EXEGETICAL STUDY OF GALATIANS 5:16-26 ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CONTEMPORARY NIGERIA CHURCH

EXEGETICAL STUDY OF GALATIANS 5:16-26 ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR THE CONTEMPORARY NIGERIA CHURCH

ABSTRACT

This work was undertaken to study the work of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:16-26 and its implication for the growth of the church today. The need for the study was promoted by the rate of laxity and lack of cohesion that has almost eroded the core values of the Christian faith from the church today. Righteousness, sanctification, regeneration, love, peace, joy, longsuffering, meekness, etc., seem to have been traded for vices, traditional values, and customs. The church seems to have been dragged down with mockery for her inability. As a result, some have settled for employing fetish means in carrying out the work of God, while members alike resort to traditional altars for solutions. All kinds of sin have taken over the church.

However, it is said that the phenomenon is not peculiar to the contemporary church. The early church faced the same kinds of challenges and succeeded only through the cohesive power of the Holy Spirit. Drawing from Paul’s teaching in Galatians, the researcher presented the principle of effective Christian living as seen in Galatians as the antidote for the contemporary church’s instability. It is summarised thus: “Walk in the spirit and you shall not gratify the desires of the flesh”. The researcher in the course of the study tried to demystify the phrase “walk in the spirit” and gave practical ways to be filled and controlled by the spirit.

The finding proves that the laxity and lukewarmness in churches is as a result of not yielding to the spirit and that more can be accomplished like in the early church if the believers will embrace walking in the spirit. In the above findings, the researcher’s belief is one step forward which should ginger more research on the subject.

Based on these findings, some recommendations were made which among others include that more attention should be given to the expositions or the exegetical studies of the scriptures, most especially, the epistles which deal more with effective Christian living.

 

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

Background to the Study

Trinitarian theology which started from creation and manifested in the redemption of mankind attempts to identify the unique mission and work of the Holy Spirit. The mission and work of the Holy Spirit range from creation which includes mankind, to redemption of mankind, back to God through Christ Jesus; it also includes the sustenance and preservation of the redemption through moral and ethical Christian living, giving of power to proclaim the gospel of Christ, the growth and enlargement of the kingdom of God, etc. It, therefore, remains imperative that any Christian who will be successful must experience and yield to the empowerment of the Holy Spirit. The same applies to any local church.

It is one thing to be saved and entirely another thing to remain saved. Depicted in Galatians as it concerns our Christian living, is the struggle between the old nature and the new nature which is the common experience of Christians everywhere. And this conflict is a war to death. There can be no cessation of hostilities until we are called home to glory. The acceptance of Jesus Christ into the heart will inevitably provoke a bitter and determined resistance on the part of the old sinful nature which hitherto has had everything its way. Nor will the flesh be put to sleep by the fond derision that it is dead and buried. It is imperative for our spiritual growth that we grasp the fact that the old nature is not removed or reformed at regeneration. Failure to understand this fact plunges the new convert into needless bewilderment and even despair of his standing with God when, after a peaceful period of triumph and fellowship with Jesus, he stumbles into the old sins and faults he fancied or thought had been vanquished forever. The older Christians have this error persuading them to believe that they can not sin. But such becomes a victim of an illusion.

The two most important things in our holy religion are the life of faith and the walk of faith. He who understands these is not far from being a true follower of Christ, for they are vital points to a Christian. You can not find true faith unattended by true godliness (holy living) and vice versa. This is enhanced by the work the Holy Spirit continually carries out in us as we yield to him daily. Paul described this as walking in the spirit. Herein lays the key to conquest over the flesh.

The uniqueness, reality, and relevance of the work of the Holy Spirit to the growth of individual believers and the church at large are indicated in all of scripture. Possibly, the poor attitude towards the concept of pneumatology in present-day churches may be attributed to a lack of adequate education on the topic. It may be further compounded by certain rigid doctrinal factors of certain denominations. The poor understanding or the lack of understanding of the subject by the under-shepherd of any local church could also pose serious problems of not embracing the work of the Holy Spirit.

Some antagonists of the doctrine think that the dispensation of the Holy Spirit is past, thus any mention of it is heretical. However, the researcher must show that the works of the Holy Spirit are the backbone of genuine salvation, moral Christian living, church growth, missions and evangelism, good works, and healthy stability of the universal church of Christ. The motivation for this study stemmed from the visible and practical laxity in morality, lack of power, poor church growth, half-baked believers, unethical living, etc, seen in churches today.

It is pertinent to note that the work of the Holy Spirit relates to the activities of the Holy Spirit in the lives of Christians, and it objectively ensures power for witness, moral Christian living, and church growth making the worship experience an effective one.

Statement of the problem:

            Some emphasis has been made on the place of the work of the Holy Spirit as it relates to the growth of the church. Many who have truly yielded to the power of the Holy Spirit have had their footprints on marble, uplifting the kingdom of God. However, many believers and Christian churches have not embraced nor encountered this spiritual reality and it has become an unknown detriment to their Christian life and the growth of their churches.

A cursory look at the modern church shows some apparent lapses in its moral standard, evangelistic fervor, prayer life, administration, disciplinary decisions and actions, selection of workers, manifestations of spiritual gifts, etc. No one seems to realize the causative factor(s) of this dilemma. The question that should come to mind is; how has the doctrine of the Holy Spirit been taught and understood? How many churches still take time to pray and seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in all their affairs? How many churches still rely on the direction of the Holy Spirit to carry out evangelistic/mission work and church planting? How many church members still exhibit the fruit of the Holy Spirit: how about the gift of the Holy Spirit?

Since the consciousness of the place, ministry, and work of the Holy Spirit seems to be lost, many church leaders, pastors, and even members seem to arrogate powers and authority to themselves. That may be the reason why Jesus Christ is not revealed as he ought to be revealed because the one (Holy Spirit) who is to reveal Christ is not welcomed, acknowledged, or recognized.

As a result of the above, the modern church has been constantly accused of a lack of love, immorality, partiality in choices and decision-making, using magical means to do the work of Jesus Christ, usurping authority, etc.  It is in consideration of all of those that this study becomes relevant. The following are some problems that this research intends to solve.

1)   How the misconceptions, wrong teachings, and practices about the person and works of the Holy Spirit can be corrected.    

2)  How the problem of lack of expression of the fruit of the Holy Spirit can be attended to?

3)  How a stable moral Christian living can be actualized.

4)  How the problem of ineffective brotherly love and fellowship can be corrected?

5)  How the mystery of walking in the Spirit can be mastered

6)  How the problem of unhealthy growth can be tackled.

7)  How the problem of crucifying the flesh can be handled?

Paul the apostle of Christ saw all these problems and exclaimed, “The good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice….oh wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death”? (Romans 7:19, 24). Only the Holy Spirit can.

The Purpose of the Study:

The reality of the works of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer (in Christ) and the church is eschatological evidence. While God declares through the prophet (Joel 2) that, “in the last days, I will pour out my Spirit upon all flesh”; it is also of the will of the devil that perilous times shall come in the last days. However, despite the onslaught of demonic attacks against the healthy growth of the church, God still made provision for the church to grow and remain spotless through the working and operations of the Holy Spirit, making the church effective in carrying out its duties. The contribution and role played by the Holy Spirit in the life of the church; to perfect the saints and enable them to carry out their responsibilities effectively constitute the primary purpose of this research. Further objectives of this study are outlined below:

1) This study is to achieve the broad purpose of unveiling and highlighting the works of the Holy Spirit as it affects the healthy growth of the contemporary church.

2) To emphasize the importance of the activities of the Holy Spirit and how it contributes to the attainment of the corporate goal and objectives of the church.

3) To show that we can not through the effort of the flesh fulfill the requirements of God’s law.

4) To show that the life that the Holy Spirit lives through us is in perfect conformity to God’s law.

5) To emphasize that the extent of our successful living as Christians are determined by the intent of our conformity to “walking in the spirit”.

6) To prove beyond doubt that without the work of the Holy Spirit the Christians and the churches can not grow to be effective and rapturable.

Delimitation and Limitation of the Study:                                    

This study is undertaken as descriptive and exegetical research on the work of the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:16-26 and its implication for the growth of the contemporary Christian church. The work is drawn mainly from the ideas that Paul presented in the New Testament and other related Christian literature, and books, that comments on the subject matter. References are made to the Old Testament. The work also borders on certain theological assertions whose interpretation of the subject under study seems to be relevant to the work. The researcher also made use of oral interviews and the Internet.

This study is limited by the inadequate stock of relevant research materials. Besides resource constraints especially finance, time was a major limitation. These limitations, notwithstanding have not ruled out the self-interest and motivation with which the researcher examines the relevance of the work of the Holy Spirit to the growth of contemporary churches as it were on the Galatians church.

Methodology

In this research, information is extracted from relevant books like the Bible, Bible Dictionaries, Bible Concordance and commentaries, and other theological books and materials that explain the concept. Sources like the internet are no doubt used for this study. A little interview is used for the effectiveness of the work. The work is divided into five chapters, each having an aspect of the study to deal with as is shown throughout the study. 

Significance of the Study

This study is significant in that it aims to correct the negligence, ignorance, misunderstanding, under-rating, misuse, and of course, the abuse of the person, ministry, and works of the Holy Spirit in our contemporary churches, through a study of the work of the Holy Spirit in the early church as recorded in the book of Galatians and other parts of scriptures. This study is also important as it will enable Christians to withstand the challenges of the works of the flesh that confront them everywhere. The study also enlightens them on the power and presence of God. It ensures the exercise and exhibition of the fruits of the spirit which is a mark of godliness and God-centeredness. This becomes a distinguishing mark on Christians in their different environment. It is important as it will help the church and its members contribute in righteousness to the expansion of the kingdom of God. It will help the daily perfection of the saints for the work of ministry.

Definition of Terms

The need to erase ambiguity in the mind of any reader of this study makes the definition of some operational words pertinent:

Holy Spirit

“The name Holy Spirit is applied to the third person of the Trinity – one God in three persons. The Hebrew term by which he is designated as “חֵוּר” (ru^ach) and the Greek “pneuma”, both of which are like the Latin “spiritus”, derived from root words that mean “to breathe”. Hence, they can be rendered “breath”, John 3:8”.[1]

In the Old Testament, the Spirit of Yahweh or the spirit of the Lord, my spirit or just the Holy Spirit (Psalm 51:11, Isaiah 63:10,11) is God’s power in action Yahweh’s spirit is God himself present at work as are His hands and arms.

The Holy Spirit is an invisible member of the Trinity whom the scripture most often represented as being present to do God’s work in the world. He is now the present manifestation of the presence of the Trinity among us. He is the one who is mostly present with us now”.[2] John 16:5-15 presents Him as the comforter, the one to reprove the world of sin and righteousness and judgment, the revealer of all truth and secret things. Acts 1:8 says, until He comes upon a person, there will be no power to witness to the good news and to do well.

The Holy Spirit is spoken of under various titles in the New Testament (“spirit” and “Ghost” are renderings of the same word pneuma; the advantage of the rendering “spirit” is that it can always be used, whereas “Ghost” always require the word “Holy” (prefix). The subject of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament may be considered as to His divine attributes; his operations in the world; in the church, his having been sent at Pentecost in individual and by Christ; His operation in individual believers; in the production of the Holy Scriptures, etc.

The Holy Spirit gives new life and brings a person to faith in Christ, uniting them to Christ and all his benefits. He makes the believer part of Christ’s body. He indwells and seals the believers. As the Holy Spirit lives in the believers, he produces growth in grace and holiness of life. He empowers the Christians for service by giving different gifts.

Contemporary Christian Churches

“The word church is derived from the Greek (ekklησia) “ekklesia”, meaning ‘The called out ones’. In the Septuagint, it is used to designate the gathering of Israel, summoned for any definite purpose or a gathering regarded as representative of the whole nation. It has two implications for the companies of Christians: (a) to the whole company of the redeemed throughout the present era, the company of which Christ said, ‘I will build my church’, (Matt. 16:18), and which is further described as “the church which is his body”, (Eph. 1:22; 5:23) (b) in the singular number (matt. 18:17), to a company consisting of professed believers, (Acts 20:28, 1Cor. 1:2)”.[3]

Thus, “contemporary Christian church” is a phrase used to explain the assembling together of the congregation of believers in Christ; baptized and in vital union with Christ through the working of the Holy Spirit in the present era.

[1] Louis Berkhof, Systematic Theology (Michigan: The Banner of Truth, 2003), 95.

[2] Wayne Grudem. Systematic Theology (Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press, 1994), 634.

[3] W.E.Vine, An expository Dictionary of New Testament Words, (New Jersey: Flaming H. Revell Company, 1996), 83-84

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