Galatians 3

Introduction*

Before joining a splinter group based at the Mount Carmel Center near Waco, Texas, David Koresh was a 7th Day Adventist.

As an SDA, Koresh would have believed teachings of conventional conservative Christianity … plus …

… some unscriptural beliefs.

That Sabbath Day Worship was a salvation issue

The annihilation of the wicked

Conditional immortality

That the Archangel Michael is Jesus,

and soul sleep

These beliefs of Seventh Day Adventists are divergent from what scripture teaches.

And what happens when we deviate from the clear teaching of scripture … is that a door is opened for further deviation.

With that in mind, consider this … Koresh eventually became the leader of a group known as the Branch Davidians.

They held to SDA beliefs, but added to them beliefs:

That the Holy Spirit is female.

That Lois Roden, an earlier Davidian was the reincarnation of the Holy Spirit.

David Koresh was the only one who could interpret scripture.

David Koresh was the lamb of Revelation 6 who opens the seals.

All females in the religion belonged to Koresh, including those who were married.

Koresh is Jesus Christ.

So, you see what I mean?

One concession on scripture easily leads to greater and grosser distortions.

As a leader of the group, Koresh exerted his power to marry a 13 year old girl, and apparently with her parent’s consent.

In 1993, the ATF went to the complex to deliver a search and arrest warrant.

A gun battle erupted in which 4 ATF and 6 Davidians were killed resulting in a raid of the facility.

The ATF besieged the facility, and a fire erupted killing Koresh and 79 others.

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——

There were those who survived the siege.

That siege was shown on national television over and over again on the nightly news.

So it became a popular culture event.

And for a while after the siege had ended, those survivors were featured on talk shows, being asked questions like:

Why did you ever listen to such a crazy man?

How could you believe such nonsense?

They were cutting questions for people who had given themselves over to deception and false teaching.

——

Paul’s questions toward the Galatians are also quite cutting:

In verse 1, “Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth?”

In verse 2, “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?”

In verse 3, “Are you so foolish?”

Also in verse 3, “Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?”

And in verse 4, “Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?”

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————

After opening up the letter, and sharing his autobiography with the Galatians, including a confrontation he had with Peter … Paul moves into a direct confrontation with the Galatian churches, rebuking them for their foolishness.

The Galatians struggled with a very basic question … a question that they should have known the answer to.

But, because of false teachers that moved in after Paul had departed, they had become confused.

They had moved from security in Christ to being unsure about even the most basic doctrines of the faith.

The basic question with which they struggled was this:

“How are we made right before God?”

And I have the feeling that many of those who identify as Christian today … indeed even church going Christians … would not be able to answer this question in a biblical way.

The Galatians thought, “We are made right before God based on what Jesus did for us, PLUS what we do for Him under the law of Moses.”

It’s an easy error to fall into, because it appeals to the flesh.

The flesh wants to claim some part in salvation … the flesh delights in self-importance.

————

Paul wrote about his own experiences …

(A) First, when he came to Jesus by faith alone, not faith plus being under the law.

(B) And Second, he wrote about this experience of confronting the Apostle Peter, as well as Barnabas when they slipped under the same error.

And in our chapter today, the Apostle Paul deals with the error of the Galatian Christians … and the error that many Christians fall into still today … which is why this is an important chapter of the New Testament.

——

Starting with chapter 3, we see some of the strongest of Paul’s exhortations.

Paul was in a war.

And he was passionate about not backing down, but triumphing over the legalists.

After all, the gospel is about grace, and not about works.

Paul’s arguments in chapter 3, address the purpose of the law.

If man has always been saved by grace through faith, then why did God give the law in the first place?

Was it necessary … what is the point?

The law was given for a couple of reasons.

The first was to magnify sin, so that it could not be ignored.

The second was so that it could be fulfilled by a person.

That person was Jesus.

He is God incarnate.

And He would ultimately fully obey and fulfill the law … and be the perfect sacrifice for sins so that we can be saved.

What we want to do through this study of Galatians 3 is understand how we are made right before God … AND the work of the Holy Spirit in salvation and in Christian living.

But first, let’s pray:

Prayer: Lord, this morning we open up Your word desiring to hear from You ... not man's word or wisdom, but Your Words and Wisdom. Please soften our hearts to receive from You. Teach us about Your love for us so that we may also love one another. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

V1

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Verse 1 can be a bit confusing, so let’s look closer at it.

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When it describes the Galatians as being “foolish” the word is anoētos (ah-noy-TOES) which means unintelligent.

It is a derivative of the word noeo (noh-AH-oh) which means “to exercise the mind” … or to put it another way … “use your noggin.”

So then Paul is saying here, “You Galatians are not using your heads!”

One commentator renders it this way: “O you dear idiots of Galatia.”

Paul is not going for insulting … he’s going for impact.

Why?

Because the stakes are so high.

He wanted the Galatians to hear him out and not ignore his message.

———

Now, remember that these letters which Apostles wrote to the churches were read aloud before the congregations.

Can you imagine … being in one of the Galatian churches and your excited because a letter from the Apostle Paul to your church is going to be read?

And then, after what seems like a strange introduction, and some background information from Paul, … finally you get to the meat of the letter … and you hear, “O, you dear idiots of Galatia!”

I think Paul got their attention with this.

Paul then asks, “Who has bewitched you?”

Paul did not think someone had literally cast a spell upon them.

But their thinking is so clouded … and had been so changed that it was as if someone had cast a spell upon them.

It’s as if a parent says to a child, “What has gotten into you?”

The implication is that they have been fascinated by false representations.

Kind of like when you go into Best Buy to browse and you leave convinced that you cannot live without the latest thing.

The “who” in this verse is singular … Paul knew that the blame for what was going on was ultimately singular.

So then the blame for this is on Satan … he was the creator of this deception that they have bought into.

The legalists played a role … but they were not the creators … they were the purveyors of the deception.

——

In our verse, Paul also states that before their eyes, “Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as crucified.”

The NET BIBLE draws it out a little more clearly saying, “Before your eyes Jesus Christ was vividly portrayed as crucified!”

Do not read below:

Galatians 3:1 NET

You foolish Galatians! Who has cast a spell on you? Before your eyes Jesus Christ was vividly portrayed as crucified!

This is to emphasize how clearly the gospel was presented to them by Paul originally.

It was as if Paul had taken a digital photo of Jesus and placed it right in front of them.

Yet still, a little coercion was all it took to make that picture cloudy to the Galatians.

And in their readiness to receive that which added to grace, … their understanding of the cross of Christ became cloudy.

Instead of intellectual they became illogical.

They wanted to appear intelligent, and open to other ideas … but they were not using that intelligence to perceive the truth.

I find THAT often to be the case when Christians slip into legalism.

Wanting to be perceived as superior in faith, they add to the gospel.

Wanting to be accepted and perceived one way, they forget the gospel of grace.

And again, as I’ve said many times before, God gave the law and it is good.

There are great benefits to the law … health benefits, financial principles, warnings about behavior.

But the primary purpose of the law is to lead us to Christ.

In the conclusion to chapter 3, Paul will say:

Galatians 3:24 NKJV

Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

It’s so that we see ourselves in the light of the law … guilty and condemned ... and then choose grace instead through Jesus Christ.

—————

Convictions are one thing.

I may have convictions about certain foods that are not kosher.

But when conviction turns into a requirement for salvation, you know that legalism has gotten in.

It was so astounding to Paul that these believers were going off on this false doctrine of being justified by obeying the law.

How can those who were once firmly rooted in grace set it aside so easily?

Let’s keep going.

V2

When Paul says, “Spirit” here he uses the Greek word πνεῦμα - Pneuma (NEW-mah).

It can mean anything from the spirits of humans to breath or wind, … to the third person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit.

It is the same word that is used in Acts 1 when Jesus told His disciples that they would receive the Holy Spirit.

It’s also the same word used in 2 Corinthians 5:5 where it says, “He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.”

Do not read below:

2 Corinthians 5:5 NKJV

Now He who has prepared us for this very thing is God, who also has given us the Spirit as a guarantee.

How do we know then when the word means Holy Spirit or simply spirit or wind?

Well, thankfully, we don’t have to figure that out … the translators have done a great job of that for us.

But in case you are wondering, the key is context, and not just in regards to the sentence or the chapter, but the whole Bible.

So then, BECAUSE Jesus spoke of the Holy Spirit and the Apostles wrote of the Holy Spirit … and the Old Testament speaks of the Spirit of the LORD as well … we know what Paul means when he asks the question, “Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?”

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The Holy Spirit is the "deposit,” the guarantee, or the evidence that we are saved.

In Acts 2:38 Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”

Do not read below:

Acts 2:38 NKJV

Then Peter said to them, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

We receive the indwelling of the Holy Spirit as a gift through repentance and faith, not obedience to the Law.

This is vital to our understanding so that we do not try to live in Christ by obeying the Law … but rather by being empowered by the Spirit.

Not understanding this is a key error that plagues many Christians to this day.

V3

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Here’s that same word for foolish, but it’s in question form … Are you so foolish?

Paul is incredulous … are they really that thick headed?

Given that you were brought to Christ by the Holy Spirit and you are now in-dwelt by the Spirit … how can you believe that any work of the flesh is going to complete the job?

If they could not obtain salvation by works, could they expect to grow in holiness by the law?

It’s like flapping your arms on a jet to try to help keep it flying.

But it’s really not funny, because it’s turning your back on the cross.

It is saying that what Jesus accomplished means nothing after we are saved … it wasn’t enough.

So, instead we have to sanctify ourselves by works of the law.

You simply can’t be saved by faith then become mature or holy by works.

That being said, we probably all try to do it - such pride is natural to the sinful human nature.

V4-5

The Christians of the very early church, which was at first mostly Jewish, had suffered a lot of persecution from their fellow Jews.

And here, Paul reminds them that they suffered for receiving the gospel, and he asks if they are going to let that come to nothing.

Why are you now turning back to the same Laws the Jews were mad at you for abandoning when you became believers?

In verse 5, Paul asks if they believe God works miracles because they are keeping the law or because of their faith in Jesus.

The miracles that Paul is referring to here may refer to miracles presently happening among them … or miracles God performed through the Apostles.

You may remember how Acts 19 records that Paul worked many miracles during his ministry in Ephesus … and many heard the gospel from him.

There’s no reason to think that Paul did not work miracles in the presence of the Galatians.

——

Now, moving on in the text … The Jews relied on being Abraham’s children … but Paul turns the tables on them:

V6-9

In verses 1-5, Paul asked 6 questions.

In this next section, Paul quotes 6 OT scriptures to prove that salvation is by faith in Christ and not works of the law.

Starting in this section we move to a rich explanation of justification by faith.

This is the beginning of Paul’s scriptural argument.

To this point in Galatians, Paul had appealed to what had happened in the past and his own personal testimony.

But now Paul is going to bring out his argument based on scripture.

And keep in mind that this is OT scripture and not NT scripture, which for the most part didn’t exist then.

———————

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That Abraham, “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness,” comes from Genesis 15:6.

Paul also quotes it in Romans 4:3.

It happened prior to the giving of the Law.

It was based on taking God at His Word.

The faith was worked out in the near sacrifice of Isaac in Genesis 22:9-18 but it was the faith that justified him, not the obedience.

The obedience came after the faith.

The Mosaic Law was not given until 400 years after Abraham.

So then it cannot be said that he was justified by works of the law.

Neither can it be said that circumcision played any part, as he was justified before God gave the commandment of circumcision.

Abraham had many good works, but the works were a result of salvation and not a means to his salvation.

If Abraham had received salvation by his works, then he would have something to glory about, … but not to glorify God about.

God wants our faith to rest on solid ground.

But if our faith is in our own good, then we are on shaky ground.

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V10-14

Paul quotes from Deuteronomy here.

Deuteronomy 27:26 “Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.”

Do not read below:

Deuteronomy 27:26 NKJV

‘Cursed is the one who does not confirm all the words of this law.’ “And all the people shall say, ‘Amen!’ ”

He is quoting from the LXX, the Greek version of the Hebrew Scriptures translated in the third and second centuries B.C.

The key word in this verse is “continue.”

——

There may be some days where you are on top of the world and make no mistakes and everything is hunky dory.

Then you may say, “Well, I really was a great Christian today. I earned my salvation.”

Now, it is highly unlikely that you made it through any one day without breaking any of the 613 commandments of the law.

But notice that you have to continue in the law.

There is no way that you can continue in the law 24/7.

As soon as you mess up, what you were counting on to save you becomes a curse to you.

I might live my whole life and never break a traffic law … yet receive no reward from the state, because the keeping of the traffic laws is expected.

If I kept all the laws of the State of Alabama for 37 years and then on the last day of the last year I stole something, I would be arrested and sentenced as a thief.

The law does not reward, it only penalizes.

But faith on the other hand … FAITH GIVES YOU LIFE!

——

Even the legalists knew that keeping the whole law all the time was impossible.

For ANYONE and EVERYONE … even themselves.

To try to portray that you were keeping the whole law … well, nobody would buy it.

So the solution was for the legalists to pick a few favorite commandments that once performed, were done.

It also needed to be something related to Abraham.

Circumcision fit the bill.

And so it was taught that keeping this commandment would somehow earn enough merit to make you right with God.

That was the claim of the legalists that were troubling the Galatians … they claimed it is Jesus+ circumcision.

Of course it’s not limited to circumcision.

And it’s very easy for us to pick a pet commandment or observance and start basing salvation on it.

But, living a legalistic life sets us up for failure.

Paul also quotes from Habakkuk 2:4, “The just shall live by faith.”

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Habakkuk 2:4 NKJV

“Behold the proud, His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith.

This is such an important statement that the Holy Spirit inspired 3 NT books to explain it:

Romans - explains “the just” and tells how the sinner can be justified before God.

Galatians - explains how the just “shall live.”

Hebrews - explains the idea of “by faith.”

You cannot depend on the law to save you, AND depend on faith to save you.

That’s just as you can’t travel by plane and train at the same time.

It’s one or the other.

So then Paul quotes from Leviticus 18 to make the point that if you depend on the law, you have to live by the law.

James put it this way:

James 2:10 ESV

For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it.

You cannot be a Sabbath keeper and disregard all the other laws.

And you cannot restrict yourself to Kosher foods and disregard all the other laws.

Well, you can … but not if you are counting on the keeping of the law to commend you to God.

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It’s impossible … nobody is able to keep the law perfectly, and so we have to look for grace.

We must be delivered from the righteous judgment of God through no act of your own but by His unmerited favor

And thus the law points us to Christ.

V13-14

This is a very interesting section of scripture.

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Paul is quoting Deuteronomy 21:23, which is a remarkable verse in it’s own right.

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Deuteronomy 21:23 NKJV

his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.

Remember that the means of public execution used by the Jews was stoning and not hanging or crucifixion.

That being said, whenever a particularly horrible crime was committed, and a person was stoned to death … it was permissible for the body to be hung up on a tree for public display.

But it was not to be left there overnight.

And the reason God gives is, “So that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.”

Jesus was made a curse for us.

When did Christ become a curse?

When He hung on the cross.

The Greek word for Jesus’ cross is the same word for tree, Xulon.

Jesus was hanged on a cross … which is also referred to in scripture as a tree.

To Jesus the cross was a tree of death which He made a tree of life for you and me.

Christ becoming a curse didn’t mean that He had failed.

But that He willingly let Himself become loathsome to the Father … in order that all of our failures to live up to God’s standards would be placed on Him.

Then, because He was sinless, God could give us the way to become righteous through Him.

——

Israel had the law for 1500 years and failed to live by it.

Remember the council of Jerusalem in Acts 15?

There Peter said, “We and our fathers were not able to keep the law.”

Jesus took our place that we might receive what the law could never do.

Paul is here summarizing all that he has been saying in this section.

The law puts sinners under a curse and Christ has redeemed us from that curse.

The blessing of Abraham comes through Christ.

And it’s for everyone … both Jew and Gentile can receive this gift through Christ.

Conclusion

Paul asked some questions at the front end of our study for this morning.

“Who has bewitched you that you should not obey the truth?”

“Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?”

“Are you so foolish?”

“Having begun in the Spirit, are you now being made perfect by the flesh?”

“Have you suffered so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?”

By asking these questions Paul hoped to get the Galatians focused on Jesus again.

The effect of these questions was to cause them to see that their salvation came from (and continues through) grace by faith in Jesus.

From beginning to end salvation is a matter of faith in Jesus and accomplished by God’s grace.

The bottom line is this:

You can’t improve upon the salvation of Jesus Christ!

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Up to this point, I’ve used a mild definition of legalism:

The idea of winning and maintaining God’s favor by strict adherence to a set of rules.

But starting here in Galatians 3 we need a deeper definition.

So our definition of legalism now becomes this:

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“Legalism is the application of an external set of principals, rules, or goals in order to feel better about yourself or your relationship with God rather than letting God transform your life from the inside out.”

(A) Legalism can take a Personal Form …

I have to pray facing in this direction or in this pose or God may not hear me …

… Or I have to worship on the Sabbath or God will not bless me.

(B) Legalism can also take an external form …

… expecting others to perform the same ceremonies, keep the same traditions, …

… or recognize our personal extra-biblical expectations …

… all of which they will do, “If they are truly saved.”

Earlier, I gave Christian legalism the name “Gospel Plus.”

That is because it takes the form of the Gospel “plus” something.

And that “plus” is not works born out of salvation.

Rather, that “plus” IS works done to gain, keep, or maintain salvation.

But the Gospel has no additions … God saves sinners according to His grace by faith in Jesus Christ.

But then we are left with another question:

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WHY WAS THE LAW GIVEN IN THE FIRST PLACE?

Most non Christians … even some Christians don’t realize that our faith is a logical faith … it’s not like a faith in some false god or fable.

It is a logical faith and can be defended on logical grounds.

To those ends, … Paul will now help us to understand the relationship between God’s promise of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ … and the law.

The law plays a very important role in salvation, but what is that role?

Let’s read on and find out.

V15

If you make a contract with someone to pay them $100 for doing a certain work, … you do not go to them when they have completed the work with a smaller amount of pay.

Nor can the other ask for a larger amount.

It’s not courtesy … that’s just understood and documented to be the right way of doing things.

Nor can a third party come along years later and change the agreement.

If a human covenant should be esteemed so highly and not be broken, how much more so God’s covenant with man.

The Bible tells us:

Numbers 23:19 ESV

God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

So God does not lie, nor does He change His mind.

We can count on and expect that His covenant of grace with not be broken.

In other words, it’s not on us, but on God … He made a covenant with Abraham and Abraham had no part in it.

Abraham took God at His Word and the LORD counted that as righteousness.

V16

Paul is aluding to what God said from Genesis 22, speaking of the coming Messiah.

In Genesis 22, after speaking of how God will bless the descendants of Abraham, the Angel of the Lord starts using a singular term, “seed.”

That word “seed” in Genesis 22:18 refers to Jesus.

Do not read below:

Genesis 22:18 NKJV

In your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

God would bless Abraham with so many descendants that they could not be counted.

Those descendants would be Gentile Nations and, of course, the Nation of Israel.

But what kind of blessing would that be if all of those descendants were destined for condemnation because of sin?

But God had promised a Messiah … the SEED that would come from Abraham.

Christ is the One Who brought salvation to the world.

And the emphasis of the covenant is on Christ.

Speaking to a group of fellow Jews, Jesus said:

John 8:56 NKJV

Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.”

The law made a division between Jews and Gentiles.

But Christ, the promised seed of Abraham, is the center of a new unity of Jews and Gentiles.

The people of God are no longer identified by ethnic origins, but by union with Christ.

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Certainly the argument of the Judaizers was that even though the promises were made to Abraham and to his descendants by faith, … Israel was yet placed under the law.

But wait.

Let’s not forget that prior to the giving of the law, God operated with Abraham’s descendants according to grace.

And at Mt Sinai, God gave Israel a choice and they chose law.

But here is how great God’s grace is … even the law that He gave pointed to grace.

How does the law point to grace?

WELL, let’s keep reading and see if Paul will help us understand this.

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V17-18

God never goes back on His promises.

God promised Abraham that He would give him (a) the land, (b) a son, and (c) a people that will be numberless (just as the sand on the seashore.)

God fulfilled those promises.

God brought forth from Abraham the nation of Israel and several other nations.

The promises were given through Isaac whose line led to the Lord Jesus, the “seed” referred to in verse 16.

God also promised that he would make him a blessing to all people.

We have that blessing through Jesus.

——

Paul is doing something very interesting here … equating the promise with a formal document like a will.

We probably all are in some way represented in a will … whether it’s a will of our parents or the will of a spouse.

And we also know that for the will to be executed requires a death.

The author of Hebrews had this to say:

Hebrews 9:16–17 ESV

For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. For a will takes effect only at death, since it is not in force as long as the one who made it is alive.

In Genesis 15 God made a covenant with Abraham with a sacrifice.

Only it was God alone who passed between the pieces of the sacrifice.

Later, God had Abraham foreshadow the death of Jesus Christ on Mt Moriah with Abraham’s son Isaac.

But God interrupted the sacrifice and Isaac was spared.

Then some 2000 years later God’s own Son, Jesus Christ was the sacrifice, only God did not interrupt.

The covenant that God made with Abraham was like a will and had been ratified by a death.

It cannot be revoked.

The 430 years of verse 17 is reckoned from the time that God confirmed the covenant with Jacob, just as he was preparing to enter into Egypt … to the time of the giving of the law after the Exodus.

The covenant of grace through a Messiah came before the giving of the law, and was ratified by the death of Jesus after the law.

The law cannot change the promise.

The covenant of grace was by the promise of God to Abraham without condition.

Just as Salvation is offered without condition.

Paul is not playing down the importance of the law, but trying to help people understand the purpose of the law.

V19-20

In light of what we have just been told by Paul … What purpose does the law serve?

The law was something that was added.

Why was it added?

It was added because of transgressions … and was temporary.

It was given for the interval between the time of Moses until the time of Christ.

John 1:17 ESV

For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.

The law was not given to keep man from sin … it had no power to do that … sin was already in the world.

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The Law makes it abundantly clear to us that we are sinners.

It is not a standard by which man is holy, because man cannot keep the law.

When does man become a sinner?

Is it when he commits a sinful act?

No!

It is because man is already a sinner that he commits a sinful act.

We are NOT sinners because we sin, … we sin because we are sinners and it’s our nature.

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What the law does is codify the character of God.

It reveals the character of God and gives us a measuring rod to judge right from wrong.

But it is also negative in that it punishes wrongdoing.

No one who is condemned is condemned by grace … always by the law.

Those who are in Christ are under the covenant of grace and cannot be condemned by the law.

Those who reject Christ are under the condemnation of sin.

So then, the law remains important in that it shows us that we can’t possibly live up to God’s character.

——

Verse 20 seems a mystery - “Now a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.”

Moses was a mediator between God and Israel in the giving of the law.

But with Abraham God spoke directly.

This shows the inferiority of the Law.

Additionally, when the law was given, the fact that there had to be a mediator required that man keep his end of the bargain.

We are not able to do that.

When God made His promise with Abraham, He was the sole contracting party.

So man did not have an end of the bargain to keep.

It was all on God.

——

In regards to Christians, one of our problems is that after being saved we can fall into a pattern.

We may think that if we keep doing this (or that) then we are somehow maintaining our salvation by pleasing God.

But this thinking perpetuates the static nature of the Law.

Our relationship with God is dynamic, so that we’ve got to rely on THE LORD each moment of each day.

That is … rather than relying on ourselves.

V21-22

Given all this, is there a conflict between the law and God’s promises?

Of course not.

If people could have been saved by the law, then certainly that would have been the mechanism by which God would save men.

We could not keep the law and there was plenty of time and people to prove that.

In Romans 8:3, Paul said that the law was, “Weak through he flesh.”

Romans 8:3 NKJV

For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh,

And as expressed through Ezekiel 18, all the law can do is show men how sinful they are.

Do not read below:

Ezekiel 18:20 NKJV

The soul who sins shall die. The son shall not bear the guilt of the father, nor the father bear the guilt of the son. The righteousness of the righteous shall be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself.

The Law shows men how sinful they are.

And so, because the law could not be kept, it brought death for everyone.

Romans 3:10 says, “There is none righteous, not even one.”

Do not read below:

Romans 3:10 NKJV

As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one;

AND

Romans 3:23 says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”

Do not read below:

Romans 3:23 NKJV

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,

Now, understand that the law does not contradict the promise, but it compliments the promise.

How does the law compliment the promise?

It makes man’s sinfulness incredibly sinful and makes God’s grace immeasurably gracious.

——

So, to pull together what we’ve looked at so far, why was the law given?

Well, verse 21 makes it clear that the law was not given to provide life.

But verse 19 and verse 22 tells us that the law was given to reveal sin.

And verses 23-26 will reveal that it was given to prepare the way for Christ.

People confused the Law with the way to become righteous instead of a directional sign that points to Jesus.

Don’t confuse the promise of God that a Savior would come, with the Law bringing salvation.

The Law makes us realize what we already are … a prisoner of sin.

Because by our nature we are disobedient and unable to live up to God’s character … behavior will not be the thing that rescues us … rather belief.

V23-25

Faith in verse 23 is referring to the Christian faith, ushered in by the death, burial and resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ.

Before that, the Jews were as if in prison or in custody by the law.

Now, let’s not forget that there was mercy in the law because it had a mercy seat.

It had an altar where sacrifices for sin could be brought and forgiveness obtained.

AND … All of the sacrifices for sin pointed to Christ.

In the same way, before we came to faith the law carried us to the Messiah.

That is because we saw how inadequate we really are when we measure ourselves against the law.

God will not accept the works of man for salvation.

God says that all our righteousnesses are, “As filthy rags.”

Do not read below:

Isaiah 64:6 NKJV

But we are all like an unclean thing, And all our righteousnesses are like filthy rags; We all fade as a leaf, And our iniquities, like the wind, Have taken us away.

Your bathroom has a mirror and a sink.

When you get dirt on your face, you go to the bathroom to remove it.

You don’t rub your face on the mirror to get the dirt off, yet how many in church do this by trying to keep the law?

The mirror will not remove the dirt.

It’s at the sink that we remove the dirt.

——

The word for schoolmaster or tutor here is paida-gogos which is a servant whose duty it was to take children to school.

In the Roman household, there were slaves into whose custody children were placed.

So it was the slave who actually played the large part in raising children.

The slave would dress them, feed them, bathe them, and discipline them when necessary.

But the tutor was not capable of teaching the child beyond a certain point.

So he was responsible for taking the child to school until adulthood.

What Paul is saying is that the law is our paida-gogos.

It said, “Little boy or girt, I cannot do anymore for you. I want to take you by the hand and lead you to Christ.”

The slave was not the child’s father, but the guardian and disciplinarian, so the law did not give life.

It regulated life.

——

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Essentially, as Christians, we have graduated from the law into faith.

The law no longer measures us.

The Law oversaw our behavior until we could have a full relationship with the Father through faith in Jesus.

The Law proves to us that anything other than faith won’t work … won’t get us anything other than condemnation.

V26-28

The word for sons is huios which is translated in the KJV as “children” but is better translated as “sons.”

The only sons that God has are legitimate sons.

You are made a true son of God through faith in Jesus Christ and that is all it takes.

An individual Israelite under the law in the OT was never a son, only a servant to the law.

In Exodus 4:22 God called the nation “Israel My son,” but this is the nation and not the individual within the nation.

Do not read below:

Exodus 4:22 NKJV

Then you shall say to Pharaoh, ‘Thus says the Lord: “Israel is My son, My firstborn.

Sonship requires His righteousness, which cannot be imparted by the keeping of the law.

Because even then, your righteousness would be inferior to God’s righteousness.

No longer a child - we are "sons" - adopted into His family.

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——

Sometimes we see verse 27 used as a proof-text that baptism is a requirement for salvation.

But that is a misreading of the text.

If we read it in context according to how Paul intended, the text says that baptism IS NOT a requirement for salvation.

Water baptism can’t save you just as circumcision can’t save you either … both are an external sign of an internal reality.

(To suggest that Paul is in any way saying that baptism IS a requirement for salvation nullifies his whole argument prior to this.)

Baptism is a proclamation of your faith in Jesus as Paul says, “Putting on Christ”

In baptism, the Galatians confessed that they had died with Christ and had been buried with Him.

Just as Christ died to the law, so they were dead to the law, and should not desire to be under it as a rule of life.

And so also, they have died to national distinctions.

Paul says, “There is neither Jew nor Greek.”

They now live a new life as a believer in Christ.

No differences in race, socio-economic standing, or gender.

The law made a distinction between these things.

But in Jesus, these differences disappear.

V29

The Judaizers were seeking to mislead the Galatians into believing that they become part of Abraham’s seed by keeping the law.

But Paul has demonstrated otherwise.

Christ is the Seed of Abraham and the promise was fulfilled in Christ.

When Sinners believe on Him, they become one with Him and thus they became Abraham’s seed.

And, in Christ, they inherit all of God’s blessings.

This does not mean that we are heirs to the material and national blessings promised to Israel, … but that Christians today are enriched spiritually because of God’s promise to Abraham.

This knowledge is wonderful and grand.

And all of the knowledge we have gained through this chapter is as well.

----

Righteousness comes from our relationship with Christ through faith.

So concentrate on that relationship rather than on behavior.

It is in your relationship with God that comes behavior … worship, praying, singing, witnessing, studying - talking to God, fellowship with other believers … enjoy your relationship with God and let Him worry about changing you.

The Law was an external supervisor.

It speaks to the unbeliever, proclaiming their need for Christ.

But now, having received Christ you are in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit of God … you have an internal partner who makes you into the image of Christ.

However, sanctification is a process you get to participate in … and it is appropriate that we consider our actions and behavior in light of who we are in Christ.

In that interest, here are some ways of testing your actions.

1. Will I glorify God?

Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth, “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”

Do not read below:

1 Corinthians 10:31 NKJV

Therefore, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.

2. Will my behavior be profitable for other Christians?

Will I be a good example?

Will I be free from the appearance of evil?

Am I imitating Christ by doing this or that or saying this or that?

Will it encourage others to godliness or will it lead them down a road of compromise and sin?

Do not read below:

1 Corinthians 10:23 ESV

“All things are lawful,” but not all things are helpful. “All things are lawful,” but not all things build up.

3. Will my behavior provide a credible gospel witness?

Colossians 4:5 NKJV

Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time.

So, ask yourself … Am I walking in wisdom toward others so that they are directed toward Christ?

And finally …

4. Will it slow me down spiritually?

Hebrews 12:1 ESV

Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

Is it going to weigh me down and keep me from moving forward in Christ?

Some important things for us to consider in light of the fact that salvation is by grace through faith and not by works.

Let’s pray:

Prayer: Father, thank You for all the marvelous things You have done in our lives. Thank You for our mothers. Thank You for Your love that You have revealed to us, and for the love that we share together as your body. We pray for all the words you have sown into people's hearts today. Watch over them, protect them. May they take root and produce wonderful things. We ask that You help us to endure hardship, that we would glorify You in our troubles. As we leave here this morning and move forward into the week, we ask that You reveal Your grace and truth to us each day.