Liberty, Faith, Love and Truth
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Galatians 5:1-12
V. 1-4 For freedom Christ has set us free; stand
firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.
2. Look:
I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no
advantage to you.
3. I
testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to
keep the whole law.
4. You
are severed from Christ, you who would be justified by the law; you have fallen
away from grace.
Warren Wiersbe wrote: "Sad to say, there are some people who feel very insecure with
liberty. They would rather be under the tyranny of some leader than to make
their own decisions freely. There are some believers who are frightened by the
liberty they have in God’s grace; so they seek out a fellowship that
is legalistic and dictatorial, where they can let others make their decisions
for them. This is comparable to an adult climbing back into the crib. The way
of Christian liberty is the way of fulfillment in Christ. No wonder Paul issues
that ultimatum: “Do not be entangled again in the yoke of bondage. Take your
stand for liberty.”
What is biblical liberty? Once again, we have to be sure to obtain the definition from the Bible. It is something more than what the world would describe as liberty and it is also contrary to the world’s view.
What is biblical liberty? Once again, we have to be sure to obtain the definition from the Bible. It is something more than what the world would describe as liberty and it is also contrary to the world’s view.
Because the man of the world is basically egocentric,
liberty would mean to him a removal of obstacles, so that he can fulfill his
desires, ambitions, and bring himself happiness. It might also mean that, if he
is bound by vices and bad habits, he would seek freedom from them, in order to
enjoy himself on a much higher level. A higher degree of morality and decency
would win for him a greater respect and honor from his fellow man. However, all
of these goals are against the purposes of God and therefore, the liberty that
he seeks, is not that which is found in the Bible.
Human definitions take nothing away from the fact that
God is the God of liberty and offers, through the gospel, true freedom. Liberty
is the ambiance of the heavenly Jerusalem and it is only in that ambiance that
the new spiritual nature can develop. God’s freedom is absolutely priceless and
far beyond the highest value that we can put upon it. I appreciate Warren
Wiersbe’s comments throughout this epistle. Concerning gospel liberty, he says:
“Paul’s
doctrine of Christian liberty through grace is not the dangerous doctrine. It
is legalism that is the dangerous doctrine, because
legalism attempts to do the
impossible: change the old nature and make it obey the Laws of God.”
To be sure, the
gospel will free the one who is enslaved by vices and bad habits, but it will
not stop there. It will free from all the attractions of the world, which deceive
and entice people to covet them, giving countless hours and mighty exertions of
energy in order to possess them. It frees from the wily, supernatural lures of
the devil and his kingdom.
It also attacks and destroys an enemy that is present
in our lives 24 hours a day, seven days a week. This persistent slave driver is
the ego that I mentioned earlier, as the control center of the people of the
world. It makes its demands day and night. All our lives, we have habitually
given it all that it asks. It gets us out of bed at night to fulfill some whim
and dines with us at the table, dominating our appetite. It demands recreation
and entertainment. It insists on recognition, high esteem and self-love. The
gospel turns our attention humbly away from ourselves, in order to experience
far higher and worthier joys.
In this letter, Paul is focusing on liberty from the
horrible tyranny of man’s works of righteousness by the law. Our proud ego tries
to govern us, claiming that we must do something by our own efforts in order
that we might gain salvation. This is an arrogant deception, making an
individual think that there is some goodness in himself, some worthy potential,
by which he can lift himself into God’s favor. He exalts himself, rather than
magnifying the mercy and grace of God for a helpless, depraved sinner. All his
efforts and attention, given to fulfill the law, only bring him under a yoke of
bondage.
The Galatian decision to take the rite of circumcision
(in relation to his salvation) was his initiation, bringing him under the yoke
of the law. Immediately, he yields his liberty, forfeits the blessings of
Christ and “is obligated to keep the whole law”. For a graphic Old Testament
picture of a yoke of bondage, read the story of sightless Samson, grinding at a
prison mill like an ox (Judg.16:21). Paul, several times in the epistle, shows
the black and white extremes of this choice with no gray areas, no middle
ground, between. Take a look… in this chapter 5:2 and 4: “If you accept circumcision,
Christ will be of no advantage to you… You are severed from Christ, you who
would be justified by the law; you have fallen away from grace.” See also 1:6; 2:21;
and 4:11.
Gospel liberty comes through the knowledge of the truth, first of all, but it is the truth itself that has power to free: “You will know the truth, and the truth
will set you free” (Jn.8:32). Jesus Christ is the embodiment of truth: “If the Son sets you free, you will be free
indeed” (Jn.8:36). “I am… the truth”,
He said, that leads to the Father and heaven (Jn.14:2,6). Our focus must be upon Him and the authority of His
word.
“Stand firm therefore.” There is much value in a
steadfast stand. We often look and admire the ones who seem to make much
progress, running rapidly and outdistancing the rest of the body of Christians,
but later we see them quickly tire or trip and fall in some way. After making
this observation over a period of years, one comes to appreciate and esteem the
people who plod forward faithfully, year after year, always solid, always firm
in their stand, in their faith and in their doctrine.
V. 5-12
For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of
righteousness.
6. For in
Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything but
only faith working through love.
7. You were running well. Who hindered you from
obeying the truth?
8. This
persuasion is not from him who calls you.
9. A
little leaven leavens the whole lump.
10. I
have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who
is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is.
11. But
if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In
that case the offense of the cross has been removed.
12. I
wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves!
“Through the Spirit, by faith” are words that can be
attached to almost all (if not all) scriptural counsel and commands. If these
words were always written, the Bible would be a great deal thicker than it
actually is. We can legitimately assume their unwritten presence, concerning
all gospel truth. For example, in verse 5, “We eagerly wait for the hope of
righteousness, through the Spirit, by
faith.” There is no other way for a Christian to hope. I won’t quote again chapter
3, verses 2-5, but there you find Paul teaching that all gospel work is
accomplished through the Spirit, by
faith. The Christian lives, works, achieves, understands, evangelizes, ministers
and is sanctified through the Spirit, by
faith, and must never depend upon his own efforts and abilities.
Hope is faith in the future tense. By faith, we are
made righteous, but we also wait… eagerly…
for the hope of a future of perfect righteousness. This is “the hope laid up for you in heaven” (Col.1:5). It is “the crown of righteousness, which the
Lord, the righteous judge, will award … to all who have loved his appearing” (2
Ti.4:8).
“Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for
anything.” Circumcision, in itself, is not right and is not wrong. Being uncircumcised,
in itself, is not right and not wrong, it just doesn’t count before God and
never did. It was always symbolic and already that is made clear in the Old
Testament, even by the lawgiver, Moses: “Circumcise
therefore the foreskin of your heart, and be no longer stubborn” (Dt.10:16).
“The Lord your God will circumcise your
heart… so that you will love your God with all your heart and with all your
soul, that you may live” (Dt.30:6). Then, centuries later, Jeremiah
commanded, “Remove the foreskin of your
hearts…” (Jer.4:4).
On the other hand, faith working through love, is that
for which God is looking. These are the foundational virtues, given to the
Christian. Love is the motivational force behind all Christian service, which
obligates free and willing devotion to Christ. Faith gives the ability to
fulfill His purposes.
Truth is the essential teaching that provides the
believer with the knowledge of God’s will. It stands in direct opposition to
the heart of the world’s overall philosophy and ideology, which is deception. The
assumption that doctrine is not important will leave a vacuum in the life of
the person, who assumes it, and will make room in his heart for deception.
As Paul has been teaching us, “the world’s rudiments”
lead to slavery and, ultimately, spiritual ruin. John simply teaches, “No lie is of the truth” (1 Jn.2:21).
Jesus, praying to the Father, states, “Sanctify
them in the truth; your word is truth” (Jn.17:17). The Christian can only
advance in obedience to the truth of the word of God. Progress immediately
stops, when doctrinal lies enter. “Who hindered you?” Obviously, not the One
who called you. It is a foreign element, who entered, presented false doctrine,
and hindered you, and ultimately, you are responsible for following it.
“A little leaven leavens the whole lump.” Leaven makes a substance appear
to be bigger than it actually is. It is symbolic of deception, hypocrisy and
pride, three unwholesome ingredients that work together to produce a carnal
product. This is a subtler way for Paul to show that the works of the law are entirely
incompatible with Christ and His grace and will annul His work in the
Christian. Leaven enters the whole lump and puffs it out of shape.
I see nothing positive about leaven in the entire Bible.
The Jews observed a feast of unleavened bread and leaven was not allowed in any
offering by fire. There are two exceptions, where leavened bread is offered,
apart from the offerings by fire, which were entirely offered to God. In those exceptional
offerings (Lev.7:13; 23:17), leaven symbolized the reality of sin still present
in the individual and in the church, as John teaches us: “If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not
in us” (1 Jn.1:10).
Jesus warned His disciples of leaven. I am among a
minority of Christians, who believe that Jesus’ parable of leaven in three
measures of meal (Mt.13:31-33) is actually a prophecy, pointing to what is now
a historical fact. The kingdom of God on this earth, sown as a mustard seed,
became a monstrous tree, full of
corruption, instead of the desired mustard plant.
In 1 Corinthians 5:6-7, as well as in the portion that we are studying, Paul
warns of the negative consequences of placing leaven in the lump of dough.
Paul shows confidence that this problem now will be
dealt with and his confidence is not in the Galatians, but in the Lord. Jesus
said, “I will build my church” (Mt.16:18) and He is intervening through the
apostle to eliminate the serious threat caused by the Judaizers, while He works
in the inner recesses of the heart. We can be assured, as well, that where
Christ’s true church is found today, He will deal with corruption, before
irreparable damage takes place. For love of His bride, He acts to save her from
the attacking wolves. You may recall that I mentioned this intervention much
earlier in our study. The false teachers will experience His judgment and the
church must act to renounce and alienate themselves from them.
Much of the persecution in the early church came from
the Jews. Teaching of circumcision and the keeping of the Law of Moses would
find much more acceptance among them. This teaching, then, is the more popular
teaching in Paul’s day. Perhaps a false assumption arose that Paul preached
circumcision; he did, after all, circumcise Timothy. He argues that the
greatest offense to the Jews and the world is the preaching of the cross, which
runs totally cross-current to the teaching of circumcision. His argument is
based on the fact of the resulting persecution, when preaching the cross; Paul
was persecuted everywhere. He proclaimed that salvation is through the cross
alone and circumcision does not play the smallest part in it.
Verse 12 is a very strong and graphic statement, one
you would not ordinarily expect from the apostle, nor will you find anything
like it in any other place in his fourteen epistles. I will not specifically
point out a few places in the Bible, where God’s mouthpieces spoke a surprisingly
crude language. In saying this, I am not accepting, nor excusing, some
preachers in our day, who go far beyond the limits of acceptable vocabulary. Jesus
taught, “Out of the abundance of the
heart, his mouth speaks” (Lk.6:45), which tells me that these foulmouthed
preachers, also have a foul heart. Paul, however, is simply desiring the
excommunication of these ‘circumcision’ teachers, but his term is correctly
translated in the ESV “emasculate”. To these, who are glorying in the number of
Christians that they are persuading to be circumcised, Paul suggests that they should
go a step farther in cutting their own bodies.
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