Results tagged “Galatians”

Galatians 6:1-2 - Verse 2 says, "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfill the law of Christ." I've long thought of this, and heard it taught I believe, that this means that we should work with each other through hard times, helping others work through hard 'stuff'. Job loss, family loss, depression, etc. But Paul states this in the context of someone being caught in sin. They aren't working through it, they are caught doing it. What burdens does someone in that circumstance bear? Guilt. Shame. Fear. So this then is what we bear with them. We stand with them, not ashamed of them, bearing their shame and guilt so that they need not bear it alone. This enables them to stand, to move on, to heal. They know they are accepted, in fact, in this way we demonstrate the truth of Christ's acceptance of them, reminding them of whom they belong.

Thinking of it in this way reminds me of Jesus with the woman caught in adultery. The pharisees and teachers were ready to toss her aside, but Jesus stood with her. Instead of joining them in their accusation, he crossed over to be with her and she was not alone facing her accusers.

When we bear our brothers burdens of sin, we do the same. We stand with him in the face of Satan the accuser, and he is reminded that he is not alone. Of course, Jesus is always there, but when we are caught Jesus can be hard to see. If we stand with him, he is enabled to see Jesus in us.

Galatians 6:3-5 - Verse 5 says, "For each will have to bear his own load." Given what I just wrote (which I stand by), I honestly don't know how to put verses 3-5 in context with 1-2. Is Paul being sarcastic? Doesn't seem to be. Any thoughts?

Galatians 6:7-10 - Paul talks throughout Galatians, and the New Testament, about works vs. faith, slavery vs. freedom. But here he points out that our actions, our 'works', are not for nothing. We do reap what we sow. Not that we work to be saved (notice in verse 8 he says eternal life comes from the spirit), but that what we do will produce something - corruption or life.

Galatians 6:13 - There's a clue here to verses 3-5. Those compelling the Galatians to be circumcised want to do so so that they can boast in the Galatians actions. See in verse 4 Pauls says "But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor." It's about standing on the works of flesh or the works of the spirit.

Galatians 5:1 - "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." There's so much power in this statement. Do not submit to a yoke of slavery. Slavery of performance, Slavery of perfection. Slavery of doing the right thing. Slavery of making the right choice. Slavery of finding the right way. Slavery of working to become worthy.

God has chosen us, bought us for a price. He's already said we are worthy, set a price on us that's higher than we would have paid. So why do we think we have to prove ourselves?

Galatians 5:7 - All this talk against the law, against circumcision and here he asks "Who hindered you from obeying the truth?" What is this talk about obedience if the law is nothing? We are still called to obey, the question is why do we obey and what? Do we obey from a call to duty, out of a desire to please Him who has already shown His pleasure with us? Or, do we obey because of the love he has already lavished on us? Do we obey the failed rules and laws of old that did nothing to truly sanctify those who followed them or do we obey the call to simple faith in a God who became man to rescue us?

Galatians 5:16-24 - For so long I lived and preached this section (verses 19-21 particularly) as law, rules to live by. Her was the list of don'ts (oh yeah, and some dos in verses 22-23) to avoid. This is how you live as a disciple of Jesus, here's how it works.

But I missed the 4 1/2 chapters proceeding it. For 4 1/2 chapters Paul railed on living by the law, by the dos and don'ts, going as far here in Galatians 5:4 to say that those who follow that path are "severed from Christ, ... fallen away from grace.".

Paul here is contrasting living by the spirit, which leads to the acts of the spirit, with living by the flesh which produces these (and other)acts of sin. He's calling them, not to do their best to eliminate these sins and incorporate these acts of righteousness, but to live by the spirit.

We like the rules, they're easy. Do this, don't do that. Instead, Paul says look to Jesus and don't worry about what to do. If you truly seek to follow him, the spirit will take care of your transformation. You will naturally move toward the acts of the spirit and leave the acts of the sinful nature. but we don't trust the spirit, it seems to ethereal or mystical. We want a plan of attack, something we can do to better ourselves. But faith says that we can never better ourselves enough and puts our betterment in His hands.

Galatians 4:1-7 - I've read this over maybe 4 times just now. It feels like there's some profound truth in there that's eluding me, but maybe it's simply this:

Jesus changes everything. Everything.

We were once enslaved children, now free men. Once slaves, now sons and heirs. Once under law, now adopted as sons.

I think I tend to operate as if nothing has changed when in reality everything has changed under Jesus.

Galatians 4:9 - As if on cue, Paul gives me a spiritual dope slap. "... how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world ... ?" Indeed, but I am so forgetful.

Galatians 4:21-31 - Paul contrasts the sons of Abraham's two wives, one a slave and one free. He pleads with them to remember that they are children. like Isaac, of the promise, children of freedom.

Yet Christians today pile rule upon rule, attempting to live right by becoming slaves to them instead of embracing the undeserved freedom from Christ and letting it compel them to live by righteousness.

Galatians 2:1-2 - Paul in chapter 1 insists that the Gospel he preaches came not from men but from Jesus, yet here he says that he went to Jerusalem to present his Gospel to the leaders there, "in order to make sure I was not running or had not run in vain". Even though he was confident in what Jesus had given Him, knowing that Jesus had spoken also to them (and first), he wanted to be sure that they were in agreement.

Galatians 2:4-9 - He who once a zealot for the law, to the point of punishing law breakers with death, now just as zealously defends the Gospel of freedom and refuses to allow those who would claim we must still submit to the law any ground.

Galatians 2:11-14 - The church needs men of boldness like Paul, who for the sake of the purity of the Gospel will stand up, publicly, to leaders whose "conduct [is] not in step with the truth of the gospel". Paul paid a price for his convictions as do those today who dare to call false gospel false. Of course, Paul's standing for the Gospel ultimately cost him his life at the hands of those outside the church, but I imagine that day he ruffled a few feathers among the brothers that day.

Galatians 2:20 - "I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me." I struggled with this before becoming a Christian and I've since heard others express the same struggle. The commitment to Christ is complete and total surrender. From the outside, it seems as if you will loose your very identity, becoming some religious clone of every other Christian, robotically living the same life as any other disciple. As this verse says, we are no longer ourselves, but Jesus in the flesh. It's scary and it sounds boring.

But while there is truth to those ideas, that I die and succumb to Christ, that does not produce like Jesus like duplicates in the way that a photocopier does. The beauty of God's creation in humanity is that His will and Jesus can be expressed in a huge number of ways. We are still individual expressions of the will of the Father, when we surrender to Him and live out Jesus instead of us, the real us He created is revealed. on two disciples are alike, just like no two sinners are and none of us are a complete expression of who He is. Only when we come together as the church to we begin to fully experience and express Him.

Far from being boring, when we let go and surrender to Jesus, only then we are able to live up to our potential, becoming, finally, all that He created us to be.

Once again, it's been over a month since my last QT entry (and, yes, since my last time sitting down with the Bible. Sigh. I'm diving into Galatians and then back to the OT, perhaps for the minor prophets, I'm not sure yet. I'm open to your OT suggestions.

Galatians 1:1 - Paul pauses, briefly, to point out (or remind them) that he is an apostle, not because men decided he should be, but because Jesus himself had come to him and mad him one.

Galatians 1:3 - Paul reminds us of several things in this short greeting. 1) This age is evil. (So don't be surprised when men do evil things.) 2) Christ gave himself for our sins to deliver us from said evil. (Amen!) and 3) That was God's idea and desire. (Amen again!)

Galatians 1:6-9 - I think this passage ought to give us more pause than it seems to. Paul says if anyone preaches a different gospel than what was originally given, they should be cursed. To that many would say "Amen!", yet we see many gospels in what is broadly seen as Christianity today. We see a gospel of prosperity, that God want's you to have stuff, we see a gospel of works where we must perform to get into or stay in God's favor, we see the self help gospel and more. if we agree that there is but one true gospel and that those who preach another ought to be cursed, then we should be sobered and consider hard the gospel that we preach. Is it the gospel or another? Or is it the Gospel plus our own pet convictions and doctrines?

So, should we be timid in proclaiming it, lest we get it wrong? No, the fact that it is so precious and so frequently mis-preached means that, while being careful to preach only what is from Christ, we ought to, in fact we must, proclaim it constantly in order to keep it fresh in our minds and the minds of those around us that any gospel that is false me be immediately seen as such.

Galatians 1:11-24 - Paul says that he did not stop to consult any man, even the leaders in Jerusalem, before he started preaching the Gospel. So, it wasn't Man's, it was straight from Christ, through Paul, to the people. There was no need to consult with the leaders, to craft a position or draw up a statement. The Gospel needed no polish or spin then, nor does it today.

Galatians 4:1-7 - The ESV continues the 'guardian' theme here, relating it to an heir as a child. Until the time set by the father, the heir is practically no different than a slave. Until then, he is under guardians and managers. His coming of age frees him from thier control and protection. Paul says that we were once slaves to 'elementary principals' (the law, I assume) until Christ came and we became sons and co-heirs with Christ. As cool as this concept sounds, I get the feeling that I'm somehow still missing the majesty and impact of it. It seems that it ought to feel more profound than it does, if that makes sense.

I'm a son of God, with all the rights that implies as a mature heir, not simply a servant or a child. What do you think that should mean in our lives? If I really understood this, I guess what I'm asking is, how would I live?

Galatians 4:9 - Not that we have found God, but He has found us.

Galatians 4:8-11 - Paul criticizes them here for returning to their old ways, specifically observing special days. Thinking about the general state of the church in the US, where Easter and Christmas are so important, it makes me wonder what Paul would say to us? Do we really get what Christ came for? Did he come that we should have nice buildings, egg hunts and Christmas plays? That we would light candles in wreaths and stop drinking for lent? Don't get me wrong, I appreciate these things too, but if this is what our religion is, and for too many that is what it is, then we have completely missed the point.

Galatians 4:12-20 - You can feel Paul's anguish about the Galatians, that they have returned to the old ways when he has seen, and taught them, of the freedom to worship God as an heir. Looking around, when I see folks falling back into traditional patterns, missing the grace of Jesus and not living in it's freedoms, am I in anguish? It seems that we can get worked up about major sin, but we tolerate folks missing out on the full freedom and joy in Jesus far too easily. I wonder if that's because we are too far removed from it ourselves? That's convicting right there, wow.

Galatians 4:21-27 - The implications of this passage hit me harder than it has in the past. Abraham had two son, one born through the rules (man and woman come together, sperm meets egg, baby is born), but for the other the rules, if you will, didn't work. No matter how many times step one was performed, steps two and three didn't follow. But God stepped in and, through a promise, fixed the process. It was only through the promise that Issac was born.

It's the same for us. The theory holds that through following the law, we can see God. Follow the rules, be with God. But the rule don't work. No matter how many times we try, the process fails as we cannot keep the law. But God steps in, and through the promise of Jesus, He fixes the process and in the promise we are reborn.

I ought to be ashamed at how often I fail to be amazed at what God has done for us - for me - in Jesus.

Galatians 3:3 - "Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?" 'm frequently so foolish. Thanks Spirit, for getting me started, I'll take it from here. Then I work my buns off to be good enough to be approved. I forget that Jesus said that it was finished. The work on the cross was enough, I don't need to wrap it up myself.

Galatians 3:10 - Paul starts out in verse 1 by calling the Galatians fools for trying to work for justification. Here in verse 10 he tells them why - justification by the law is an all or nothing proposition. You either keep all of it, or none of your obedience is of any value. One violation, and they were (as we are) already well past one.

Galatians 3:19-26 - The ESV has some real interesting phrasing in these verses. Reading a new translation (I was an NIV guy for many years) helps bring new life to the text. Here's what I mean:

• Verse 19 - The law was added because of sins. Sin existed already, the law was added to illuminate it.


• Verse 22 - "the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin" That's a concept that's hard to wrap my head around. Even as Christians, we like to think that the law helps us see how to life, but Paul says it imprisoned everything. Verse 23 says we were captive by it.


• Verse 24 - "the law was our guardian until Christ came" Wait, held captive, but it was our guardian? If you think in terms of children, a guardian is there to watch over, to protect and to instruct, but not permanently. There's a time, later, when the child no longer needs the guardian. And so it is with the law, verses 23-24 say that now that Jesus came and faith is here, we no longer need the law as our guardian.

Galatians 3:25-27 - Paul here links faith with baptism and with inclusion in Christ. He says faith has come, no guardian is needed for you are sons of God through faith in Jesus. Why? Because, those who have been baptized have put on Christ. The implication is that baptism and faith and membership in the church are inherently linked.

Galatians 2:2 - Paul went up to Jerusalem to meet privately with the leaders to present what he had been teaching. To show them the way? No, "to make sure [he] was not running or had not run in vain" I like that he went privately, to not stir up controversy but to find unity, and that he went not to teach but to learn.

Galatians 2:8-9 - The ESV speaks of 'Peter' in verse 8 and 'Cephas' in verse 9 (also in verse 11, and in chapter 1). NIV uses 'Peter' in both places.

Galatians 2:14 - He went originally in private and reached an agreement, but when he saw Peter acting publicly contrary to that agreement, he challenged him publicly.

Paul sets himself up here as one who has championed the Gospel of freedom over the slavery of the law. Galatians 1:1-2:14 seems to be establishing who he is and what he has stood for as back ground to what he's about to lay out.

Galatians 2:15-16 - Paul contrasts Jew with 'Gentile sinners' in verse 15, which might be offensive if he didn't essentially lump them both in the same group in verse 16 saying that "by works of the law no one will be justified".

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Galatians 2:20

I think if we really understood this concept, that we are already dead, we've already passed from death to life, we'd live differently. (Check out my study of Romans 6 from 2 years ago where I elaborated on this powerful idea more.)

My study of Ecclesiastes was very productive. I decided that i needed to return to the New Testament, but since I had spent a lot of time in the gospels before Ecclesiastes, I decided to return to one of the epistles. Galatians kept popping in my head, so here I am.

Galatians 1:6 - After a short greeting, Paul dives right in, challenging them on "deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ". No sensitive consideration of their viewpoint or feelings.

Galatians 1:9 - Paul does not mince words - if anyone is preaching a different gospel, let him be cursed. We tolerate a lot of different gospels, don't we? By 'tolerate' I don't necessarily mean accept, but we treat them as if they are valid gospels. We accept them as alternate teachings too easily, I think. We don't have to berate and rebuke at every turn, but there is a way to stand firm when we see a 'gospel' that is not the gospel. I don't get the impression that Paul was much concerned about who might be offended here by calling their teachings false.

Galatians 1:15-19 - Paul seems to go out of his way to drive home the point that the gospel he preaches is not his own nor that of the other apostles. He received it directly from God (see verse 1 as well). He wasn't claiming to have a different teaching than the others, only to say that it was from God. If you refuse it, you are refusing not Paul or 'the church' but God. He seems to be nailing this down to make it clear that what he was about to write was not debatable or a matter of opinion.

In our age of so many churches and denominations, on one hand there is a lot of legitimate value in the vast variety of understandings. Still, there is a need to stand for the one and only gospel of Christ. The challenge is how to do both. When we claim to have all understanding, as my family of churches, and the larger CoC tribe before them once did (and sometime still do), we block out any knowledge but our own. We not only prevent our own growth, we alienate others who need to be taught by what we do understand.

However, the other extreme is to never confront anyone when they are clearly far away from the gospel. I think I tend to fall into this trap, it's the easy way, and it sounds and feels righteous. No confrontation, being nice and 'respectful'. But respect does not demand silence, but to speak firmly demands respect and discernment.