Title: Faith Works By Love
Bible Book: Galatians 5 : 6
Author: Kris Palmer
Subject: Faith; Love; Works
Objective:
Introduction
Galatians 5:6, “When we are in Christ Jesus, it is not important if we are circumcised or not. The important thing is faith — the kind of faith that works through love.”(NCV)
In my life the one overriding theme is that I want to please God. When I see Him face-to-face I want Him to be able to tell me, “Well done good and faithful servant.” I would image that is your desire also. To live in a way that is pleasing to God, it is important to understand that all that we do must be done by faith. Hebrews 11:6 states that “without faith it is impossible to please God.” We cannot do things out of our own efforts. We cannot do things in the flesh and have them work. For our lives to really work, they must be lived by faith. Question is, however, how does faith work? What does it look like? Real faith does work. It transforms – real faith is not just a head thing; real faith produces real change. Paul talks about this in Galatians. He says in Galatians 5:6 that faith works by (through) love. Real faith looks like or is connected to the love that we have one for another. If I have real faith, it will be expressed in my love. If I have real faith, the transformation that will occur will result in love being the fruit of my life. Throughout the rest of Galatians, Paul shows us what love looks like, in other words, what faith working through love looks like. What we should look like if we are being transformed.
I. Faith Works By Love
(KJV) Love – 5:6 When we are in Christ Jesus, it is not important if we are circumcised or not. The important thing is faith—the kind of faith that works through love.)
Works = it produces, acts like, functions like, operates according to Love.
1 John says that “God is Love.” To walk in faith is to walk like God, to be god-like. In other words, Christ Himself is our example of what love really looks like. Ultimately, love does what is right. True love is about living a pure life.
1 Timothy 1:5 (NCV) The purpose of this command is for people to have love, a love that comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a true faith.
The best description is given in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8, “Love is patient and kind. Love is not jealous or boastful or proud 5 or rude. Love does not demand its own way. Love is not irritable, and it keeps no record of when it has been wronged. 6 It is never glad about injustice but rejoices whenever the truth wins out. 7 Love never gives up, never loses faith, is always hopeful, and endures through every circumstance. 8 Love will last forever (love never fails)” (NLT)
II. Faith Works By A Serving Love
Love Serves – 5:13, “My brothers and sisters, God called you to be free, but do not use your freedom as an excuse to do what pleases your sinful self. Serve each other with love.”
Loving one another = serving one another. Love is not just about words it is about action. I cannot just say that I love you; I must show that I love you.
Servanthood is the heart of the gospel. What can I do to help? That is the question that servanthood asks? Christ came as the greatest servant of all. True Christianity is marked by Servanthood.
III. Faith Works By A Lawful Love
Love Completes the Law. 5:14, “The whole law is made complete in this one command: ‘Love your neighbor as you love yourself.’
The New Testament did not do away with the law. There is a Law of Christ. Law = “Love your neighbor as yourself.” This is based on John 13:34 which clarifies this by saying, “love one another just as I have loved you.” We are to love one another just the same way that Christ loved us.
IV. Faith Works By A Fruitful Love
Love is the Fruit of the Spirit – 5:22-23, “But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, and self-control. Here there is no conflict with the law.” (NLT)
To not work by the flesh requires that we work by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit marks us - places His mark upon us - declares to others who we are and what we look like. That mark or that fruit, what it bears and what is looks like, is love. “But the fruit of the Spirit is love.” (NAS) This is actually one way of understanding this verse. Love then looks like: peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
V. Faith Works By A Restoring Love
(Restore One Another in Love) – 6:1-2, “Brothers and sisters, if someone in your group does something wrong, you who are spiritual should go to that person and gently help make him right again. But be careful, because you might be tempted to sin, too. 2 By helping each other with your troubles, you truly obey the law of Christ.”
This is a significant part of 1 Corinthians 13, and very important to understanding how faith should transform us. Restoration of those that have wronged is a significant issue in several of Paul’s letters. (2 Corinthians, and Philemon are examples) This does not mean that we over-look sin; it is dealing with it rightly. The goal of discipline and correction is always restoration. You must remember, the sinner you are dealing with could be You!
VI. Faith Works By A Humble Love
(Love Judges Ourselves Rightly) – 6:3-4, “If anyone thinks he is important when he really is not, he is only fooling himself. 4 Each person should judge his own actions and not compare himself with others. Then he can be proud for what he himself has done.”
Humility is so vitally important. True humility is seeing ourselves as God sees us. Without real humility we are a problem for the kingdom. Often we do much more harm than good. Moses was a great leader because of his humility. Along with this, we can get ourselves into great problems when we judge ourselves by other persons. We are not others; we are ourselves. The one we are to judge ourselves by is Christ Jesus.
VII. Faith Works By A Persevering Love
Lastly, Do Not Grow Weary Loving) – 6:9, “We must not become tired of doing good. We will receive our harvest of eternal life at the right time if we do not give up.”
Do not quit! We grow weary when we work outside of faith and when we work in the flesh. Christianity is work, but that is okay. Just do not give up. Working with people is work, but we must not grow weary. Working on issues in our own lives is work, but we must not give up when we fail and seem to make little progress. Working on our issues is work.
Don’t quit! There is hardly anything more damaging to the Kingdom of God than for a Christian who quits, gives up or falls into sin (which is just another form of giving up). We don’t have to give up – we can live by faith – and we can do the work of living a life of love. Why? Because we were first loved!
Conclusion
God’s love is ours through Christ. He will work in us to make us complete in Himself. But that will not happen if we give up! God really can and does come to help up complete the work that He has called us to do.
We should all want to please God. To hear God’s “Well done” cannot be accomplished unless we live a life that is real – a life of faith working by loving to please God and serve others.
