The family church experience
The Threat of Legalism. Galatians 4:8-11. Dear Redeemed of the Lord, Paul has explained to the Galatians that the purpose of the law has been accomplished in Christ and they have no need of it anymore. Not satisfied that they have fully grasped his argument, he now says to them that the law is actually as…
The Privilege of Sonship. Galatians 4:4-7. Dear People of God, We wrap up the discussion on the law as a tutor with a return to the centrality of Christ and his work for our salvation. Fullness (v. 4). God’s preparations for the salvation of man in Christ were “foreordained before the foundation of the world”…
The Limitations of Childhood. Galatians 4:1-3. Dear Strangers and Aliens, The discussion on the law as a tutor continues, but we turn now to the limitations such an arrangement places on the minor in question. This first part deals with the limitations while the next will deal with the release. Slave Status (v. 1). An heir…
The Certainty of Sonship Galatians 3:26-29. Dear Sons (and Daughters) of the Most High, The conclusion to the discussion on the place of the law shifts to an affirmation of our position in Christ. This is crucial for the understanding of the new people of God, whose claim to sonship is not Jewish ethnicity, nor adherence…
The Law as a Tutor Galatians 3:22-25. Dear People of the New Covenant, In our second installment of the purpose of the Law, Paul likens the law to a schoolmaster (tutor). In the olden days, tutors were hired by people of means to prepare the child for the responsibilities of adulthood in the household. The…
The Purpose of the Law Galatians 3:19-21. Dear Holy Nation, By now, anyone who has been following Paul’s reasoning must be asking, why did God bother with the law at all? If it cannot save, what was it for, in the first place? Paul both preempts the question and gives us an explanation. Our passage deals…
The Superiority of the Covenant over the Law. Galatians 3:15-18. Dear Family, We look at another facet of the faith versus works discussion. We examine here the implications of a covenant on the status of the covenant makers. The Permanence of the Pact(v. 15). Paul begins with the power of a human covenant. Once agreed…
The Privilege of Redemption Galatians 3:13-15. Dear Saints of the Most High, It is now established that the way of grace through faith is the only way. The way of the law is not just difficult, it is impossible and only brings a curse upon the devotee. But Christ intended better things for us when he…
The Inherent Danger in the Law. Galatians 3:10-12. Dear Household of Faith, Having shown that God’s intention right from the beginning was that people would be justified by faith, as was Abraham, Paul now demonstrates the risk that those who depend on the law expose themselves to. Peril (v. 10). Anyone who chooses law over…
The Heritage of Faith. Galatians 3:7-9. Dear People Belonging to God, Having dispensed with the folly of regressing to the discredited path of works, Paul now illustrates the antiquity of faith. Faith is not something that came into being with the resurrection of Christ or the events of the day of Pentecost. It goes back to…