First Congregational
Church
Adult Sunday School
October 2, 2011
Larry Craig
Sermon Notes
I. Galatians 5:13-23
(NASB95) 13 For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do
not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through
love serve one another. 14 For the whole Law is fulfilled in one
word, in the statement, “You shall
love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another,
take care that you are not consumed by one another. 16
But I say, walk by the Spirit,
and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. 17
For the flesh sets its desire
against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in
opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. 18 But if
you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. 19
Now the deeds of the flesh are
evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20
idolatry, sorcery, enmities,
strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying,
drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as
I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the
kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23
gentleness, self-control;
against such things there is no law.
Called to freedom, so be a slave
5.14 o( ga\r pa=j no/moj e)n
e(niì lo/g% peplh/rwtai, e)n t%½ ¹Agaph/seij to\n plhsi¿on sou w¨j
seauto/n. 5.15 ei¹ de\ a)llh/louj da/knete kaiì katesqi¿ete,
ble/pete mh\ u(p' a)llh/lwn a)nalwqh=te.
5.16 Le/gw de/, pneu/mati peripateiÍte kaiì
e)piqumi¿an sarko\j ou) mh\ tele/shte. we
are bound in the sense that we cannot do the things we want to do
5.18 ei¹ de\ pneu/mati
aÃgesqe, ou)k e)ste\ u(po\ no/mon. 5.22 ¸O
de\ karpo\j tou= pneu/mato/j e)stin a)ga/ph xara\ ei¹rh/nh, makroqumi¿a
xrhsto/thj a)gaqwsu/nh, pi¿stij 5.23 prau/+thj e)gkra/teia: kata\ tw½n
toiou/twn ou)k eÃstin no/moj. 5.24 oi¸ de\ tou= Xristou= [)Ihsou=] th\n
sa/rka e)stau/rwsan su\n toiÍj paqh/masin kaiì taiÍj e)piqumi¿aij.
A. Freedom
1. The contradiction
a. Called to freedom,
b. called to serve
3 For
you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your
freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 5.13 ¸UmeiÍj ga\r e)p' e)leuqeri¿#
e)klh/qhte, a)delfoi¿: mo/non mh\ th\n e)leuqeri¿an ei¹j a)formh\n tv= sarki¿,
a)lla\ dia\ th=j a)ga/phj douleu/ete a)llh/loij.
2. The conclusion
a. The meaning of freedom
1)
B. Fruit
1. The power of the flesh 5:17
17 For
the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh;
for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things
that you please. 5.17 h( ga\r sa\rc
e)piqumeiÍ kata\ tou= pneu/matoj, to\ de\ pneu=ma kata\ th=j sarko/j, tau=ta
ga\r a)llh/loij a)nti¿keitai, iàna mh\ aÁ e)a\n qe/lhte tau=ta poih=te.
2. The works of the flesh
a. Symptoms
These works of the flesh are all
symptoms and not the root problems or causes.
They may be problems in themselves, but there is always a deeper problem
behind them.
If a person has a drinking problem,
actually he has at least two problems.
The drinking is a problem in itself, but there is some thing or some
things which are behind that which is just as serious of a problem. You may have the same problem, though not as
bad. Yet. Or you show this out in some other way.
b. Manifestations 5:19-21
19 Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are:
immorality, impurity, sensuality, 20 idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife,
jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21 envying,
drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as
I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the
kingdom of God. 5.19
fanera\ de/ e)stin ta\ eÃrga th=j sarko/j, aÀtina/ e)stin pornei¿a,
a)kaqarsi¿a, a)se/lgeia, 5.20
ei¹dwlolatri¿a, farmakei¿a, eÃxqrai, eÃrij, zh=loj, qumoi¿, e)riqeiÍai,
dixostasi¿ai, ai¸re/seij, 5.21
fqo/noi, me/qai, kw½moi kaiì ta\ oÀmoia tou/toij, aÁ prole/gw u(miÍn, kaqwÜj
proeiÍpon oÀti oi¸ ta\ toiau=ta pra/ssontej basilei¿an qeou= ou)
klhronomh/sousin.
1) The list is not exhaustive. Please do not assume that if none of these
fits, then there are none present. The
way to identify your areas of bondage is to look at the fruit of the
Spirit. This list shows where we want to
be, where we need to be. We don’t want
to think of the Christian life as a checklist, but we do need a picture of
where we want and need to go. When I say
where we want to be, I say that on the basis on what we are as human
beings. If you were a boat, I would say
that you belong on the water. If you
were a car, I would say that you belong on a street. If you are a human being, then the fruit of
the Spirit is what you were made for.
2) By
looking at the fruit of the Spirit, we can see the different ways our lives are
in bondage, and then we can see how God wants to bring us out of that.
3. The Fruit of the Spirit Galatians
5:22 ,23
a. Love
a)g€pj, Ó (a-ga′-pay) love; (1)
especially as an attitude of appreciation resulting from a conscious evaluation
and choice; used of divine and human love love, devotion;
Love is the ability
and willingness to care deeply for others.
It is not to be limited to just your own family and a few friends. Paul just said (Galatians 5:14 ) that the whole
law is fulfilled in the one word: You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.
Are
you able to get out of your own little world and really care about other
people? Can you feel for those who are
going through difficult times and actually want to help them?
The
power of sin is being so consumed with your own life that there is little or no
room for others (outside of your immediate family). You will always be thinking of your own
needs.
We
have said that a)ga/ph is a love of
value. What you love is what you value,
what is important to you. If other
people are important to you, you want to do something for them, something of
value.
b. Joy
xar€, Ó (cha-ra′) (1)
literally joy, as a feeling of inner happiness rejoicing, gladness,
delight (MT 2.10 );
(2) by metonymy; (a) the person or thing that is the cause or object of joy or
happiness (LU 2.10 ;
PH 4.1); (b) a state or condition of happiness or blessedness (MT 25.21 ; HE 12.2 )
I hear people distinguish often
between joy and happiness. Usually it is
because they have neither. They are not
happy in life and don’t want to look bad, so like a lawyer or an English
teacher, they look for distinctions and nuances and find a way to say they have
joy when they are not happy.
They may speak of happiness as
fleeting instances of excitement caused by events or unknown reasons, and joy
is from a belief in going to heaven and a sense that things will work out for good,
though you may not particularly enjoy them at the time.
There will always be events in life
that we will not like or understand. The
power of sin can cause us to question God’s love, His motives, His
purposes. It can cause us to be come
disappointed in God, in life, to become bitter, angry, frustrated, and
sad.
Life can scare us, and we can doubt
God’s willingness to help us, or at least give us the help we want.
The power of sin keeps us in a state
of anxiety and fear. We would like to
believe that God will come to our rescue and deliver us, but we are just as apt
to think that there are good reasons why God won’t. We might feel that He has failed us in the
past, or there is something in our life that is causing God to turn His face
from us. In fact, we are never good
enough for Him, so why should we presume to think that He will come running to
our aid? There are certainly a lot of
other people who are far worse off than us, and what is He doing for them? Why should we think that we should be any
different?
It becomes very easy to feel sad and
sorry for ourselves. We can even find a
certain delight in recounting our problems to our friends and watching for
their sighs of sympathy.
It can be hard sometimes to believe
that God actually wants us to be happy.
We need to keep looking at passages like this to remind us that it is
so.
Joy doesn’t look at all the things
that could be wrong but finds pleasure in one’s life as a whole.
c. peace
e¸rÐnj, Ó (ay-ray′-nay)
peace; (1) literally, as a state of peace (LU 14.32 ), opposite pçlemov (armed conflict, war);
figuratively, as an agreement between persons (JA 3.18), in contrast to diamerismçv (division, dissension);
(2) as a greeting or farewell corresponding to the Hebrew word shalom: health,
welfare, peace (to you) (1T 1.2); (3) as a religious disposition
characterized by inner rest and harmony peace, freedom from anxiety (RO 15.13 ); (4) as a state of
reconciliation with God (GA 5.22 );
(5) of an end-time condition, as the salvation of mankind brought about through
Christ's reign (LU 2.14 ;
AC 10.36 )
This is related to joy. Joy would be the sense that you are actually
enjoying your life. You look forward to
your day. Peace would take over when
unexpected, unwanted events occur. They
don’t upset you. You know your life is
still on track, and these things cannot hurt you.
The
power of sin will bring in fear and anger and disappointment. You feel like either God can’t be trusted or
life is just too hard. God expects more
from you than you can give. You’ll never
get anywhere in life, at least where you were hoping to go. You need to lower your expectations and learn
to be thankful for what you have. Things
could be worse, but you would think it would be better since you are a
Christian.
d. patience makroqum°a,
Ó (ma-cro-thu-mee′-ah) as
a state of emotional quietness in the face of unfavorable circumstances patience,
long-suffering; (1) as patience under trial endurance, steadfastness
(HE 6.12 ); (2) as
constraint exercised toward others forbearance, patience (2C 6.6); (3) as God's constraint
of his wrath long-suffering, forbearance (RO 2.4 )
This is related to peace. Peace seems to refer to your general sense of
life. Patience is how you deal with
particulars. As humans dealing with God,
there will be many questions and instances of possible disappointment. Patience takes these in stride, because you
are confident of God’s loving care, protection, and guidance in your life.
The
power of sin will breed disappointment, anger, frustration. There are things that you want and feel you
need, and when they are not forthcoming, you’re hurt. It’s easy to sulk, withdraw, and feel sorry
for yourself. Emotional pain can become
enjoyable and can be a real impediment to healing.
e. kindness xrjstçtjv,
Ó (chrays-to′-tays) (1)
as a gracious attitude goodness, kindness (RO 2.4 ), opposite a)potom°a (severity); (2) as
moral integrity uprightness, honesty (2C 6.6); poie²n
xrjstçtjta do what is right (RO 3.12 )
A kind person is not just a nice person. A kind person extends out of himself/herself
to show good to another person.
The
power of sin can cause one not to see beyond one’s own problems. They may not only be too focused on their own
problems, but they may often not even care about anyone else’s. They may see people as intrusions,
interruptions, unimportant, and worse, indifferent to one’s problems. When a person is consumed with their own
problems, it is important that others know about their misery.
The
power of sin can blind you to the importance of that other person, where you
might be tempted to find fault or at least be indifferent to them.
The
Spirit of God wants you to see them as human beings created in God’s image, for
whom Jesus died, and for whom we ought to live.
f. goodnesss a)gaqwsÀnj, Ó (a-ga-tho-su′-nay)
(1) as a quality of moral excellence being good, goodness, uprightness
(RO 15.14 ); (2) as a
quality of relationship with others willingness to give or share,
generosity, goodness (GA 5.22 )
A good person is not afraid to be
honest, doesn’t worry about the politics of getting ahead. A good person will do what is right because
it is right, without thinking of the cost or the inconvenience. There is no question about what to do. No need for discussion.
The power of sin wants to look at
how all this will affect you in the future.
What will people think or say?
How will this look? How can you
use this situation for its best advantage?
Is it worth the price?
g. faith
p°stiv, ewv, Ó (pis′-tis) (1)
active, as belief directed toward a person or thing confidence, faith,
trust, reliance on (MT 9.2 );
(2) absolutely, without an object; (a) as the essential Christian religion (the)
faith (CO 1.23 );
(b) as recognition and acceptance of Christian teaching faith (JA 2.17);
(c) as a decision to be faithful and loyal to the Christian religion promise,
pledge, commitment (1T 5.12); (d) as a conviction that brings
certainty faith, assurance (RO
14.22 ); (e) as a Christian virtue, especially along with hope and
love characterizing believers (1TH
1.3 ); (3) passive; (a) of what brings trust and confidence from
others faithfulness, fidelity, reliability (TI 2.10 ); (b) as what inspires
confidence pledge, (means of) proof, guarantee (AC 17.31 ); (4) objectively, as
the content of what is believed doctrine, (the) faith (RO 1.5 ; JU 3)
I may be the only person you will
hear or read who doesn’t accept ‘faithfulness’ as the translation here. The word pi/stij
occurs 22 times in the Book of Galatians, and here appearing by itself, without
use in a context, we are supposed to translate it differently. Some say that the context is moral qualities,
and faith is not a moral quality. If faithfulness is the clear meaning, the Greeks
have another word, pisto/thj (pis-to′-tays),
which seems to me a much more obvious choice.
Is it because it occurs so far down the list here that
scholars think it cannot mean ‘faith’ here?
So what would it mean in this context?
In this context Paul is contrasting works of the flesh and
the fruit of the Spirit. The flesh is
driven by feelings, seeking out pleasurable experiences regardless of long term
effects. This great need to seek comfort
is determined to a great extent by our views of life: How are we doing? How are things going?
These are not questions that can be answered by our physical
eyes. It’s not enough to count our money
and match them against our bills to see how we are doing. It takes eyes of faith to see beyond the
obvious circumstances to see God at work in our lives, to see His
purposes. Without that, we won’t have
peace, patience, and a lot of the other fruit.
Without faith one will only see the worst in life. They will expect the worst and face the
future with fear.
While we are responsible for the love, joy, peace, and faith
that we have in our lives, still it is the work of the Holy Spirit in us. We cannot do this on our own, yet He will not
do it in spite of ourselves.
h. meekness prau=thj (prau′-tays) the quality of not
being overly impressed by a sense of one’s self-importance, gentleness, humility, courtesy,
considerateness, meekness in the older favorable sense
Many
view life as a contest where only the strong win. This translates itself into aggressivness,
self-centeredness, and disregard for others, as one feels the need to fight for
one’s survival and success in the world.
A
meek person is not a weak person, but a secure one. They don’t see life as a contest, especially
against others. It’s not like we are all
trying to divide up a limited number of pies.
They find their peace in God, not in their bank account. They find their joy in loving and serving
others rather than in the toys that they buy.
They are not afraid to stop thinking about themselves so that they can
think of others. They are not trying to
impress other people. They know their
humanness and accept it. They are
comfortable with who they are.
i. self-control gkr€teia,
Ó (eg-kra′-tay-ah)
restraint of one’s emotions, impulses, desires, self-control cf. I Corinthians 9:25 TDNT, II, 339ff This is not inhibitedness or passivity, but
one who can control himself from excesses or be controlled by one’s desires,
impulses, or emotions.
Most excesses or examples of
loss of control stem from a person’s attempt to find some measure of joy or
relief from their pain, whether inner or outer.
The power of sin works to either cause or exacerbate human pain, so that
this is the focus of your life. The
behavior that we use to cope or assuage this pain can often then be repeated
just for its own sake, having a spirally effect.
The person
in whom the fruit of the Spirit is working doesn’t need to find his joy or his
comfort by indulging himself in things, whether food, drinking, sexual
activities, drugs, partying. This is not
to say that these things are wrong in themselves. Obviously, you need to eat to live. But people often use these activities to find
some joy in life, so they become ends in themselves, and they will often do
things they are not meant to do.
II. Isaiah 40:12-31
(NASB95) 12 Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His
hand, And marked off the heavens by the span, And calculated the dust of the
earth by the measure, And weighed the mountains in a balance And the hills in a
pair of scales? 13 Who has directed the Spirit
of the Lord, Or as His counselor
has informed Him? 14 With whom did He consult and who gave Him understanding? And who taught
Him in the path of justice and taught Him knowledge And informed Him of the way
of understanding? 15 Behold, the nations are like a drop from a bucket,
And are regarded as a speck of dust on the scales; Behold, He lifts up the
islands like fine dust. 16 Even Lebanon is not enough to burn, Nor
its beasts enough for a burnt offering. 17 All the nations are as nothing before Him,
They are regarded by Him as less than nothing and meaningless. 18 To whom then will you liken God? Or what likeness will you compare with
Him? 19 As for the idol, a craftsman casts it, A goldsmith plates it with gold, And a
silversmith fashions chains of silver. 20
He who is too impoverished for such an
offering Selects a tree that does not rot; He seeks out for himself a skillful
craftsman To prepare an idol that will not totter. 21
Do you not know? Have you not
heard? Has it not been declared to you from the beginning? Have you not
understood from the foundations of the earth? 22
It is He who sits above the
circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out
the heavens like a curtain And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in. 23 He it
is who reduces rulers to nothing, Who makes the judges of the earth
meaningless. 24 Scarcely have they been planted, Scarcely have
they been sown, Scarcely has their stock taken root in the earth, But He merely
blows on them, and they wither, And the storm carries them away like stubble. 25 “To whom then will you liken Me That I would be his equal?” says the
Holy One. 26 Lift up your eyes on high And see who has created
these stars, The One who leads forth their host by number, He calls them
all by name; Because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power,
Not one of them is missing. 27 Why do you say, O Jacob, and assert, O
Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord,
And the justice due me escapes the notice of my God”? 28
Do you not know? Have you not
heard? The Everlasting God, the Lord,
the Creator of the ends of the earth does not become weary or tired. His
understanding is inscrutable. 29 He gives strength to the weary, And to him
who lacks might He increases power. 30 Though youths grow weary and tired, and
vigorous young men stumble badly, 31 Yet those who wait for the Lord will gain new strength; They will
mount up with wings like eagles, They will run and not get tired, They
will walk and not become weary.
A.
The background
of the promise
1.
The
power and self-sufficiency of God 12-17
2.
The
lure of other gods (idolatry) 18-20
a.
What
is (Biblical) idolatry?
b.
What
is your security?
3. The sovereignty and supremacy of
God 21-25
4. The limitations of other gods 25-27
5. The power of God’s people 28-31
B. The beneficiaries of the promise – those
that wait upon the Lord
1.
Hebrew grammatical matters
a.
The general construction is ‘wait for.’
b.
The noun form for ‘wait’ is ‘hope.’
1) Hoping is not the same as wishing.
2) Hoping is expecting.
Bible hope is not how we understand hope today. We might say that we hope to win the
lottery. That is a wish. It is not a Bible hope, because you don’t
really expect to win it.
2, Greek translation equivalents
a. The word for endurance
b. The word for hope
3. Biblical commentary
A good Biblical commentary on this idea of waiting is in Psalm 27 .
The picture of hope here is found in verse one. The Psalmist has problems, enemies, but he is
confident. We might ask God to remove our
problems, so we can feel safe. He wants
us to be confident and strong in the face of the problems. Because I have hope that God is my refuge and
strength, I will not fear. IT is not a
hope as a wish, but it is the confident expectation and belief that God will
protect me that I can stand without fear.
We pray that God will remove the problem. There is nothing wrong with that. The question is: how are we doing in the face
of the problem. Are we confident or
fearful?
This compilation of verses contains only those verses with
this Hebrew verb in the expression waiting for/on God.
ὑπο-μένω to stay behind, survive II. trans., 1. c. acc. pers. to await another, to await his attack, bide the onset 2. c. acc. rei, to be patient under, abide patiently, submit to, to wait for 3. absol. to stand ones ground, stand firm 4. c. inf. to submit or dare to do a thing, wait to do, persist in doing, like Lat. sustinere
ὑπομένω V 1-3-13-39-30=86 Nm
22 ,19 ; Jos 19 ,48a; JgsB3,25; 2 Kgs 6 ,33; Is 40 ,31 to
remain (of pers.) Jb 17 ,13 ; id. (of situation) Jb 3 ,9 ; to remain, to stand firm (of things) Jb 8 ,15 ; to tarry, to wait JgsB3,25; to wait for [τινα] TobBA5,7; id. [τι] Ps 105 (106),13; id. [εἴς τι] Ps 129
(130),5; to wait patiently Zech 6 ,14 ; to wait (up)on [τινα] Sir 36 ,15 ; id. [τινι] Ps 32 (33),20; to wait upon, to hope [ἐπί τινι] Mi 7,7; to
endure patiently Jb 6 ,11 ; to endure [τι] 4 Mc 5 ,23; to endure, to forbear [+inf.] 1 Ezr 2 ,15; to
continue [τοῦ +inf.] Jos 19 ,48a πᾶν δὲ σκότος αὐτῷ ὑπομείναι let all darkness await him Jb 20 ,26 *Na
1 ,7 τοῖς ὑπομένουσιν αὐτόν to them that wait on him-למקויו for MT למעוז as a
stronghold; *Jb 7 ,3 ὑπέμεινα I have endured-הוחלתי ⋄ יחל for MT הנחלתי I have
inherited; *Jb 22 ,21 ἐὰν ὑπομείνῃς if you can endure-תשׁלם אם for MT ושׁלם עמו with Him and be at peace; *Jb 41 ,3 καὶ ὑπομενεῖ and shall stand firm or and shall remain safe-וישׁלם for MT ואשׁלם and I shall repay? Cf. Helbing 1928, 103–104; Margolis,
M. 1905=1972 63–64; Spicq
1982, 658–664; →LSJ Suppl (Lam 3 ,21);
LSJ RSuppl; NIDNTT; TWNT
25:5 Lead me in Your truth and teach me, For You are the God
of my salvation; For You I wait all the day.
25:21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You.
Psalm 27:14 Wait
for the Lord; Be strong and let your heart take courage; Yes, wait for the
Lord.
25:21 Let integrity and uprightness preserve me, For I wait for You.
ἐλπίζω (ἔλπω):—to hope for, look for, expect, τι 2. of evils, to look for, fear 3. with inf. pres. it means little more than to think, deem, suppose, believe that 4. c. dat. to hope in. . , τῇ τύχῃ
ὑπο-μένω to stay
behind, survive II.
trans., 1. c. acc. pers. to await
another, to await his attack, bide the onset 2. c. acc. rei, to be patient
under, abide patiently, submit to, to
wait for 3. absol. to stand ones ground, stand firm 4. c. inf. to submit or dare to do a
thing, wait to do, persist in doing, like Lat. sustinere
ὑπομένω V 1-3-13-39-30=86 Nm
22 ,19 ; Jos 19 ,48a; JgsB3,25; 2 Kgs 6 ,33; Is 40 ,31 to
remain (of pers.) Jb 17 ,13 ; id. (of situation) Jb 3 ,9 ; to remain, to stand firm (of things) Jb 8 ,15 ; to tarry, to wait JgsB3,25; to wait for [τινα] TobBA5,7; id. [τι] Ps 105 (106),13; id. [εἴς τι] Ps 129
(130),5; to wait patiently Zech 6 ,14 ; to wait (up)on [τινα] Sir 36 ,15 ; id. [τινι] Ps 32 (33),20; to wait upon, to hope [ἐπί τινι] Mi 7,7; to
endure patiently Jb 6 ,11 ; to endure [τι] 4 Mc 5 ,23; to endure, to forbear [+inf.] 1 Ezr 2 ,15; to
continue [τοῦ +inf.] Jos 19 ,48a πᾶν δὲ σκότος αὐτῷ ὑπομείναι let all darkness await him Jb 20 ,26 *Na
1 ,7 τοῖς ὑπομένουσιν αὐτόν to them that wait on him-למקויו for MT למעוז as a
stronghold; *Jb 7 ,3 ὑπέμεινα I have endured-הוחלתי ⋄ יחל for MT הנחלתי I have
inherited; *Jb 22 ,21 ἐὰν ὑπομείνῃς if you can endure-תשׁלם אם for MT ושׁלם עמו with Him and be at peace; *Jb 41 ,3 καὶ ὑπομενεῖ and shall stand firm or and shall remain safe-וישׁלם for MT ואשׁלם and I shall repay? Cf. Helbing 1928, 103–104; Margolis,
M. 1905=1972 63–64; Spicq
1982, 658–664; →LSJ Suppl (Lam 3 ,21);
LSJ RSuppl; NIDNTT; TWNT
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