Daily Bread Pastor Mike Anderson 2026

Galatians 5 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Paul starts out the chapter by telling the Galatians, "It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm then and do not be burdened by the yoke of slavery ."  But then Paul tells them not to use their newfound freedom to indulge the flesh. This is the opposite of the legalism Paul was describing in the first four chapters, which presented itself through the Jewish rite of circumcision. Though the Galatians were free from the law, they mustn't use their freedom to go back to living in slavery to their sinful desires.  Paul gives a laundry list of behaviors that accompany living in the flesh ...

Galatians 4 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 19 My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, 20 how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you! We see again Paul's heart for the Galatians. Though Paul was one of the greatest missionaries and evangelists of all time, he had the heart of a pastor. The reason he was so upset the Galatians might return to the Law, after first receiving God's grace, was that he knew it was a " dead end street ". After having tasted the freedom of the gospel, these false teachers were trying to get them to return to the bondage of the Law. It really shocked Paul that they were even thinking this way.  In this chapter he points to the fact that these teachers wanted them to observe special days, months, and seasons.  The false teachers among the Galatians demanded the observance of days and months and seasons and years and other such legalistic matters ...

  Galatians 3 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary 26 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, 27 for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise. In Chapter 3, Paul continues to address the divide between the Jews and Gentiles. He teaches that the promise God made with Abraham could only be obtained through faith. In the famous passage from Genesis 15:6 it says, "Abram believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness."  We often thnk that the Old Testament is all about the law and God's wrath, but it started with a promise to Abraham, which he received by faith. It was only later that the Mosaic Law was introduced which was to set the Israelites apart from the pagan nations.   As part of this c...

Galatians 2 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary  20 I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not set aside the grace of God, for if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!” This is one of the most famous passages in the bible. I would strongly recommend you put it to memory. These two verses sum up what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. But we might misinterpret it if we don't remember the context of this chaper and the rest of the letter to the Galatians.  There were certain men of reputation who came from Jerusalem, who had infiltrated the church and presented a false gospel that newly converted Gentiles needed to be circumcised. So, when Paul was in Antioch, he had to confront Peter because he used to eat with Gentiles, but when these men came, he stopped. Basically he caved to peer press...

Galatians 1 - NIV Enduring Word Commentary Today, we begin Paul's letter to the Galatians. The province of Galatia was in Asia Minor, which is in modern day "Turkey". Here are some other historical details about the book of Galatians. The Book of Galatians, often called the "Magna Carta of Christian Liberty," is a New Testament letter written by the Apostle Paul to a group of churches in the Roman province of Galatia (modern-day Turkey).Written around 48–49 AD, it is likely Paul's earliest surviving letter. The letter serves as a passionate defense of the gospel of salvation by grace alone through faith alone, directly countering false teachers who insisted that Gentile Christians must follow the Mosaic Law to be saved. (Fuller Seminary, Christopher Scott) No Other Gospel 6 I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you to live in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— 7 which is really no gospel at all. Evidentl...

2 Corinthians 13 - NIV   Enduring Word Commentary 5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test? 6 And I trust that you will discover that we have not failed the test. 7 Now we pray to God that you will not do anything wrong—not so that people will see that we have stood the test but so that you will do what is right even though we may seem to have failed. 8 For we cannot do anything against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 We are glad whenever we are weak but you are strong; and our prayer is that you may be fully restored. 10 This is why I write these things when I am absent, that when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of authority—the authority the Lord gave me for building you up, not for tearing you down. As Paul concludes his second letter to the Corinthians, he asks them a very important question. He says to them, "Examine yourselves to see if you a...