|
Does Jesus Live in Dexter?
Galatians 5:19-26
Have you ever wondered what if Jesus
came to Dexter? What would he do? What would he say? Just to ask the question
is to spawn a thousand others. And today’s young people by the
millions have asked the question through those cloth bracelets with four
capital letters: WWJD. What would Jesus do?
The idea of Jesus walking the earth today is thrilling and provocative.
The Word of Life Camp in Schroon Lake, New York has a building known as
the “Rock Dome” which at this time of the year is filled with
hundreds of cheering teenagers, as you enter you see a sign posted where
everyone could see it: “Jesus Walks on This Island. Will you meet
him this week?” It is
startling to see the words put that way. Jesus lived 2,000 years ago and
walked the dusty roads of ancient Judea. Does he still walk the earth today?
Does Jesus live in Dexter?
Our passage is a backdoor to the
question I am asking. In Galatians 5:19-26 we are invited to consider two
different ways of life. One is called the “acts of the sinful
nature” or the “works of the flesh.” It describes what life looks like
without God.
The other way of life is called the
“fruit of the Spirit.” It describes a life filled with
supernatural power and dominated by qualities that could only come from
God.
We are invited in this passage to consider the way we are living. Which
path are we following? Does Jesus
live where you live? The answer depends on you.
I. The
Works of the Flesh 19-21
“The
acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and
debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of
rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness,
orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live
like this will not inherit the kingdom of God” (Galatians 5:19-21).
This long and discouraging list serves several purposes. A close
examination reveals that the various sins seem to fall into four
categories. First, there are the sexual sins: sexual immorality,
impurity and debauchery. The first term, sexual immortality refers to any sexual activity outside of
marriage and includes premarital sex, and extramarital sex. Impurity
speaks to the inner desire to experiment in these areas. It is what many
people would do if they thought they would never get caught. Debauchery is sometimes translated
as “lewdness.” It describes a brazen attitude that says,
“I’m going to flaunt my sexual behavior in public and I
don’t care what anyone thinks of it.”
Second, there are the religious sins: idolatry and witchcraft. Idolatry is a broad term that
refers to anything good that becomes more important than God. It could
refer to an inordinate love of money or possessions or of your career or
even of another person who becomes more important than God to you. Witchcraft translates a Greek word
related to our English word “pharmacy.” It covers drug abuse,
sorcery, black magic, voodoo, and even what we generally call the New Age
Movement.
Third, there are the social sins: hatred, discord, jealousy, fits
of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy. Hatred describes a settled
hostility that distorts all human relationships. Discord means you can’t get along with people. Jealousy means you want what they
have. Fits of rage means you
lose your temper and then make excuses for it. Selfish ambition describes a person who wants more and more
and when he has it, is not satisfied. Dissensions
speak of those who enjoy causing trouble. Factions are created by talented troublemakers. Envy is an ugly sin that says,
“I want what you have and I wish you didn’t have it.”
Wherever these sins appear, human relationships are marred and broken.
Fourth, there are sins of excess: drunkenness and orgies. Drunkenness speaks not only of the
abuse of alcohol but of its dominating, destructive control in a
person’s life. Orgies is
a word sometimes translated by “revelries.” You might call it
“wild parties.” It applies to get-togethers where there is a
combination of alcohol, lowering of inhibitions, and eventually, sexual
immorality.
In verse 21 Paul adds the phrase “and the like,” which means
that this list is suggestive, not exhaustive. There are many other
“works of the flesh.” But however long the list may be, these
sins are “obvious.” The Assembly of God church in Dover this
week has on their bulletin board “Forbidden Fruits create many
jam”…it’s a cute way of saying: Living by the flesh always produces bad
results. If you decide to leave
God out of your life, you won’t be able to hide the consequences.
What is in the heart will reveal itself in your life (for better or for
worse) sooner or later. Everything that is covered will one day be made
plain. You can hide the flesh under a veil of religion and morality but
it won’t stay veiled forever.
When Paul says that those who do these things will not inherit the kingdom of God, he is referring not to an act but to an entire
way of life. In the end, you can have the flesh or you can have the Kingdom of God, but you can’t have both.
II.
The Fruit of the Spirit 22-23
“But
the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things
there is no law” (Galatians 2:22-23).
But there is another
way to live. Paul calls it the “fruit of the Spirit.” The
nine graces here enumerated are like a cluster of ripe grapes. These are
not “fruits” of the Spirit but simply the “fruit”
of the Spirit. When the Holy Spirit has free reign in our hearts, these
graces are the supernatural result of his work in us.
Traditionally, these nine character qualities have been divided into
three triads. First, there are three qualities that join us to
God: love, joy and peace. Love
speaks of a kind affection that reaches out to another person without
regard to anything that might be received in return. Joy is godly optimism even in trying circumstances. Peace is godly contentment in
spite of our circumstances. In the deepest sense, these graces come from
God and lead us back to him.
The second triad of qualities reaches out to those around us:
patience, kindness and goodness. Patience
might be better translated by the traditional phrase
“longsuffering.” It speaks of courageous endurance over time
in difficult circumstances. Kindness
refers to a gracious disposition toward others. Goodness is love in action.
The third triad includes three qualities that describe our inner
character: faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Faithfulness means something like
“dependability.” The person with this quality keeps his word,
his promises, and his vows. Gentleness
is often translated “meekness,” which doesn’t mean
“weakness” but rather “my power under God’s
control.” It’s the ability to respond with kindness when you
are provoked and tempted to blow your top. Self-control is “my desires under God’s
control.” It especially speaks to those moments of temptation when
we want to go somewhere or do something or try something or look at
something that we know would not be good for us.
As we consider these two ways of life, it helps to remember that flesh
produces only sin; it cannot manufacture a changed life. Fruit comes from life and life comes
from the Holy Spirit. The “fruit” of the Spirit is only
possible as we cooperate with the Holy Spirit who lives in us. Left to
ourselves, we will produce the “works of the flesh.” Only
when God enters our lives will we discover the “fruit of the
Spirit.”
III.
God’s Design for Daily Living 24-26
Our text closes with
three verses that lay before us the challenge of rejecting the flesh and
living in the power of the Spirit. Having shown us two ways to live, Paul
now shows us how we can choose the right path every day. His advice is
simple—but it is not easy to follow. If you want the “fruit
of the Spirit,” you can have it, but it will not come cheaply.
A. Keep the flesh crucified. 24
“Those who belong to
Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and
desires” (Galatians 5:24).
The most helpful commentary I have read on this verse comes from John
Stott. He points out that this verse is quite different from Galatians
2:20. In the latter verse, Paul says that we have been crucified with
Christ. But in Galatians 5:24, we do the crucifying. What he means is this. When you came to
Christ, you said to yourself, “I no longer want to live in the
power of the flesh. I’m tired of sin and failure and compromise and
living for myself. No longer will I walk in the path of sin.” By
coming to Christ, you symbolically nailed your own flesh to the cross of
Christ. You made a decisive break with your own sinful tendencies and
said to your flesh, “You will rule me no more! From now on, Christ
will be my master!” That’s what conversion is all about. You
took a hammer and nailed your “passions and desires” to the
cross.
And many of us said, “That’s that.” We thought we were
done with the flesh. But it doesn’t work that way. Crucifixion was
a means of death that was deliberately designed to be slow and agonizing.
Sometimes the condemned hung on the cross for days before finally
succumbing to death. The same is true with our flesh. Even though we
crucified it when we came to Christ, it isn’t dead yet. Our real
problem is that when the flesh calls to us, we like to go back to the
cross, fondle the nails, and begin to take the flesh down from the cross.
Having once crucified the flesh, we must nail it to the cross of death
over and over again. This is part of what Jesus meant when he called his
disciples to take up their cross “daily” and follow him. If we are going to follow Christ, we
must be brutal with our flesh. Too many of us fondle our sin and then
wonder why we give in. We make excuses for our flesh and act surprised
when the flesh controls our words and our deeds.
No more wimping out!
No more excuses!
No more pampering your flesh!
There must be a ruthless and uncompromising rejection of sin. We must not
go easy on ourselves. Don’t pull the nails out. Instead, every
single day by God’s grace, we must take the hammer of faith and the
nails of true conviction and hammer our flesh to the cross of death once
again. We have declared war on sin; this is no time to resume
negotiations.
B. Keep in step with the Spirit.
25
“Since we live by the Spirit,
let us keep in step with the Spirit” (Galatians 5:25).
The phrase “keep in step” is a military term that describes a
soldier standing in the ranks. To his left and right, in front and in
back, are a host of other soldiers. His eyes are focused straight ahead
on his commanding officer. When the order to move out is given, he steps
forward in perfect time, moving with his fellow soldiers, following the
lead of his commander. Wherever his commander goes, there he will follow.
He does not have to understand, he simply has to obey. And when the
commander cries out, “About face!” he turns and marches in
the opposite direction.
To be a good soldier, you must not lag behind and you must not go ahead.
You “keep in step” as you follow your leader wherever he
goes. This is a wonderful image of the Christian life. We are not called
to understand all that the Captain of our Salvation has in store for us.
We don’t need to know every detail of the Master Plan and we
don’t need to know where we will go tomorrow. Our only duty is to
get out of bed, get on our knees, and tell the Lord of Hosts that we are
reporting for duty. Then we simply follow step by step all day long
wherever he leads us. Some days that will mean light marching through
green meadows under blue skies with plenty of stops for water and rest.
Other days we will march under cloudy skies through deep valleys with
hardly a moment for rest. And sometimes the call will come to venture
into the darkness where we must trust our Lord to bring us safely to the
light once again.
Day by day, step by step, we are always looking and listening and
watching to see where the Lord is leading us.
One day a man was talking with a friend when a stranger walked past them.
“That man has been in the army,” he said. “I know a
soldier by his walk.” The world ought to know that we are in the
Lord’s army by the way we walk. If people are shocked to discover
at your funeral that you were a Christian, then you’ve been
following the wrong leader.
C. Keep your heart right toward
others. 26
“Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each
other” (Galatians 5:26).
The final verse reminds us how quickly we can fall into the comparison game.
If you want to walk in the Spirit and live by the Spirit and have the
fruit of the Spirit, keep your eyes on Jesus, not on the person to your
left or your right. Just keep looking at the Savior and everything will
work out all right. If you are looking at your friends (in conceit or in
envy), then you aren’t looking at Jesus. And if you are gazing at
the Lord, then you won’t have time (or the inclination) to worry
about anyone else. Keep your eyes on Jesus. That’s the main thing.
I began this sermon by asking if Jesus lives in Dexter. I think I should
expand the question to ask: Does Jesus live in Ripley? In Dover? In Garland? In Corinna? In Newport? In Abbot? In St. Albans? In Guilford? In Charleston?
You are the only Bible some people will ever read.
You are the only Jesus some people will ever know.
Does Jesus live where you live? The true answer is, it depends on you.
Lord Jesus, forgive us for taking so lightly the awesome privilege of
representing you in the world. For too long we have lived with one foot
in the world and one foot in the church. Help us to live so that no one
can doubt our allegiance. May our testimony be so clear that everyone can
see that we are following you. May those who watch us see Jesus in us.
Amen.
Return to First Baptist
Sermon page.
|
