5:13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. In 5:1, when Paul spoke of freedom, he included himself: “Christ has set us free.” In this verse, he applied his words directly to the Galatians and his ministry to them. The word you builds on his confidence that they would return to the faith that had saved them (5:10). When Paul ministered among the Galatians, he did not give his converts a new set of rules
| to obey (as the Judaizers had done), for that would have made them slaves to the law. Instead, the Galatians were called to freedom. Paul was the messenger, but they “were called” by God himself, the author of the gospel. The apostle wanted them to “stand firm,” to run their race in that very freedom that only Christ can give. | Obedience is the perfection of the religious life; by it man submits to man for the love of God, as God rendered Himself obedient unto men for their salvation.
Thomas Aquinas
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This verse includes an important shift in emphasis. Paul had expressed his harshest wishes to the Judaizers in 5:12. Then he turned to a practical concern he had for the Galatians. If they overcame the attacks of the Judaizers, they would immediately face a different threat to their freedom. Besides legalism, they must avoid giving in to the “flesh” (Greek, sarx—translated as “self-indulgence” in nrsv). All people are subject to this type of slavery, for every human being has a sinful human nature, inherently bent toward sin. The context determines that Paul is not denigrating the human body or our identity as made in the image of God. But this verse also makes clear that freedom in Christ does not mean elimination of the sarx, for it continues to urge us to indulge ourselves rather than pursue the true purpose of freedom: the opportunity to practice genuine love in service to others.
Paul has already used the Greek term sarx eight times in this letter to describe physical life (see 1:16; 2:16, 20; 3:3; 4:13, 14, 23, 29). But at this point, he used sarx with a decided negative flavor. Translating the word as “sinful nature” (niv) or “self-indulgence” (nrsv) reminds us that “flesh” can be an inherent source impelling us to sin. “Flesh” does not mean just a weakness but an almost insatiable, self-oriented power in human nature. Our fallen nature rebels against God and resists his Spirit, producing what Paul called the “works of the flesh” (5:19 nrsv). The demands of our human nature present a constant threat to our real freedom in Christ. We need his ongoing help to keep our “flesh” under control.
| LIFE APPLICATION – GALLERY OF FALSE MASTERS |
| Although we may be trusting Christ as our gracious master, we must be aware of the ongoing attacks by previous “masters” to reassert their power in our lives. The master called Legalism continues to appeal to our belief that we can work our way into God’s favor without any outside help. The master called Hypocrisy offers lip service to Christ, while promoting pride of ownership in having the right beliefs and right connections. And the master called Sinful Human Nature continues to woo us to simply indulge ourselves in whatever might offer pleasure at the moment. These masters vary in their approach, but they never take very long vacations from their efforts to enslave us. |
Some commentators have suggested that after dealing with the Judaizers and their adherents in the previous sections of this letter, Paul turned his attention to another faction in the Galatian church—those who wanted to cast aside all restraint. They understood Christian freedom as freedom from the law, but they went too far in that direction, casting aside all moral restraint and living in self-indulgence. This view has some validity, though it underestimates how all believers struggle with their own human nature. Temptation to indulge our flesh provides a greater problem than can be explained by a “faction.” In any case, the very lifestyle of pagan cultures would have been a constant temptation to these newly “freed” converts. Opportunities to “indulge the sinful nature” have rarely been in short supply!
Some of Paul’s critics may have condemned his preaching of Christian freedom, saying that it would lead to people living without restraint or guidelines. Paul had an immediate and forceful answer, explaining that freedom was not to be used as an opportunity for self-indulgence (see also 5:16-17, 19, 24). The Greek word aphorme literally means “a starting point, a base of operations for a military mission.” We might even use the word springboard. Christian freedom is not meant to be the base of operations, the springboard and pretext for indulging in everything one’s sinful nature desires. The irony, then, would be that Christian freedom would be used to return to slavery to sin—for to fulfill every desire is to be enslaved to those desires. Satan and the flesh use our freedom from law as an opportunity to enflame our desires. Sinful human desires lead to the problems mentioned in 5:26 (conceit, provoking one another, and envy) and to the lack of mutual help described in 6:1-10. When we indulge the sinful nature, we open the door to these kinds of behaviors and attitudes (see 1 Peter 2:16; 2 Peter 2:8-10; Jude 4). The antidotes for indulging the flesh are living in the Spirit and serving one another.
| LIFE APPLICATION – LIBERTY’S LIMITS |
| Christian freedom cannot be defined as permission to do anything we want. Rather, it is the opportunity to do what Christ wants, without fear that our performance will be counted against us. We are free from endless ceremonial laws, sin, and fear. But we are not free in the sense of totally governing ourselves or being totally autonomous from Christ. We are under the restraint of the Holy Spirit and the constraint of the higher law, the law of love. Freedom must be used to glorify Christ and serve others, not just to fulfill our personal desires. |
Slavery to sin comes with being human (Psalm 51:5; Romans 7:18). Slavery to the law comes as a choice, but a foolish one, for it requires hard labor without any hope of freedom. Paul called the believers to “serve one another in love” (niv). This was freedom at its deepest level, for it allowed people to submit voluntarily to slavery to one another (the Greek verb douleuete translated “serve” actually refers to the service of a slave). Serving in this way gives the believer deep joy.
This teaching forms the very heart of Christianity, but it presents a paradox. We are freed from slavery to sin to become slaves to one another. Worldly people cannot understand this—joy in slavery? They don’t realize they are enslaved either to sin or to some religious system. People enslaved to sin are not free to live righteously. The other slavery that Paul described comes with the freedom given in Christ. Love for other believers flows outward from what God has done in each believer’s heart. The Greek word for love (agape) refers to selfless, self-giving love. Christian freedom does not leave believers wandering through life without laws, rules, restraints, or guidelines. Instead, they freely live according to God’s standards and glorify God through loving service to others.
5:14 For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”NRSV In fact, Christian servanthood ultimately does what slavery to the law cannot do—it fulfills the law! Quoting from Leviticus 19:18 (from the Torah, the book of the Law), Paul explained that a single commandment summarizes the entire law. If you love your neighbor as yourself, you’ll find yourself fulfilling God’s law. Jesus made this same point (Matthew 22:35-39; Luke 10:25-28).
The Greek word translated summed up could also mean “fulfilled.” Thus Paul’s sentence has two meanings: (1) This law sums up all the others, and (2) this law is fulfilled. In fact, the entire law is fulfilled as the Christian community acts in love toward one another through the power of the Holy Spirit.
Paul made it clear through this letter (and others) that the law cannot save anyone. But he did not cast aside the law as worthless. Believers must still be concerned with it; otherwise Paul would not have made this statement. No one could ever completely fulfill the law; but if someone could, the Christians (not the Judaizers) would most resemble that person. Amazingly enough, one person did completely fulfill the law, and Christians (when they act as they should) do indeed resemble him. Their likeness to Christ depends upon the Spirit working in them, developing “fruit” (5:22-23).
| LIFE APPLICATION – DIRECTION |
| We cannot love our neighbor without being in Christ. Our flesh (sinful human desires) takes our freedom in Christ and uses it to create insensitivity and disregard for our neighbor. We may show love at times and to a few, but it’s very difficult to maintain a loving attitude in our own strength. As Christians, we have two indispensable helps: (1) the Holy Spirit (he empowers us to grow in love for God and our neighbor), and (2) Christ’s compassion and forgiveness (when we fail to love and serve as we should, Christ forgives us). Express your gratefulness to God for his merciful salvation, and you will discover that his love for others is growing in you. |
5:15 If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.NRSV Paul used the present tense in these verbs, indicating that these problems were occurring as he wrote. Such conflict threatened to tear the church apart. The verbs increase in intensity—daknete (biting, or striking like a snake), then katesthiete (devouring, destroying), leading to the real danger of analothete (consuming, annihilating) each other. In direct and horrible contrast to the command to love their neighbors as themselves, the Galatians were becoming adept at destroying one another’s reputations. Paul’s concern as shown in his figurative description of escalating hostility reminds us of Jesus’ words in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 5:21-26): “But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment” (Matthew 5:22 niv).
| LIFE APPLICATION – A MATTER OF FOCUS |
| When we believers lose the motivation of love, we become critical of others. We stop looking for good in them and see only their faults. Soon we lose our unity. Have you talked behind someone’s back? Have you focused on others’ shortcomings instead of their strengths? Remind yourself of Jesus’ command to love others as you love yourself (Matthew 22:39). When you begin to feel critical of someone, make a list of that person’s positive qualities. When problems need to be addressed, confront in love rather than gossip. |
The source of the conflict went back to the false teachers and the confusion they were causing among the believers (5:10). The presence of the conflict supports the theory that factions were developing in the church—some people going with the law-centered teachers, some staying with Paul and the gospel, and some deciding to pursue their every sinful whim based on the “freedom” they had in Christ. Such continued confusion would ruin their faith, their testimony, and ultimately the church itself. While some differences of opinion would be natural, the Galatians had gone beyond that. They disagreed on foundational issues. Like piranhas, they were destroying one another.
| LIFE APPLICATION – TEETH MARKS |
| We must guard against using destructive criticism. Paul described a church where people were harming one another rather than helping or healing. Criticism can destroy a person’s inner resolve to remain faithful. It can actually weaken physical health, undermine character, and drain personal resources. These unnecessary attacks often occur during times when a person needs strength and support to face real challenges. For example, a family in crisis doesn’t need to be criticized about sporadic church attendance; they need the support and care of the church. |
| When we are critical toward others, we are not demonstrating our freedom; we are showing that we may be slaves to our feelings. We must find nondestructive ways to deal with these thoughts and feelings. We must be willing to admit wrongdoing when we do leave “teeth marks” on others by our treatment of them. Love, respect, and honor for other believers work as strong antidotes to the bites of destructive criticism. |
In the next post, we’ll continue through Galatians 5.
Message Audio/Video and Outline: https://upwards.church/watch-now/leander-campus-videos
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Source: Bruce B. Barton et al., Life Application Bible Commentary – Galatians, (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale, 1994), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: “GALATIANS 5:2-26”.
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