Third Presbyterian Sunday Morning Bible Study - May 30, 2021

Below is the Bible Study written by Jim Rudiger for his Sunday School Class which meets at Third Presbyterian Church, Norfolk, Virginia. It's based on Galatians 5:22-26; 6:1-10.

Isn’t it hard to just throw away some things?  I mean those things that have been with you a long time.  They are no longer new; they don’t sparkle anymore.  They may be chipped, dented or discolored, but, it is still hard to toss them in the trash or even give them to the King’s Daughter’s store.  Do you have things like that?  What is the oldest thing you have that you really hate getting rid of?  When we sold my mother-in- law’s house, Jackie found receipts going back over thirty years.  There were receipts from Rices before it became Rices-Nachmans.  My mother-in-law found security in knowing that if Rices ever called about a purchase she made in 1965, she had the proof laying in a stuffed drawer.  I have to admit that I have trouble getting rid of clothes.  It was only a couple of years ago that I got rid of a white dinner jacket that I had in college.  Of course, it had been many years since it was white - it had become a kind-of dirty lemon color when Jackie pulled it out of my closet and ignoring the tears streaming down my cheeks, put it in the bag for King’s Daughters.

Yep, getting rid of the old is sometimes very hard to do.  In today’ study, Paul deals with getting rid of the old you to make room for the new you in Christ.  Paul is a realist and he recognizes that getting rid of the old you isn’t all that easy.  In this last part of his letter to the churches in Galatia, Paul contrasts what motivated the old you and why the new you is so much better.  In order to get us to the good new us, Paul covered stuff that made us the bad old us.  The verses that Paul uses to contrast with the good us aren’t included, but, obviously, are needed to understand fully what Paul was getting at.

In 5:16-21, Paul makes the point that Christian freedom does not mean that we are free to indulge ourselves, but freedom to choose to walk in the Spirit.  We indulge ourselves in what Paul calls “the desires of the flesh.”  What would you call “desires of the flesh?  Actually, the word used in the original text didn’t necessarily refer to an immoral activity.  “Desires of the flesh” would refer to anything that would get in your way of worshiping God.  In that sense, desires of the flesh could be music, art, working on charities, or looking at TV.  So many of these things aren’t really bad things to do but if they are done in the place of worship, then they fall into this category.  What other desires of the flesh like these can you think of?  One of the hardest desires that I deal with is watching sports on TV.  It took a lot of work to get off that couch and start to write this study.

To Paul there has always been a war waged between the desires of the flesh and the Spirit.  Remember that the Spirit dwells in each Christian and that means in you and I.  The desires of the flesh are the residue from our old self.  That lifestyle that still looks like fun at times.  You see, no matter how hard we work at it and no matter how much progress we make spiritually, that old self is still there plugging away with rationalizations that says that it won’t hurt anybody if we do it just one more time.  We have to recognize that we have two natures - the old and the new.  They don’t like each other and we are the battle ground.  If we don’t decide to make our alliance with the Spirit and the new self, then we loose the war.

Just so we understand what he is talking about, Paul sets down what the following works of the flesh will lead to.  We’re going to group those works into four categories: Sensual or Sexual Sins, Religious Sins, Social Sins and Personal Sins.  As we look at Paul’s list, we will assign each to a group.

Sexual immorality- sexual immorality as used here refers to prostitution.  In the first century, Christians were faced with sexual immorality which not only wasn’t condemned but in many cases was considered essential to living an ordinary life.  A man respected his wife and she had the duty to provide him with children.  How and where he found pleasure was another matter.  It was perfectly all right for him to go to a prostitute or even have a mistress.  No one thought that there was anything wrong with doing this.  Paul did think it was wrong.   Group? Sensual.

Impurity and debauchery - the words Paul uses originally meant the pus that oozes out of an unclean wound, a tree that has never been pruned or flour that has never been sifted.  Something that is tainted.  The idea here is that of a man who is so far gone in lust and desires that he no longer cares what other people may say or think about him. Group? Sensual.

Idolatry - this word means worshiping a god which was made by the hands of men.  This sins covers anything that someone has made more important than God.  Group? Religious.

Witchcraft - this actually means using drugs.  In Paul’s day, someone  who practiced witchcraft would use drugs to induce a trance.  While in the trance, he would make prophesies or give advice.  Even today, Indians in the west and in Mexico use peyote to induce a trance which they say allows their god to speak through them.  For most of us witchcraft and sorcery are never a problem.  Or is it?  Ever check out your horoscope in the paper?  Ever look for a four leaf clover?  Ever be flattered by a fortune cookie?  Remember when they had those weighing machines in the five-and-dimes downtown?  You could stand on the pedestal and put in a penny and out would come a card with your fortune along with your weight.  A guy stood on the pedestal, put in a penny and got out a card which said, “You are a leader among men.  Women find you handsome and irresistible and little children adore you.”  He hands the card to his wife and says, “See what a great guy you married.  Read this.”  His wife reads the card and hands it back and says, “Yeah, and they got your weight wrong too.”  Group? Religious.

Hatred - this is a guy who just doesn’t like anybody.  He argues with everybody.  This is a guy who won't allow himself to love anybody.    He is just the opposite from a Christian who is told to love everybody.  It’s hard to deal with someone who hates everybody because, chances are that he hates you too.  Group? Social.

Discord - the main problem with discord is that it creates groups which feud with other groups.  Discord in a church where factions have been established can strangle the Spirit right out of the church.  Group? Social.

Jealousy - this word comes from the same root as for zeal.  Originally, this was a good word.  It meant to try to be like someone who you admired.  Unfortunately, the word degenerated into not wanting to be like somebody, but, to be somebody.   Group?  Social.

Fits of rage - this is more than just being angry.  What is meant here is an uncontrollable temper.  This is the guy who has a short fuse.  This isn’t about someone has an anger issue that lingers over a long period of time.  This about an eruption and then a calm.  Group?  Social.

Selfish ambition - this is the person who puts his needs and desires ahead of anything that might benefit someone else.  He’ll walk over anybody who might get in the way of what he wants.  He is a person who never gets enough.  Everybody he meets is a potential rival.   Group? Social.   

Dissensions - this word literally means standing apart.  In this sense, dissension describes a situation where two groups oppose each other to the point that one group can’t stand being in the same room with the other group.  It is a case where members fly apart instead of coming together.  Group?  Social.

Factions - we can think of factions as dissensions that have crystallized.  All of this usually come from groups who hold different views.  Unfortunately, people seem to end up not hating the view as much as the person holding the view.  Group?  Social.

Envy - where jealousy wants to have what someone else has, envy doesn’t even want the person to have what they do have.  It isn’t so much to want what the other person has but to see that person loose what he has.  Group?  Social.

Drunkenness - in Paul’s day this was not an uncommon vice.  The Greeks drank more wine than milk.  Even children drank wine.  Now keep in mind that what they drank was a mixture of three parts water and two parts wine.  But even at that, if you drank enough, you got sloshed.  To be honest, drunkenness was looked down on by both the Greeks and the Christians because, like today, it changed a person from a nice guy to an unpleasant person to be around. Group?   Personal.

Orgies - we associate this with sex, but, this word originally described a group of friends who would celebrate with a buddy after he had achieved a victory.  It was like a victory party.  It wasn’t long before it meant unrestrained partying that has degenerated into immoral behavior.  Group?  Personal.

Paul tells us that he has only listed the things that came to his mind right then.  Given more time and he could add some more to the list.  But he does give a warning regarding this behavior.  If you keep doing this, you will lose your salvation.  Keep in mind, that who he is talking about is a person who, knowing that he is sinning, keeps on doing the same sin.  So Paul is talking about a continuing giving in to the same sin and not the occasional sin that we all have had creep in and then is dealt with.  Christ gave us the example of the prodigal son.  He fell so low that he ate with the pigs in the pig pen.  But, he didn’t stay there.  The only ones who stay in the pig pens are the pigs.  In other words, if you choose to continue to live with sin, then you have big troubles because you are evicting the Holy Spirit from your life.

Galatians 5:22 By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity,  faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control.  There is no law against such things.  24 And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified  the flesh with it's passions and desires.  25 If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit.  26 Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another. 

We have heard about what the desires of the flesh leads to.  Now, Paul tells us what we can expect if we get rid of that trash and embrace the Holy Spirit.  He describes it as what?  The fruits of the spirit.  Fruit comes from the Latin word meaning “enjoy.”   That kind of fits in with how we see fruit.  Think about it.  You have to dig potatoes and carrots and brush off the dirt before you eat them.  You get on your hands and knees to cut spinach and cabbage.  But with fruit, you just pick it off the tree and if you want, take a bite right then. It’s something that can be enjoyed immediately.  So, the fruit of the Spirit is right there - ripe and ready for the picking.  And what is the fruit?

Love - the word for love is more than never having to say you’re sorry.  Used here it means that no matter what someone may do to you or say to you, you will always want only good things to happen to him.  It is a deliberate effort that can only be done with God’s help.

Joy - it is a happiness that has no limit.  It is that happiness and contentment swelling in our hearts, filling our eyes with tears, at the thought that we are loved so much by God. 

Peace - this word means more than freedom from trouble, but rather for everything that lifts us up and sets us right before God.  It is that tranquility that we have when we know for sure that our future is in the hands of a loving God.

Patience - look at it this way, if God had been like you or I, he would have wiped out the human race a long time ago.  But because of His patience, God has stuck with us even with our sinful nature because he sees something special and good in each us.  The patience we get through the Spirit is modeled after God’s patience, so,  we can deal with others as generously as God has dealt with us.

Kindness - dealing in all things with goodness that always understands and forgives.

Goodness - this is generosity that holds back nothing to help elevate somebody else.

Faithfulness - this is characteristic of a person who is reliable.  He has taken his stand and is willing to stick in there regardless of the pressures the world brings to bear.

Gentleness - to be considered of others in a way that softens the cruelty of the world.  To be able to offer that safe haven when the storms are raging.

Self-control - this is the indispensable fruit.  With self-control we are able to enjoy all of the others.  It provides us with the power to overcome our old self and put it in the trash can of our history.

Galations 6:1 My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.  Take care that you yourselves are not tempted.  2 Bear one another's burdens and in this way you will fulfill  the law of Christ.  3 For if those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves.  4 All must test their own work; then that work, rather than their neighbor's work, will become a cause for pride.  5 For all must carry their own loads.

If you find out that a Christian friend is sinning, what does Paul advise you to do?  Restore him.  Which means what?  Our main goal is to help him straighten out and fly right.  And you do it with - what? A spirit of gentleness.  Paul’s point is that you don’t turn your back on the guy.  You don’t gossip about what he did.  You stay off of Face Book!  This is what we as Christians should do.  It is part of the fruits we just talked about.  It does mean that you might have to confront the person.  But, in the real life, is that something you would enthusiastically look forward to doing?  Why is it hard to do?  Don’t want him to think that you are saying that you are better than he is.  It’s really none of our business.  The guy will think that you are putting him down.  While it all fits into being a good Christian, it presents a difficult choice for us.  We might take a chance on doing this for a close relative, but, a friend is something else.  If we do want to help straighten out a friend, what does Paul warn us about? Getting so involved that you get tempted to join in the sinning.  This could happen because your friend in order to justify what he is doing, might come up with some pretty good reasons to sin.  He might spin you so much you become dizzy and buy into his arguments.   

As Christians we should bear one another’s - what?  Burdens.  The Greek word for “burden” is weight.  The burden the guys is under is weighing him down.  What kind of burdens weigh us down?  Illness; loss of a loved one; loss of income; addiction.  Christians should be there to offer support and love at times like that.  This is true, but, it takes a special person with special talents to be able to step in and provide the necessary support.  The one thing that we all can offer is love, forgiveness and prayer.  That might help out as much or more than physical support because it lets the guy know that he’s not alone and there is a place where he can come home to.  A place where he will be accepted.

Paul recognizes that what he has said isn’t easy for everybody.  So, he gives us some advice on recognizing who we are and what we can do.  A little self examination is needed.  He stresses two things.  Don’t pretend to be something you aren’t and don’t claim that you aren’t capable doing something when you know you are.  You know, it’s easy to pretend that we are somebody we aren’t.  We might convince ourselves that we are that person, but, usually we don’t fool too many other people.  So, Paul tells us we have to be at home with who we are.  The other side of the coin is that we might have a talent for a certain thing, but, we deny we can do it because we don’t want to get involved or we’re lazy or we don’t want the responsibility that goes with having that certain ability.  That’s being selfish because we should recognize that we didn’t have much to do with having a talent.  God did and if God saw fit to give us something special, He did it so we can use it for His good.

How do we examine ourselves?  What tests are Paul talking about?  Paul is saying that we shouldn’t make the test as comparing ourselves against somebody else.  Suppose you wanted to test yourself in being a good parent and used the comparison test, what kind of parent would you use for comparison?  Do you compare yourself to a very good parent and then see how far short you fall?  That can be depressing.  Or, do you compare yourself to a bad parent and make your self look good?  You’re always going to look good if you compare yourself to a failure.  It’s a lot healthier to strive to be someone better.  If we want a comparison that will help us, use God as the perfect parent.

Paul says that we all have to do what?  Carry our own loads.  The word “load” used here was a word that was used to describe a soldiers back pack. The soldier was expected to carry his own back pack containing what he needed to get along each day - food, water, clothes, tools.  The soldier was expected to add to his back pack things that another soldier who was injured wasn’t able to carry.  So, Paul is saying that he knows that everybody has personal problems and challenges that makes our pack packs pretty full, but, there will always be a little room in our back pack for somebody else’s load. 

Galatians 6:6  Those who are taught the word must share all good things with their teacher.  7 Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you reap whatever you sow.  8 If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from the Spirit.  9 So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up.  10 So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of all, and especially for those of the family of faith.

Paul warns us with words we have heard all of our lives.  What are those words?  We reap what we sow, which means what?  Our actions have consequences.  If you live a life that accepts the world views of right and wrong, then the consequences following the world will be dictated by the world.  Do you think the world is fair?  That the world is forgiving?  If all we have is what suites the world then we had better be prepared to be judged and punished as the world see fit.  Paul says that there is another way to live - to sow our lives.  What is that?  Sow to the spirit.  What does that mean?  Live as God wants us to live.  If we do that, what will be the result of what we have sowed?  Eternal life.  The choice is simple.  Do we want to received the worlds punishment or God’s reward?

Paul has given us a laundry list which tells us what we need to clean up and get rid of.  When I looked in my closet and saw old worn out clothes, I recognized that if I was going to have room for new clothes, the old ones had to go.  If I open the closet of my mind, I see the remnants of my old self.  The only way I can make room for the Spirit is to throw out the reminders of the old self.  Are there still outdated, worn out desires still hanging out in your mind?  Paul tells us that if we let the Spirit plant his fruit tree in our mind then there won’t be room for all of the negative desires that set us apart from God.  The victory is ours and is waiting just to be claimed.  And the fruit is sweet and ready to be enjoyed.

Prayer: Dear Father, help to control our old self and to draw upon the fruit of the Spirit to bring love and support to all who we come in contact with this week.  In the name of Jesus Christ, our precious Lord and Savior, Amen.