Liberty to love God and love others.

Opening Comments:

Please meet me in your copy of God’s Word this morning in Galatians 5:13-15. The key theme to the book of Galatians is Freedom through Christ. Hence, the name of our sermon series. When a believer places their faith in Christ, they are set free from the grip of sin and the works of the law. But what is it that we are set free to do exactly? What does living in freedom actually look like? We will seek to answer those questions from our text this morning together.

Galatians 5:13–15 NKJV

13 For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. 14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 15 But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!

Introduction:

In the text before us we’ve just read Paul tells the Galatian believers that they have been called to liberty (Freedom).

The Judaizers in Galatia didn’t want to see the believers there to live in that liberty they had been called to.

Much like legalist do today, the Judaizers plaguing the Galatians feared that living without the Law as a guide for life then people would become lawless and live however they wanted.

So, they accused Paul of preaching license.

Have you ever received a letter in the mail congratulating you that your spending limit has been increased on your credit card? Imagine with me that credit limit was increased to way beyond your annual salary. All of a sudden you might start visualizing all of the things you want but cannot afford. But, hey, that doesn't matter, you say to yourself, “I’ll just charge it.” You are being tempted to cross the line between liberty and license.

Where do you draw the line on spending? How do you control yourself? You have a decision to make.

Liberty is having the ability but practicing restraint. While license is throwing off all the restraint and doing whatever you want.

I want you to listen very closely to what I am about to say. Christian liberty is NOT license. Christian liberty is not freedom to sin but the freedom not to sin.

Before Christ I was mastered by temptation and sin. Unable to truly resist the passions and urges of my flesh. But, through Christ I have been given the power through his indwelling spirit to resit those urges and passions because of my love for Him.

Liberty doesn't lead me to license or legalism, but to love. The believer is not defined by rules and laws or by lusts and vices but by his love for God. It is a love and respect for God’s holiness that should motivate believers to live for him and resist sin.

Liberty opens wide the door for me to live for God not out of law but out of love.

1.) Love is the call of the believer. (v.13b)

A person who thinks that faith in Christ gives him license to sin does not understand what love truly is.

The believer in Christ is freed from having to secure God’s approval through law keeping, but, love is the one restraint that is placed upon us. It is the only restraint the believer needs.

You see a genuine believer will know that God has loved him. It was that love of God that drew us to him. So it is knowing and experiencing that love that compels us to serve him.

2 Corinthians 5:14–15 NKJV

14 For the love of Christ compels us, because we judge thus: that if One died for all, then all died; 15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.

A genuine love for God embraces the commandments of God. Jesus said this very thing:

Matthew 22:36–40 NKJV

36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” 37 Jesus said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.”

Christ doesn't give freedom to believers so they can do what they want but so they can, for the first time in their lives, do what God wants becuase of their love for Him.

2.) Love is serving others. (v.13b)

A believer is set free of all the law, restrains and works through Christ. He is under no authority than Christ.

He lives, moves and exists because of Christ. The love of Christ is his law and restraint.

But why?

Christ has loved the believer, served and gave his life for the believer, and the genuine believer is aware of all of this, so, he loves Christ with all of his heart and life. He wants to live for Christ and do all that he can for Christ.

How does he actually do this? By living how Christ lived.

Galatians 5:13b NKJV “through love serve one another.”

When we truly love our neighbor, we get down where they are and minister with them.

Love serves. Love reaches out to do whatever it can do for another. Love doesnt withdraw from the other person because they feel they:

Don’t deserve it.

Arn’t worth the effort.

Less than they should be.

Too immoral, wicked, uneducated or beneath others.

Love serves, love reaches out.

Matthew 20:28 NKJV

28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”

3.) Love is caring for your neighbor not biting and devouring them. (v.14-15)

We need to admit, that if we truly cared for others as much as we cared for ourselves, we wouldn't need laws. We would live and do all that we should.

This is why Paul says that love fulfills the law. Love doesn't take advantage of others, it doesn't use others to fulfill its purposes. Love doesn't hurt others anymore than we would hurt ourselves.

Love involves very personal acts.

1 Corinthians 13:4–7 NKJV

4 Love suffers long and is kind; love does not envy; love does not parade itself, is not puffed up; 5 does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil; 6 does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Romans 13:8–10 NKJV

8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not bear false witness,” “You shall not covet,” and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

(v.15) Biting and devouring gives the image of a dog and cat fighting with each other or a fight between wild animals.

This is more than just fussing with each other. We bite and devour each other when we violate each other through slander, abuse, covetousness, criticism, accusation, gossip, exploitation.

This things are not love, they are not Christ like behavior.

James 4:1–2 NKJV

1 Where do wars and fights come from among you? Do they not come from your desires for pleasure that war in your members? 2 You lust and do not have. You murder and covet and cannot obtain. You fight and war. Yet you do not have because you do not ask.

Proverbs 10:12 NKJV

12 Hatred stirs up strife, But love covers all sins.

Conclusion:

The ruling principle of Christian freedom isn't license to do as I will but it is love. We are to love abd accept one another through Christ. Yes, we are called to freedom, the freedom to love God and love others as we should. Love builds the bridge between legalism and license. It must guide all that we do.