Freedom – Week 5
Greeting:
turn in your Bibles with me to Galatians 3:1-14 this morning
Passage:
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain–if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith–just as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’? Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith. ” (Gal. 3:1-9)
Prayer:
in this section – Paul has a firm rebuke to get their attention – so far he has been gentle with the believers – because his focus has been on rebuking the false teachers and what they were teaching – but now he turns toward them
O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?
- Or literally – who has lulled you and stolen your attention? that has caused you to go off the rails? He says – this isn’t what you were taught! –
It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.
- he isn’t saying here that the Galatians physically saw Christ on the cross – and were there for his crucifixion
- he is saying that “you guys clearly had the gospel – you understood it – you were following it – and now you are caught going after a different gospel.
- in this passage – he gives us several steps to get back on the road of the gospel – the first step he talks about –
1. Remember How You Started (vv. 2–5)
And to illustrate this point – he starts by asking the church some very pointed questions – very direct questions –
Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith?
Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?
Did you suffer so many things in vain–if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?
2. Live by Faith, Not by Formula (vv. 6–9)
just as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’? Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.”
- Paul brings up Abraham – to prove that even before Christ – before Moses – before the law – at the very beginning – the way we were made righteous – or cleansed – was not through works – but through faith.
And God tells Abraham, “And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Then we see Abraham’s response it’s what Paul quotes in the text – “And he believed the Lord, and God counted it to him as righteousness.”
- It doesn’t say Abraham obeyed then was made righteous – It doesn’t say he earned it – it doesn’t say he proved himself worthy – it says he believed God would do what he said he would do – and God counted it to him as righteousness
- Abraham’s righteous standing before God – came not from a formula – but from faith
3. Rest in the Work Jesus Has Already Done (vv. 10–14)
For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.’ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for ‘the righteous shall live by faith.’ but the law is not of faith, rather ‘the one who does them shall live by them.’
Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us–for it is written ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’ — so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might received the promised Spirit through faith.
“The only sin Jesus ever had was ours, and the only righteousness we can ever have is his.” – A.W. Tozer