Many people think Christianity is just a bunch of rules to follow, but Jesus actually died on the cross so we could be set free from all the rules. But if we don’t have rules to follow, how can we know how to live? By the Spirit of God who acts as our guide in every moment of every day. This message from Galatians shows us how we are to walk in step with the Spirit.
Rules Don’t Work
Have you ever come across a rule that sounded absolutely absurd? Sometimes it’s something left from a bygone era; other times you have no idea what it’s all about. I once stayed at a hotel so dated that it had a sign by the pool saying all women must wear bathing caps while swimming.
The laws on the books of some cities and states are equally ridiculous.
- In Connecticut it’s illegal to sell a pickle that doesn’t bounce. In 1948 the Food and Drug Commission there proclaimed that a real pickle should bounce when dropped from a height of one foot.
- Idaho is the only state to have an active ban on cannibalism, which is defined as the “nonconsensual consumption” of another human being. Technically this is not a crime in the rest of the nation.
- In Mobile, Alabama, you are not allowed to wash your hands, face or feet in any of the fountains of the city. Also, confetti is banned in Mobile.
- People in Well, Maine, are forbidden to post advertisements on another person’s tombstone.
- In Iowa, trying to pass margarine off as butter can get you a fine of up to $625.
Why do we have so many rules? Probably because at some point two scheming pickle packers tried to sell pickles unfit for human consumption. Or someone stuck pizza ads on all the tombstones in the cemetery. Or someone committed cannibalism without the consent of the victim. Because of ridiculous actions, ridiculous rules came into being.
The same thing happens in our homes. Our kids can find a way around any rule we want to make. “Billy, stop touching Bobby.” “I’m not touching him! My teddy bear is.” Then we have to make a rule against teddy-bear touching. By trying to create a rule for every crack in the original set of rules, we end up with so many different rules no one can remember all of them. Then the rules simply get ignored.
Experience tells us that rules, on their own, don’t work. People who don’t want to keep the rules blatantly break them, find a way around them, or ignore them (often without bothering to acquaint themselves with the rules in the first place!)
Failed Rules in the Bible
We can take comfort in knowing this experience isn’t just our own; it affects everyone else, too. We also know rule-breaking isn’t anything new. God has had the same experiences with His rules!
When God put Adam and Eve in the garden, he gave them one – and only one – rule: “Don’t eat the fruit of these two trees.” A simple rule. And soon a broken rule.
So God added more rules – many more. The Bible contains over 400 Israelite rules! Throughout the Old Testament years, people shamelessly broke the rules because they had no fear of God. The people who did fear God and keep His rules often had descendants who fell away completely from their parents’ faith. What a mess!
Then the Pharisees showed up a bit before the time of Jesus, and they tried to fix the chaos. To help everyone follow the rules, they added more rules to make sure no one ever accidentally crossed over one of God’s guiding lines. Can you imagine being a Jew at that time, trying to follow all the 400 original rules plus all the rules added by the Pharisees?
I repeat: Rules don’t work! All the rules in the world didn’t give the Pharisees hearts to see God when He showed up in the flesh, right in front of them, in the person of Jesus, the promised Messiah! Quite honestly, God has never focused on our rule-following, but on our hearts. Unfortunately, no amount of rule-keeping can make our hearts tender toward God.
Jesus came to fulfill the Law – to be the ONE person who lived up to all the rules. Now, as we put faith in Jesus, we all can be marked as righteous because of the righteousness, the purity, of Jesus. That is the gospel message: that we are saved not by works (by following the rules), so that no one can boast, but by grace through faith!
Added Rules in Galatians
Unfortunately, we humans love rules. They just make things easier – they present life in black and white, and clearly define right and wrong. As a big bonus, we can judge others according to the rules we create for ourselves. This mindset developed pretty quickly in the early church.
The book of Galatians, one of the earliest books of the New Testament, was written by the Apostle Paul to counteract some additional rules being required of Gentile Christians – namely, circumcision for all males.
Several weeks ago I taught a message called “Circumcision Matters” that had to do with circumcision of the heart. The requirement mentioned in Galatians, however, deals with actual surgical circumcision of adult males. We’ll skim through the book of Galatians to see what Paul had to say about the situation.
Galatians 1:6 – I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel.
Paul regrets that they have moved so far away from the gospel message he taught them – the one that says they are saved by the grace (the free gift) of Christ.
Galatians 3:2-5 – I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? …. So again I ask, does God give you His Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the Law, or by your believing what you heard?
Paul asks some rhetorical questions, just as he did in his letter to the Corinthians when he asked them about the spiritual gifts. He reminds the Galatians that they received the Holy Spirit (the One who enters us at salvation and guarantees our inheritance with God) not by obedience to the Law but by believing the gospel. He also asks about the miracles. Are they by good deeds or by faith and the work of the Spirit? Obviously all of this is the work of the Spirit rather than the Law.
Galatians 3:13-14 – Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.” He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.
Here Paul is teaching the theological point of how salvation works: Jesus took on Himself the curse we all deserved. He paid the redemption price to set us free so that we could be justified and have the very Spirit of God come into us.
Galatians 5:13 – You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free.
The redemption Jesus purchased for us was meant to make us free – free from the requirements of the Law, which we would never be able to fulfill on our own.
So far in his letter, Paul has taught them that salvation comes from the grace God showed when He sent His son, Jesus, to die on the cross as the curse for our sin. He has reminded them that while God had given them the Law, all the rules were never able to save anyone! Only Jesus saves.
Better Than a Rule – a Model
By now it’s fair for you to wonder what this message has to do with our series “Fresh Fire.” Where does the Holy Spirit fit into all this? Paul addresses that next. So far he has shown them only that a system of rules does not work and that keeping the rules never saved anyone. He hasn’t yet offered them any better system than “Be Free.”
The problem with “Be Free” theology is that people jump from too many rules to no rules at all. Anything goes! Think about a teacher who tells the students he trusts them and they don’t need to set up a list of rules. What happens? Total chaos – followed by a new list of class rules! Paul knew this. This is why, after reminding the Galatians they were “called to be free,” He lets them know that their freedom isn’t for their selfish desires. He continues in Galatians 5:13 with:”But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.”
If these new Christians were not to be tied strictly to a list of rules, what was to be their source of guidance? If they had been “set free” but were not free to indulge the flesh, what were they free to do? Paul explains:
Galatians 5:16-18 – So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
Praise God He has given us a better way forward than adherence to our world’s many rules! Imagine how many added rules could have come from all the cultural and technological changes of the past centuries! The list would take up more space than the American legal code, and no one knows everything that’s in that! Instead of rules, God gives us His Spirit; and He tells us to walk in the Spirit and be led by the Spirit. Paul does not give Christians a “listen to the wind and follow where it leads you” message. He is establishing where authority for all of life now lies.
The Pharisees and the Judaizers who came and stirred up dissension in Galatia wanted all authority to rest on their carefully crafted rules. They probably felt that the rules were neat and clean and that it would be easy to police the people by measuring them against the list of rules.
However, that’s not how followers of Jesus, with the Spirit of God forever in them, are supposed to live! We no longer live under the Law, but under the Spirit. We don’t look to a book that must be constantly updated because of time and circumstances; we look to God inside of us. Isn’t that better? We all face decisions in our lives, but applying the same set of rules to every situation can sometimes lead to ridiculous outcomes. That’s why God says, “Don’t worry about the rules any longer. Instead, walk with the Spirit; let Him lead you and take you through the ins and outs of life.”
In Paul’s time it was common to see a well-known philosopher walking along followed by a group of students who hoped to grasp the wisdom of their teacher. This would have been a common image to the Gentile Christians in Galatia. Paul tells them, “Do that, but follow the perfect Spirit instead of an imperfect man.”
Two Lists: Vices and Virtues
Vices
Galatians 5:19-21 – The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
These are the acts of a person following selfish desires.
Sometimes well-meaning Christians turn this list of vices into a separate checklist by which to judge new Christians. “Don’t be sexually impure; don’t get drunk; don’t hate; don’t fight; don’t be jealous or angry.” The list is long, and it adds to the already huge rule book.
Perhaps this is why some people have no interest in becoming Christians. They think being a Christian is all about the rules – “Be good and you can go to heaven.” What they don’t understand is that even if they could know and follow the whole, huge rule book, they still could never be good enough for heaven. We have to stop leading with rules when we know rules don’t work! We aren’t saved by rules.
Paul gives the list of vices as a guide – a caution – to say, “If this is what your life looks like, you are going the wrong way!” After writing four and a half chapters to tell us we aren’t saved by works, he’s not going to turn around and give us a list of works we have to do to get to heaven. However, he knew we need some tangible guidance, and so he told us what the life of someone following the Holy Spirit won’t look like.
Paul then presents a list of what the Spirit-led life should look like.
Virtues
Galatians 5:22-23 – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Many of you have placed your faith in Jesus. Knowing your own righteousness will never be good enough, you accepted the gift of God’s grace. You received the righteousness of Jesus, and the Spirit of God took up residence in you. All this should bring about a change in your life! The “fruit of the Spirit” – the result of living with the Spirit of God inside you – should be evident to all around you.
Just as Paul listed what sinful, fleshly living looks like, he now describes what a person who walks with the Spirit should look like.
The list begins with Love. This is not coincidental. Love is the linchpin, the key to everything. Jesus gave us two rules: love God and love others. Paul tells us in Colossians 3:14: And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.
Next: Joy and Peace. Who doesn’t yearn for a life of happiness and right relationships?
Patience, Kindness, Goodness. Your favorite people probably have these three characteristics. People who are patient, kind and good are wonderful to be around.
Faithfulness, Gentleness and Self-Control. These identify the maturing Christians. They can face challenges and temptations and still follow the way of Jesus regardless of obstacles.
Here is a thought regarding the fruit of the Spirit, quoted from Timothy George’s commentary on Galatians:
“Those who grow apples, oranges, and peaches know that however much they may seek to protect their orchards from bad weather or deadly insects, at the end of the day the product yielded by a fruit tree is a gift, not the result of human ingenuity or agricultural prowess. Just so, that which the Holy Spirit effects in the lives of believers – the desirable traits of Paul’s second list – is the result of his indwelling presence and the spiritual metamorphosis that dynamic reality brings about.”
It is not our job to concentrate on creating fruit by being more loving, more joy-filled, more patient. That would be imposing additional obligations and rules. Our job is to focus on Jesus, the true vine, and our connection to Him through the leading of the Spirit. If we do that, the fruit will follow. The fruit of the Spirit, like the list of vices, is simply a description of how the life of a mature Christian should look.
There’s a difference between a rule and a guide. Imagine you are a new student in a high school. You start your first day in the office. Someone hands you a 20-page student handbook, a page with your locker number and combination, your schedule, and (to be even more helpful) another list of unwritten rules the students created. They send you on your way and say, “Good luck!”
That sounds awful! That first day would likely be a disaster of being late to classes, not finding your locker, breaking unwritten rules you hadn’t even read yet, accidentally offending the most popular kid in school – the list could go on and on!
Good schools often approach this situation in a more helpful way by having an exceptional student partner with the new student to provide guidance. You, the new student, go to the office and meet a new friend who has agreed to help you through the day. The guide takes you to your locker, shows you the trick of opening it if it sticks, points you to each class, sits with you at lunch and takes you to join a table of friends. You are not relying on a list of documents but on your personal guide, who can show you where to go and what to do in real time. If you do or say something wrong, the guide can quietly point how that “doesn’t fly” in your new school.
Which of these situations would you prefer?
The final function of the Holy Spirit is to guide us through our entire lives into maturity and godliness. Hebrews 12 says Jesus is the author and perfecter of our faith; what He starts with the Spirit, He finishes with the same Spirit.
Should we throw out all rules? No. Children need rules; teenagers need rules. (Note: rules work a lot better for toddlers and children trying to figure out life than for teenagers trying to break all the rules!). We Christians can benefit from basic rules to show us what our lives should or shouldn’t look like as we follow Jesus. That’s why Paul included it in his letter to the Galatians.
Conclusion
Again – we must understand that following rules can’t save us or help us reach maturity. At a certain point it all comes down to our hearts and our willingness to follow God’s Spirit within us. Are we willing to yield to His leading? Are we willing to turn around when He convicts us of pride or of speaking a harsh word? Will we follow the commands to love God and others by the power of the Spirit within us? Or will we love ourselves and live however we choose?
Today we’ve looked at three possible life-paths:
- Legalism: Create a rigid set of rules to live by; hold others to that same standard.
- Licentiousness: Throw out all the rules and “be free.” Use your freedom for your own selfish desires.
- Spirit-Led: This third way (God’s way) is not between the two extremes, but above them.
Galatians 5:25 – Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.
When we are led by the Spirit, our Christian life is neither all rules nor all freedom. It is all about God! The focus is not on rigid rules or our own passions, but on what honors and glorifies God. The ultimate job of the Holy Spirit is to glorify God and to help us give Him glory through our very lives.
Through the grace of God we can be filled with the Spirit, be guided by the Spirit, and receive gifts from the Spirit. We must keep in step with Him. That means avoiding the two extremes of legalism and licentiousness and simply and humbly holding ourselves accountable to what the Spirit is saying to us. We need to find that “third way” and honor God by following His Spirit daily.
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