Galatians 5:19-21
"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God," Galatians 5:19-21.
There are some verses in the bible that may be hard to study, and even have theologians differ on the correct interpretation, but not these verses. These verses are very clear. These verses are so clear that some people would love to cut them out of their bibles, and some do mentally. There are those who love the verses that speak of God's love and blessings, but stay away from the verses that speak of God's hate and wrath. They do this to their own detriment. These also heap to themselves teachers having itching ears and lying tongues. We have been learning from the book of Galatians about the consequences of false teachers. They do kill, steal, and destroy. They teach a theology that is man centered, not Christ centered. What they teach is very appealing to the flesh, but is appalling to God. False teaching leads to a wrong view of God and man. People begin to view God and man from a worldly perspective instead of a biblical perspective. They begin to say things like, "God surely would not or is not; or that man is not that bad." When in fact, the bible is very clear on who God is and what man is.
The culture in which we live today has conditioned us to accept sin as the norm. What was gross and shameful fifty years ago is accepted as the norm today. If we do not accept these sins, then we are the ones who are considered wrong. It is a terrible day when you are considered weird because you know the difference between a man and a woman; or you are considered hateful because you do not believe a baby in the womb should be murdered for any reason. Our society has reached the place of insanity. As a nation, we are under the judgment of God (Romans 1).
When we are obeying the Word of God in context, we will find ourselves in direct opposition with this present evil world. "Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever," I John 2:15-17. "World" defined in verse 15 is the present world, the present order of things, as opposed to the kingdom of Christ; and hence, always with the idea of transcience, worthlessness, and evil both physical and moral, the seat of cares, temptations, irregular desires. We are not to love these things. "If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth," Colossians 3:1-2. Someone whom the Lord has saved is living looking and longing for the return of Christ. Our own sins and the sinfulness of this world is grievous to us. This is another evidence that Christ has saved our souls.
Our continued lifestyle is evidence of whether or not the Lord has saved us. We produce fruit (Matthew 7:15-20). We are known by our fruit. We will define these words in Galatians 5:19-21. It is a biblical impossibility for someone whom the Lord has saved to live this kind of lifestyle. I will say it again, we are known by our fruit, which is the lifestyle we live. Let us get into Galatians 5:19-21.
"Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness," Galatians 5:19. The word "works" in this verse means work, deed, act, something done; of evil works. These descriptions in these verses are a general overview of the sins people commit who are not saved. No matter how much they try to convince themselves that they or a loved one is saved, if they live these lifestyles, then the bible is clear that they are not saved. "Flesh" in this verse is the Greek word "sarx". Defined it is implying sinfulness, proneness to sin, the carnal nature, the seat of carnal appetites and desires, of sinful passions and affections whether physical or moral. It is not just what a person does, but also what that person is continuing to think about (Genesis 6:5). In the eyes of God, these are sinful works, no matter what the culture says. Remember, multitudes claim to be a Christian, but the fruit they bear shows they are not. These Scriptures are very clear.
"Adultery" in this verse is adultery, which is sexual activity between a married person and someone who is not their spouse. The term we use today is affair. The next word is fornication. It is the Greek word porneia, and means harlotry (including adultery and incest). These are any kind of sexual sins outside of a marriage. This would include pornography in any way. Our society cannot handle hard truths, but biblically put, if you are involved in any kind of sexual activity outside of marriage, God calls you a harlot. You may laugh and joke about it, but your lifestyle is evidence that you are not a Christian, and you are headed for the wrath of God in the torments of hell for eternity, and that is not a laughing matter. The next word in this verse is uncleanness. This is moral uncleanness, lewdness, pollution, as opposed to chastity. The last word in verse 19 is lasciviousness. It means excess, immoderation, intemperance in anything, e.g.: in language, speech: arrogance, insolence; in general conduct; licentiousness, madness, particularly wantonness. Put these words together and you have unrestrained sinful living. You see a life where self is idolized. Whatever makes you happy is what you want to do. It doesn't matter what the bible says, you want self-fulfillment. These are works of the flesh.
Lord willing, we will look at the rest of these verses next week. In closing, I am thankful that Jesus Christ came to seek and to save the lost. No matter to what depth of sin you are in, Christ is able to save. When He saves us, He forgives us of all of our sins. If the Scriptures say that you are not a Christian, I beg you to look to Jesus Christ for forgiveness of sins. "All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out," John 6:37. "For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved," Romans 10:13. When the Lord saves us, He makes us a new creation (II Corinthians 5:17). Please send questions and comments to richardsonbaptistchurch@gmail.com. Soli Deo Gloria.
