Sermon Tone Analysis

Gal. 5:1

We are launching a new series today that will lead us through the summer on the Fruit of the Spirit.

First question.....can you name the fruit of the spirit?

give me one

love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness faithfulness, gentleness, self-control

Well done?

Gal 5:16-2

PRAYER

OK, I have some jelly bellies.

Does anyone here like jelly bellies.

I am going to invite you to take one, but don’t eat it yet.

You will be able to eat it in a moment but just let me explain something first.

These jelly bellies come in all sorts of flavours.

gum, berries, ..........enjoy!

AFTER THEY EAT

OH, I forgot to mention …although all these jelly Beans look the same, some of them are actually flavoured differently

So in a moment, I am going to invite you to eat

Some of you may have had dirt flavour, or diaper, or booger!!

If you had one of those flavours put your hand up!

(offer gum)

In the test we read this morning, the Apostle Paul writing to a small church is explaining to them that they have an option in front of them.

He calls it walking in the Spirit, or walking in the flesh.

When he says walk in the Spirit, he means to walk in a way where the Spirit of God has ultimate say in our lives.

When he says the flesh he is referring to those things that are destructive to us and others; those things that look good on the outside but in reality are dangerous and fruitless.

Here is the thing: Both offer the same thing: The promise of freedom, purpose and ultimate life.

But Paul is saying that although they both promise freedom, and purpose, and life, ONLY ONE OF THEM CAN TRULY DELIVER IT.

And Paul’s point is this......

life outside of the Spirit is a life of slavery not freedom

We have in this text and invitation.

A life lived outside

An invitation to life.

An invitation to love and joy and peace.....

PRAYER

But this invitation involves an exchange.

We are invited to walk in the Spirit and in doing so trade in a life that is marked by all sorts of endless pursuits.

And Paul’s point is simply this, life outside of the a Spirit is a life of slavery.

He says in verse one of Chapter 5

In Jesus words you and I cannot serve two masters at once!!

24 “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.

One will win out.

Cannot serve your family and work

And a Christianity that makes Christian community and worship an option, prayer and scripture add ons if there is time ; will be stuck wondering why they are serving, gratifying all the kinds of things they know do not bring life.

Pauls’s words, Jesus words are proving true, we cannot live with a foot in both worlds and flourish spiritually.

When I was going to Killarney Secondary School

girl friends

eg.

cannot serve your family and work

You cannot cheer for Canucks and the Leafs

you cannot say you love music and listen to country (too far)

One reality must dominate!!

it is true of our spiritual health.

We cannot live with one foot in the way of the Spirt of God and one foot in the Spirit of the Flesh

Or maybe truer to this text....

We cannot grow the fruit of the Spirit and the fruit of the flesh in the same garden; one will overtake the other.

PAUSE

And what has happened in the church in Galatia and often happens to Christ followers is that we take the freedom we have in Jesus as simply an entrance into His kingdom or family, and then are content to practically live lives as slaves to all those things he aims to save us from.

How do you figure out what kind of tree you have in your yard?

And Paul is pointing out a few things in this passage concerning walking in the Spirit and walking in the flesh

Which fruit does this tree produce?

Pick from the dishes.

Why? because .......

The first is this.......

I. THE FLESH TEASES, BUT THE SPIRIT FEEDS US

Pauls answer is here in this verse.

You want to move away from gratifying your ungodliness, walk in the Spirit.

If we walk BY the Spirit we will not walk BY another means.

Our lives says Paul as Christians ought to be animated by His Spirit not simply our desires.

One day they freaked out because their dad said he was going to cut down the tree So pooling their money they decided to go to the market and buy a bag of apples and black thread at night climbed around the tree to tie apples on it and so change its fate.

In the morning they

When Paul says flesh he means the natural sinful leanings of mankind.

Everything we are when we take Jesus out of the equation.

The areas we will naturally lean toward to find all the things that are offered in Christ and nurtured through HIS spirit

this is so important....

So here is the big idea that Paul is giving us in this text.

In Jesus we are offered life and life more abundantly.

The flesh promises the same things, but cannot deliver; they end in slavery.

It is a continual moving target.

we can never truly get our hands on.

Back when the Pirates of the Caribbean movies were original and Johnny Depp had sold out a little less...

There was a scene in the original when Captain Barbossa- Geoffrey Rush.

(PIC #1)

Cursed by a treasure that promised them everything- life and freedom without restraint, they were now the walking dead.

The more they lived to satisfy the flesh the more their flesh disappeared and they were lifeless

And explaining his curse to Miss Turner played by Kiera Knightly,

The more we gave 'em away, the more we came to realize the drink would not satisfy, food turned to ash in our mouths, and all the pleasurable company in the world could not slake our lust.

We are cursed men, Miss Turner.

Compelled by greed, we were, but now we are consumed by it

Everything that they were promised if they just lived for themselves, let their greed propel them, left them more hungry, more lost, and further from life!!!

The spirit and the flesh both promise the same thing, freedom.... but only one can deliver.

They both promise freedom, they both promise life.

The spirit is saying let’s go to freedom, this is the path to freedom.

But the flesh is making the same promises, but leading us to a mirage where we find our mouths full of sand!!!

The flesh teases, but the Spirit feeds us

so the Spirit

II.

THE FLESH PRODUCES STRIFE, BUT THE SPIRIT PRODUCES LIFE

Gal.

5:19-

Paul is saying, hey, can we be real??

we know where the works, the labour, the ethic of the flesh leads.

It leads to warped sexuality, the worship of other things, jealousy, anger, division.... Paul is saying....YOU KNOW THIS!!