Serve One Another

As we continue this series, One Another, looking at different verses from the Bible about how we are to live together as the local church, we come to the phrase that can be found in Galatians 5 – “serve one another.” We have said up to this point that the local church is to function much like that of a family. The local church is to be a place where you can find encouragement, instruction, and a place to walk with others arm-in-arm in this journey called life. We all need those important things to make it in this life. God never intended us to walk through life alone. He doesn’t expect us to figure out how to live for Him by ourselves.

The topic of service is one that carries different connotations. Some of us may hear the word service and think about the men and women who serve our country through the Armed Forces. We tend to hold those who serve our country in high honor – as we should. Other people may hear the word “service” and think more about something like a waiter in a restaurant. We are thankful for these people, but too often, they get seen as servants there just to make us happy. Sadly, many times people who are serving in this capacity are not given much honor even though they help us greatly.

When we see service come up in the Bible, the main way that it is portrayed is a means of expressing the understanding we have of our faith. In our culture, we are taught often to be the one that has others serving you, not you be the one serving. In our culture, serving another means the person whom you are serving is greater than you. What we will see from the Bible today is that serving is the responsibility of those who are further along in their faith.

For freedom, Christ set us free. Stand firm, then, and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery. Take note! I, Paul, am telling you that if you get yourselves circumcised, Christ will not benefit you at all. Again I testify to every man who gets himself circumcised that he is obligated to do the entire law. You who are trying to be justified by the law are alienated from Christ; you have fallen from grace. For we eagerly await through the Spirit, by faith, the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision accomplishes anything; what matters is faith working through love. You were running well. Who prevented you from being persuaded regarding the truth? This persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole batch of dough. I myself am persuaded in the Lord you will not accept any other view. But whoever it is that is confusing you will pay the penalty. Now brothers and sisters, if I still preach circumcision, why am I still persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. I wish those who are disturbing you might also let themselves be mutilated! For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love. For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself.

Galatians 5:1–14 CSB

The letter of Galatians is one that Paul wrote to the Christians in the area of Galatia. Galatia was a region of different cities between the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea. Paul likely wrote this letter to churches that he helped start on his first missionary journey. Much of this letter was written to show these Christians the new life they have been given by faith in Jesus.

There were some people that were coming to their areas saying that they needed Jesus + something else (keeping of the Law of Moses primarily). Paul wrote to correct this false teaching. He shows through this letter that Jesus + anything is not the gospel, but rather we are made right with God by faith in Jesus alone.

Three Important Truths

In the section that we are looking at today, Paul shows three important truths to both the Christians in Galatia during the first century and us today in the 21st century.

The Call to Liberty

For freedom, Christ set us free. Stand firm, then, and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery.

​Galatians 5:1 CSB

While there were people who were trying to tell these Christians that Jesus was good, they were telling them that He is not enough. These early Christians were being told that they needed something else to complete the work. The main thing that they pointed to was the Law of Moses and circumcision. They were telling the Galatians that they had to be “good Jews” to really be right with God.

We see a similar version of this false teaching in our world today. There will be many who say that Jesus is good – He was a good teacher, a prophet, or maybe even God. But they will also say that the work that Jesus did on our behalf only gets us so far, and we need to do something else to be complete. They may say that we need to trust in what Jesus did but also be a good person or a good citizen or something else like that.

There’s nothing wrong with being a good, moral person or a good citizen of one’s country. In fact, we are told that we should be in the Bible. But the Bible never tells us to depend on those for making us right with God. Those are to be evidences that God has changed our lives. They are also ways that we can gain an audience with others to point them to the true Person that we need – Jesus.

The Temptation of License

As Paul talks about the freedom that we have in Christ, he is quick to warn about a tendency that our flesh will run to with freedom: seeing it as a license to sin. ​

For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.

Galatians 5:13 CSB

As we are given freedom, there is a temptation to take it in the wrong direction. There have been many people who gained a newfound freedom as they left the home for college only to make some poor decisions with this new freedom. This is why it is important to instruct our children while they are still in the home because one day they won’t be. This instruction should just be the “what” but also the “why” behind the “what.”

Paul reminds his audience that we are not to use our freedom as an opportunity “for the flesh.” The flesh here speaks of the part of us that is bent to follow sin. Prior to a person coming to faith in Jesus, the flesh guides his or her life. Sadly, it always leads a person to sin and further from God. When a person comes to faith in Christ, they are given a new nature that is guided by the Holy Spirit. The former nature (the flesh) is still present, but now we have a choice of who we will listen to – our sinful flesh or God?

In Galatians 5:1, we see that Christian freedom is a defense against legalism. In Galatians 5:13, we see that this same Christian freedom is a defense against libertinism. Libertinism is the thought that no one can tell me what to do. Sadly, there have been people who have thought that they could trust in Christ and go from that moment to live however they want because God has to forgive them. This is a complete misunderstanding of what trusting Jesus is all about.

The freedom we have in Christ is not a freedom to live however we want. Freedom in Christ is a freedom from the bondage of the sin that ruled and condemned us before God to be able to live pleasing in His sight.

Service in Love

For you were called to be free, brothers and sisters; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love.

​Galatians 5:13 CSB

While we are not set free to just do whatever we want, we are set free so that we can do what God created us to do – reflect Him and point others to Him. One of the best ways that this is done is through loving service.

Paul tells us that we should not use our freedom in Jesus to please our sinful flesh, but we should use it to serve one another through love. You may want to say, “Amen!” to that (and I hope you do), but this statement of Paul’s brings up a probing question: why do I serve? It doesn’t take long to see that there are different motives that can be behind the service that we do.

• We do it out of love for Jesus and others – this verse shows us that should be the motivation of any service that we do.
• Obligation – We feel that it is a chore that we have to do. We may do it because simply because we think that we have to. When this motivation is present, we see that it doesn’t always come across lovingly, and it usually won’t last long.
• Ulterior Motives – This motive is tricky because on the outside it looks good, but on the inside, we are trying to impress other people or gain attention for ourselves. While we may be able to fool people with this motive for a time, be sure that it will come to light eventually.

How Do We Serve In Love?

Serving one another fulfills what has been called the “Law of Love.” We see that in Leviticus 19:18 and Matthew 22:39-40. When Jesus was asked about what the greatest command in the Law of Moses was, He answered to love God above everything else and with all that you are. Then Jesus said that the second greatest (or maybe a 1b) was to love your neighbor as yourself. Loving others as you would love yourself is the “Law of Love,” and loving service is the way we fulfill that.

Jesus gave us a couple of examples. First, Jesus told us the reason that He came to earth was not to be served but to serve others (Matthew 20:28).​

Second, Jesus showed what it looked like when He washed His disciples feet in John 13.

Here are some ways that we can serve one another in love:​

Carry one another’s burdens; in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.

Galatians 6:2 CSB

This way of service can be carried out in countless ways. When we come alongside someone and help them carry the burden that is on them, we serve in a loving way. ​

Therefore, confess your sins to one another and pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is very powerful in its effect.

James 5:16 CSB

Here we see another “one another” statement. When we truly take the time to pray with and for others, we are serving them in a great way. We may be tempted to think that all we can do is pray like that is a helpless thing. We have access to the One is all-knowing, all-powerful, and loves us more than we can imagine through prayer. Prayer is one of the strongest weapons that we have in this life.

A third way of serving one another is to use the gifts that God has given us, especially within and through the local church​.

Just as each one has received a gift, use it to serve others, as good stewards of the varied grace of God.

1 Peter 4:10 CSB

Each Christian is given a spiritual gift so that he or she can contribute to the work of the local church in some manner. They are not given so that you can place it on the mantle and admire it. They have been given to us to put to work. The gifts look different just as pieces of a puzzle do, but when fit together, they make an amazing picture of Christ.

Conclusion

God has given us many ways in which we can serve one another. As a faith family, we need to make sure that we are properly serving one another. Each one of us have burdens and things that we carry. We don’t have to bear our burdens alone. May we commit to modeling the example given to us by Jesus. Let us serve one another out of an abundance of love. As we do that, others will see the work of Christ through us and be drawn to Him.