The Spirit Sets Us Free 2

“The Spirit Sets Us Free 2”

Gal. 5:13-14

SUBJECT: GRACE AND CHRISTIAN LIVING

THEME: Living the Christian life in freedom involves receiving Christ’s real-world uprightness by faith and not by mere mechanical obedience to rules. We are set free from the curse and the control of the law to liberty that does not warrant permission to sin, but rather to mature responsibility and holiness before God. To live by grace, through faith, gives us a free and satisfying Christian experience, and the Holy Spirit is the secret to “everyday life.”

INTRODUCTION:

1. Freedom from our Sinful Nature Results in Service to our Lord and Others. 

2. Legalism Does Not Positively Influence our Wicked Nature.

3. The Holy Spirit Does Impact and Conquer our Sinful Nature.

This paragraph is perhaps the most crucial in the entire closing section of Galatians; for in it we discover three ministries of the Holy Spirit that enable the believer to enjoy liberty in Christ.

MESSAGE:

The Spirit Enables Us to Fulfill the Law of Love (Gal. 5:13-15).

We are prone to go to extremes. One believer interprets liberty as license and thinks he can do whatever he wants to do. Another believer, seeing this error, goes to an opposite extreme and imposes his laws on everybody. Actually, something quite different from license or legalism results in true Christian liberty.

A.  THIS IS OUR CALLING.  Vs. 13, For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty;”

B.  WE MUST HEED A CAUTION.  Gal. 5:13

This is where we need to pause and clarify to avoid confusion.  

C.  WE MUST NOTE A CONTRAST.  Vs. 5:13

Galatians 5:13, For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

     1. A Warning to Heed.  

A warning about falling again into slavery (captivity, compulsive behaviors, feeling trapped, and frustrated), in this case the warning is changed into the demand not to allow this freedom to become an excuse for sinful self-indulgence. Here the contrast is between self-centered indulgence and the serving of one another in love.

1. Compulsive behaviors are repetitive actions that you feel driven to perform to relieve anxiety. You might feel like you “have to” do them, even if they do not make sense. Common examples include excessive hand washing, checking locked doors, or arranging items in a specific order. (See Mayo Clinic)

2. People living with obsessive behaviors often describe feeling trapped in a frustrating cycle. These actions rarely bring satisfaction but rather act as temporary tools for managing overwhelming stress or intrusive thoughts. (See Mayo Clinic)

3. Compulsions are generally driven by fear or anxiety. They feel urgent and hard to stop. This is partly why the Bible addresses this problem so often offering solutions to compulsive behaviors by addressing the root emotional pressure, renewing the mind, and relying on Christ’s power rather than self-reliance. These verses provide practical steps to break free from these cycles. (See Gal. 5:1; Phil. 4:6-7)

The life of legalism includes not only the Ten Commandments, but a set of regulations that Bible believers follow today. They tell you where you can’t go, and what you can’t do. ^[a]

     2. A Paradox to Understand. 

It is ironic that, having discouraged the Galatians from becoming slaves to law, Paul should now encourage them to become slaves of one another--for that is what the word "serve" means. It is a paradox, but the paradox is instructive. The Galatians are to be slaves of one another, though this slavery is not at all like the first. In fact--this is the paradox--it is the Christian form of being free. (Dr. W. W. Wiersbe)

The Bible teaches that real freedom is freedom from sin’s control, not freedom to sin. When people use freedom to do bad things, it is called license. These are ways we may apply these ideas of liberty to daily experiences: 

• Focus on others: Instead of just doing what you want, you should care for your fellow church members, your neighbors, or coworkers.
• Avoid bad habits: Do not let your selfish desires, like being mean, ‘sassy’, or egotistical, control you. A craving or goal where your primary focus is on your own gratification, often without considering the impact on others will naturally trigger conflict. Carefully distinguish between healthy self-care and harmful selfishness by whether your actions build up or harm those around you.
• Do godly good: You put love into action. That is loving others by doing good deeds instead of just using words or using them for certain outcomes—transactions. It means showing kindness, serving people without expecting a reward, forgiving others, and helping those in need. Such love is like a circle: God gives love to you, and you share that love with others.

Christian liberty does not permit sin; it rather encourages loving service. Love is seen as the motive of all Christian behavior, whereas under law, the motive is fear of punishment. Findlay says: “Love’s slaves are the true freemen.”^[b]

      3. A Slavery to Avoid.

Slavery to sin is involuntary and terrible; a person is born into sin (Ps 51:5) and cannot escape it on his own (Rom 7:18). Slavery to law, which comes by choice, is foolish and burdensome. On the other hand, slavery to one another is voluntary and a source of deep joy. It is possible only because Christians are delivered through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit from the necessity of serving sin in their lives.

1. “Slavish behaviors,” however, in modern churches refer to practices where members blindly obey leaders or follow unwritten rules out of fear, rather than out of genuine faith or freely and willingly. This creates an environment where control and dependency replace healthy spiritual growth.

2. In contrast, healthy churches promote love, freedom, and mutual respect. But slavish behaviors turn the ‘churches’ into places of work, debt, and control. Much like a cult uses fear to keep members compliant, these toxic behaviors abuse religious trust to manipulate people.

3. They may welcome you in with loving arms and excitement. But as you become more regular a new expectation arises that is not grounded in biblical ideas. There is more focus on the ‘church,’ the buildings and its structures. It becomes less about a place to celebrate our faith in Christ and building one another up in the Lord to more focus on ‘raising money’ and the ‘facilities.’ Membership classes, expectations that you will bring in new people, more financial gain for those few in power, and increased loyalty to the ‘church’ are typical features of such ‘ministries.’ Child of God this is not what Jesus started and is a part of today!

Members are afraid to express personal concerns regarding issues with leaders or resolve conflict due to fear they will be ostracized, shunned, gaslit, or mistreated by the ‘church.’ Again, this slightly resembles ‘commitment’, but it is actually enslavement.

D.  HERE IS OUR COMMANDMENT. Gal. 5:13

This leads to a commandment: “By love serve one another” (Gal. 5:13). Beloved, this is the imperative of service to Christ!

    1. Liberty is Expressed by Love.

The key word, of course, is “love.” The formula looks like this:

• liberty + love = service to others
• liberty - love = license (slavery to sin)

Use your spiritual freedom not for selfish desires, but to humbly and sacrificially care for one another.

ILLUSTRATION: “I have an extra day off this week,” Carl told his wife as he walked into the kitchen. “I think I’ll use it to fix Donna’s bike and then take Larry on that museum trip he’s been talking about.” “Fixing a bike and visiting a museum hardly sound like exciting ways to spend a day off,” his wife replied. “It’s exciting if you love your kids!”

Real care for others is an action, not just a feeling, and helping others should be motivated by genuine compassion rather than an obligation or a desire for personal gain, manipulation, notoriety, competition, money, or some perceived advantage. 

     2. Law is Fulfilled by Love. Gal. 3:14, “For all the Law is fulfilled in one word….”

The amazing thing about love is that it takes the place of all the laws God ever gave. “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself” solves every problem in human relations (see Rom.13:8-14). If you love people (because you love Christ), you will not steal from them, lie about them, envy them, or try in any way to hurt them. Love in the heart is God’s substitute for laws and threats. Whether harsh laws established by mere human leaders, or ancient Old Testament laws that seem unfair to us today. God condemns leaders who create bad, oppressive laws. However, ancient Old Testament laws that modern readers find morally difficult or overly severe show how everything is summarized by genuine love for Him and our fellow man.

“When our children were small, we lived next to a busy highway, and the children knew they would be spanked if they went near the road. As they grew older, they discovered that obedience brought rewards. They learned to obey not only to escape pain but to gain pleasure. Today they live in different metropolitan areas and all of them drive. But we neither threaten nor bribe them in order to keep them safe. They have a built-in discipline of love that regulates their lives, and they would not deliberately hurt themselves, their parents, or other people. Love has replaced law.”—Dr. W. W. Wiersbe

1. On a much higher level, the Holy Spirit within gives us the love that we need (Rom.5:5; Gal. 5:6, 22). Apparently, the Galatian believers were lacking in this kind of love because they were "biting and devouring one another" and were in danger of destroying one another (Gal. 5:15). The picture here is of wild animals attacking each other. This is proof that law cannot force people to get along with each other. No matter how many rules or standards a church may adopt, they are no guarantee of spirituality. Unless the Holy Spirit of God is permitted to fill hearts with His love, selfishness and competition will reign. Both extremes in the Galatian churches—the legalists and the libertines—were destroying the fellowship.

2. This mentioning of the word “law” is most instructive, because it shows that despite all Paul has said, there remains a sense—a principle—in which the requirements of the law are a proper concern for Christians. This does not mean that the Christian is to make progress in holiness by once again setting up a system of rules and regulations. No…nothing in the last half of Galatians or any other part of the NT suggests this. Still, it means that the essential ends of the law will be met in those who, being called by God and being filled with the Spirit, allow God to produce the Spirit's fruit in our character. The foundational goals, purposes, or destinations of the “law”—the core goals that guide us, the primary purposes of a legal stipulation—is personal spiritual growth.

Paul quoted Leviticus 19:18 and stated that the entire Law was summarized in this single command to love their neighbors. Jesus affirmed the same truth (Matt. 22:39; Luke 10:25–28). But Paul also wanted to show that Christian love is the “fulfillment” or “the carrying out” of the Law. The apostle developed this point in Romans 13:8–10.^[c]

CONCLUSION:

Beloved, the Holy Spirit does not work through emptiness or nothing. He uses means like the Word of God, prayer, worship, giving and the fellowship of believers to build us up in Christ. The believer who spends time daily in the Word and prayer, and who yields to the Spirit’s operations, is going to enjoy “liberty” and will help build up their church. The Glory of God will be manifested through our lives, and it need never fade nor be suppressed. The more we develop our relationship with Christ, the more we reflect His glory.  The more we study the Scriptures the more His image should be reflected. And the more we allow the Word of God and the Spirit of God to change our lives, the more we will be transformed into the men and women God wants us to become. Yes, the light of Jesus Christ should shine through our lives every moment of every day! (See Dr. W. W. Wiersbe)

So, the great evidence of our walking by the Spirit or being filled with the Spirit is not some private mystical experience of our own, but our practical relationships of love with other people. Since the first fruit of the Spirit is love, this is only logical. But it is easy to talk about “love” in an abstract and general way; it is much harder to get down to concrete, specific situations in which we really demonstrate our love for one another.

Charles Spurgeon warned that unholy churches are a disaster to the world. He famously declared that avowed atheists are less dangerous than pastors who subtly promote false teachings. He believed this compromises the Bible and destroys the true Gospel. In 1887, Spurgeon led the “Down Grade Controversy”. He strongly criticized churches that traded orthodox beliefs for worldly, modern ideas. He called these shifts “downward.” He left the Baptist Union when many leaders tolerated or promoted this spiritual drift. (See Puritan Board)

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^[a] J. Vernon McGee, Thru the Bible Commentary, electronic ed., vol. 5 (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1997), 187.

^[b] William MacDonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary: Old and New Testaments, ed. Arthur Farstad (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1995), 1892–1893.

^[c] Donald K. Campbell, “Galatians,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, ed. J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck, vol. 2 (Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985), 606.