“You,
my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to
indulge the flesh1; rather, serve one another humbly in love.” “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not
gratify the desires of the flesh.” Galatians 5:13, 16
I often mention Paul’s words to the spiritually arrogant
Corinthians when the topic of freedom comes up.
The Corinthians believed it was all right to do as they pleased based on
the freedom they enjoyed in Christ. Paul concurred; however, he added this caveat:
yes, live as you choose, but know this, not all things are beneficial, nor are
all things constructive.
A divisive teaching had apparently entered into the Galatian
church, unsettling the believers. In his
letter to the church in Galatia Paul reestablishes the call to freedom and what
that truly means to the believer. One thing it does not mean is that we are free once again to sin as we did prior to
our conversion. If a true believer in
Christ, the Holy Spirit lives within you and will direct you into all things
godly if allowed to. God never forces
His children to do anything, but rather relies on an honest compulsion on our
part to live according to His word. It’s
the least we can do in response to all He has done for us.
The Galatians seemed confused regarding what was true and
what was false. It’s the Spirit of God
that can rid us of all confusion when it comes to the correct path to take. It’s never all right to sin; however, it
should be made very clear that we will
sin after our conversion. The Apostle John addresses this in his letter to an
unnamed church or group of churches when he says in 1 John 2:1 “My dear children, I write this to you so
that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with
the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.”
It’s our responsibility as children of God to follow His
directives. If we yield to the leading
of the Holy Spirit we will make far fewer poor decisions regarding sin and be
more inclined to love one another in peace and humility. Until next time, walk
with the King and be a blessing!
Note: “Christian
liberty is freedom from sin, not
freedom to sin.” [Reformation Study
Bible]
1 In
contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the
sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the
Spirit; also in verses 16, 17, 19 and 24; and in 6:8. [Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®
Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.®]
