Gal 3:1 You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?
NIV
Ouch! One
of the last things I think most of us would like to be called is foolish. Isn’t
Paul being kind of harsh here? And what does he mean, “bewitched?” What is
going on here?
First
answer is no, Paul is not being harsh, he is being blunt and honest because so
much is at stake, not for just the Galatians, but for all of us as well. Why?
Because the teaching that was bewitching (Strong’s says to “fascinate by false
implication”) these people was a heresy that has eternal ramifications and the
Galatians were falling for it. So much so, that it seemed as though they were
under a spell.
What was
this doctrine that so “fascinated” them? A group of men (Judaizers), had been
teaching that “grace alone, through faith alone,” which Paul taught, was not
enough for salvation. They taught that you must also keep the “Law,” in order
to be saved. Paul is incredulous that those who had placed their faith in Jesus
for salvation, would now be tricked into thinking that they still could earn
that salvation by following the law.
He states
in Gal 3:10-11, “All who rely on
observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is
everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the
Law." Clearly no one is justified before
God by the law, because, “The righteous will live by faith."And
then in verse 13 “Christ redeemed us
from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us,”
This
doctrine is so important that Paul will spend the next three chapters (3-5)
explaining it. To help understand the consequences of buying into this false
doctrine, Paul asks them three questions. I would suggest that we ask ourselves
these same questions.
One: Gal
3:2 “Did you receive the Spirit by
observing the law, or by believing what you heard?”
Two: Gal 3: “after beginning with the Spirit, are you
now trying to attain your goal by human effort?”
Three: Gal
3:5 “Does God give you his Spirit and
work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe
what you heard?”
The answers
to these questions become obvious. We receive the Spirit by faith in Christ. Once
we have begun in the Spirit, the flesh cannot now sanctify us. The power of the
Holy Spirit works in our lives through faith in Christ, not because of our
ability to follow the law.
Why is this
important to us? Well, have you ever thought, that even though you believe that
Christ died to give you salvation, you still must earn your way to heaven by
good works? Have you tried to earn God’s grace by keeping the law? Have you
even heard teaching that might lead you to think this way? There are even those
today, who after receiving Christ as Savior and Lord, have been led by false
teachers into believing that they must then follow the laws of Moses to be
truly right with God.
It is a
trap that we are all susceptible to. Our flesh desires to exalt itself rather
than God and we have an enemy just waiting to exploit that. Now, as Paul
clarifies, this does not mean that the law is not good or holy, just the
opposite. He explains it this way, Gal 3:23-25 “Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up
until faith should be revealed. So the
law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by
faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the
law.”
I encourage
you to not be fooled by anyone who wants to lead you back into bondage. Don’t
be a prisoner to the law, but live in the freedom of the Spirit. When you walk
in the power of the Spirit, freely given to you by the grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, you will automatically be fulfilling the law. Gal 5:6 “For
in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only
thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.”
God bless
you
Coach
No comments:
Post a Comment