IV. Christian Liberty. Chs. 5:1 to 6:10

A. IMPERILED BY LEGALISM. Ch. 5:1-12

1 For freedom did Christ set us free :stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage.

2 Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. 4 Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law; ye are fallen away from grace. 5 For we through the Spirit by faith wait for the hope of righteousness. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith working through love. 7 Ye were running well; who hindered you that ye should not obey the truth? 8 This persuasion came not of him that calleth you. 9 A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. 10 I have confidence to you-ward in the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be. 11 But I, brethren, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? then hath the stumbling-block of the cross been done away. 12 I would that they that unsettle you would even go beyond circumcision.

Paul here passes to the practical portion of his epistle. He presses home the results of his argument. He reaches the climax of his appeal. The first two chapters were concerned with Paul s apostolic authority: the third and fourth, with the doctrine of justification by faith; these last deal with the maintenance of Christian liberty. The first two chapters were personal; the second two were polemical; these last are practical. In the first two the doctrine of Christian liberty was stated; in the second it was defended; in the third it is applied. Or, as some have described these three great divisions of the epistle, the first presents "the apostle of liberty"; the second, "the doctrine of liberty"; and the third, "the life of liberty."

It is true that many prefer a slightly different analysis and insist that the opening section of chapter 5 (vs. 1-12) belongs to the preceding division of the epistle (chs. 3; 4). There can be no doubt that the relation of these verses to those which precede is vital. Paul has established his doctrine of justification and has shown that the believer is free from the bondage of the law. He proceeds now to show how this great truth is related to life and action.

In this regard he makes three great affirmations: First, Christian liberty is imperiled by legalism, ch. 5:1-12; second, it is perverted as license, vs. 13-26; third, it is perfected in love, ch. 6:1-10.

So closely is the first of these sections united with the preceding argument that some regard its opening clause as a part of the preceding sentence, and even render the sentence thus: "Since we are children of the freewoman, Christ having made us gloriously free, stand fast and do not again be hampered with the yoke of slavery."

However, it may be sufficient to regard this first phrase as the summary of the argument which precedes and the basis for the practical exhortations which follow. "For freedom did Christ set us free: stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage."

Freedom is the rightful heritage of the followers of Christ. He secured this precious prize at infinite cost They are the true children of "the freewoman." They are the rightful heirs of liberty. To set them free from the law, Christ died for them. He came to "redeem them that were under the law," that they "might receive the adoption of sons." Into their heart God has sent "the Spirit of his Son," crying, "Abba, Father." So they are no longer bondservants but sons, and if sons, then heirs through God.

Shall these Galatians forfeit all these rights? Shall they renounce their liberty? Shall they bind upon themselves the fetters of the law?

It is to prevent such a tragedy that Paul sounds forth his appeal: "Stand fast therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage." The freedom of which the apostle writes is freedom from the law of Moses, not as a guide to life or a rule of conduct but as a ground of acceptance with God or as a means of salvation. Paul had taught that justification is by faith in Christ, apart from the law. The Galatians had accepted salvation as a gift of God. They had been saved by grace and not by works.

It is against the loss of this spiritual freedom that Paul warns his readers. They had formerly been in bondage to false gods, ch. 4:8. They were enslaved by heathen worship and customs. To place upon their necks now the yoke of the Jewish law would be to make them relapse into a state of servitude. They would be "entangled again in a yoke of bondage."

The statement may sound severe, but ritualism is really a form of heathenism. To attempt to save oneself by ceremonies is merely a form of paganism. Nor is the self-righteous man more wise, who rejects the salvation offered by Christ and seeks acceptance with God on the ground of his own good works. Even Christians, who like the Galatians have accepted the gospel of free grace, are tempted to lose their spiritual liberty, and under seductive influences to bind upon themselves a yoke oi servitude to some ritual or moral code or way of life devised by man.

Paul sees the peril and therefore proceeds, first, to warn the Galatians of their danger, ch. 5:2-6, and, second, to condemn the false teachers to whom the danger was due, vs. 7-12.

The peril was far greater than might be supposed. The Galatians had not been asked to surrender their Christian faith, but to add to the work of Christ their own keeping of the law as a second ground of their acceptance with God. Paul insists that there cannot be two grounds of salvation, two methods of justification, two ways of life. To accept the one involves the rejection of the other.

"Behold, I Paul say unto you, that, if ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing." The tone is stern and imperative. Paul has ceased to argue. He speaks with the full weight of apostolic authority: "Behold, I Paul say unto you." Yet this introductory phrase intimates more than authority. It indicates that the pronouncement about to be made is of supreme importance. The climax has been reached. The ultimate word is to be uttered. Listen to the sum of the whole matter: "If ye receive circumcision, Christ will profit you nothing."

There can be no compromise, no divided allegiance, no combination of contradictory methods. The choice must be made. It is either law or grace, either faith or works, either self-righteousness or the righteousness provided by God, either circumcision or Christ.

If justification is sought through circumcision, it cannot at the same time be received through Christ. If it is the ground of confidence and hope, then Christ is no longer the sole and sufficient Saviour. "Christ will profit you nothing" in the securing of righteousness, in the obtaining of eternal life.

Here the term "circumcision" is used to denote the whole legal system. It does not refer to the institutions of Moses as social and national customs but as forming a way of salvation in place of faith in Christ and his atoning work. To accept the initial rite is to bind oneself to the entire system. "Yea, I testify again to every man that receiveth circumcision, that he is a debtor to do the whole law." Just as the sacrament of baptism signifies that a man yields himself wholly to Christ, so circumcision, as a solemn religious rite, would indicate that a man was henceforth under obligation "to do the whole law." It was this decisive step that the Galatians were about to take.

Paul wishes them to see clearly the peril. He would avert the tragedy. "Ye are severed from Christ, ye who would be justified by the law." The word "severed" has a twofold meaning. It means both "to be made nothing," and "to be cut off." The full significance is this: "Ye are made nothing as Christians; ye cease to be Christians; your relations to Christ are canceled." Furthermore, "ye are fallen away from grace." Here "grace" does not mean a spiritual state or course of conduct on the part of a Christian, but the way of salvation which is the free gift of God. To seek to be justified by works of merit is to reject the undeserved favor, the mercy, the redemption, which God freely offers in Christ.

By way of contrast Paul describes the attitude of true believers: "For we through the Spirit by faith wait for the hope of righteousness."

The Holy Spirit is described as the source of Christian hope. This hope is not carnal or fleshly, but it is inspired by the Comforter, the indwelling Spirit of God. Paul elsewhere describes this Spirit as an "earnest of our inheritance," and he declares also that we have been "sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise." On our part, however, this hope rests upon "faith." It is not founded upon our own merit or achievements. The object of this hope is the perfect righteousness which will be ours at the appearing of Christ.

There is no contradiction here to the usual teaching of Paul which indicates that justification is a present experience. This is indeed true, and even now righteousness is both imputed and imparted to the believer. However, faith cherishes the hope of a righteousness far more complete. The aged Paul in his last letter looks to the future and declares, "Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day; and not to me only, but also to all them that have loved his appearing." To this future righteousness the Christian is looking forward with keen and intense expectation. He waits earnestly or eagerly. It is the crown of all his hopes.

It is, however, as the apostle has intimated, entirely by faith. When one has come to depend upon Christ he has no confidence in the flesh, no dependence upon ceremonies or rites which he may perform, "for in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith working through love." Here again there is no contradiction. Paul has just insisted that circumcision is the point of departure. It is the sign of an absolute separation from Christ. Here, on the other hand, he declares it to be a matter of absolutely no consequence or significance. The meaning, however, is clear. If circumcision is accepted as a sign and seal that one accepts the law as a ground of his justification, it is indeed a serious matter. It severs one from Christ. If, however, one is "in Christ Jesus," if the will of Christ and the work of Christ and the law of Christ form the very sphere in which he lives, then external rites and ceremonies are of absolutely no concern. They are regarded by the Christian, as they are in fact, of no avail as a means of justification, as a ground of acceptance with God, or as a way of salvation. For the Christian that way is completely comprehended in the simple phrase, "faith working through love." It is faith alone which is the instrument of salvation. It is a living faith which is expressed in good works, for it is energetic, living, vital. It works by the law of love. This coincides with the familiar statement: "Faith alone justifies, but the faith which justifies is not alone." It was this familiar truth, this essential teaching of the gospel of Christ, which was being imperiled in the Galatian churches. Ch. 5:1-6.

Paul now turns to deal with those in whom this danger found its source. "Ye were running well," writes the apostle. The Galatian Christians had made a noble start in their Christian lives. They had begun the race with earnestness and with courage. Who is it then that has thrown obstacles in their path or has sought to retard them in the race? "Who hindered you that ye should not obey the truth?" The answer to this question is not given. It is not, however, dif^cult to supply. It seems evident that false teachers had come from Jerusalem. They had denied the authority of Paul and claimed for themselves apostolic power. They had insisted that in addition to faith in Christ the Galatian Christians must observe the entire Mosaic law in order to be accepted by God. These were the Judaizers, the legalists, the false apostles who were working havoc in the Galatian churches and were preventing the Galatians from running the Christian race. Paul insists that "this persuasion came not of him that calleth you." It was God's animating voice that had summoned them to enter the glorious contest and to run for the heavenly prize. Surely, then, any obstacle in the way, any endeavor to turn them aside from the course could not have its origin in him by whom they had been called. It could come only from those who were ignorant of God or opposing his gracious purposes in Christ. This movement toward ritualism and legalism was no divine movement. It had its inspiration in human ignorance or pride or envy or malice. This perverting influence, this insistence upon the law, was an influence of evil. "A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump," writes the apostle. He is referring either to the doctrine or to the persons of the false teachers. He is quoting a familiar proverb. "Leaven," both in the Old Testament and in the New, is a common symbol. It usually denotes evil whether of character or of influence. Christ warns his followers against "the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees" and "the leaven of Herod." Paul quotes the same proverb and urges the Christians in Corinth to "purge out the old leaven" because "our passover also hath been sacrificed, even Christ." He urges his readers to "keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth," 1 Cor. 5:6-8.

In spite of all the evil that is at work in the Galatian churches, Paul expresses his belief that the great majority of believers are still true to him and to the gospel of Christ. He does not wish to implicate all in the weakness and apostasy and sin of the few. "I have confidence to you-ward in the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded." Paul feels certain of their loyalty and of their devotion. As to the author of their troubles, however, he cannot escape. God will judge him. As Paul writes, "He that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be." It is not necessary to suppose that Paul has in mind here any particular individual. What he means to say is that whoever may cause trouble, whoever may be the occasion of disturbing the faith of these Christians, will carry the heavy burden of divine condemnation.

Not only had these false teachers been perverting the simple faith of believers, but they had evidently accused Paul of inconsistency and of duplicity. They had been saying that he who was now so opposed to circumcision and to obedience to the Mosaic law was himself preaching circumcision. He had compelled Timothy to submit to the rite. He had himself kept the feast of Pentecost and taken upon himself Jewish vows. He was a timeserver. In other places and to other Christians he had insisted upon the sacredness of the Jewish law, but among the Galatians he had repudiated this law and its requirements.

Paul asks, as a sufficient reply, this one question: "Why am I still persecuted?" The very reason why these false teachers and others opposed the apostle lay in the fact that he was declaring freedom from the law as a ground of salvation. All his labors, his sufferings, and his distresses could be traced to his fidelity to the gospel of Christ and to his insistence upon justification by faith in him alone. "Then hath the stumbling-block of the cross been done away," adds the apostle. If, indeed, man can be saved by rites and ceremonies, then there is no need of the death of Christ. This painful and ignominious death had been a stumbling-block in the wav of the Jews. If now salvation depended on Jewish rites and ceremonies, then this stumbling-block no longer remained. It is, indeed, a fact that at the foot of the cross we realize the weakness and impotence and worthlessness of our own deeds of righteousness, our own efforts to secure salvation. "For if righteousness is through the law, then Christ died for nought."

Paul could not possibly have been preaching "circumcision" and still have been preaching "the cross." These are symbols of absolutely contradictory and mutually exclusive systems of belief and methods of salvation. One might accept either; he could not hold to both. The first points to the way of works, the second to the way of faith; the first to law, the second to grace; the first to self-righteousness, the second to the righteousness given by God; the first to condemnation, the second to justification and life.

So indignant is the apostle at those who are perverting the gospel of Christ, who are hindering, troubling, and unsettling believers and attacking him with slander, that he cries out in bitterest irony, "I would that they that unsettle you would even go beyond circumcision." He refers to the self-mutilation practiced by the priests of Cybele. His words are not to be taken as the literal expression of a desire. He is speaking with mocking satire. He is expressing with contempt what would be the logical issue of such veneration for the physical rite of circumcision. If his enemies regard it as a way of salvation, they are no better than heathen who put their trust in the observance of even the most debasing ceremonials. The devotees of the Jewish rite may as well go farther and inflict upon themselves all that the pagan cult demands.

One shrinks back from the severe language of the apostle, but one might do well to share something of his righteous indignation at those who to-day are troubling and unsettling the Church with legalism. Galatianism is the most popular heresy of the age. There are great masses of Christians to whom religion is a weary round of rites and ceremonies and duties. Countless men and women have been led to believe that salvation is a matter of human achievement. Many have made an idol of a creed and are persuaded that the repetition and defense of some form of words secures acceptance with God and salvation for the soul.

There is need to-day of calling men back to the cross and of pointing them toward a living Christ. Christian liberty is now imperiled by legalism. Again there is needed the great affirmation that "in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith working through love."

B. PERVERTED AS LAWLESSNESS. Ch. 5:13-26

13 For ye, brethren, were called for freedom; only use not your freedom for an occasion to the flesh, but through love be servants one to another. 14 For the whole law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 15 But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

16 But I say, Walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are contrary the one to the other; that ye may not do the things that ye would. 18 But if ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these: fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths, factions, divisions, parties, 21 envyings, drunkenness, revellings, and such like; of which I forewarn you, even as I did forewarn you, that they who practise such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 meekness, self-control; against such there is no law. 24 And they that are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts thereof.

25 If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk. 26 Let us not become vainglorious, provoking one another, envying one another.

It is easy to mistake liberty for license. Men who clamor for freedom are often seeking for anarchy. They wish to do as they please and not to do as they ought. They desire deliverance from all moral restraint. It is not surprising, therefore, that Paul's opposition to legalism was seized upon as an excuse for lawlessness, and that some of his readers were using the doctrines of grace as a justification of self-indulgence and sin.

The apostle found it necessary', therefore, to warn the Galatians that their Christian liberty must not be perverted as license, but must be expressed by obedience to the law of love.

He first reminds them, however, of the reality of their spiritual freedom: "For ye, brethren, were called for freedom." The "ye" is emphatic. It is in contrast to the false teachers who were attempting to bind upon believers the yoke of the Mosaic law. These trouble makers, who were unsettling the Galatian Christians. Paul had bitterly rebuked. By way of contrast he addresses his readers with the tender title of "brethren" and declares that when they were divinely "called" to become followers of Christ, they were thereby destined to enjoy deliverance from legal requirements. They were "called for freedom," or "on the ground of freedom," and with a view to freedom. This spiritual liberty was to be an essential feature of their Christian experience. Its great importance in the mind of the apostle explains the severity with which he rebuked those legalists by whom this freedom was being endangered.

On the other hand, while this liberty must be maintained, it must not be abused. "Only use not your freedom for an occasion to the flesh." The word "only" indicates an anxious fear that this may already be the case or that the temptation is very real. Freedom is their great privilege, but it must not be a shelter for evil. "The flesh," the whole body of sinful impulses which seek to gain control of the will, must not be allowed to find in Christian liberty "an occasion" for wrong action. The knowledge that one is free from the law as a ground of salvation might easily be so abused. This would be the case particularly with those who had been under the restraint of legal requirements. They most of all would be tempted to use their new liberty as "an occasion," a starting point "to the flesh."

To prevent such a false course, Paul insists that there is a law which the most emancipated Christian must obey. It is the law of love. By obedience to this law, all moral requirements would be fulfilled.

It is quite characteristic of the apostle to introduce such a paradox. He has been pleading for liberty; he now insists upon law. He has been reminding Christians of their freedom; he now declares they must be slaves. "Through love be servants one to another."

This apparent contradiction, however, solves the whole problem of the relation between law and gospel, between works and faith, between legalism and Christian liberty. The gospel does not discredit moral law; it shows how this law can be fulfilled. "Faith" does not make "works" unnecessary; it produces "works." Christian liberty does not make one free to sin, but it enables one to attain the righteousness which the law demands. For faith works through love. The gospel, which brings the good news of free grace and pardon, awakens love in the heart toward the Lawgiver, and makes one rejoice to do the will of God as revealed by Christ.

Those who accept the free grace of God in Christ Jesus obey their divine Master, not that they may be saved but because they have been saved. Gratitude and devotion inspire love for God and love for men. And "the whole law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself."

It is noticeable that this supreme moral principle is embedded in the very heart of the ancient legal code, Lev. 19:18, and our Lord himself declared that no other rule of action could be more comprehensive, more divine. Christ did not come "to destroy the law . . . but to fulfil." Christ is not opposed to Moses, but, by inspiring love, enables one to obey the law Moses proclaimed. If love rules in the heart, one can work no ill to his neighbor; rather, he will fulfill "the whole law."

The Galatians, however, had not been controlled by this law of love. Turning back to legal requirements and taking their eyes off Christ, and so losing the power of vital faith, they had allowed malice and hatred and bitterness to rule in their hearts. The very controversy aroused by the false teachers had broken out into every possible form of feud and contention. Their conduct toward their fellow Christians could be compared only to the actions of wild beasts. Therefore they are warned, "If ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another." The word "bite" pictures the fierce and cruel manner of their contentions; "devour" indicates the destruction in which these result. Such bitter controversy among Christians will not issue in victory for either party but rather in the utter extinction of the Christian cause.

Whether "the flesh" seeks to manifest itself in immoral license or in angry debate, the Christian must be guarded against its insidious attacks. Paul therefore proceeds to show how the Christian can be victorious in the spiritual conflict in which every soul is engaged.

First of all, and most comprehensive of all, is the exhortation, "Walk by the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." To "walk" is to pursue one's daily course, to accomplish one's usual tasks, to meet inevitable temptations and duties and sorrows and joys. The entire life of the believer is to be lived "by the Spirit." under his guidance and direction, by his aid and help and power. If a man so lives he will not yield to sinful desires of the flesh.

Here the term "flesh" refers not merely to bodily appetites. These in themselves may be innocent. The term must include a reference to all evil impulses, examples of which follow in "the works of the flesh" among which are "enmities, strife, jealousies, wraths." The body is the instrument of many evil passions, but "the flesh" indicates the whole being as influenced by wrong affections. It denotes all those tendencies and appetites and dispositions which lead to wrong conduct. Therefore the supremely important secret of moral victory is this: Be fully occupied with activities which are according to the bidding of the Spirit, and you will not yield to the solicitation of "the flesh." If a man is thus occupied with spiritual action he will be preoccupied against fleshly temptation. This is the familiar principle of "the expulsive power of a higher affection." Victory over the flesh becomes possible if one will "walk by the Spirit."

In the second place, one must be aware of the reality of the conflict. Even in the case of the Christian, and of every Christian, the battle is continuous and full of peril. "The flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh." In men quite outside the Christian circle, a similar conflict has ever been recognized. The lower impulses in every soul are contending against the higher and seeking to control the will. However, in the case of the believer, the warfare is more severe and the issues are more serious. Here the contestants are not merely the lower and the higher impulses, common to all men; but the very Spirit of God is acting in and through human spirits to insure victory to those who depend upon his power.

Therefore a Christian is not to suppose that he can escape from the conflict because he has been "born after the Spirit." The old appetites and weaknesses and tendencies remain even in the heart of a true child of God. One who holds any other belief is in imminent moral peril.

On the other hand, one is not to conclude, because his moral conflict is so severe and so continuous, that he therefore is not a Christian. The very fact that he is so conscious of temptation and of struggle is a proof that the Spirit of God is seeking to control his will, and that his conscience has been awakened, and holy desires have been aroused. The greatest saints have the highest ideals and are most sensible of the struggle between flesh and Spirit. They realize that there are abiding forces in the human heart, and that they are in mutual antagonism, "for these are contrary the one to the other." The flesh strives against the control of the Spirit, and the Spirit against the control of the flesh, "that ye may not do the things that ye would."

Paul did not say, as the Authorized Version reads, "Ye cannot do the things that ye would." Either defeat or victory is possible. It is this consciousness of moral conflict and moral peril which is one of the conditions of victor>'.

In the third place, one is helped to overcome if he remembers his Christian liberty. "If ye are led by the Spirit, ye are not under the law." He is neither under the condemnation of the law nor under bondage to the law.

That is, one is not condemned for the evil impulses which would incline him to evil but only for allowing these to control his will and to be manifest in action. The presence of the "flesh" need cause the Christian neither surprise nor remorse. Evil desire is not a sin unless it is cherished; nor is it true that desire is as evil as the act in which it might result.

Nor is the Christian in bondage to the law. That is. he is not to meet his temptation merely by fixing his thought upon the law he is being solicited to break. Rather he is to turn to the Christ to whom he belongs and in whom he is given victor>^ To be absorbed either by the temptation or by the commandment one is inclined to break may invite defeat, but to think of Christ and of his grace and love will enable one to rejoice in true moral freedom.

In the fourth place, victory is made more possible if one realizes the consequences of a victory' by the "flesh" or by the "Spirit." With this in view Paul recites "the works of the flesh" and contrasts "the fruit of the Spirit."

"Works," a plural term, may be used to indicate the chaos of riotous vices which are produced by the uncontrolled "flesh"; while "fruit," in the singular number, may intimate the harmonious, united, organic product of the indwelling Spirit.

These "works" are "manifest." They are easily seen and recognized. There is no difficulty in distinguishing between those who "walk by the Spirit" and those who "fulfil the lust of the flesh."

The list of fleshly vices is not complete, but it is comprehensive. Those selected were prevalent in all parts of the Roman Empire and were probably those most common in Galatia. They are pitifully prevalent in all parts of the world to-day.

It is possible to divide the list as follows: (1) Sins of impurity; (2) idolatry; (3) infractions of the law of love; (4) intemperance. The first includes "fornication," "uncleanness," and "lasciviousness," the last of which denotes open and shameless indulgence in impurity.

In the second group are "idolatry" and "sorcery." The former was commonly united in its practices with the vices which precede; while its usual attendant was "sorcery." The latter denotes those forms of magic which ascribe to natural objects supernatural powers and are the result of false views of God and his world.

The third group contains eight of the fifteen "works of the flesh" here enumerated. All have their common origin in a heart devoid of love. "Enmities" are private feuds which may break out in open "strife." "Jealousies" may be secret, but their power is almost limitless, and morally devastating. "Wraths" describe those storms of anger which if uncontrolled become almost demonic. "Factions, divisions, parties" indicate the disturbing, disrupting tendencies of "the flesh" which may destroy the peace of a home, a community, or a church. "Envyings" denote not merely the bitter rivalry of "jealousies," but also the desire to deprive another of his place or possessions and possibly the settled rancor which seeks revenge and often results from the party strife in connection with which it is here named.

The last group of vices includes sins of excess: "drunkenness" and "revellings," which latter term may denote the more open and riotous orgies from which "drunkenness" may result.

As one reads this list of vices it becomes more appalling when one recalls not only that they are prevalent to-day but that they are "the works of the flesh," and that "the flesh" is active and energetic in the heart of every Christian. Unless one shall "walk by the Spirit," unless one can thus restrain "the flesh," any of these hideous vices may be "manifest" in his own life and conduct. No wonder that Paul adds the solemn warning which he seems to have repeated again and again, "They who practise such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God."

By way of striking contrast there is now arrayed against these fleshly vices a list of Christian virtues, under the term "the fruit of the Spirit." This fruit is one, yet manifold. All these graces spring from a common root. All are the products of a soul which is controlled by the Spirit of Christ.

It is common to divide these graces into three groups, although such a division may be unnecessary and somewhat arbitrary.

First of all stands "love," the queen of the graces. This, with "joy" and "peace," turns the thought toward God. In him these virtues have their source. By him alone they can be maintained. They are not mere human attainments or achievements or qualities. They are "the fruit of the Spirit." "Love is of God"; we "rejoice in the Lord"; "the peace of God" keeps our "hearts and thoughts in Christ Jesus."

The second group of graces directs the attention toward our fellow men. "Longsuffering" denotes that patient endurance under continual provocation which Paul praises in his hymn of love (1 Cor., ch. 13). It bears all things and endures all things; it never fails.

"Kindness" denotes benevolence of disposition. U indicates a desire for the welfare even of those who are continually taxing our patience.

"Goodness" is love in action. It not only desires the welfare of others; it secures that welfare. It is not only benevolence; it is also beneficence.

The last three graces refer more particularly to oneself. "Faithfulness," or fidelity, denotes the quality of a heart which is ever conscious of its own integrity and honesty and sincerity. It is that virtue which insures loyalty to others and obedience to God. It makes one true to his promise and faithful to his task.

"Meekness" is distinctively a Christian grace. It has not always been regarded as a virtue. It denotes a patient endurance of wrongs, contentedness, quietness, self-effacement. It does not necessarily denote a low conception of one's own abilities, but it is the state of mind which is submissive to the will of God and is unselfish in view of the needs and claims of others. Meekness is not weakness, or mere mildness, or lack of spirit. It requires faith and courage. One may well seek to imitate "the meekness and gentleness of Christ."

"Self-control" is mentioned last. It is, however, by no means the lowest and least of the virtues. The ancient world held it in high repute. Without it even the Christian falls into folly and shame. Self-control implies the rational restraint of all the natural impulses. It may, therefore, well crown the list of virtues which are mentioned in connection with the conflict between "the flesh" and "the Spirit"; for it is exactly this matter of self-control which is especially in mind. If there is to be victory it can only be as the Spirit of God enables a man to rule his own spirit.

Yet Paul has also been speaking of freedom from the law. Not unnaturally he closes this list of Christian virtues with the statement, "Against such there is no law." Of course there is not. There is surely no law against the exercise of such virtues; but they are the truest fulfillment of the law. This is not a mere platitude. Paul would remind us that the moral law is fulfilled not by a mere human endeavor to produce these graces but by a loving trust in Christ. By his power these virtues can be manifest. Together they form "the fruit of the Spirit."

In the fifth place, victory over the flesh can be secured by regarding "the flesh" as having been once and for all renounced, as belonging to a dead past, and as having no rightful existence in the Christian life. One is to account himself as not under the control of the flesh but as belonging to Christ. For, "they that are of Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with the passions and the lusts thereof." When we accepted Christ those evil impulses and appetites which sought to control us were regarded as nailed to the cross. In reality they are not dead. They still harass us. They are doomed to death; and to them we need not submit. However, as we oppose them, we, too. feel the bitterness of the cross. It is no easy struggle. Yet we look to the cross of Christ. We see the blackness of sin. We behold him who died for us and ever lives. We turn from the solicitations of the flesh, and in spite of the sense of fierce conflict and conscious weakness we cry, "Thanks be to God, who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

Death to sin and death with Christ mean a higher life. W^hen we turned from sin and accepted the lordship of Christ, a new experience began. Therefore. Paul concludes, "If we live by the Spirit, by the Spirit let us also walk." The word for "walk" is not quite the same here as that used above. There it described the usual daily life; here the word pictures the activity of one who is making progress on a journey or is pressing toward a goal.

This further help to spiritual victory lies in our effort to advance toward the likeness of Christ. That is, we are not to seek merely to overcome the flesh. Such is only a negative attitude. We are to seek positively the attainment of new virtues. We are not only to avoid the "works of the flesh"; we are also to endeavor more perfectly to produce the "fruit of the Spirit."

Paul closes the discussion with a reference to the sins which especially assailed his readers. "Let us not become vainglorious, provoking one another, envying one another." Whatever our besetting sins may be, let us "walk by the Spirit" and we shall not "fulfil the lust of the flesh." We shall find what it is to enjoy true freedom and shall not allow our Christian liberty to be perverted as license or to become "an occasion to the flesh."

C. PERFECTED IN LOVE. Ch. 6:1-10 .

1 Brethren, even if a man be overtaken in any trespass ye who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; looking to thyself, lest thou also be tempted. 2 Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ. 3 For if a man thinketh himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself. 4 But let each man prove his own work, and then shall he have his glorying in regard of himself alone, and not of his neighbor. 5 For each man shall bear his own burden. 

6 But let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things. 7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8 For he that soweth unto his own flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth unto the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap eternal life. 9 And let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not. 10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good toward all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith.

The spiritual freedom which Paul was defending in this epistle was being endangered by legalism and perverted by license; it should find its true issue and its perfect expression in love. While the apostle has been arguing for liberty, he now asserts that there is a law which every Christian must obey. It is the law of love. Paul proceeds to apply this law in one important sphere of conduct; namely, in the matter of bearing one another's burdens. Of these burdens he specifies two kinds: first, the burdens of moral fault, vs. 1-5, and, second, the burdens of temporal needs, vs. 6-10.

The preceding chapter closed with a mention of the vainglorious egotism shown by some who while professing to be Christians were not walking "by the Spirit." Here by way of contrast he sets forth true spiritual conduct, first, in relation to a fallen brother, and, second, in relation to religious teachers.

"Brethren," w-rites the apostle, "even if a man be overtaken in any trespass, ye who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness." The case which Paul supposes is that of a man who has been discovered in a grievous fault, or, to use a familiar expression, has been "caught red-handed." There is no doubt of his guilt, and the sin is grievous. Even such a man is to be treated with kindness and consideration and with an endeavor for his spiritual good.

There are those who understand the word "overtaken" in a different sense. They take it to mean that the offender has been surprised by some sudden temptation. He has yielded to temper or passion and thus unexpectedly has fallen. However, this would rather minimize the guilt and the seriousness of the offense. It is more probable that Paul intended to emphasize the fault of the offender and to say that even such a conspicuous failure should not prevent his fellow Christians from showing him sympathy and aid. When the apostle says, "Ye who are spiritual, restore such a one," some understand him to be speaking with irony. More probably by the term "spiritual" he is pointing back to the previous chapter where he has been insisting that if we "walk by the Spirit" we "shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh." He is intimating that, for those who are so walking, an opportunity is given of showing their true spiritual character by the sympathetic help of the one who has been guilty of the moral lapse. The effort should be not merely to "restore such a one" to his place in the Christian circle but rather to secure for him that inner spiritual recovery which the word probably pictures, a word which is used in the New Testament to describe the mending of a net or the setting of a limb. It should be the aim of the spiritually minded Christian to place an offending brother in a position of moral health.

Such an action requires "a spirit of gentleness." Only one who has this disposition or temper can undertake so delicate and difficult a task. It requires meekness and sympathy and kindness of a very high order to be a spiritual physician, or to lead back into a path of virtue one who has gone astray.

The chief hindrances to such a blessed ministry art pride and self-conceit. In order that such barriers may be removed, Paul urges the spiritual Christian to consider his own weaknesses and possible shortcomings. He uses the singular instead of the plural number, indicating that each one should so regard himself in order that by true humility he may be able to restore the one who has sinned. "Looking to thyself, lest thou also be tempted."

Paul then gives the general exhortation which would cover all such particular cases: "Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ." The burdens which Paul therefore has specially in mind are the burdens of moral fault. Perhaps none are so pathetic, none press so heavily on the soul, as the burdens of detected sin and conscious shame.

The exhortation should not be limited to burdens of this specific kind, ^-et these are the hardest to endure and are the most difficult to lift from other hearts or even to share helpfully. To lighten such burdens is an act of truest love. It is thus possible to "fulfil the law of Christ." This was "the law" which Christ himself obeyed. It was the law which he required of his followers. Obedience to it is the true sign of the Christian.

In order further to remove the pride and vainglory which might prevent obedience to this law, the apostle intimiates the peril of self-conceit which is usually due to self-deception. "For if a man thinketh himself to be something when he is nothing, he deceiveth himself." He surely deceives no one else. Yet it is possible for a man to have so high a regard for his own virtue and moral excellence that he may have altogether an erroneous and false estimate of himself. This wrong impression is heightened by comparing himself with the fallen brother. In contrast to such weakness and obvious imperfection, a man may pride himself upon his own moral attainment. Instead of exulting in such a comparison, Paul urges each man to test his own work in the light of his conscious obligations. He probably then will have very little reason for self-congratulation. His course of action, however, may stand the test of such careful scrutiny, and, if so, he rightly may find in it a ground of satisfaction. Or, as the apostle says, "Let each man prove his own work, and then shall he have his glorying in regard of himself alone" and not by comparison with "his neighbor."

Thus it is in the light of his own responsibility to God that a man should test his life and character, "for each man shall bear his own burden." The burden to which Paul here refers is, therefore, the burden of moral responsibility. This no man can shirk and no man can share. With this in view the apparent contradiction disappears. The apostle had said, "Bear ye one another's burdens," and he now declares that "each man shall bear his own burden." Both statements are absolutely true, and when one remembers the latter, namely, the great weight of responsibility for right-doing which rests upon him as a Christian, and when he realizes how far short he has fallen of any standard of perfection, he will then be the more ready, in a spirit of gentleness, to bear his brother's burdens of fault and of weakness and thus to "fulfil the law of Christ."

There are, however, burdens of a different character which the spiritual man will seek to share. Among these may be mentioned the heavy load of temporal necessities which rests on the teachers of religion, as indeed it does on all men. It would seem that these leaders of the Galatian church had been neglected or that the members of the church had failed to show them due consideration and sympathy. Therefore the apostle gives the injunction, "Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things." It is evident, therefore, that in the Early Church and here among the first Christian converts there were officers whose duty it was to give instruction in the gospel, to explain and enforce the Christian message, to teach "the word." It is also evident that the Christian community was expected to support these officers by voluntary gifts. The "good things" which the "taught" were to share with the teacher are not to be limited in meaning to a salary or to a financial recompense, but they surely include this, and it is probable that such is the first meaning of the phrase in this passage. Paul was ever ready to defend the principle that one who preached the gospel should be given financial support by those for whom he labored. In writing to the Corinthians he laid stress upon the fact that he himself had been willing to forego this right, but a right it was which usually should be claimed. In this connection he used a familiar figure of speech in which he stated that the expectation of financial recompense for preaching the gospel was as natural as the expectation of a husbandman to reap the fruit of his labor. "He that ploweth ought to plow in hope," Paul had written, "and he that thresheth, to thresh in hope of partaking. If we sowed unto you spiritual things, is it a great matter if we shall reap your carnal things?"

Here, in writing to the Galatians, he employs the same figure of sowing and reaping. Its application, however, is somewhat different. Here he is intimating that selfish and unsympathetic and unjust dealings with ministers of the gospel cannot but result in a harvest of spiritual meagerness and leanness. But, on the other hand, generous dealings with religious leaders will result in the spiritual growth and enrichment of the Christian community. As to this the Galatians should not deceive themselves. They could not defy such a divinely established law.

Paul states this truth, however, by enunciating a universal principle: "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." This law of the harvest is familiar; but it is a law of which no one should have the slightest doubt. A man should not deceive himself, much less can he with impunity deceive God, that is, by managing to escape the consequences of his acts. "God is not mocked." The word here is so picturesque that we find it impossible to translate it without apparent irreverence. It describes the impudent expression or gesture of a man who openly shows his contempt of a person whom he has deceived. When a man attempts to avoid the results of his own moral action, he is really showing such contempt for God. It is utterly impossible for a man to escape the harvest which springs from the seeds which his own deeds have sown.

There are those who feel that they have escaped the results of immoral conduct if they have been able to conceal from the world their wrongdoing. Others seem to imagine that if the wrong is merely forgotten and regarded as a matter of the past there will be no harvest of suffering or pain. Still others seem to imagine that religion is a device intended to secure immunity from the results of moral fault. Men deceive themselves by believing that the paying of penance or the confession of a fault to a priest or minister will prevent a wrong course of action from producing any distressing consequences. They even believe that the saying of masses or prayers will enable a gross sinner to escape from purgatory into paradise. Others suppose that the asking and the receiving of the forgiveness of God will cause this law of sowing and reaping to be suspended. There is a reality in pardon, but it does not prevent the sinner from reaping a harvest of punishment and of shame. It does secure this supremely important thing; namely, the removal of the barrier of conscious guilt which separates the soul from God. It does bring one again into fellowship with the loving Father whose heart has been offended. It does enable one with more patience and submission to bear the burden which the fault has brought upon the sinning soul. It does also prevent one from sowing further seed which might result in a greater and more pitiful harvest of sorrow and distress. However, the consequences cannot be averted. "He that soweth unto his own flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption."

By "the flesh" is here meant the impulses and tendencies of human nature unrenewed by the Spirit of God and opposed to the will of God. It describes not merely bodily appetites, but all those dispositions and impulses which are wrong, which may indeed spring from fleshly desire and may use the body as their instrument; but the text includes those attitudes and inclinations of the mind which impel a man to selfishness, to forgetfulness of others, and to disregard of God. The actions which result from "the flesh" cannot fail to result in moral weakness and in sinful transgression. The result must be "corruption." This is a strange description of a harvest, but it is tragically true. Even the body is affected by a wrong course of action, and eternity itself cannot limit the results upon the soul of such continued conduct. There must be repentance and pardon and new power for self-control and self-discipline. This can be secured by fellowship with Christ and by dependence upon his grace. He can bring good out of evil. He can secure a harvest of abiding beauty and joy.

"He that soweth unto the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap eternal life." It is this more glorious aspect of the truth upon which Paul especially dwells. The whole intent of the passage is not so much to warn as to encourage. The harvest of corruption is not more real than the harvest of eternal life. To sow to the Spirit is to cherish those impulses and practice those activities which are in accordance with the promptings and guidance of the indwelling Spirit of Christ. The phrase describes the daily life and conduct and actions of those who "walk by the Spirit," ch. 5:16, and "live by the Spirit," v. 25. The issues of such living are pictured here by a term which does not mean merely endless existence. Such an existence is as true of the evil as of the good. However, "eternal life" indicates not merely the continuance of existence, but a certain kind of existence. It denotes that life which is produced in the soul by the Spirit of God as one puts his trust in the Son of God and allows his Spirit to produce in him the peaceable fruits of righteousness. This life is a present possibility and enjoyment, but it expands through all the ages to come and enables a man to develop more and more into the likeness of Christ himself.

It is with such a superb promise that Paul gives his closing exhortation: "Let us not be weary in well-doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not." His first reference may have been to the generous support of the Christian ministry, but he is, of course, speaking here in unrestricted terms. No matter what the well-doing may be, whether it is bearing one another's burdens of fault or of finance, whether it is relieving those in physical distress or in moral need, whether it is sharing with others our wealth or our sympathy, we can be absolutely sure of a great and beauteous harvest "if we faint not." The word "faint" describes the action of the laborer who, when toiling in the harvest field, withdraws in weakness and in discouragement. Let us continue our sowing even though it is with tears and with an aching heart. Let us be sure that we shall yet come with rejoicing, bringing our sheaves with us. "So then, as we have opportunity, let us work that which is good toward all men, and especially toward them that are of the household of the faith." We have opportunity for well-doing. A time and a possibility for such kindly action are always present. Let us then be faithful while the opportunity lasts. It is true that we should be especially mindful of the great family of believers to which we belong. There are some duties which we owe specifically to our fellow Christians and to those who hold offices of spiritual oversight, but there is no limiting to any one circle. Our kindness should extend as widely as our influence, and in all our dealings we should show that the liberty which we enjoy in Christ is manifested by a continual observance of the divine law of love.