10/25/20 THE ONE ANOTHER’S IN THE NT #19 — Galatians 5:26 (CSB) Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.

This short verse contains three NT Greek words which appear NOWHERE ELSE in Scripture: “conceited,” “provoking” and “envying.” Fortunately these three words are straightforward—no secret or strange meanings.

In the previous verses 19-23, Paul has contrasted the results (fruit) of living in the flesh with that of living in the Spirit. A church is a lot like an old-fashioned one-room schoolhouse, with many students of different ages in different grades all together. In any one church, there are believers with very different personalities, gifts and abilities at every conceivable level of spiritual maturity. It’s all too easy to compare ourselves to each other. When we do that we can easily become conceited or envy other or provoke other believers. This too disrupts our intimate fellowship and damages our witness. We need to learn to recognize, support and love other believers so our witness will be strong and pure.