The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 of 6 (To update)

The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians

 Chapter 6

¹ My friends, if anyone is detected in a transgression, you who have received the Spirit should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness. Take care that you yourselves are not tempted.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 1)

Oh God my Father me who prays every morning (almost) and every evening today did a transgression against an employee who was doing his work as a security officer at one of our Health Centres. I walked in wearing my protective visor feeling safe and protected and on seeing me he wanted me to wear a face mask which he was willing to give me. However, instead of being humble and accepted his offer I declined and insisted that my visor was enough and that I did not need a face mask because I was protected. The situation became so agitated that the Security Officer wanted to throw me out of the Health Centre. 

Just at that moment, You intervened oh Jesus and the Doctor gave me the important document that I was there to collect and in doing so reduced the escalated stress of the moment. On reflecting on this biblical verse You help me realize that even though I was not to blame I am to go and apologize to this Security who up to that moment had always been nice and kind to me Amen.


² Bear one another's burdens, and in this way, you will fulfil the law of Christ.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 2)


Oh God my Father let us help others in bearing their crosses and issues of their lives, instead of speaking about them negatively with others and making them look bad. Let us include them in our prayers instead of our gossip and judgements Amen


³ For if those who are nothing think they are something, they deceive themselves.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 3)


Oh God my Father I pray that we humble ourselves both in our own eyes and even more before others, for we may easily be judged negatively and set a bad example for others. I pray that we be judged for our holiness and not only as sinners Amen.

⁴ All must test their own work; then that work, rather than their neighbours work, will become a cause for pride.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 4)

As humans my God and Father, we have a tendency of focussing on other's weaknesses instead of our own and instead of minding our own business at times we end up involved in other people's lives. I pray that we learn from You to carry our cross each day of our lives and thank You accordingly for each day.

⁵ For all must carry their own loads.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 5)

Oh God my Father even though You send us people to guide us in our every day lives, it is our responsibility to carry out Your will in our lives. Nobody else is going to be accountable for us when we appear before You Amen.

⁶ Those who are taught the word must share in all good things with their teacher.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 6 verse 6)

Oh God my Father You are my teacher. Every day You teach me about myself about the world in light of Your Word which is the Bible. I thank You for being my teacher Amen.

The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 of 6

The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians

 Chapter 5

¹ For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 1)


Oh, brothers and sisters of all faiths and cultures Jesus Christ has set us free from our sinful selves. He nailed our sins upon the cross once and for all. He gave us the freedom to be His sons and daughters. It is our choice to remain free people or to become again slaves to our sins Amen. Jesus heals us from the bondages and wounds of the past, present and future Amen. Blessed be the name of Jesus Amen.


² Listen! I, Paul, am telling you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you. 


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 2)


Oh God my Father if we be circumcised by the baptism of the world, which makes us more selfish and individualistic we will have no space to receive the true baptism of the Holy Spirit Amen. Therefore we need to be aware of which blessing we are receiving. 


³ Once again I testify to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obliged to obey the entire law. ⁴ You who want to be justified by the law have cut yourselves off from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verses 3 to 4)


Oh, brothers and sisters, this is a temptation that can easily befall us. In our urge to live a more intense spiritual life, we can end up getting mixed up in what is according to God's will from what is totally not. I pray for maturity and awareness so as to be guarded against such a situation Amen.


⁵ For through the Spirit of faith we eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 5)


Oh God, my Father Faith in You gives me hope in a better and positive future. It gives me a positive meaning and a reason to live a better life in the Spirit Amen.


⁶For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything: the only thing that counts is faith working through love.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 6) 


Oh God, my Father I pray that all of my acts are the product of love and not only of will and obligation. Amen. The question to ask oneself is what am I going to do is it out of love or not? Amen.


⁷ You were running well: who prevented you from obeying the truth? ⁸ Such persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verses 7 to 8)


Oh God, my Father such persuasion comes from the one who does not want us to follow in Your steps and who does all possible attempts to make us feel not empowered to live according to Your will Amen.


⁹ A little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 9)


Oh, brothers and sisters, God does not expect anything extraordinary from us. He knows that we are limited by our human nature. All God requires is that we believe in Him and in Salvation that at a huge price He obtained for all of us Amen. I pray that we grow in His relationship with us through having a healthy time of prayer and relationship with Him Amen.


¹⁰ I am confident about you in the Lord that you will not think otherwise. But whoever it is that is confusing you will pay the penalty.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 10)


Oh God my Father I pray that You help us clean our consciences and false or negative thoughts about ourselves, others, the world and even about You. I pray that we make a genuine decision to be only Yours Amen.


¹¹ But my friends, why am I still being persecuted if I am still preaching circumcision? In that case the offence of the cross has been removed.



(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 11)


Oh God, my Father even though I have good intentions of sharing the faith by means of this blog, there were several occasions of people who told me to stop doing so, however, oh God may Your will be done. Amen.


¹² I wish those who unsettle you would castrate themselves!


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 12)


Oh God my Father, I pray that we always empower each other even on a spiritual level especially in times when we feel insecure and depressed Amen.


¹³ For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 13)


Oh God my Father You created us as free beings, however, we decided not to live our freedom but to live as slaves of our own minds, needs, wants, drives and passions. We end up living and aiming to achieve that is not good for us and putting aside You, my God our lifesaver Amen. I pray that we make a firm decision to give priority to our spiritual lives over our material one Amen.


¹⁴ For the whole law is summed up in a single commandment,"You shall love your neighbor as yourself."


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 14)


Oh God my Father of all the commandments the one concerning love for others is one of the most challenging of all. This requires a change in our attitudes and social wiring, which prevents us from being spiritual but totally ascetic and Godless. I pray that You give us the power to overcome ourselves, our instincts and desires so that we open our hearts especially to those who have hurt us or who are currently still hurting us Amen.


¹⁵ If, however, you bite and devour one another, take care that you are not consumed by one another.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 15)


Oh God my Father this was my experience some time ago. Each day I was being bitten so badly in my relationship with my wife, that gradually I was losing my sense of self. I was being fed the false impression that I was a bad and rotten Father to my daughter and that all the time that I had spent with her was in vain. I thank You for bringing me out of this situation my God and Father Amen.


¹⁶ Live by the Spirit, I say, and do not gratify the desires of the flesh.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 16)


Oh God my Father, I thank You for the mental strength and self-control that You are giving me over the urges of my body. Thank You for giving me the strength to say a firm "No!" to my carnal self Amen.


¹⁷ For what the flesh desires is opposed to the Spirit, and what the Spirit desires is opposed to the flesh; for these are opposed to each other, to prevent you from doing what you want.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 17)


Oh God my Father, I thank You for enlightening me. My previous problem was that I was giving the carnal a spiritual outlook in order to make it look good and righteous. I thank You for bringing me out of my darkness Amen.


¹⁸ But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not subject to the law.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verse 18)


Oh God my Father this is my greatest wish that of being driven by the grace of the Holy Spirit so that I bear much fruit and that I lead life according to Your holy will Amen.


¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are obvious; fornication, impurity, licentiousness, ²⁰ idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife jealousy, anger, quarrels, dissensions, factions, ²¹ envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, as I warned you before; those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verses 19 to 21)


Oh God my Father on reflecting I used to score very high on anger and this would cause a lot of quarrels. I thank You for my new life in which I am becoming less angry and more self-controlled. Amen.


²² By contrast, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, ²³ gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against such things. ²⁴ And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verses 22 to 24)


Oh God my Father I thank You for having healed me in many areas of my life, in which I was very weak and have made me a new person renewed in Your Spirit Amen.


²⁵If we live by the Spirit, let us also be guided by the Spirit. ²⁶ Let us not become conceited, competing against one another, envying one another.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 5 verses 25 to 26)


Oh God my Father I pray that we compete against each other positively, may we be more humble loving and caring than others. May we compete in such qualities Amen as we do in material competitions however not with envy but with love Amen.


Oh Father in heaven I would like to end this fifth chapter of St. Paul's letter to the Galatians with the following prayer.


Oh God my Father tonight I pray for our conversion during this time of stress in our lives. I pray that You teach us by means of this situation to focus on the spiritual more than on our material lives. I pray that You will be the God of all actively full time in our lives. I pray that we open our hearts to You and give You Your personal place. Amen.

The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 of 6

The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians

 Chapter 4

¹ My point is this; heirs as long as they are minors, are no better than slaves, though they are the owners of all the property; ² but they remain under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 1 to 2)

Oh God my blessed Father, even though we are heirs of eternal salvation we are still minors and remain under Your guidance. We are not yet ready to inherit paradise until You decide on the day when we leave this earth in order to be totally with You in heaven Amen. 

³ So with us, while we are minors we were enslaved to the elemental spirits of the world. ⁴ But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, ⁵ in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. ⁶ And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying "Abba! Father!" ⁷ So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir through God.

(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 3 to 7)

Oh God my beloved Father, I thank You for freeing me from my previous life of slavery in order to give me this opportunity of following You. I also realize that I am still a child who needs Your guidance on the pathway of this new life. I thank You for all the support that You are giving me Amen.




⁸ Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 8)




Oh God my Father there was a time when we made our own nature gods and gave them powers beyond humanity, today that we are more civilized, we are doing the same thing again by using modern things such as technology, and the sciences. We are playing Your role and are becoming gods in our own families and even at work by using our power to control others and at times make others our slaves.


⁹ Now, however, that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits?" 




(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 9) 



Oh God my beloved Father, even though You have come to know me, I am still in the process of knowing those areas that You choose to reveal to me. Every time You intervene in my life situations I become aware of Your presence and give thanks to You. However as You know I am still a sinful person and there are areas that still need healing. I pray for Your healing my God and Father Amen.



¹⁰ You are observing special days, and months, and seasons, and years. ¹¹ I am afraid that my work for you may have been wasted.




(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 10 to 11)


Oh God my blessed Father, it is true that we are celebrating many feasts, which have become an ideal occasion to meet with friends and get drunk for some of us. However the spiritual nature of such feasts is not always honored. I pray that such feasts are really dedicated to You and not be a ritual of paganism Amen. 


¹² Friends, I beg you, become as I am, for I also have become as you are. You have done me no wrong.



(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 12) 



Oh God my Father You are asking to become more like You, than like our human selves. You are asking us to be more aware of whom we are with all our strengths and weaknesses in order to move on to the next step that requires that we put on the new self that is based on being totally like You. Amen. 



¹³ You know that it was because of a physical infirmity that I first announced the gospel to you; ¹⁴ though my condition put you to the test, you did not scorn or despise me, but welcomed me an angel of God, as Christ Jesus.



(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 13 to 14) 



Oh God my Father You choose different situations by which You choose to use us to be of service to others. I thank You for the time that You talked to me in a dream, because this precious moment changed my life completely. Today I am more aware of Your presence in my life. I pray that You continue to be with me and that 'Your will may be done' in my life Amen.
 


¹⁵ What has become of the goodwill you felt? For I testify that, had it been possible, you would have torn your eyes and given them to me.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 15) 



Oh God my Father we are so unstable and selfish in our interactions that I have learnt not to trust others, for the person in whom I trust today, may turn against me in a second, especially if I do not meet one's need or go against one's wishes. This is neither love or relationship it is pure egotism and selfishness Amen. True trust and love are only found in You my God and Father Amen. 


¹⁶ Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 16)


Oh God my beloved Father, there is a saying that says that the truth hurts, and in this I truly believe, for when we face our true self, our reality, we might find issues with which we do not agree and or others that we may not have been aware of them and accepted them as being part of our reality Amen. I pray that when we become aware of ourselves, we may love the self, that God has given us. It is the best self, that God has ever given to anybody! It is unique, precious, therefore, we must learn how to love it Amen.


¹⁷ They make much of you, but for no good purpose; they want to exclude you, so that you may make much of them.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 17) 



Oh God my beloved Father, You are my only true and reliable friend. Many people may seek my friendship for a particular agenda, but this is not the case where You are concerned because we share a common agenda that is the salvation of my soul and that of others amen. Thank You Jesus.


¹⁸ It is good to be made much of for a good purpose at all times, and not only when I am present with you.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 18) 



Oh God my God and Father, I pray that I be an instrument in Your hand at all times. I pray to be a useful tool in Your hands by which many people can experience healing, love and understanding Amen. I pray for experiences where I can be of service to You my God and Father Amen.


¹⁹ My little children, for whom I am again in the pain of childbirth until Christ is formed in you.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 19) 


Oh God, my Father, it seems that this birth is longer than that of a birth given to a baby, for I am 47 years old and I am still passing through this process. Day by day You are being born in me, and moreover, You transform me into a higher form of being that is acceptable in Your sight Amen.


²⁰ I wish I were present with you now and could change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 20) 


Oh God, my Father I am also perplexed and worried about the values of us Catholics and Christians, for on the one hand, we say we believe in You and on the other hand we reason that if it was for us, we would not give shelter to asylum seekers and let them drown at sea. I am ashamed of being a Catholic and a Christian if all of us held such a negative attitude I am sorry to say, for we would not be worthy of being called Sons and Daughters of God Amen.


²¹ Tell me, you who desire to be subject to the law, will you not listen to the law?



(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 21) 



To all who proclaim that we are Roman Catholics and Christians of different churches, its no use choosing to rebel to form different churches if we do not obey the Word of God. If we continue not to work together but as separate churches, if we continue to abuse children, what is the use of calling ourselves Christians or Roman Catholics we should be ashamed of ourselves. Amen



²² For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and the other by a free woman.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 22) 



Oh God, my Father, we both have two selves, our spiritual self that has its roots in You and our carnal self, which is subject to the ways and desires of the world which is carnal, and pagan or secular. It is only with Your help that the two remain controlled Amen because by nature they are constantly in conflict with the other because Your ways are not accepted by the ways of the world Amen.

²³ One, the child of the slave was born according to the flesh; the other, the child of the free woman, was born through the promise.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 23) 



Oh God, my Father, these are our two selves, one born of the Spirit, and one born of the flesh. Both forms of life clash within us for both want supreme control of our lives. At times we might favour one over the other, however, it is best for us to favour the life in the Spirit over life in the flesh Amen. 


²⁴Now this is an allegory; these women are two covenants. One woman, in fact, is Hagar, from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 24) 



Oh God, my Father, I pray that You allow me to produce alot of fruit that is good. Every day You give me the choice of either producing fruit in the slavery of my sin, or in the liberty of the Sons and Daughters of God. The choice is ours Amen.


²⁵ Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verse 25) 


Oh God my Father the allegory can be elaborated to the World and Church of our times. We are thinking that we are following the light but in truth many times we end up following ourselves, our wishes and our cravings Amen instead of following You and the road to our salvation Amen.



²⁶ But the other woman corresponds to the Jerusalem above; she is free, and she is our mother. ²⁷ For it is written, Rejoice, you childless one, you who bear no children, burst into song and shout, you who endure no birth pangs; for the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than the children of the one who is married."


(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 26 to 27) 



Oh God my Father previously I was married and had one child, today now that You have saved be from the bondage of slavery and have given me my freedom You have given me the children of all the world to love and care for Amen.


²⁸ Now you, my friends, are children of the promise, like Isaac. ²⁹ But just at that time the child who was born according to the flesh persecuted the child who was born according to the Spirit, so it is now also. ³⁰ But what does the scripture say? "Drive out the slave and her child, for the child of the slave will not share the inheritance with the child of the free woman." ³¹ So then, friends, we are children, not of the slave but of the free woman.



(The Letter of St. Paul to the Galatians Chapter 4 verses 28 to 31)



Oh brothers and sisters the slave and its offspring is our old sinful self, which will always be there to haunt and persecute us and accuse us of our sins and addictions. Therefore in order to be rid of such a sinful presence we are to stop practicing our old patterns of life, and pray to God for that extra push that will drive out the evil presence within us, so that we can live as free persons. 


Oh God my Father, I would like to end this meditation on the fourth chapter of St. Paul to the Galatians with the following prayer.


Oh God my father, I pray that You drive out of me the evil presence of the woman and her offspring, for I do not feel strong enough to drive her out myself. Sin will keep on festering if I make excuses to tolerate this and that I therefore pray that You completely drive out this presence Amen.