And while we certainly shouldn’t strive to just do these things out of obligation, Scriptural references like these certainly do come in handy in matters of trust and confidence. “Am I on the right track?” “Is this person really someone I should be trusting for spiritual guidance?”
Some measure a person’s spirituality by how intelligent they sound, how many people come to their church or how ground-breaking their ministry is. Others may look for proof such as speaking in tongues or earth-shattering prayers or sermons. But Paul gives us a clear and vivid comparison between fleshly actions and spiritual actions right here in just a few sentences. He makes it easy, I think, on purpose. After all, he did spend a great deal of his ministry correcting local churches for their neglect of spiritual things.
He tells the Galatian church, “Now the works of the flesh are evident…but the fruit of the Spirit is…” right in the middle of teachings on freedom in Christ through neglecting a ritualistic walk by simply loving others and bearing the burdens of others. So this instruction Paul gives us on spiritual things fits perfectly with our love walk.
We don’t trade in our love walk as if we’ve graduated to something better because “God is doing something today” or “God has called us to be a _________ generation.” Absolutely not. That is most certainly not the case. Loving others and bearing the burdens of those around us goes hand-in-hand with spiritual things.
So the next time you are watching TV or you are in a church service, and a spiritual leader is talking about something really deep like a “new season” or “this generation of believers” or “God is telling us to do ________”, flip over to Galatians 5 & 6 and see if this person’s revelation is truly something that the Holy Spirit is behind or if the fruit of it will be at the expense of others.
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