nature.
Through the power of the Spirit of God, you have freedom from and victory over the lure of sin.
understated points: through the power of the Spirit, you put to death the deeds of the flesh. Those who are led by theSpirit of God are God’s children.
God adopted his children.
As his children, we are also his heirs.
iAs his heirs, we will share in his glory.
Until then, we will also share in his suffering.
the present suffering pales in comparison to the awaiting glory.
This current time is marked by a weakness that struggles in the tension of the present suffering expectantly awaiting the future glory.
Thankfully, the Holy Spirit helps us in our present weakness.
For example He helps us in our prayer communication with the Father.
He tells us what to pray, using words we can’t really hear or even discern.
IN fact, the Holy Spirit prays for us,
The Father knows exactly what the Spirit is praying for us, because the Spirit always prays in perfect harmony with the Father’s will for us.
We can be encouraged in this because God works all things together for His good in the lives of his children, who are the people that he has called according to his purposes.
And God knew all his people (his children) in advance, and chose them to be made into the likeness of his Son,
Having chosen them, he called them to follow Jesus.
Having called them, he gave them righteousness.
Having given them righteousness, he gave them glory.
understated point: These actions of God are completed acts. God’s children experience them in the course of life, and will experience receiving God’s glory in the judgment.
If all this is true (and it is), what can be said?
Since God is for us, it doesn’t matter if anyone tries to oppose us.
God didn’t spare his Son from the evil of this world, so we can’t realistically expect to be spared, either.
It doesn’t matter, though, because we have God’s righteousness. And nobody in the world can condemn us because we already have received GOd’s approval.
Jesus actively advocates for us before God, overcoming any attempts to condemn us before God.
nothing can separate us from the love of God in Jesus.
Neither death nor life
angels nor demons
today’s fears nor tomorrow’s worries,
not the powers of hell
no spiritual or earthly powers,
nothing in all of creation can separate us from the love of God in Jesus.
This summer, one of our community groups is being led through the first 15 chapters of Genesis by our groups pastors. They both happened to be on vacation this week, so I stepped in and taught Genesis 8. Here are my notes:
But God remembered Noah and all the beasts and all the livestock that were with him in the ark. (8:1a)
Remembered – This word can be a little distracting to us, but we must remember that the narrative exists for our benefit and for God’s glory. So this word that we translate as ”remembered,” is better understood as “turned his attention to.” Even this, though fails to fully capture the magnitude of what’s taking place, in that God isn’t multitasking in the way that you and I would multitask.
God is omnitasking…as he always does…giving his full attention to all matters at all times, simultaneously.
So when we see this “remembered,” and that he turned his attention to Noah etc., it’s not that he turned his attention away from something else. For us, as observers, we see God giving his attention to Noah.
This is why the “but” is a big deal…it serves as a counterpoint to what came before….so what came before? The flooding of the waters and the prevailing of the waters for 150 days (the 40 days of rain occurred within the 150. See 7:12 & 8:4)
And God made a wind blow over the earth, and the waters subsided. (8:1b)
Remembered – the remembrance of God is important for this detail, too, for a couple reasons. First, it seen in this word “and,” which connects that which follows to that which precedes it. This very act of wind blowing over the earth is not “just nature,” or coincidence. It is the deliberate, intentional act tied to the “giving full attention to.” This show that God is putting actions to the promises. In this regard, it evokes that understanding of Yahweh, the God of covenant relationship.
God, here, though is the Hebrew Elohim, and he is the same God of Genesis 1.
The Hebrew word for wind is ruah, which is the same word from Genesis 1 used for Spirit, where God’s Spirit hovered over the waters. Remember that the promise was to start anew with these people aboard this ark, and just as His Spirit had been present and active in the creation of the earth, He was actively at work delivering Noah and the surviving creation from these dangerous waters. This is the same wind that Moses would later witness driving away the plague of locusts in Exodus 10, and that would part the waters of the Red Sea delivinghis people onto dry ground in Exodus 15, and the same wind that would bring in quail in Numbers 11.
God regularly makes use of nature (see Joshua 10; Psa. 104:3-4)
The fountains of the deep and the windows of the heavens were closed, the rain from the heavens was restrained,3 and the waters receded from the earth continually. (8:2-3a)
This passage reverses the action of 7:11-12
all the fountains of the great deep burst forth, and the windows of the heavens were opened. 12 And rain fell upon the earth forty days and forty nights. (Ge 7:11–12)
At the end of 150 days the waters had abated, 4 and in the seventh month, on the seventeenth day of the month, the ark came to rest on the mountains of Ararat. 5 And the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen. (8:3b-5)
Exactly 150 days, 5 months to the day. It’s interesting that this very specific date has been included as a detail.
For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope. Exactly 150 days, 5 months to the day. It’s interesting that this very specific date has been included as a detail. (Romans 15:4)
Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. (Ex. 13:4)
In the month of Nisan (Neh. 2:1)
This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. (Ex. 12:2)
When you come into the land that I give you and reap its harvest, you shall bring the sheaf of the firstfruitsof your harvest to the priest, 11 and he shall wave the sheaf before the Lord, so that you may be accepted. On the day after the Sabbath the priest shall wave it (Lev. 23:11)
Passover occurs on 14thof Nisan…Jesus was offered as our Passover lamb on the 14thof Nisan. Three days later, the morning after Sabbath after Passover is the Feast of First Fruits.
3 days after the Passover sacrifice, Jesus “waved” to the people… He truly is the first fruit of the Lord, the offering that makes us all accepted.14+3 = 17…This 7thmonth would eventually become the first month, and this day of the Ark landing aground offering mankind and all of creation a new beginning on the same day in advance that Jesus would do in full through his resurrection.
Note that this says in the mountains of Ararat, not Mount Ararat. The location of the ark has been a provocative matter of speculation for a long time, and continues to be now.
the Mountains of Ararat
And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. (Genesis 11:1-2)
Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. (Genesis 6:14b)
This would indicate that the descendants came from a region of Iran, not Turkey (the North).
What’s interesting is that the wood of the ark is covered inside and out with pitch (tar). There’s the functional aspect that it would be waterproof…and that it would be functional on the inside. The byproduct of it is that it is amazingly well preserved. It could be that someday, the testimony of the Ark still has more to say.
And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. (Genesis 11:1-2)
This would indicate that the descendants came from a region of Iran, not Turkey (the North).
Make rooms in the ark, and cover it inside and out with pitch. (Genesis 6:14b)
What’s interesting is that the wood of the ark is covered inside and out with pitch (tar). There’s the functional aspect that it would be waterproof…and that it would be functional on the inside. The byproduct of it is that it is amazingly well preserved. It could be that someday, the testimony of the Ark still has more to say.
While it took 40 days for the rains to fall, it took 5 long months for the waters to recede to the point where the new beginning could commence.
Isn’t this an apt picture of our calamities, too? How often do our calamities go away as swiftly as they come?
While we wait for it to “come to pass” where we can go forth again, don’t we feel like Noah and his captive family?
At the end of forty days Noah opened the window of the ark that he had made 7 and sent forth a raven. It went to and fro until the waters were dried up from the earth. (Gen. 8:6-7)
40 more days passed, and the waters continued to retreat.
He sent out this raven….there’s a couple interesting thoughts here, perhaps inspired.
First, the raven is an unclean bird. It is an eater of dead things. So it is reasoned that it could fly about and eat from the carcasses floating on the water surfaces.
Its ”flying to and fro” is indicative that the raven could likely fly longer than could a dove, and because it was good for neither food nor sacrifice, it was expendable. This language indicates being sent out repeatedly, not that it just flew and flew and flew until it found a place to land.
Also interesting, the raven is associated with the predicted desolation of Edom in Isaiah 34:11. Some scholars reason that the raven, therefore, is a picture of the impurities of the past being removed, and that creation indeed has a fresh new start.
Or, it’s just a raven.
a raven with a filthy habit
Then he sent forth a dove from him, to see if the waters had subsided from the face of the ground. 9 But the dove found no place to set her foot, and she returned to him to the ark, for the waters were still on the face of the whole earth. So he put out his hand and took her and brought her into the ark with him. 10 He waited another seven days, and again he sent forth the dove out of the ark. 11 And the dove came back to him in the evening, and behold, in her mouth was a freshly plucked olive leaf. So Noah knew that the waters had subsided from the earth.12 Then he waited another seven days and sent forth the dove,and she did not return to him anymore. (Genesis 8:8-12)
This dove serves as his eyes.
The dove, though, is both a bird associated with sacrifice and food. It is appropriate both as a burnt offering and as a sin offering. The dove is also a symbol presented in the Lament imagery, but also beauty and innocence. Where the raven was a picture of what was left behind in judgment, the dove is a picture of what is ahead in new beginnings., A dove would be included in the burnt offering (at the end of the chapter).
When at first the dove could find no place…the Hebrew word for place is monoah, derived from the Hebrew word for rest which is…Noah. (He will find rest). When the dove couldn’t find rest….Noah retrieved the dove himself….giving it rest. The dove, a picture of purity, is welcome.
After 7 days, he releases the dove again, and it returns with the first sign of life outside the ark. This is an indication that the earth had completed its season of destruction, and was creating anew. The olive leaf would have been significant to the early readers of this, for their awareness of the importance of the olive, the oil of which is used to fuel the menorah in the tabernacle, and anointed the tabernacle and furnishings. It was a plant with good, blessed connotations. Don’t miss, too, that both the oil and the dove are symbolic of the Spirit of God (the anointing of Jesus – Luke 4:18; Matt 3:16)
Finally, another week later, the dove is sent out a 3rdtime and doesn’t return, a proclamation of freedom to the ark’s inhabitants.
In the six hundred and first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried from off the earth. And Noah removed the covering of the ark and looked, and behold, the face of the ground was dry. 14 In the second month, on the twenty-seventh day of the month, the earth had dried out. (Gen. 8:13-14)
It has been almost a full year (see Genesis 7:11) 314 days. Noah had known about land, but he still couldn’t see it for himself. Yet, here, now, he sees it for himself.
Yet, it wasn’t until 370 (or 371 depending on your counting) that the ground was dry enough for the next events.
Then God said to Noah, 16 “Go out from the ark, you and your wife, and your sons and your sons’ wives with you. 17 Bring out with you every living thing that is with you of all flesh—birds and animals and every creeping thing that creeps on the earth—that they may swarm on the earth, and be fruitful and multiply on the earth.” 18 So Noah went out, and his sons and his wife and his sons’ wives with him. 19 Every beast, every creeping thing, and every bird, everything that moves on the earth, went out by families from the ark. (Gen. 8:15-19)
This divine message from God parallels the command to enter the ark (7:1).
We don’t have any indication that God spoke to Noah during the entire time he was in the ark.
Yet, we have Hebrews 11 telling us everything he did, he did by faith, and so we have no reason to suspect that he was somehow without faith while he waited on the Lord.
That is instructive to us in our waiting…
What do you do while you wait? Meet with God (James 1)
Eventually, according to God’s timing, God speaks.
The language of 18-19 also parallels the entrance, but it is indeed pointing forward to the blessing of repopulation.
Then Noah built an altar to the Lord and took some of every clean animal and some of every clean bird and offered burnt offerings on the altar. 21 And when the Lord smelled the pleasing aroma, the Lord said in his heart, “I will never again curse the ground because of man, for the intention of man’s heart is evil from his youth. Neither will I ever again strike down every living creature as I have done. 22 While the earth remains, seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night, shall not cease.” (Gen. 8:20-22)
We have information here of Noah building the altar and sacrificing clean animals of every kind…before the law was given. This indicates a superintentionof God to illuminate Noah on these matters.
Worship had existed clear back to Cain and Abel, but here we see an altar built for this purpose. And the worship was directed to the Lord.
God responded positively to this act of worship.
Compare 8:21 with 6:5 – The Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that everyintentionof the thoughts of his heart was onlyevil continually.
We continue to have a sin problem – it has ruled us since Adam.
Yet, God makes 2 vows – not to despise man (though we haven’t changed, cannot change)…and he will not destroy us.
Instead, God promises regular predictable weather and seasons and provision.
parallels in the creation account and the re-creation account. This graphic was a nightmare to produce.
Overview: This letter is pointed, addressing a specific attack on the doctrine of grace.
Paul identifies himself as the author, noting that he is apostle appointed by Jesus himself (and by God, who raised Jesus from the dead).
He dives right in, not devoting much content to pleasantries (apart from a brief, gracious greeting), exclaiming his alarm that the Galatians are departing so swiftly from the truth that he had brought them.
He tells them that the message that they are now following is not good news at all, and an entirely different Gospel that what he had shared with them.
He proclaims that God’s curse is on anyone who would preach an alternative Gospel than the one shared by authentic Christians (this alternative Gospel being anything that deviates from authentic Christianity).
Paul acknowledges that this bold statement steps on some toes, but he only seeks to please God.
Larry David gets it.
Paul explains that his message is not of human origin, but comes directly from Jesus.
This is the same Jesus he zealously persecuted earlier in life, when he hunted down Christians and had them imprisoned and put to death.
Yet, he declares that before he had been born God had chosen him and called him by grace for this work that he was now doing.
He recounted his history of conversion, giving them a historical timeline of his walk of faith and highlighting the pervasiveness of grace he has experienced that has made his ministry possible.
He mentions an experience where he had experienced conflict that was similar to what he was addressing now with the Galatians. When it had happened earlier, he sought (and received) agreement from the Jerusalem Apostles because he wanted to be certain that he himself wasn’t the one teaching aberrant doctrine. The Apostles agreed with him, and they were unified that they wanted to preserve the true Gospel and protect it from heretical teachings that attempted to add additional requirements to the grace of God.
The Apostles added nothing to Paul’s teaching and recognized that he had been set apart to take the Gospel to the Gentile world, just as Peter had been appointed to the Jewish world — both of whom were serving the same Lord with the same message.
Yet, despite this initial agreement (or perhaps more accurately, because of it), Paul later opposed Peter to his face when he witnessed Peter behaving hypocritically when he initially would eat with Gentiles but later would not when he was in the presence of other Jews. This hypocrisy was soon mimicked by other Christians, including Barnabas.
Paul made the point to Peter that to return to these old ways and to abandon grace was to rebuild that which has been torn down.
He explained that because of grace he had stopped living for the law that could only condemn, which freed him to begin living for God.
understated point: to live in Christ means to identify that the old (pre-belief) life has been crucified (put to death) with Jesus when he died on the cross. Thenew life is realized (experienced) because of and in the power of the resurrected Jesus.
Focusing on the main point of his letter, he takes them back to the origins of their new faith in Jesus, explaining that it came as a result of the Holy Spirit, and not in following the laws of Moses. Therefore, it was illogical and unreasonable to go back to the law to try to add to the grace God has shown them.
He then educates them on Abraham, the familiar father of their religion. Paul illuminates that God’s favor shown to Abraham was grace, and his belief in God’s promises was credited to Abraham as righteousness, apart from obedience to the law (which had not yet been given).
understated point: it is by faith (alone) that a righteous person has life.
The promises God gave to Abraham were not undone, cancelled, or surpassed by the law God gave to Moses 430 years later.
The law was given, therefore, to show people their sin. As such, the law cannot give life, it can only bring death.
The law exists to show the holiness of God and the depravity of man – the vast chasm between them.
In this, the law serves as a guardian to people that speaks to the human conscience, until Jesus was revealed as the way from death to life, available to all people everywhere,
To further illustrate this truth, he compares people’s relationship to the law as children who are heirs to a wealth who are under a guardian until they are old enough to claim what is theirs. The law is that guardian that controls and directs people. Jesus, though, came and lived to pay the price to free all people who are subject to the law’s enslavement/guardianship.
Now, because of Jesus, you are no longer a slave of the law, but you are an adopted child of God.
Paul appeals to the Galatians to live in their freedom, rather than choosing to return to their enslavement to the law.
He tells them that the false teachers who were advocating this old way were people with bad intentions.
To further illustrate the argument of living under grace, Paul returns to Abraham, but this time illustrates the point by showing them how Isaac was a child of God’s promise, but Ishmael was a child of human effort.
God’s promise was long in development, but Abraham always believed God, and increasingly expected it to happen.
More specifically, Hagar (the handmaiden) represents Mount Sinai where the law (that brings death) was given, and Sarah (Abraham’s wife) represents Jerusalem, the free city.
The Galatians were like now like Isaac, free children of promise, who were now being persecuted by children of Mt. Sinai (a picture of Ishmael’s persecution of Isaac).
Just as Hagar and Ishmael were expelled, Paul exhorted the Galatians to expel the heretics now.
understated point: determine to stay free! Refuse to be enslaved to the law again.
if you choose to be enslaved by even one law (in the case of the Galatians, it was a post-belief requirement to be circumcised), then you are submitting yourself to the requirement of keeping all the law.
don’tmiss this: what matters (what is important) is faith expressing itself in love.
Paul reminded the Galatians that they had started well in their belief, but this new teaching was a sin that was poisoning their faith.
He told them that their freedom in Christ was the new paradigm that gave them life.
He warned them not to misuse their freedom to fulfill selfish (sexual) desires.
Rather, he told them to love and serve one another.
He explained that their ability to accomplish this was found in letting the Holy Spirit guide their lives.
The human nature continually wars against the Holy Spirit.
But because you, Christian, are controlled by/ are free in the Holy Spirit, you are not enslaved to the cravings of your fallen human nature.
Human nature-controlled behaviors are predictable, and consistently destructive and divisive. People whose lives are characterized by these behaviors will not inherit the Kingdom of God.
Similarly, Spirit-controlled behaviors are predictable and consistently constructive, unifying, and God-glorifying. These behaviors are known as the “Fruit of the Spirit” because these are the expressions or manifestations of God’s Spirit inner-workings in a believer’s life.
There is no law against these expressions of the faith life.
Paul exclaims, because we live in the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit!
Paul also encourages the Galatians to help restore fellow believers who stumble in their grace walk (or sin in any general manner).
He warns them to be gentle and humble in this gracious work of restoration, and to not fall into the same sins that ensnared those they are restoring.
understated point: share one another’s burdens, and in so doing you fulfill the law of Christ (the singular law to love others sacrificially)
He also admonishes them not to think they’re too important to help others. Because they aren’t.
one gentle serving of humble pie, coming up
Interestingly, in the shadow of the command to help cary one another’s burden, Paul admonishes them to work hard to live a life free of comparison, because we are each responsible for our own conduct.
He offers some final directions:
Don’t think that God can be mocked, you’ll harvest whatever you plant.
If you live for the flesh, you’ll harvest the fruit of human nature.
If you life for the Spirit, you’ll harvest the fruit of the Spirit.
understated point Never grow weary doing good!
What counts is whether or not we’ve been transformed into a new creation.
