Tag Archives: Galatians

Set Free. Part 5. Fruit Salad

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As a kid, I didn’t like salad, or “rabbit food,” as my brother and I affectionately called it. Now that I’m grown I enjoy a good salad and appreciate that it’s a healthy choice. The transition came over time and by taking a series of steps. At first, my mom gave me carrots or celery, and while I wasn’t crazy about these, I could handle one vegetable at a time. Then I graduated to carrots and lettuce with toppings that interest a youngster, like shredded cheese, croutons and bacon (because everything’s better with bacon). As time progressed, so did the makings of my salad. Before I knew it, I was a “leaf eater.”

Now that I have kids of my own, I get it. Taking it one step at a time is not only effective but it’s wise. I can help my kids make good choices on their own by coaching them to take small steps forward, like eating one vegetable at a time, for instance.

In Galatians 5 Paul makes reference to what he calls the “fruit of the Spirit.” These are the character traits that should mark the life of a follower of Jesus: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

Let’s make sure we hear what Paul is saying. He is making reference to a spiritual fruit salad rather than a spiritual fruit tray… and trust me, there’s a huge difference between the two. If we read this and think “spiritual fruit tray,” then we consider the list and select one, maybe two, to sample and enjoy but leave the rest on the tray for others. This is not what Paul is saying. He is urging us to have all of the fruit of the Spirit displayed in our lives. With this understanding, our bowl is filled with all of the fruit, and we enjoy all of the offerings of the Spirit of God.

Maybe you’re thinking that it sounds too difficult to reflect all of the fruit of the Spirit in your life. Just remember the salad analogy of adding one vegetable at a time. I’d like to suggest a similar approach to the fruit of the Spirit. Ask God to give you the courage to become more peaceful or more patient. As you progress ask God to stretch you in another area. Before you know it, you will be growing in all of the areas of concern to the Spirit of God.

Community Questions:

What are some of the dangers facing us if we treat the fruit of the Spirit as a fruit tray rather than a fruit salad?

Which has been the most difficult fruit for you to develop? Why?

What is your “favorite” fruit? What are you doing to excel in that area of your life?

Set Free Part 2. Getting It Right

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At times, confrontation is necessary; but it’s never fun. Christians don’t like to talk about confrontation very much, and if we do, we downplay it or vilify it. Yet both of these options fail to do justice to the fact that confrontation is necessary and biblical. In Galatians 2 the Apostle Paul boldly confronted the Apostle Peter for his decision to live under the law. If we look carefully, I think we can see some principles worth implementing when it comes to godly confrontation.

1.    Godly confrontation is direct.

“When Peter came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he was clearly in the wrong” (Gal 2:11). Paul said Peter made poor decisions that hurt his Christian walk and witness. The first step Paul took was to be direct with Peter and tell him what he was doing wrong. Not only does this approach have biblical precedence in Matthew 18:15-17,  but it is the best way to avoid miscommunication. For many of us, direct confrontation can be difficult. We would rather send an email or a letter, or make a phone call. But every method other than face-to-face contact can be miscommunicated. Let’s take a cue from Paul.If we see a fellow Christian messing up, let’s make a point of getting some face time with them.

2.    Godly confrontation is biblically based.

Paul was certainly a “type A” personality. He was opinionated, as was Peter. Can you imagine the conversations had one been a Yankees fan and the other a Mets fan? Watch out! But when it came time for Paul to confront Peter, notice that he only did so when Peter was clearly outside the bounds of Christian living. When we confront other Christians we need to take a moment to ensure the issue is truly based on Scripture and not preference.

3.    Godly confrontation has restoration as its goal.

Paul did not make this confrontation out to be a, “I’m right and you’re wrong” conversation. For Paul it was not about being right. It was about getting right, and there’s a big difference between the two. When we confront to be right, we are dividing the camp. We are turning the one we are confronting from “erring friend” into “opponent.” But when we confront to get right we realize that their error could just as easily be our error. There is a humility that enables us to remain friends. Paul was not trying to win, Paul was trying to correct, and that made all the difference.

Confrontation may not be fun, but if we desire to be a true disciple of Jesus we must be ready to confront and correct. The time may come when we ourselves need some guidance.

Community Questions:

  1. Was there ever a time in your life when the gentle correction of a friend helped you get back on course with God? Why was it successful?
  2. What are some ways we can prepare ourselves before we confront a fellow believer?
  3. Why is confrontation so difficult for us as Christians?

Set Free Part 1. The Sellout

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Sellout. Just reading the word is distasteful. No one likes being called a sellout. To be a sellout is to be the bearer of a social stigma. But as ugly as the word is, our society is full of sellouts.

Some who are sellouts are so by choice. They made a difficult yet lucrative decision and  were the generous benefactors at the mere cost of their credibility. Yet as unseemly as they may be, far more insidious are those who are lured into being sellouts without knowing it. Sometimes it happens quickly, when an individual signs on the dotted line. Other times it happens gradually, one concession after another. Yes, being a sellout without even knowing you are a sellout is the worst.

The Apostle Paul was concerned that the church of his day was being enticed to sell out. In Galatians chapter 1 he said: “if anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned!” Strong words…but even back then sellouts were not popular.

For so many of us it’s easy to think that the challenges we read about in the Bible are not relevant for our world today. In Galatians 1 Paul was strongly urging the church to be careful of false teachers.  Yet, “I go to a Bible believing church,” you say. There’s no way I could get duped by bad teaching.

Really?

Every year millions of dollars are spent buying Christian books and studies. A cursory glance through some prominent websites that sell these resources will show books by many different authors with a wide array of spiritual beliefs. Are we quick to trust an author because they say they’re “Christian?”

If we follow Jesus, we need to make sure we are holding on to the same faith we received in the beginning. We need to check and recheck that the teaching we sit under, the book we’re reading, or the person whose MP3 we’re listening to lines up with God’s Word. Otherwise, we might be duped.

Christian books are good, and we don’t need to believe every conspiracy theory out there, but Paul’s concern for the church is still very relevant. We need to be careful that either by choice or by foul play we don’t sell out.

Community Questions:

1. Why is it easy for us to at times believe the warnings given in the Bible don’t relate to our everyday lives?

2. What are some good measures to make sure you are still following the original path you started down with Christ?

3. How can we make sure we spend the right amount of time studying Christian material and studying the Bible?