Morning Moments

F. The Persecutor and the Persecuted 5:12
It troubled Paul that these Galatians were being troubled and he wished that those who troubled them could be cut off or removed from them. Imagine how upset you would be if someone was teaching your children something that was contrary to the values you have taught them at home. But I guess that doesn't bother most folks these days.

G. The Power (of love) 5:13-14
There is good reason we do not flaunt out liberty but live it. It is because we do not wish to cause another to stumble by the freedom we have nor do we wish to use it for an "occasion to the flesh", which means those desires that are not consistent with the restraint or temperance of a spiritual life. We must never use our "freedom" as an excuse for overindulgence, self-indulgence, or self satisfaction. We now live to glorify God and edify the saints.

H. The Proof (of faith) 5:15-26
What you devour will either develop you or destroy you. If you you bite and devour one another Paul says in vs 15, you will be consumed of one another. Contrariwise, if we feed on the things of the Spirit such as the Word of God, noble thoughts, love of God and one another we build each other up in the most holy faith. One destroys, while the other develops.

In vs 17 we see the battle that rages within us between the flesh and the spirit and we cannot travel both directions. Consider the example of a dog fight. Suppose you feed one dog and starve the other and provoke them to fight. Who is the obvious winner? The one you fed. It is no different with the flesh and the spirit. Who are you feeding? If you are feeding the flesh you are living under the law and breaking it. If you are feeding the spirit, you are living under love and pleasing God.

Both flesh and spirit are craving because they starve to be fed, so the choice for the feeding is yours. And how do we know which a person is feeding? How do we know whether one is living under law or grace? How can we tell if one is pleasing God or not? By the lifestyle as described in verses 19-23.

BLESSINGS!