Tag: Galatians

The Burdens We Carry

1 Chronicles 14-15

Psalm 72

Galatians 6

~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)

Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women grow in grace, build with purpose, and live beautifully. Read the latest post in the Systematic Theology series here. 

I was recently tasked with an errand by my husband. I was to go to the store and return to silt screens (big tarps with pickets attached to help with run-off on construction sites). When I pulled up to the store, I noticed there were no carts nearby, so I tried – with my three-year-old daughter in tow – to somehow lift the two rolls while she hung onto my shirt. (Any moms reading this probably are nodding their heads. You’ve done something similar.) 

As we walked through the parking lot, I could feel the plastic start to slip down, and white-knuckling it, I tried to maneuver the tarps to the side to lift it back up without stopping in the middle of the road. About that time, a guy walked up with his wife and child, looked over, and immediately said, “Hey, do you need help with that?” Laughing, I responded that help would be great. 

No matter who you are, this truth applies to you: We are all limited by our bodies. As parents with more than two children like to say, you only have two hands. We can only lift so much, and even the strongest person in the world has a limit to their ability. (If you are wondering, that title goes to Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson, who deadlifted 1,124 lbs(!).) We can only carry so much. 

Today’s readings dealt with the idea of carrying burdens. In 1 Chronicles 14-15, we read the second part of the ark’s journey back to Jerusalem. After Uzzah died when the men tried to return the ark on a cart, David left the ark at a man’s house. In 1 Chronicles 15, David had done his research, and this time, he brought Levites who would carry the ark in the proper way back to Jerusalem. 

Exodus 25:10-22 describes the way that the ark was meant to be carried – the ark was to be lifted up on poles. According to BibleHub, “The method of carrying the Ark on poles symbolizes the separation between the divine and the human, emphasizing God’s holiness and the need for reverence in worship. It also signifies the role of the Levites as mediators between God and the people, entrusted with the sacred duty of handling holy objects.”

Carrying the ark was the burden of the Israelites – one they could not shirk without dire circumstances. 

In Galatians 6, we read more about burdens, but in this passage, we read about our own burdens as the new royal priesthood. After Paul lays out the freedom we find in Christ in the first half of Galatians, he then moves to encourage the people ‘to not bite and devour one another’ (Gal. 5:15) and instead produce fruit in keeping with the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). 

In Galatians 6, he turns his focus from our own individual spiritual growth to how we can support each other in overcoming sin. In Galatians 6:2, we read, “Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” The Enduring Word Commentary explains it like this, “When Paul brought up the idea [in verse 1] of the one overtaken in any trespass, it painted the picture of a person sagging under a heavy load. Here he expanded the idea to encourage every Christian to bear one another’s burdens.”

We don’t bear the weight as the Levites did of the ark. We are not the mediator between God and the people. But, we can lift each other up – just as the Levites lifted up the ark – towards God. When we come alongside each other and support one another in our spiritual growth, we are doing the good work we are called to do (verse 9-10). 

Interestingly, right after this passage, we have a seeming contradiction in verse 5 when Paul seems to say that each person will have to carry their own load. 

Some commentators say that this is due to the differences in translation. Load, in verse 2, comes from a word that emphasizes the heaviness of the burden. It paints the burden as excessive, something you would stumble under. Whereas in verse 5, load or burden is a word that comes from the word for a backpack a soldier would have. Verse 5 is in reference to loads that other people cannot carry for us (think: calling, marriage, family, etc.). 

Other commentators say that this is actually a counter-example. Verse 2 is the optimal, Spirit-led response to burdens: We should bear each other’s burdens. However, if we want to respond ‘in the flesh’, we may try to think of ourselves as more highly than we ought. We take pride in ourselves alone and are responsible for our own work. Thus, we have to shoulder our own burdens. 

Verse 9-10 sum up our work and should be our motto as we do ministry: “Let us not get tired of doing good, for we will reap at the proper time if we don’t give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us work for the good of all, especially for those who belong to the household of faith.” Amen!

Reflection Questions

  1. Why do you believe the ark had to be carried in this way? What does it symbolize?
  2. What do you think is the most likely interpretation of Galatians 6:2-5? 
  3. What is a burden you could share with others? And, what is a burden someone has that you can help bear?

Prayer

Lord, 

Please help us to be a people who support one another, not bite and devour one another. Help us to lift each other up to you. Let us not grow weary of doing good. 

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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Faithfulness in Every Season of Life

1 Chronicles 7-9 

Psalm 71

Galatians 3

~ Devotion by Cayce Fletcher (SC)

Cayce Fletcher is a wife and homeschool mom of three. She writes and podcasts at amorebeautifullifecollective.com where she helps women grow in grace, build with purpose, and live beautifully. Read the latest post in the Systematic Theology series here. 

My family always loved musicals, like Hello Dolly, The Wizard of Oz, and of course, the Disney classics. One special favorite was Fiddler on the Roof, and sometimes, we couldn’t help but jump up and dance around the room when a few of the songs came on. 

One of the most famous songs from that movie came to mind when I was reading through today’s passages. The parents are preparing for their children’s marriages, and while they were watching the processional, they sang the following words: 

“Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly flow the days

Seedlings turn overnight to sunflowers

Blossoming even as we gaze

Sunrise, sunset

Sunrise, sunset

Swiftly fly the years

One season following another

Laden with happiness and tears”

Psalm 71, an anonymous Psalm (but potentially written by King David during Absalom’s rebellion), speaks of a similar sentiment. Only this writer is not focusing on the fleetingness of life, but on how God is there for us in every stage of our lives. 

He speaks of his childhood in verse 6 when he says, “I have leaned on you from birth; you took me from my mother’s womb.” About the present, he says in verse 17, “God, you have taught me from my youth, and I still proclaim your wondrous works.”  As he looks forward to the future, he says in verse 18, “Even while I am old and gray, God, do not abandon me, while I proclaim your power to another generation, your strength to all who are to come.”

We see the psalmist’s faithfulness to God in the past, present, and future. From ‘sunrise to sunset’, they are leaning on God. Their commitment to God compounds, multiplying as the generations continue to us, who are reading their words today. 

I’ve come to realize that a legacy is made like a chain. When we are strong in our faith and commitment to God, we create a strong link. We are tied to the people that come before us and the future generations that come after us. Time is fleeting, but we can create a lasting impact with our lives when we choose faithfulness in our daily lives. 

What does this look like? We actually see an example nestled in the genealogies we read today. In 1 Chronicles 9, the chronicler notes what happened during the Babylonian exile. When the Israelites returned, one of their primary objectives was to rebuild the temple and begin temple worship – something they had deeply missed during their years in exile. 

In verses 3-21, the priests, Levites, and temple workers were listed. Verse 13 describes them as “capable men employed in the ministry of God’s temple.” According the Enduring Word commentary, “this same phrase is translated mighty men of valor in many other Old Testament passages (Joshua 1:14, Judges 6:12, 1 Samuel 16:18, and many others). It shows that when it came to doing the work of the service of the house of God, it takes a man of strength and courage, the same qualities that are needed in a warrior.” 

Each group was on duty, day and night, guarding the temple, caring for the temple, baking bread, and making music. They all had their own jobs based on gifting and tradition, but they all fulfilled them to the best of their ability, to the glory of God. 

Interestingly, the ‘mighty men of valour’ is not the only callback to the past. Verse 22 references how David and Samuel had instituted the temple worship with these groups, and verse 20 takes it back even further to Phinehas, Aaron’s son. We see how the legacy of the temple workers was created in the past and carried forward for hundreds of years. 

The key to this faithful legacy is found in verse 20. It says that the Lord was with Phinehas. Psalm 71 reiterates this. In his prayers, the psalmist says that God has been with him every step of the way, through trials and through rejoicing. We place our trust in God, we live our lives faithfully, and like the psalmist, God’s great works in our lives brings us to “tell about your righteousness and your salvation all day long, though I cannot sum them up” (Ps. 71:15). 

Reflection Questions

  1. It is a beautiful truth to remember that God will be with us in the past, present, and future. What is one moment that you can point to recently that is evidence of God’s faithfulness? 
  2. Why was the reinstatement of temple worship so important for the returning Jews? 
  3. What can we learn from the description of the temple workers? 

Prayer

Lord, 

Thank you so much for how you have been with me since I was a young girl. Please continue to be with me as I live and work. May all I do bring glory to you. 

In Jesus’ name,

Amen.

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In Step with the Spirit

Galatians 5

Gal 5 7

Chapter 5 picks up right where 4 left off (if you haven’t already, you might just want to read the whole book straight through to get the most out of it – it’s only 6 chapters).

1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. […] 7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you to keep you from obeying the truth?

From chapter 4, we know that the Galatians were struggling, falling back to their old ways. Paul is still trying to get to the heart of the why and how.  He wants them to quit trying to be justified by the law – because by doing do, they miss out on Christ’s promise and are once again bound into slavery.

Do you ever get bogged down by doing things exactly by the letter and then realize that you have been missing the point?  Paul is specifically talking to the Galatians about circumcision, but I think the same idea could apply to many things.  This reminds me of Jesus’ teachings about the Sabbath.  The Pharisees were so focused on making sure no work was done, that they wanted to condemn Jesus for healing someone.  Jesus pointed out that if a sheep fell into a hole on the Sabbath, they would pull it out – and how much more valuable is a person!  So Paul’s point is to quit being so focused on the letter of the law – he says in verse 5 “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.”

So rather than focusing on the law, focus on this:

13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

It could be easy to say that if we are not bound by the law that we are free to do whatever we want, but I believe we are called to a standard higher than the law by this freedom.  If we look to Romans 6, Paul clarifies here that we are to offer ourselves to God as an instrument of righteousness and to not let sin reign.

This chapter finishes with the fruit of the Spirit.  You are probably familiar with these, but I usually think about these alone, not in the context of this book.  If we are children of God through Christ, then we have the Spirit to guide us rather than the law.  This list isn’t easy.  They are high standards of living.  I am going to leave you today with these verses as a reminder – let’s try to live in step with the Spirit.

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.

 

~Stephanie Fletcher

Backs Turned to God, or Turning Back to God – Your Choice

Galatians 4

Galatians 4 9

Picking up from yesterday’s chapter, Paul continues to talk about heirs.   I think it is best to go back and read the end of Galatians 3 again (remember, the chapter breaks were added later – not by Paul when he was writing).  Everyone was a slave under the law.  But thankfully, God made a way that they (and we) could become His children.  By accepting Christ, one can become a child of God through adoption.

6 Because you are his sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba,[c] Father.” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but God’s child; and since you are his child, God has made you also an heir.

From slave to heir – what an amazing opportunity!  How often do we take that for granted?  Because of Jesus’ sacrifice, not only have we been freed from the bondage of slavery, but we have also become heirs of God – and our inheritance is eternal life in His Kingdom.

This next section speaks of the Galatians turning their backs to God.  Paul is feeling like he wasted his time and effort with them since they have reverted to how they were before they knew God.  Paul seems to not be able to understand how they could go back.  When he was with them to bring them the gospel the first time, they were a blessing to him, but now they are causing him great distress.  Paul even goes as far as to compare it to the pains of childbirth as he is waiting for Christ to be formed in them again.  As someone who went through that last year, my sarcastic side thinks “Really, Paul?  What do you know about that?”  But my somewhat more logical side can recognize that he is using that language to convey the seriousness of his concern – both in how much he cares for them as if they were his own children, and also how hurt he is by the turning of their backs on what he taught them.

I imagine that the Galatians were not intentionally turning away from God.  But by not being intentionally focused on God, that was the result.  I know I am guilty of this.  It takes work to keep your mind and life set on God.  You may not be actively doing things that would displease Him, but by not actively doing things that do please Him, you are still going to be drifting further and further from Him.

Going back to Abraham’s story again, Paul brings up his two sons.

22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. 23 His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise. […] 30 But what does Scripture say? “Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son.”[f]31 Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

We want to be children of the promise – of the free woman.  And the only way for us to do this is through Christ, so if you haven’t made the decision to follow him yet, I encourage you to do so!

~Stephanie Fletcher

The Life I Now Live

Galatians 2

Galatians 2 20

Paul has jumped ahead 14 years in his summary of his life as we start this next chapter.   Paul chose to meet with the leaders in the faith to present to them the gospel he was sharing with the Gentiles to make sure he was doing it properly.

This was 14 years after the end of events in the previous chapter, and if you look back, that was 3 years (and sometime) after his conversion.  After 17+ years of being in the faith, Paul, whose words we read in our study of Scripture, still asked those with more experience than he if he was on the right path.  What a good reminder for us!  Sometimes I think it can be easy to assume that for as long as you have been a part of the church (especially if you are someone like me who was raised in the church), that we have it all right.  But it is wise to continually seek counsel to ensure we have not strayed from the truth or are missing anything.

In Paul’s case, the leaders had nothing to add to what he was sharing.  “7 On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised,[a]just as Peter had been to the circumcised.[b] 8 For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles.”

Paul’s message may have looked a little different than Peter’s because of who he was presenting to, but these leaders still agreed that it was true and wasn’t lacking anything.  I like this.  It is a reminder to me that not everyone is going to receive the Good News the same way.  If we tried to present it to everyone identically, it just wouldn’t click.  But by having different ways of sharing, and different people doing the sharing, we have the opportunity to reach more people.

As Paul continues to talk of his journey, he comes upon the argument that he had with Peter regarding forcing Gentiles to follow the Jewish law.  He reminds Peter that they and we are not justified by works, but by faith in Jesus Christ.  But that doesn’t mean that we can return or remain in our sinful lifestyle.  We must get out of that pattern.

The chapter ends with this:

19 “For through the law I died to the law so that I might live for God. 20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”[e]

As Christians today, we are not bound by the law, but we are to live for God just like Paul.  We should be grateful for the grace God has given and the sacrifice of Jesus and strive to live a life worthy of that honor.

 

~Stephanie Fletcher

Keeping God’s Gospel

Galatians 1

Galatians 1 7

Today we are going to be starting the book of Galatians which was written by Paul to the churches in Galatia.

After his introduction, he gets right into a major problem he is seeing among them:

6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel—7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidently some people are throwing you into confusion and are trying to pervert the gospel of Christ. 8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel other than the one we preached to you, let them be under God’s curse! 9 As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let them be under God’s curse!

Although this was an issue the people of Galatia were having, it is something that we can fall prey to as well.  It is a good reminder to us that the truth matters and that if we are trying to present the gospel contrary to what is found in Scripture, we are in trouble.

He continues on with his reminder in this way:

10 Am I now trying to win the approval of human beings, or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be a servant of Christ.

You may find that it is easy to go through life being a people pleaser, and you may be able to avoid a lot of conflict this way, but if you are so focused on pleasing people to the extent that you start to displease God, you are going to have problems.

Now, I’m not saying you should try to stir up conflict with others.  We are told in Romans 12:18 “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone.” But that doesn’t mean that you give in to the world.  You still have a responsibility first and foremost to God to uphold His Word which brings us back to keeping the gospel as it is presented in Scripture.  It is an unchanging story.

This first chapter finishes up with Paul summarizing his conversion and early faith story which we read about earlier this year in Acts.  If you missed it, go back and read the full account!  When Paul is writing here, he is assuming that his readers have already heard the story and he doesn’t go into much detail.  His point here is that God was praised because of Paul’s conversion, not because they knew Paul at all.

Most of us probably don’t have a story like Paul’s, but that doesn’t mean that God can’t be praised because of what we do for Him.  If our lives are reflecting God’s love, He will be praised.  Make that your goal for the week – that because of how you are living, God will be given praise.

 

~Stephanie Fletcher

 

Empathy & Faith

Hello everyone!

Thanks to Graysen Pack for agreeing to write our devotions for this week. Check out the email below to learn a little bit more about the topic.

Our memory verse for this week is Galatians 6:2.

*** For our email followers, follow this link if the above video is inaccessible: https://youtu.be/MZdLKkwCrec.

 

 

Battle to the Death

Galatians 4-6

galatians-5-25

Tuesday, June 27

There is a life and death battle going on inside all of us.  In one corner we have the flesh and in the other corner we have the Spirit.  It is a battle to the death.  One will win; the other will die.

The desires of the flesh are listed in Galatians 5:19-21.  They are sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery (excessive indulgence in sensual pleasures); idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions, and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like.  We all have some of these desires and verse 21 says that if we give into these desires we will not inherit the kingdom of God.  Thus, if our flesh wins the battle, on judgment day you will be sentenced to death.

However, Galatians 5:24 states that those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  Galatians 5:16 says if you walk by the Spirit, you will not carry out the desires of the flesh.  I am sure most of you have heard of the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23:  love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  I think many people look at the fruit of the Spirit as a list of good attributes that we ought to try to attain, but that is not what this verse is saying.  It says the FRUIT of the Spirit are these attributes, meaning you will automatically receive these attributes if you live by the Spirit.  You don’t have to try to be more patient; you will automatically be more patient because of the Spirit that is in you.  You will be more loving due to the Spirit and so on.

You will want to ask to be filled with the Spirit so you can be more loving because Galatians 5:14 says the whole Old Testament Law can be fulfilled by loving your neighbor as yourself.  Think about it.  If you crucify the selfish desires of your flesh and love others instead of yourself, you are fulfilling the whole Law.  You are not required to fulfill that Law, but it is pretty awesome to think we could do that by just living for others instead of ourselves.

Galatians 6:8 says, “For the one who sows to his own flesh shall from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life.”  We will reap what we sow.  The next verse (6:9) then tells us to not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we will reap if we don’t grow weary.  Verse 10 then adds that while we have the opportunity, we should do good to all men, but especially to those that are of the household of the faith.  Paul admits that it is not always easy to do good to all people.  You have to sacrifice your own desires to use your time and resources for others, and to make it even more difficult some people are not very deserving of your help and not at all grateful for the good you do for them.  It can be very tiring continually sacrificing for others even if they do appreciate it, but remember not to grow weary and you will reap the reward.

It sounds difficult to crucify all of your fleshly desires and live for others instead of yourself, but are you really sacrificing that much if the reward you get for doing this is eternal life in the Kingdom?  You will actually gain a WHOLE LOT MORE if you can stop living for yourself now in this short lifetime and live for others instead.  Seems like a REALLY EASY choice to make; crucify your fleshly desires and live by the Spirit.

-Rick McClain

(Photo Credit: http://www.dailylifeverse.com/posts/2014/11/galatians-5-25)