Galatians 5:9
9 A little [mikros] leaven [zume] leaveneth [zumoo] the whole
[holos] lump [phurama]. KJV-Interlinear
9 A little leaven leavens the
whole lump of dough. NASB
Leaven is a reference to a substance, like yeast,
that when applied to a larger quantity, will affect the entire quantity, like
flour or dough, making the entire quantity rise. Typically it is used to symbolize evil and
the effect that evil has on the whole soul of the individual, or on the whole
of society.
In short, a little evil can go a long way in
causing the decline of the entire soul, as well as the decline of an entire
society.
Here in Galatians, the idea that one can simply be
circumcised and then be saved, is misleading, because one act leads to another
act, leads to another act, and so forth, and pretty soon you are caught up in
the trap of being burdened by the many requirements of the Mosaic Law.
And so, one infraction, leads to another and
another and sooner or later, your whole thought process is captured by evil.
And this is true with all forms of evil, or
non-truth concepts.
It is very easy to compromise ones principles
because the world tries to make all things relative and all things acceptable. The world promotes the idea of non-victim
behavior. Society becomes lax and
accepting of alternate lifestyles or alternative principles. And then the principles and norms and
standards of society sooner or later become accepting of lifestyles that are
prohibited in the Bible, and ideals that are detrimental to society.
Likewise, ones behavior can easily be trapped in
the conveniences of life, making it easy to ignore or explain away why a person
does not have to adhere to Gods mandates.
‘Well, it does not apply to me. It applies to someone else. It doesn’t really mean that. I can get along with God on my own terms. That isn’t really necessary. Someone else can do that. God will just have
to accept me the way I am.’
And all of these distortions of what the Bible
really teaches are in fact rejections of Gods mandates, disguised in
excuses. Gods mandates are seen as
inconvenient, while the behaviors that we have become accustomed to are more
convenient, and then naturally more acceptable to us.
And then of course we can convince ourselves that
we do not have to get involved with anything that God expects of us.
And the pattern continues, and the soul declines a
little bit every day, and society declines a little bit every day, until the
whole evil concept becomes the accepted view.
The lie becomes the truth. And
the truth becomes unreasonable.
And it all starts with the idea that just a little
piece of evil that just seems so innocent and could not possibly be that bad.
But one evil leads to another and all evil eventually
ends up in extreme evil, which always results in suffering and loss for the
individual as well as society.
