An Expositional Sermon
Galatians 5:13-21
“Bondage/Desires of the Flesh”
Theme/Big Idea: The desires and works of the flesh are opposed to the freedom we have in the gospel
Aim/Appropriation/Application: Walk in the Spirit.
Outline:
(1) God’s People Were Called to Freedom (Galatians 5:13-15)
(2) We Are at War (Galatians 5:16-18)
(3) God’s People Fight Their Sin (Galatians 5:19-21)
Questions for Further Study and Application:
(1) Is freedom from all authority true freedom? Why or why not?
(2) Who was called to freedom in v. 1?
(3) How is freedom through Christ look like slavery? How is this a good thing?
(4) Do you love other members in the church? In all honesty, do you love each other?
(5) Do you see yourselves as brothers and sisters in Christ?
(6) Do you think of church as just another thing to check off your list, or do you think of it as an opportunity to be with the people you love? And not in a surface level kind of way, but in such a way that you lay down your life for the brothers (1 John 3:16)?
(7) Can you honestly say that is something that you have done this week or last week to lay down your self-interest to serve a brother or sister in Christ in our church…in recent memory how have you used your freedom in Jesus Christ as an opportunity not to benefit yourself but through love to serve one another in the church?
(8) Do you love the things that God loves? If you do, think about how God loves His people, the church. Are you growing to love His people in the way He does? Why or why not. What does this look like in your life?
(9) Are you quick to bite and devour others in the church? What does your relationship with those in the household of God look like, and what does that say about your maturity or immaturity in Christ?
(10) Are there ways that you are pursuing good things in wrong ways? Do you feel the affects of this war? Do you feel the desires of the flesh and the desires of the Spirit within you keeping you from doing the things you want to do?
(11) When you read a list like this are you tempted to think about how it applies to everyone other than you? Consider yourself in this list.
(12) Have you ever made a list of your sins? Consider how doing this might be a tool you can use to consider the power of God’s grace in the Lord Jesus Christ to die for them, and to gain a better awareness of meeting the battle against your sin by the power of the Holy Spirit in conjunction with God’s Word.