Made Alive in Christ
1As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, 2in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world and of the ruler of the kingdom of the air, the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient. 3All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath. 4But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, 5made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved. 6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
Dig Deeper
It was supposed to be about a three hour drive as my best friend, who was my college roommate, and I headed out for Joliet, Illinois. We were leaving at about 9:00 PM, we were going to pick up a friend in Joliet, and then head right back for another three hours to our hometown. I was a little tired as we left, so my friend was going to drive on the way there. Just before falling asleep, I gave him the directions, which included "stay straight on 39." After less than an hour, I sort of woke up, looked around, and asked how things were going. He told me things were good, so I went back to sleep. About an hour later, I woke up again and saw a sign that said we were 10 miles from Iowa. This was a problem because Iowa was the opposite direction from where we were supposed to be going. It didn't take long to realize that my friend had listened to the "stay straight" part, but not the "39" part. We had been heading down the wrong road for an hour and a half, and my friend had continued driving happily without ever realizing it.
This is something of the point Paul makes as he begins chapter 2. The human race has been, for a very long time, heading down the wrong road. That's not the worst part of the problem. Heading the wrong way is somewhat of a problem, but it is made far worse when you think you're heading in the right direction. How could it be the wrong road, when it is the one that almost everyone else is? It's hard to convince someone that is driving down a well-traveled freeway that the right way to go is to take a turn onto the small dirt road on the side.
One of the more popular arguments in our culture today is that people who act according to their inner motivations and desires are doing a good thing; they're just being themselves. We often call it someone's orientation. We have just come to accept that people should simply act according to these deep seated desires, and it is assumed that these desires must be God-given and are therefore to be followed and celebrated. This is quite the opposite of what Paul says here. Those desires aren't orientations to be celebrated they are temptations to be rejected.
These deep desires and so-called orientations aren't good things that lead us down the road of fulfillment and joy, they are signs that people are so dead in the realm of sin that they can't even tell they are going down the road that leads to destruction. The great lie of our society is that when we follow these inner desires we are being true to ourselves and the way that God made us. In fact Paul says that people stuck in this state are dead in their sins and under the power of the ruler of the kingdom of the air. Paul here refers to the Satan, which means the accuser, the one who has wrested dominion away from man, and who is called elsewhere the god of this age (2 Cor. 4:4). It is Satan that is at work in those who are disobedient. That is the truly sad reality. When humans satisfy the cravings of the sinful nature and follow its desires and thoughts , rather than living in a manner that is true to ourselves, we are allowing Satan to work in us through our disobedience to God's will.
That is the real crux of the matter. We have a choice between following the desires of our own flesh and will, which is a state of disobedience to God, or we can crucify the flesh and die to self, making a commitment to living in accord with God's will. That is what being in Christ is all about. The other option is to remain in the realm of sin as objects who can do nothing else but incur God's wrath. That is what Paul means when he says that we were by nature objects of wrath. When we live our lives and follow our own will, it is a life that is by its very nature, disobedient to God's will, it causes us to remain dead in our sin, and leaves us no other future other than feeling God's wrath that He has reserved for those who have misused the gift of life by not living up to our purpose, which is to do God's will and live in harmony with Him.
Going down this road of sin and death is like going down one of those long stretches of freeway where you can't turn around and there is no exit for miles. You're stuck with no escape from the realm of sin because we are dead with no hope of fixing ourselves. Paul now makes it clear why he has heaped such well-deserved praise on God in chapter 1. God has stepped in and offered us the life of Christ while we were dead in sin and powerless to ever do anything about it. This is nothing but the grace of God. The salvation given to those in Christ is solely due to the love of God (John 3:16), not anything that man has done to deserve any of this. Thus, we see that God's reason for purposing His elect in Christ is the same as the reason He gave Israel for choosing them as His elect people, "The LORD did not set his affection on you and choose you because you were more numerous than other peoples, for you were the fewest of all peoples. But it was because the LORD loved you" (Deut. 7:7-8).
It is through entering into the life of Christ that we will walk into death and out the other side to a new resurrection life, just like Christ himself experienced. Again we see Paul's theology that what is true of the Messiah is true of His people. He has been raised and so has his people. He has been seated in the heavenly realms and so has his people. There are other passages that talk about the Messiah's people being exalted with him (Rom. 8:37; 1 Cor. 15:48; 2 Cor. 2:14; Gal. 4:26; Phil. 3:20; Col. 3:1-4), but none as clearly and powerfully as this passage here. By saying that the Messiah's people are seated in the heavenly realms, he doesn't mean that we are literally seated in heaven. The heavenly realms refers to God's presence and reality of His age to come available now to those in Christ, so Paul is saying that, in Christ, we are with him in the presence of God.
All of this has been enacted by God so that when we are finally united with Him in the age to come we will be able to understand and enjoy the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus. Once again, Paul lavishes well deserved praise on the Almighty God who has made available his mercy, love, grace, and kindness in the life of Christ.
Devotional Thought
If it were not for the resurrection of Christ, there would be no off-ramp on the road that leads to destruction and the wrath of God. Have you taken advantage of God's mercy by using that off-ramp? If you have, have you really taken full advantage of it by completely heading the other way and living the full life of Christ that is available to those in him?
Friday, February 29, 2008
Ephesians 1:15-23
Thanksgiving and Prayer
15For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Dig Deeper
Over a decade after the colonies of America had declared their independence, it became clear that the government they had chosen and implemented, the Articles of Confederation, was clearly not working. So, the leading and most powerful men in the new country convened a convention to fix the Articles. It quickly became clear that what they needed was a whole new form of government, so they began to craft a Constitution. One of the first things they decided was that all proceedings would be secret, in part because what they were doing was not exactly authorized. All of the men there worked together and compromised on many things, which was no small feat with such a collection of powerful men. Throughout the proceedings, George Washington had stayed virtually silent, but all the men knew who he was. One day, Washington went into a local restaurant and found a copy of someone's notes from the convention. The next day, Washington quietly and sternly asked whose notes they were. He demanded that the guilty party come up to his desk and claim their notes. Many delegates describe being convulsed with worry until they found their own notes either in their bags or later at their hotel rooms. Washington slammed the notes down on the table and they stayed their for the remainder of what we now know as the Constitutional Convention. In the midst of a great many who had claimed one form of power or another, it was George Washington who had demonstrated what true human power looks like. He had the kind of power that dwarfed any other claims to power. That is much of the reason why those same man eventually chose him to be the first Constitutional President of the United States.
The Roman world was familiar with the idea of power, and it was full of claims of that power. It makes sense, then, that power is such a central idea in the book of Ephesians. It was a topic with which Paul's readers were quite familiar. Yet, what Paul really wants to demonstrate is that all those other claims to power are mere pretenders that pale in comparison to the true, raw power that God had demonstrated in the life of the Messiah and through the work of the Holy Spirit.
Paul gives praise to God and was constantly giving thanks for the churches to whom this letter is addressed. He has been doing so since he heard of their faith in the life of Christ, implying that this was indeed a circular letter rather than a letter written to a church with which he was intimately involved. Paul was greatly encouraged by their faith in the Lord Jesus which, when genuine, always leads to love for all the saints. In our day, saints has often come to imply some sort of higher class of disciple, a distinction unknown to the earlier Christians. "Saints," for the early church was simply a general term for all Christians.
Paul's great desire, and the subject of much prayer on his part, is that these young Christians are given wisdom and revelation so that they may know God better. In essence, Paul is praying that the people will receive a Spirit-led revelation so that they might know what they have in their new life in Christ. Paul hopes that they can understand with the deepest part of themselves and their will, what he calls the eyes of their heart. The hope of the calling and the glorious inheritance to which Paul refers is a clear reference to the life of the age to come both in the present age and when it is fully consummated in God's restored creation. "Call" is Paul's normal word that he uses to refer to the moment of conversion. Paul, then, says they were called or saved to a glorious inheritance. The great hope of the early Christian faith, a point that is often lost in contemporary Christianity, was the resurrection of the Saints, and the life of resurrection made available now in the Messiah. The inheritance of the saints is the possession of God's new world, also available in the Messiah. Thus, Paul's prayer is that they may realize the incredible hope that we have for the future but also the glorious life of the age to come available now in the Messiah. Paul clearly doesn't imagine that all Christians will realize or even take advantage of the riches that they have in Christ, but his hope is that as many will as possible.
The concept of power was a popular one, not only in the Roman imperial world but also in the many pagan religions in the Empire. There were numerous cults and religions that focused on the power of magic to influence situations and people to make things happen, usually for the personal benefit of the individual invoking this power. The world of the Romans was ruled by the rule, authority, power, and dominion of the Roman government and local magistrates all the way to the spirits, gods, and goddesses and everything in between. Into that world and mindset, though, has broken an example of true power. The Roman world admired, envied, and paraded around examples that they considered power but none of that was real power in Paul's mind. It was the one true God who has demonstrated an incomparably great power. He did this not only through the transforming power of the life of Christ given to those who would believe, but that same power was exercised by God in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The resurrection was not a one-time event, but was the first stage that made the resurrection life available and is the promise of the future resurrection of all those in Christ.
Christians often walk around feeling defeated and unable to overcome the powers that are swirling all about us constantly, but the same power that raised the Holy Spirit is also at work in our lives. God's power might not be as readily evident in the life of each believer, but it is unarguably there for those who would have the eyes of their heart opened and take advantage of the power available to us. The power of God is far above any sort of parody of power that the world can muster. Paul's point in listing the five areas of worldly power in verse 21, is not to list any sort of spiritual hierarchy but rather to make that point that, basically, if you can think of it, it is in submission to the power of Christ. This is not only true of the age to come, which everyone would readily recognize, but also in the present age, something that we must always strive to understand and live in a manner consistent with that truth.
God has placed all things under Christ; he has authority of the entire world and everything in it. All things have been put under the feet of the Messiah, a quote from Psalm 8 which was a favorite passage of the early church. It is a passage that talks of God's original purpose for humankind to have dominion over his entire creation. What man had failed to do, though, because of sin, has been accomplished in he Messiah. This is the Messiah that has been given to the church, not just to rule over it, but to make his life available. It should not be missed that if Christ is the head, with all things under his feet, and the church is the body of Christ, then all things are also under the feet of the church that remains in Christ. What a church it would be that began to act with the authority of Christ rather than as helpless victims of an over-exaggerated Satan. Verse 23 is a bit of a translation challenge, but the overall point is that "fullness" refers to Jesus not to the church. Paul is not saying that the church is the fullness of Christ, but that Christ is the fullness of God (see Col. 2:9-10 for a similar thought). Just as the glory of God filled the Temple in the Old Testament, now the presence of God fills Christ, who in turn, fills his people, so that the church has access to the divine fullness.
Devotional Thought
Paul's prayer was that his original audience would become aware of and take advantage of the fullness of the life that they had available to them in Christ. In what areas of your life do you still need to do that?
15For this reason, ever since I heard about your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love for all the saints, 16I have not stopped giving thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers. 17I keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you the Spirit of wisdom and revelation, so that you may know him better. 18I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, 19and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, 20which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
Dig Deeper
Over a decade after the colonies of America had declared their independence, it became clear that the government they had chosen and implemented, the Articles of Confederation, was clearly not working. So, the leading and most powerful men in the new country convened a convention to fix the Articles. It quickly became clear that what they needed was a whole new form of government, so they began to craft a Constitution. One of the first things they decided was that all proceedings would be secret, in part because what they were doing was not exactly authorized. All of the men there worked together and compromised on many things, which was no small feat with such a collection of powerful men. Throughout the proceedings, George Washington had stayed virtually silent, but all the men knew who he was. One day, Washington went into a local restaurant and found a copy of someone's notes from the convention. The next day, Washington quietly and sternly asked whose notes they were. He demanded that the guilty party come up to his desk and claim their notes. Many delegates describe being convulsed with worry until they found their own notes either in their bags or later at their hotel rooms. Washington slammed the notes down on the table and they stayed their for the remainder of what we now know as the Constitutional Convention. In the midst of a great many who had claimed one form of power or another, it was George Washington who had demonstrated what true human power looks like. He had the kind of power that dwarfed any other claims to power. That is much of the reason why those same man eventually chose him to be the first Constitutional President of the United States.
The Roman world was familiar with the idea of power, and it was full of claims of that power. It makes sense, then, that power is such a central idea in the book of Ephesians. It was a topic with which Paul's readers were quite familiar. Yet, what Paul really wants to demonstrate is that all those other claims to power are mere pretenders that pale in comparison to the true, raw power that God had demonstrated in the life of the Messiah and through the work of the Holy Spirit.
Paul gives praise to God and was constantly giving thanks for the churches to whom this letter is addressed. He has been doing so since he heard of their faith in the life of Christ, implying that this was indeed a circular letter rather than a letter written to a church with which he was intimately involved. Paul was greatly encouraged by their faith in the Lord Jesus which, when genuine, always leads to love for all the saints. In our day, saints has often come to imply some sort of higher class of disciple, a distinction unknown to the earlier Christians. "Saints," for the early church was simply a general term for all Christians.
Paul's great desire, and the subject of much prayer on his part, is that these young Christians are given wisdom and revelation so that they may know God better. In essence, Paul is praying that the people will receive a Spirit-led revelation so that they might know what they have in their new life in Christ. Paul hopes that they can understand with the deepest part of themselves and their will, what he calls the eyes of their heart. The hope of the calling and the glorious inheritance to which Paul refers is a clear reference to the life of the age to come both in the present age and when it is fully consummated in God's restored creation. "Call" is Paul's normal word that he uses to refer to the moment of conversion. Paul, then, says they were called or saved to a glorious inheritance. The great hope of the early Christian faith, a point that is often lost in contemporary Christianity, was the resurrection of the Saints, and the life of resurrection made available now in the Messiah. The inheritance of the saints is the possession of God's new world, also available in the Messiah. Thus, Paul's prayer is that they may realize the incredible hope that we have for the future but also the glorious life of the age to come available now in the Messiah. Paul clearly doesn't imagine that all Christians will realize or even take advantage of the riches that they have in Christ, but his hope is that as many will as possible.
The concept of power was a popular one, not only in the Roman imperial world but also in the many pagan religions in the Empire. There were numerous cults and religions that focused on the power of magic to influence situations and people to make things happen, usually for the personal benefit of the individual invoking this power. The world of the Romans was ruled by the rule, authority, power, and dominion of the Roman government and local magistrates all the way to the spirits, gods, and goddesses and everything in between. Into that world and mindset, though, has broken an example of true power. The Roman world admired, envied, and paraded around examples that they considered power but none of that was real power in Paul's mind. It was the one true God who has demonstrated an incomparably great power. He did this not only through the transforming power of the life of Christ given to those who would believe, but that same power was exercised by God in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The resurrection was not a one-time event, but was the first stage that made the resurrection life available and is the promise of the future resurrection of all those in Christ.
Christians often walk around feeling defeated and unable to overcome the powers that are swirling all about us constantly, but the same power that raised the Holy Spirit is also at work in our lives. God's power might not be as readily evident in the life of each believer, but it is unarguably there for those who would have the eyes of their heart opened and take advantage of the power available to us. The power of God is far above any sort of parody of power that the world can muster. Paul's point in listing the five areas of worldly power in verse 21, is not to list any sort of spiritual hierarchy but rather to make that point that, basically, if you can think of it, it is in submission to the power of Christ. This is not only true of the age to come, which everyone would readily recognize, but also in the present age, something that we must always strive to understand and live in a manner consistent with that truth.
God has placed all things under Christ; he has authority of the entire world and everything in it. All things have been put under the feet of the Messiah, a quote from Psalm 8 which was a favorite passage of the early church. It is a passage that talks of God's original purpose for humankind to have dominion over his entire creation. What man had failed to do, though, because of sin, has been accomplished in he Messiah. This is the Messiah that has been given to the church, not just to rule over it, but to make his life available. It should not be missed that if Christ is the head, with all things under his feet, and the church is the body of Christ, then all things are also under the feet of the church that remains in Christ. What a church it would be that began to act with the authority of Christ rather than as helpless victims of an over-exaggerated Satan. Verse 23 is a bit of a translation challenge, but the overall point is that "fullness" refers to Jesus not to the church. Paul is not saying that the church is the fullness of Christ, but that Christ is the fullness of God (see Col. 2:9-10 for a similar thought). Just as the glory of God filled the Temple in the Old Testament, now the presence of God fills Christ, who in turn, fills his people, so that the church has access to the divine fullness.
Devotional Thought
Paul's prayer was that his original audience would become aware of and take advantage of the fullness of the life that they had available to them in Christ. In what areas of your life do you still need to do that?
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Ephesians 1:11-14
11In him we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, 12in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. 13And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, 14who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession—to the praise of his glory.
Dig Deeper
We were just getting ready to leave for our special field trip, the one the kids had looked forward to all semester. We were driving to another town over an hour away and going to take a tour at an incredible historical building then off to Pizza Hut for pizza. After that we were going to a beautiful botanical gardens for another tour and some ice cream treats for everyone. The field trip was a reward to everyone who had stuck it out and done well in what was a very tough class. We counted the number of kids on the bus and were ready to leave just as a breathless student sprinted onto the bus just barely making it on time. There was only one problem, though. With the arrival of this student we now had one more student than what was supposed to go on the trip. With a discrepancy in the numbers we had to call off the names of the class roster. It didn’t take long to realize that one of our students from a different class had tried to worm his way onto the field trip. He was just seconds away from making it too, because once the bus had gotten rolling, we would not have turned around. What was clear, however, was that he simply was not in the class and despite how much he begged, he could not attend the field trip with the students who were in the class.
In this opening prayer of Ephesians, Paul talks of all the incredible blessings that come to the children of God. Think of all the things that Paul says God showers on His people. They are adopted as sons, they are immersed in God’s grace, freed and forgiven of sin, lavished with his wisdom and insight, they have the mystery of God’s will revealed to them, received the inheritance of God’s people, and been sealed with the Holy Spirit as a down payment on God’s future age. So many people look forward to all of this and can’t wait to experience both now in part and fully in the future. Just go to any funeral, and despite how someone may have lived their entire life, there is usually an assumption made that everyone gets to take part in the incredible blessings that Paul is talking about. The problem, though, is that all of this applies only to those who have died to themselves and trusted in the life of Christ. In other words, only those in Christ will receive the inheritance that Paul is describing. Those not in Christ will have no more right to this inheritance than the young man trying to sneak into the field trip.
Just underneath the service for Paul here is the story of the Exodus in which the children of God were set free from slavery to go claim their inheritance. Along the way they were led through the wilderness by the presence of God in the cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. Many grumbled and complained along the way, a dangerous thing to do, but the cloud and the pillar of fire were their guarantee that they would receive the inheritance. Those in Christ, the church, are the ones in the present age, doing what Israel had done before. Those in Christ have come out of the slavery of sin, rather than Egypt, through the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross and are now on their way to the new promised land to receive their inheritance. What is surprising, perhaps, is that instead of just inheriting one slice of land in the Middle East, those in Christ will inherit the whole world once it has been redeemed and renewed by God. As Paul has already noted, it is God’s plan to sum up everything on heaven and earth in the Messiah. God created the world and has no interest in balling it up and throwing it away. His plan is to restore it and give it to those in Christ to rule over His renewed and perfect creation. Paradise lost will be Paradise restored.
This is all in accordance with the will of God. We tend to think of events in the past causing events in the future, but Paul informs us that this is not the case. It has always been God’s plan to have a people in Christ that would transformed to the image of God. In other words, the future has determined all of past history. It was that end result that has been the impetus for all history and all events leading up to the coming of the Messiah. This was all done in order that those who were the first to hope in Christ, and all of those who have entered into his life since the time Paul penned this letter, might be for the praise of his glory.
In Romans 10, Paul says, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?" Here, he says something similar. It is not Paul’s intention to give a complete checklist of conversion here, for that is not his purpose. As we have already discussed, his purpose was to praise God. In referring to conversion in a shorthand manner, he says that they were included in Christ when they heard the gospel preached and believed that they could only become the children of God by entering into the life of Christ. The part that he only alludes to, of course, is that one enters into the life of Christ at their baptism (Rom. 6:3-4) and that is when they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). Paul says that the Holy Spirit is both a seal and a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. Cargo or letters were sealed in the ancient world to guarantee the validity of the contents. It conveyed the authenticity and ownership of the item. The word he uses for deposit, arrabon, indicates a down payment given that guaranteed the complete payment. Thus, the Holy Spirit is both the sign that we belong to God and the promise that we will enter into His age to come.
There is often much attention given to important biblical doctrines such as faith, justification, and grace, while usually very little is given to the doctrine of being in Christ. Yet, outside of Romans and Galatians, for instance, the term justify appears only four times in the New Testament, none in Ephesians. On the other hand, variants of the phrase "in Christ" appear 164 times in the New Testament, no less than 36 times in Ephesians. Perhaps it is time to recognize this as one of the central doctrines of the New Testament. It certainly is such in Ephesians. Paul has opened this letter with a beautiful prayer of praise to God and recapped the incredible gifts of inheritance that come to God’s people, but just as only those who were in the right class got to go on the field trip, only those in Christ will actually receive the inheritance that God has kept stored in heaven (1 Pet. 1:4) until He restores His creation.
Devotional Thought
God has taken the initiative in redeeming a people for Himself and has made it possible only through the life of the Messiah? Have you embraced your life in Christ or do you take it for granted? When you truly grasp what God has done for us in Christ, how can we help but to break into praise of Him?
Dig Deeper
We were just getting ready to leave for our special field trip, the one the kids had looked forward to all semester. We were driving to another town over an hour away and going to take a tour at an incredible historical building then off to Pizza Hut for pizza. After that we were going to a beautiful botanical gardens for another tour and some ice cream treats for everyone. The field trip was a reward to everyone who had stuck it out and done well in what was a very tough class. We counted the number of kids on the bus and were ready to leave just as a breathless student sprinted onto the bus just barely making it on time. There was only one problem, though. With the arrival of this student we now had one more student than what was supposed to go on the trip. With a discrepancy in the numbers we had to call off the names of the class roster. It didn’t take long to realize that one of our students from a different class had tried to worm his way onto the field trip. He was just seconds away from making it too, because once the bus had gotten rolling, we would not have turned around. What was clear, however, was that he simply was not in the class and despite how much he begged, he could not attend the field trip with the students who were in the class.
In this opening prayer of Ephesians, Paul talks of all the incredible blessings that come to the children of God. Think of all the things that Paul says God showers on His people. They are adopted as sons, they are immersed in God’s grace, freed and forgiven of sin, lavished with his wisdom and insight, they have the mystery of God’s will revealed to them, received the inheritance of God’s people, and been sealed with the Holy Spirit as a down payment on God’s future age. So many people look forward to all of this and can’t wait to experience both now in part and fully in the future. Just go to any funeral, and despite how someone may have lived their entire life, there is usually an assumption made that everyone gets to take part in the incredible blessings that Paul is talking about. The problem, though, is that all of this applies only to those who have died to themselves and trusted in the life of Christ. In other words, only those in Christ will receive the inheritance that Paul is describing. Those not in Christ will have no more right to this inheritance than the young man trying to sneak into the field trip.
Just underneath the service for Paul here is the story of the Exodus in which the children of God were set free from slavery to go claim their inheritance. Along the way they were led through the wilderness by the presence of God in the cloud during the day and a pillar of fire at night. Many grumbled and complained along the way, a dangerous thing to do, but the cloud and the pillar of fire were their guarantee that they would receive the inheritance. Those in Christ, the church, are the ones in the present age, doing what Israel had done before. Those in Christ have come out of the slavery of sin, rather than Egypt, through the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross and are now on their way to the new promised land to receive their inheritance. What is surprising, perhaps, is that instead of just inheriting one slice of land in the Middle East, those in Christ will inherit the whole world once it has been redeemed and renewed by God. As Paul has already noted, it is God’s plan to sum up everything on heaven and earth in the Messiah. God created the world and has no interest in balling it up and throwing it away. His plan is to restore it and give it to those in Christ to rule over His renewed and perfect creation. Paradise lost will be Paradise restored.
This is all in accordance with the will of God. We tend to think of events in the past causing events in the future, but Paul informs us that this is not the case. It has always been God’s plan to have a people in Christ that would transformed to the image of God. In other words, the future has determined all of past history. It was that end result that has been the impetus for all history and all events leading up to the coming of the Messiah. This was all done in order that those who were the first to hope in Christ, and all of those who have entered into his life since the time Paul penned this letter, might be for the praise of his glory.
In Romans 10, Paul says, "How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent?" Here, he says something similar. It is not Paul’s intention to give a complete checklist of conversion here, for that is not his purpose. As we have already discussed, his purpose was to praise God. In referring to conversion in a shorthand manner, he says that they were included in Christ when they heard the gospel preached and believed that they could only become the children of God by entering into the life of Christ. The part that he only alludes to, of course, is that one enters into the life of Christ at their baptism (Rom. 6:3-4) and that is when they receive the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38). Paul says that the Holy Spirit is both a seal and a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance. Cargo or letters were sealed in the ancient world to guarantee the validity of the contents. It conveyed the authenticity and ownership of the item. The word he uses for deposit, arrabon, indicates a down payment given that guaranteed the complete payment. Thus, the Holy Spirit is both the sign that we belong to God and the promise that we will enter into His age to come.
There is often much attention given to important biblical doctrines such as faith, justification, and grace, while usually very little is given to the doctrine of being in Christ. Yet, outside of Romans and Galatians, for instance, the term justify appears only four times in the New Testament, none in Ephesians. On the other hand, variants of the phrase "in Christ" appear 164 times in the New Testament, no less than 36 times in Ephesians. Perhaps it is time to recognize this as one of the central doctrines of the New Testament. It certainly is such in Ephesians. Paul has opened this letter with a beautiful prayer of praise to God and recapped the incredible gifts of inheritance that come to God’s people, but just as only those who were in the right class got to go on the field trip, only those in Christ will actually receive the inheritance that God has kept stored in heaven (1 Pet. 1:4) until He restores His creation.
Devotional Thought
God has taken the initiative in redeeming a people for Himself and has made it possible only through the life of the Messiah? Have you embraced your life in Christ or do you take it for granted? When you truly grasp what God has done for us in Christ, how can we help but to break into praise of Him?
Friday, February 22, 2008
Ephesians 1:4-10
4For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love 5he predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— 6to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. 7In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, in accordance with the riches of God's grace 8that he lavished on us with all wisdom and understanding. 9And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ, 10to be put into effect when the times will have reached their fulfillment—to bring all things in heaven and on earth together under one head, even Christ.
Dig Deeper
When I began my teaching career in Milwaukee I had a rare opportunity in that it was not only my first year as a teacher, it was the very first year of the high school. Everything that year was brand new and had to be started from scratch. Among those things was the basketball team. It had already been decided before the school was even officially approved and formed that there would be a team. In fact, uniforms had been ordered, a schedule had been made and I was hired to be the coach in addition to teaching history. The team was all set and all the plans had been made except for one thing. There was no one that was actually on the team. Even though the team itself had already been predestined, that did not mean that the individual players were chosen. That would come later.
This passage of Ephesians can easily be misunderstood if we read this passage from a Western Enlightenment perspective that exalts the individual as being of the primary importance, a perspective that would not have been shared in Paul’s day or even really considered. When we think only in terms of the individual while reading passages like this, it is easy to come up with doctrines like the predestination of the individual, a doctrine which teaches that individuals are chosen by God for either salvation or damnation with no opportunity to choose or change the fate for which they’ve been determined. The key in understanding this passage is to realize that Paul is speaking in terms of God’s people as a collective and His purposes in Christ (in fact, for this passage to really come alive in the way that it was intended, substitute "the people of God" wherever you see the words "us" or "we"). Just as the basketball team had been pre-determined but the players were not, so God has always foreordained that He would have a people that have entered into the life of His son, but that does not mean God chose those individuals with no free will of their own entering into the picture.
There are several different ways to examine the prayer of verses 3-14, but one interesting way is to view this section as Paul retells, subtly and just under the surface, the story of the Exodus of the people of God. Verses 3-6 are a retelling of the time when Israel, God’s people were freed and set apart from the world according to his pleasure and will. Verses 7-10 are a retelling of the Passover, when the people were redeemed through the blood of the lamb. Tomorrow as we examine verses 11-14, we will see shadows of the Israelites arriving in the promised land. The entire section, then, both clearly praises God as well as makes a connection between the timeless purposes of God for His people Israel and now for His new Israel, those in Christ.
The clear question here is what did God predestine before the creation of the world? That question is answered again and again in this passage. God chose to have a people that would enter into the life of Christ and be transformed into His image through love and grace. When he says it was before creation, Paul doesn’t mean that God decided upon this plan right before day one of creation, it means that it is part of the very nature and purpose of God. As surely as God exists, He would always reveal Himself to His human creation in the work and person of Jesus Christ, making that life available to all. Those who are in Christ, then, are holy and blameless in the sight of God because we are hidden in Christ (Col. 3:3), we have redemption (a word which means to buy back something or someone that was lost), we have forgiveness of sins, and we have God’s grace, wisdom, and understanding lavished on us.
It was only in the generation of Paul that this mystery had been made known. For us, mystery means something different than it did in Paul’s day. When Paul speaks of mystery he refers to the will of God that had been concealed but was now revealed. All of God’s actions throughout history had been revealed and made clear in Jesus Christ. He didn’t just send a Messiah that would be a great military leader, or even a powerful religious sage. He sent His son as a servant that would take the place of Israel, becoming Israel (there are many of examples of Jesus intentionally making that clear such as His facing temptation in the wilderness and calling Himself the true vine, which based on passages like Is. 5 had become a symbol for Israel), and take the punishment of the world upon Himself. The Messiah would then enter into the age to come and undergo the resurrection. What Israel had expected for all of God’s people at the end of time had happened to one man in the middle of history. That was hard to comprehend but now, says Paul, it all makes sense. The only way to inherit the glorious riches of God’s grace is not through anything that we can do of our own merit, but only by dying to self and entering into the life of the Messiah. This was God’s plan all along, to create a people in the Messiah that would share in the work of bringing all things in heaven and earth together in Christ.
The way the NIV has worded verse 10 makes it seem as though it focuses only on the end times, but in fact, what Paul is really saying is that Christ is the steward of the fullness of the ages (the age to come) and that all things are summed up in him. Theologian N.T. Wright suggest that verses 9-10 should read "He has made known to us the secret of his purpose, just as he wanted it to be and set it forward in him as a blueprint for when the time was ripe. His plan was to sum up the whole cosmos in the king – yes, everything in heaven and on earth, in him."
This all begs the question of why God did this. Why was this His plan. Paul says quite clearly that God has predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ because of love. Deuteronomy 7:7-9 says that love was precisely the reason that God chose the Israelites as His people. They did not earn their election as the people of God. Nor do we earn it in anyway. Because of His great love for humanity, God has chosen that He would have a people that were holy and set apart for His purposes. What this does not mean is that this somehow violates the free will that God gave us. That God would have an elect people in Christ, has been set and predetermined from the very beginning, but that does not mean that some are forced to be God’s people while others will never have the chance. Election only comes in Christ and through Christ. Individuals are not elected and then put into Christ. They enter into Christ and are therefore of the elect. This means that it would be incorrect to say that the elect are in Christ, we should rather say that those in Christ are the elect.
Devotional Thought
Paul writes while he was sitting in prison, of God lavishing the riches of His grace on all those in Christ. Take some time today to meditate about what kind of mindset and what kind of understanding of being in Christ that Paul had to be able to do that. Do you really understand the mystery and inheritance that has been revealed to us in Christ?
Dig Deeper
When I began my teaching career in Milwaukee I had a rare opportunity in that it was not only my first year as a teacher, it was the very first year of the high school. Everything that year was brand new and had to be started from scratch. Among those things was the basketball team. It had already been decided before the school was even officially approved and formed that there would be a team. In fact, uniforms had been ordered, a schedule had been made and I was hired to be the coach in addition to teaching history. The team was all set and all the plans had been made except for one thing. There was no one that was actually on the team. Even though the team itself had already been predestined, that did not mean that the individual players were chosen. That would come later.
This passage of Ephesians can easily be misunderstood if we read this passage from a Western Enlightenment perspective that exalts the individual as being of the primary importance, a perspective that would not have been shared in Paul’s day or even really considered. When we think only in terms of the individual while reading passages like this, it is easy to come up with doctrines like the predestination of the individual, a doctrine which teaches that individuals are chosen by God for either salvation or damnation with no opportunity to choose or change the fate for which they’ve been determined. The key in understanding this passage is to realize that Paul is speaking in terms of God’s people as a collective and His purposes in Christ (in fact, for this passage to really come alive in the way that it was intended, substitute "the people of God" wherever you see the words "us" or "we"). Just as the basketball team had been pre-determined but the players were not, so God has always foreordained that He would have a people that have entered into the life of His son, but that does not mean God chose those individuals with no free will of their own entering into the picture.
There are several different ways to examine the prayer of verses 3-14, but one interesting way is to view this section as Paul retells, subtly and just under the surface, the story of the Exodus of the people of God. Verses 3-6 are a retelling of the time when Israel, God’s people were freed and set apart from the world according to his pleasure and will. Verses 7-10 are a retelling of the Passover, when the people were redeemed through the blood of the lamb. Tomorrow as we examine verses 11-14, we will see shadows of the Israelites arriving in the promised land. The entire section, then, both clearly praises God as well as makes a connection between the timeless purposes of God for His people Israel and now for His new Israel, those in Christ.
The clear question here is what did God predestine before the creation of the world? That question is answered again and again in this passage. God chose to have a people that would enter into the life of Christ and be transformed into His image through love and grace. When he says it was before creation, Paul doesn’t mean that God decided upon this plan right before day one of creation, it means that it is part of the very nature and purpose of God. As surely as God exists, He would always reveal Himself to His human creation in the work and person of Jesus Christ, making that life available to all. Those who are in Christ, then, are holy and blameless in the sight of God because we are hidden in Christ (Col. 3:3), we have redemption (a word which means to buy back something or someone that was lost), we have forgiveness of sins, and we have God’s grace, wisdom, and understanding lavished on us.
It was only in the generation of Paul that this mystery had been made known. For us, mystery means something different than it did in Paul’s day. When Paul speaks of mystery he refers to the will of God that had been concealed but was now revealed. All of God’s actions throughout history had been revealed and made clear in Jesus Christ. He didn’t just send a Messiah that would be a great military leader, or even a powerful religious sage. He sent His son as a servant that would take the place of Israel, becoming Israel (there are many of examples of Jesus intentionally making that clear such as His facing temptation in the wilderness and calling Himself the true vine, which based on passages like Is. 5 had become a symbol for Israel), and take the punishment of the world upon Himself. The Messiah would then enter into the age to come and undergo the resurrection. What Israel had expected for all of God’s people at the end of time had happened to one man in the middle of history. That was hard to comprehend but now, says Paul, it all makes sense. The only way to inherit the glorious riches of God’s grace is not through anything that we can do of our own merit, but only by dying to self and entering into the life of the Messiah. This was God’s plan all along, to create a people in the Messiah that would share in the work of bringing all things in heaven and earth together in Christ.
The way the NIV has worded verse 10 makes it seem as though it focuses only on the end times, but in fact, what Paul is really saying is that Christ is the steward of the fullness of the ages (the age to come) and that all things are summed up in him. Theologian N.T. Wright suggest that verses 9-10 should read "He has made known to us the secret of his purpose, just as he wanted it to be and set it forward in him as a blueprint for when the time was ripe. His plan was to sum up the whole cosmos in the king – yes, everything in heaven and on earth, in him."
This all begs the question of why God did this. Why was this His plan. Paul says quite clearly that God has predestined us to be adopted as his sons through Jesus Christ because of love. Deuteronomy 7:7-9 says that love was precisely the reason that God chose the Israelites as His people. They did not earn their election as the people of God. Nor do we earn it in anyway. Because of His great love for humanity, God has chosen that He would have a people that were holy and set apart for His purposes. What this does not mean is that this somehow violates the free will that God gave us. That God would have an elect people in Christ, has been set and predetermined from the very beginning, but that does not mean that some are forced to be God’s people while others will never have the chance. Election only comes in Christ and through Christ. Individuals are not elected and then put into Christ. They enter into Christ and are therefore of the elect. This means that it would be incorrect to say that the elect are in Christ, we should rather say that those in Christ are the elect.
Devotional Thought
Paul writes while he was sitting in prison, of God lavishing the riches of His grace on all those in Christ. Take some time today to meditate about what kind of mindset and what kind of understanding of being in Christ that Paul had to be able to do that. Do you really understand the mystery and inheritance that has been revealed to us in Christ?
Thursday, February 21, 2008
Ephesians 1:1-3
1Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,
To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
Dig Deeper
A few years ago, I was very excited to take some students to a relatively new exhibit at the museum. I had gone to it once briefly a few months earlier and was now going to stay with the few students who actually wanted to walk around with the teacher to see what I had seen. The exhibit was a collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts, especially ones that related to tombs and mummies in Egypt. The problem came up when I realized that I could not find the exhibit. We went all up and down the area where it had been but it was simply not there anymore. What was weird was that the door to go into the exhibit didn’t even seem to exist in the hallway anymore. After becoming convinced that the exhibit must be gone, I found out from a museum worker that the problem was not with the exhibit. The problem was I was on the wrong floor. I was in the wrong location and would never have been able to enter into the exhibit from where I was at. I needed to switch locations in order to enter in.
In the book of Ephesians, Paul addresses the issue of location more than in any other book. In a sense, he climbs to the top of the mountain and describes the whole breathtaking view of many different aspects of the Christian life. They all boil down, however, to location. Either one has died to themselves and entered into the life of Christ or they are simply in the wrong location, unable to enter into the wonderful inheritance that God is storing in His realm for His people. Paul makes reference in one form or another to being in Christ 164 times throughout his writings, but no book deals with the topic more directly than the book of Ephesians.
Before we begin, though, let’s do a little house cleaning. There are many so-called Bible critics and experts that don’t believe that Paul wrote the book of Ephesians. On top of that, we really don’t know when he wrote this letter, from where he wrote it, and to whom he wrote it. So, why don’t people think Paul wrote it? The primary reason is that there are some style differences from many of Paul’s other letters. As theologian H.J. Cadbury put it, though, "Which is more likely—that an imitator of Paul in the first century composed a writing ninety or ninety-five percent in accordance with Paul’s style or that Paul himself wrote a letter diverging five or ten percent from his usual style?" We should also note that many of the claims that Ephesians differs theologically than his other letters go away rather quickly if Romans and Galatians are interpreted and understood properly. It does appear that "in Ephesus," in verse 2, was added later and was probably not in the original letter. It is quite likely that Paul’s letter was written from a prison in Ephesus around 55 AD (although Caesarea in 58 AD and Rome in 60 AD are possibilities) and that this phrase was added later by a well-meaning scribe. We know that Paul wrote letters that were intended to be circular letters, traveling to many churches (see Colossians 4:16; in fact it is speculative but a possibility that this is the letter to which Paul was referring). It seems that this present letter, rather than being a letter to a specific church, dealing with specific issues, is a circular letter, which would account for many of the style changes and the fact in a couple of places, Paul seems to be addressing various people who are not familiar with him or his ministry.
As he usually does, Paul begins his letter in a fairly traditional style for that time and place in the world. He says that he is an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. Paul had many detractors who questioned his apostleship, but none of that is in sight here. Here it simply a self-description and an emphasis on the authority given to Paul to write such a letter. If he is an apostle, then he is such because God called him to be. Paul addresses this letter to the saints, which emphasizes their call to be the set-apart people of God more than it is a specific description of their conduct. When Paul referred to someone as a saint, then, the focus was on the action of God not the actual character or performance of the individual. They are the ones who, according to the grace and peace of God, have placed their faith in Christ Jesus. For Paul, remaining faithful was not so much about one’s actions as one’s location. If you remain in Christ, then you are faithful.
In verse 3, Paul begins what is a rather long prayer that extends at least through verse 20 (verses 3-14 are a praise and blessing, 15-16 are a thanksgiving, and 17-20 is an intercessory prayer). It should be noted, however, that the first three chapters move in and out of a tone of prayer so seemlessly that it is difficult to tell what is prayer and worship, and what is straight doctrine and theology, to the point that New Testament scholar, John Mackay, says it is virtually "doctrine set to music." In most translations, verses 3-14 are split into several sentences, but in the original language, it is one long and complex sentence.
Paul begins this prayer by giving praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, he says, has blessed those who are already in the heavenly realms. The heavenly realms is not a location but is a reference to the age to come of God. It is the future redeemed world of God made available in the present age by entering into the death and life of Jesus Christ through baptism (Rom. 6:3-4). Every element of Paul’s teaching when it comes to the Christian life flows from his understanding about the union that believers have with Christ. Here he says that Christians have every spiritual blessing because of their union with and status in Christ. Be sure to notice how central the thought of being in Christ is in this opening prayer. God’s will, purpose, plan, and election take place in Christ (v. 4, 9, 11). God’s grace and redemption are found in Christ (v. 6-7). All things on heaven and in earth are in submission to and summed up in Christ (v. 10). Hope and inclusion in the people of God that accompany believing in the gospel come in Christ, and by faith we are sealed in Christ (v. 12-13). In the context of this being a prayer of praise and worship to God, we realize that the focus of this prayer is what God has done in Christ by making the life of His son available to those who would choose it. All Christian life and activity flow from true worship of the true God who has done all of this. True worship of God, then, cannot help but speak of the incredible spiritual blessing that has been given to those who have entered into the life of the Messiah.
Devotional Thought
Paul begins this prayer of praise to God by counting off many of the blessings available to those who are in Christ. When is the last time you spent significant time praying and praising God for what He has done for you in Christ. What does it mean for you, specifically, to be in Christ?
To the saints in Ephesus, the faithful in Christ Jesus:
2Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Spiritual Blessings in Christ
3Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ.
Dig Deeper
A few years ago, I was very excited to take some students to a relatively new exhibit at the museum. I had gone to it once briefly a few months earlier and was now going to stay with the few students who actually wanted to walk around with the teacher to see what I had seen. The exhibit was a collection of ancient Egyptian artifacts, especially ones that related to tombs and mummies in Egypt. The problem came up when I realized that I could not find the exhibit. We went all up and down the area where it had been but it was simply not there anymore. What was weird was that the door to go into the exhibit didn’t even seem to exist in the hallway anymore. After becoming convinced that the exhibit must be gone, I found out from a museum worker that the problem was not with the exhibit. The problem was I was on the wrong floor. I was in the wrong location and would never have been able to enter into the exhibit from where I was at. I needed to switch locations in order to enter in.
In the book of Ephesians, Paul addresses the issue of location more than in any other book. In a sense, he climbs to the top of the mountain and describes the whole breathtaking view of many different aspects of the Christian life. They all boil down, however, to location. Either one has died to themselves and entered into the life of Christ or they are simply in the wrong location, unable to enter into the wonderful inheritance that God is storing in His realm for His people. Paul makes reference in one form or another to being in Christ 164 times throughout his writings, but no book deals with the topic more directly than the book of Ephesians.
Before we begin, though, let’s do a little house cleaning. There are many so-called Bible critics and experts that don’t believe that Paul wrote the book of Ephesians. On top of that, we really don’t know when he wrote this letter, from where he wrote it, and to whom he wrote it. So, why don’t people think Paul wrote it? The primary reason is that there are some style differences from many of Paul’s other letters. As theologian H.J. Cadbury put it, though, "Which is more likely—that an imitator of Paul in the first century composed a writing ninety or ninety-five percent in accordance with Paul’s style or that Paul himself wrote a letter diverging five or ten percent from his usual style?" We should also note that many of the claims that Ephesians differs theologically than his other letters go away rather quickly if Romans and Galatians are interpreted and understood properly. It does appear that "in Ephesus," in verse 2, was added later and was probably not in the original letter. It is quite likely that Paul’s letter was written from a prison in Ephesus around 55 AD (although Caesarea in 58 AD and Rome in 60 AD are possibilities) and that this phrase was added later by a well-meaning scribe. We know that Paul wrote letters that were intended to be circular letters, traveling to many churches (see Colossians 4:16; in fact it is speculative but a possibility that this is the letter to which Paul was referring). It seems that this present letter, rather than being a letter to a specific church, dealing with specific issues, is a circular letter, which would account for many of the style changes and the fact in a couple of places, Paul seems to be addressing various people who are not familiar with him or his ministry.
As he usually does, Paul begins his letter in a fairly traditional style for that time and place in the world. He says that he is an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God. Paul had many detractors who questioned his apostleship, but none of that is in sight here. Here it simply a self-description and an emphasis on the authority given to Paul to write such a letter. If he is an apostle, then he is such because God called him to be. Paul addresses this letter to the saints, which emphasizes their call to be the set-apart people of God more than it is a specific description of their conduct. When Paul referred to someone as a saint, then, the focus was on the action of God not the actual character or performance of the individual. They are the ones who, according to the grace and peace of God, have placed their faith in Christ Jesus. For Paul, remaining faithful was not so much about one’s actions as one’s location. If you remain in Christ, then you are faithful.
In verse 3, Paul begins what is a rather long prayer that extends at least through verse 20 (verses 3-14 are a praise and blessing, 15-16 are a thanksgiving, and 17-20 is an intercessory prayer). It should be noted, however, that the first three chapters move in and out of a tone of prayer so seemlessly that it is difficult to tell what is prayer and worship, and what is straight doctrine and theology, to the point that New Testament scholar, John Mackay, says it is virtually "doctrine set to music." In most translations, verses 3-14 are split into several sentences, but in the original language, it is one long and complex sentence.
Paul begins this prayer by giving praise to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God, he says, has blessed those who are already in the heavenly realms. The heavenly realms is not a location but is a reference to the age to come of God. It is the future redeemed world of God made available in the present age by entering into the death and life of Jesus Christ through baptism (Rom. 6:3-4). Every element of Paul’s teaching when it comes to the Christian life flows from his understanding about the union that believers have with Christ. Here he says that Christians have every spiritual blessing because of their union with and status in Christ. Be sure to notice how central the thought of being in Christ is in this opening prayer. God’s will, purpose, plan, and election take place in Christ (v. 4, 9, 11). God’s grace and redemption are found in Christ (v. 6-7). All things on heaven and in earth are in submission to and summed up in Christ (v. 10). Hope and inclusion in the people of God that accompany believing in the gospel come in Christ, and by faith we are sealed in Christ (v. 12-13). In the context of this being a prayer of praise and worship to God, we realize that the focus of this prayer is what God has done in Christ by making the life of His son available to those who would choose it. All Christian life and activity flow from true worship of the true God who has done all of this. True worship of God, then, cannot help but speak of the incredible spiritual blessing that has been given to those who have entered into the life of the Messiah.
Devotional Thought
Paul begins this prayer of praise to God by counting off many of the blessings available to those who are in Christ. When is the last time you spent significant time praying and praising God for what He has done for you in Christ. What does it mean for you, specifically, to be in Christ?
Monday, February 11, 2008
Galatians 6:11-18
Not Circumcision but a New Creation
11See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!
12Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13Not even those who are circumcised obey the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your flesh. 14May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. 16Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.
17Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.
Dig Deeper
While I was still teaching we used to have a school-wide clean-up day once a year where everyone would be split up into teams of about 20 and then go out into the community and pick up as much trash and debris as they could. The trash would be weighed and the class that collected the most garbage would win a pizza party. This could be a rather messy affair and as the students would come back you could really tell quite easily who had made an effort to really get into the spirit of collecting the trash and debris. One year a group of students decided that they wanted to win the pizza party but they didn’t really want to do what was necessary to win. Rather than going through the struggle and effort for themselves, they sent a few lower classmen in their group to a dumpster behind a bar to collect bags and crates of recycled bottles. Of course the bottles were quite heavy so their haul seemed impressive, until another student came back and reported that they had seen them taking the already packaged bags and crates out of the recycling dumpster, which was against the rules of the competition. The team was disqualified and lost all because these older students didn’t want to get dirty themselves.
Paul accuses the Judaizers of something similar, but far more serious, as he brings his letter to a close. They didn’t want to get dirty themselves so they passed the work off to someone else. More specifically, they didn’t want to take the abuse and persecution that would come the way of those in Christ who refused to follow the Jewish law. So, instead they would pass the dirty work off to the Gentiles, insisting that they bear the marks of circumcision. The problem, as Paul will explain, is that they were insisting on marks that, in the end, didn’t mean anything.
As Paul begins this final passage of his letter, he takes the pen into his own hand and finishes it himself. When Paul comments on the large letters, it could be that his writing was a bit large and sloppy compared to a professional scribe or, as some have suggested, Paul may have had poor eyesight and that was the cause of his unusually large writing. Either way, the significance of Paul finishing the letter in his own hand rather than having his scribe complete it is the difference between receiving a form letter from someone or one that is hand-written. Paul gives a personal touch that could not be equaled by the hand of a scribe.
The Judaizers were, according to Paul, trying to compel the Galatians to be circumcised in order to make a good impression, but an impression on whom? The other Jews of course. They wanted to be Christians but not if it meant being persecuted for abandoning the law of Moses. This was the charge leveled at other Jews that followed Christ. The Judaizers didn’t want to be persecuted for that so they took the position of trying to sit on the fence. They would follow the Messiah but also try to follow the law and make sure that any Gentile converts did so as well. This way, they didn’t have to go through any painful persecution themselves. They would rather the Gentiles bear the physical marks of circumcision than themselves have to bear the physical marks of persecution at the hands of the zealous Jews.
Once they had convinced the Gentiles to become circumcised, they could even boast to the Jews about it. In short, they wanted a version of Christianity that would gain them admiration from the world rather than persecution, despite the fact that Jesus said that would never happen (Matt. 24:9; John 15:10). Paul is angered by the fact that they want the Gentiles to become circumcised solely for their own comfort. What is even more appalling is that they were demanding that the Gentiles follow the law, but Paul has already made it clear that no one can truly follow the whole law.
We might expect Paul say that they should not boast in circumcision, but those who have not been circumcised could rightly boast about that, but that is not at all what he says. Instead, Paul’s point is that none of that matters; it doesn’t mean anything. If Paul is going to boast in anything it will be only in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says, in verse 17, if he is going to bear any physical marks on the account of being a Christian it is the marks of Jesus that he desires. Jesus was persecuted and those who truly enter into his life will be persecuted in one way or another. These are the marks that Paul will bear (see 2 Cor. 11:23-28 to understand from where Paul could have received such marks of persecution). His concern is with being loyal to his life in Christ rather than trying to avoid persecution at the hands of the Jews by compromising the true gospel.
The Judaizers made the mistake of thinking that physical marks like circumcision or even persecution mattered, to the point that they were willing to foist one on others in order to avoid the other for themselves. They want to save their own skins by cutting off the foreskins of the Gentiles. That will never get them anywhere in God’s new world. The cross and the resurrection were the beginning of God’s new creation, the center point of all of history. The only thing that matters is those who have died to themselves and entered into God’s new creation through the life of Christ. The very fact that they are foisting the law on someone else in order to avoid persecution is evidence all by itself that they have not truly died to themselves. This is the only way to be part of the true family of God, the true Isaac people. In fact, Paul says that all who follow this rule are the true Israel of God. Being part of the true Israel is not about circumcision but about being part of God’s age to come, available only to those who have entered in to Christ through faith.
Paul finishes his letter with the benediction of grace. Grace that comes only from the true Lord and Messiah. This grace doesn’t come from human sources or effort but only from the one true God. The grace of which he speaks cannot be grabbed hold of or demonstrated through any physical marks but only by the presence and fruit of the Holy Spirit made evident in our spirits and lives.
Devotional Thought
Do you relate at all with what Paul says to the Judaizers here? Have you ever been tempted to tailor the demands of the true gospel so that things would be a little more comfortable for you? Why is that such a dangerous thing to do?
11See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand!
12Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. 13Not even those who are circumcised obey the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your flesh. 14May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. 15Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. 16Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God.
17Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
18The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.
Dig Deeper
While I was still teaching we used to have a school-wide clean-up day once a year where everyone would be split up into teams of about 20 and then go out into the community and pick up as much trash and debris as they could. The trash would be weighed and the class that collected the most garbage would win a pizza party. This could be a rather messy affair and as the students would come back you could really tell quite easily who had made an effort to really get into the spirit of collecting the trash and debris. One year a group of students decided that they wanted to win the pizza party but they didn’t really want to do what was necessary to win. Rather than going through the struggle and effort for themselves, they sent a few lower classmen in their group to a dumpster behind a bar to collect bags and crates of recycled bottles. Of course the bottles were quite heavy so their haul seemed impressive, until another student came back and reported that they had seen them taking the already packaged bags and crates out of the recycling dumpster, which was against the rules of the competition. The team was disqualified and lost all because these older students didn’t want to get dirty themselves.
Paul accuses the Judaizers of something similar, but far more serious, as he brings his letter to a close. They didn’t want to get dirty themselves so they passed the work off to someone else. More specifically, they didn’t want to take the abuse and persecution that would come the way of those in Christ who refused to follow the Jewish law. So, instead they would pass the dirty work off to the Gentiles, insisting that they bear the marks of circumcision. The problem, as Paul will explain, is that they were insisting on marks that, in the end, didn’t mean anything.
As Paul begins this final passage of his letter, he takes the pen into his own hand and finishes it himself. When Paul comments on the large letters, it could be that his writing was a bit large and sloppy compared to a professional scribe or, as some have suggested, Paul may have had poor eyesight and that was the cause of his unusually large writing. Either way, the significance of Paul finishing the letter in his own hand rather than having his scribe complete it is the difference between receiving a form letter from someone or one that is hand-written. Paul gives a personal touch that could not be equaled by the hand of a scribe.
The Judaizers were, according to Paul, trying to compel the Galatians to be circumcised in order to make a good impression, but an impression on whom? The other Jews of course. They wanted to be Christians but not if it meant being persecuted for abandoning the law of Moses. This was the charge leveled at other Jews that followed Christ. The Judaizers didn’t want to be persecuted for that so they took the position of trying to sit on the fence. They would follow the Messiah but also try to follow the law and make sure that any Gentile converts did so as well. This way, they didn’t have to go through any painful persecution themselves. They would rather the Gentiles bear the physical marks of circumcision than themselves have to bear the physical marks of persecution at the hands of the zealous Jews.
Once they had convinced the Gentiles to become circumcised, they could even boast to the Jews about it. In short, they wanted a version of Christianity that would gain them admiration from the world rather than persecution, despite the fact that Jesus said that would never happen (Matt. 24:9; John 15:10). Paul is angered by the fact that they want the Gentiles to become circumcised solely for their own comfort. What is even more appalling is that they were demanding that the Gentiles follow the law, but Paul has already made it clear that no one can truly follow the whole law.
We might expect Paul say that they should not boast in circumcision, but those who have not been circumcised could rightly boast about that, but that is not at all what he says. Instead, Paul’s point is that none of that matters; it doesn’t mean anything. If Paul is going to boast in anything it will be only in the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ. Paul says, in verse 17, if he is going to bear any physical marks on the account of being a Christian it is the marks of Jesus that he desires. Jesus was persecuted and those who truly enter into his life will be persecuted in one way or another. These are the marks that Paul will bear (see 2 Cor. 11:23-28 to understand from where Paul could have received such marks of persecution). His concern is with being loyal to his life in Christ rather than trying to avoid persecution at the hands of the Jews by compromising the true gospel.
The Judaizers made the mistake of thinking that physical marks like circumcision or even persecution mattered, to the point that they were willing to foist one on others in order to avoid the other for themselves. They want to save their own skins by cutting off the foreskins of the Gentiles. That will never get them anywhere in God’s new world. The cross and the resurrection were the beginning of God’s new creation, the center point of all of history. The only thing that matters is those who have died to themselves and entered into God’s new creation through the life of Christ. The very fact that they are foisting the law on someone else in order to avoid persecution is evidence all by itself that they have not truly died to themselves. This is the only way to be part of the true family of God, the true Isaac people. In fact, Paul says that all who follow this rule are the true Israel of God. Being part of the true Israel is not about circumcision but about being part of God’s age to come, available only to those who have entered in to Christ through faith.
Paul finishes his letter with the benediction of grace. Grace that comes only from the true Lord and Messiah. This grace doesn’t come from human sources or effort but only from the one true God. The grace of which he speaks cannot be grabbed hold of or demonstrated through any physical marks but only by the presence and fruit of the Holy Spirit made evident in our spirits and lives.
Devotional Thought
Do you relate at all with what Paul says to the Judaizers here? Have you ever been tempted to tailor the demands of the true gospel so that things would be a little more comfortable for you? Why is that such a dangerous thing to do?
Friday, February 08, 2008
Galatians 6:6-10
6Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor.
7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Dig Deeper
The other day I was eating some sunflower seeds. I don’t normally do this very often but there I was. As I was enjoying the salty goodness of the sunflower seed, I realized something. You can take a seed and eat it or you can take it and sow it. If you eat it, you can enjoy it for a moment but then it’s gone and that’s all there is to it. On the other hand, you can take a seed and plant it in the ground and it will grow and produce new life beyond itself. That’s always the choice that we have when it comes to seeds. Consume it now and let that be the end of it, or plant it and let it continue to produce fruit for future generations.
Paul addresses a topic in this passage that was evidently every bit as difficult to discuss in his day as it is in ours. In 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, Paul discusses the topic of money and giving to support God’s people and His church in depth without ever mentioning the word "money" itself. He does the same thing here. It might seem strange that near the end of a letter that has been all about recognizing who the true people of God are and learning to live that way that Paul would suddenly switch to such an earthy and seemingly unspiritual topic. Yet, we should know enough about Paul by now to realize that he has a very specific purpose in bringing up this topic, a purpose that is directly related to what he has been saying in this letter all along.
Verse 6 is often frequently taken out of context by those who would not bother to do a little work to understand what Paul is actually saying. What he is clearly not talking about is a situation in which anytime you are studying the Bible and learn something, you need to share it with your teacher so they can know it too. The Greek word, koinoneito, is translated ‘share’ but was a common Christian figure of speech for ‘making a financial contribution’. Paul is saying that those who are taught the word of God should take from the gifts that God has given them and support those who would teach them the word. Paul says this even more clearly in 1 Timothy 5:17 when he says that those who preach and teach are worthy of double honor (another euphemism for financial contribution). This is an often touchy subject in churches today, but one that Paul felt was important (some erroneously point to the fact that Paul refused support from the church in Corinth, but fail to notice that, as Paul makes clear in 2 Cor. 12:14, he does so because they are not yet mature enough to handle doing so).
This is why Paul goes into a discourse on sowing and reaping, no doubt with the image of the fruit from the end of chapter 5 still in mind. We can only speculate here but it seems likely that because of the controversy going and and the infighting that had been caused by the Judaizers that at least some in the Galatian churches were now refusing proper support of their teachers. Paul will not stand for this. His words are to the point and rather stinging. To do this would be to mock God. What seems like a very non-spiritual issue is, in fact, an extremely spiritually related concept. A man reap what he sows.
We now begin to see why Paul felt so strongly about this and why he felt it was related to the topic of demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit or the works of the flesh. If they were to sow according the Spirit, then that would include happily supporting teachers and preachers. It would even mean sacrificing personally so that more and more teachers and preachers would be supported. To keep the resources that they have for themselves would be to be deceived and to sow according to the flesh. It is like the choice between consuming the seed for yourself or planting it to produce further life. We can spend money on houses that decay, cars the depreciate, and material goods that fade or we can spend our resources on God’s kingdom and the ministry of His word. The result of which saves lives and restores communities in the great redeeming work of the almighty God.
Paul wants them to not become weary in doing good. ‘Doing good’ is another of those common phrases in Paul’s day that referred to financial contributions. If they sow their money generously and in accordance with God’s will it will reap a harvest of eternal life, the life of the age to come. Thus, for Paul it comes down quite clearly to matter of being the people of the age to come who live by faith in the life of Christ. Those who live by faith in the life of the Messiah and walk according to the Spirit will sow according to the Spirit. Those who struggle with that and resist the life of the age to come, continuing to walk in the flesh, will sow according to the desires of the flesh.
Paul, as always, wants what is best for them. Paul is hardly motivated by a desire to fatten his own bank accounts, he realizes that how we use our resources, especially finances, is a direct reflection of where are our hearts are at. Just like the list of the fruit of the Spirit in chapter 5, this is another sign for the Galatians of where they stand as the people of God. Paul wants them to sow generously according to the Spirit to all people, but especially fellow members of the family of God. Money, in the Christian worldview, is never for one’s own enjoyment, it is a responsibility given by God. It can be used wisely and spiritually to produce a kingdom harvest that will last forever, or it can be used foolishly and selfishly to produce a temporal harvest that will soon fade away. For those who live in a society that has so much unprecedented wealth this is surely at least as important of a topic as it was for those in Galatia.
Devotional Thought
If you sow to the flesh in this present age, you will reap a harvest that is only of value in this present age. If you sow a harvest to the Spirit you will reap a harvest that will last for eternity. Where have you been sowing most of your resources, money and otherwise? What does this say about your true heart for God and His kingdom.
7Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. 8The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. 9Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. 10Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.
Dig Deeper
The other day I was eating some sunflower seeds. I don’t normally do this very often but there I was. As I was enjoying the salty goodness of the sunflower seed, I realized something. You can take a seed and eat it or you can take it and sow it. If you eat it, you can enjoy it for a moment but then it’s gone and that’s all there is to it. On the other hand, you can take a seed and plant it in the ground and it will grow and produce new life beyond itself. That’s always the choice that we have when it comes to seeds. Consume it now and let that be the end of it, or plant it and let it continue to produce fruit for future generations.
Paul addresses a topic in this passage that was evidently every bit as difficult to discuss in his day as it is in ours. In 2 Corinthians 8 and 9, Paul discusses the topic of money and giving to support God’s people and His church in depth without ever mentioning the word "money" itself. He does the same thing here. It might seem strange that near the end of a letter that has been all about recognizing who the true people of God are and learning to live that way that Paul would suddenly switch to such an earthy and seemingly unspiritual topic. Yet, we should know enough about Paul by now to realize that he has a very specific purpose in bringing up this topic, a purpose that is directly related to what he has been saying in this letter all along.
Verse 6 is often frequently taken out of context by those who would not bother to do a little work to understand what Paul is actually saying. What he is clearly not talking about is a situation in which anytime you are studying the Bible and learn something, you need to share it with your teacher so they can know it too. The Greek word, koinoneito, is translated ‘share’ but was a common Christian figure of speech for ‘making a financial contribution’. Paul is saying that those who are taught the word of God should take from the gifts that God has given them and support those who would teach them the word. Paul says this even more clearly in 1 Timothy 5:17 when he says that those who preach and teach are worthy of double honor (another euphemism for financial contribution). This is an often touchy subject in churches today, but one that Paul felt was important (some erroneously point to the fact that Paul refused support from the church in Corinth, but fail to notice that, as Paul makes clear in 2 Cor. 12:14, he does so because they are not yet mature enough to handle doing so).
This is why Paul goes into a discourse on sowing and reaping, no doubt with the image of the fruit from the end of chapter 5 still in mind. We can only speculate here but it seems likely that because of the controversy going and and the infighting that had been caused by the Judaizers that at least some in the Galatian churches were now refusing proper support of their teachers. Paul will not stand for this. His words are to the point and rather stinging. To do this would be to mock God. What seems like a very non-spiritual issue is, in fact, an extremely spiritually related concept. A man reap what he sows.
We now begin to see why Paul felt so strongly about this and why he felt it was related to the topic of demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit or the works of the flesh. If they were to sow according the Spirit, then that would include happily supporting teachers and preachers. It would even mean sacrificing personally so that more and more teachers and preachers would be supported. To keep the resources that they have for themselves would be to be deceived and to sow according to the flesh. It is like the choice between consuming the seed for yourself or planting it to produce further life. We can spend money on houses that decay, cars the depreciate, and material goods that fade or we can spend our resources on God’s kingdom and the ministry of His word. The result of which saves lives and restores communities in the great redeeming work of the almighty God.
Paul wants them to not become weary in doing good. ‘Doing good’ is another of those common phrases in Paul’s day that referred to financial contributions. If they sow their money generously and in accordance with God’s will it will reap a harvest of eternal life, the life of the age to come. Thus, for Paul it comes down quite clearly to matter of being the people of the age to come who live by faith in the life of Christ. Those who live by faith in the life of the Messiah and walk according to the Spirit will sow according to the Spirit. Those who struggle with that and resist the life of the age to come, continuing to walk in the flesh, will sow according to the desires of the flesh.
Paul, as always, wants what is best for them. Paul is hardly motivated by a desire to fatten his own bank accounts, he realizes that how we use our resources, especially finances, is a direct reflection of where are our hearts are at. Just like the list of the fruit of the Spirit in chapter 5, this is another sign for the Galatians of where they stand as the people of God. Paul wants them to sow generously according to the Spirit to all people, but especially fellow members of the family of God. Money, in the Christian worldview, is never for one’s own enjoyment, it is a responsibility given by God. It can be used wisely and spiritually to produce a kingdom harvest that will last forever, or it can be used foolishly and selfishly to produce a temporal harvest that will soon fade away. For those who live in a society that has so much unprecedented wealth this is surely at least as important of a topic as it was for those in Galatia.
Devotional Thought
If you sow to the flesh in this present age, you will reap a harvest that is only of value in this present age. If you sow a harvest to the Spirit you will reap a harvest that will last for eternity. Where have you been sowing most of your resources, money and otherwise? What does this say about your true heart for God and His kingdom.
Thursday, February 07, 2008
Galatians 6:1-5
Doing Good to All
1Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5for each one should carry his own load.
Dig Deeper
At the end of every timeout or similar situations, the basketball team I coached would put their hands in the middle of our huddle and shout "one team, one mind." This was meant to stress for them over and over again that they were in it together. All the divisions and self-attention that might tempt them should be left at the door when it came to truly playing like and being a team. If they really wanted to win then they had to be the type of community that thought together, worked for a common goal, and helped one another when a teammate got into a bad spot. At the same time, however, that couldn’t go too far. We had to make sure that they didn’t take the team concept to the point where their individual work, effort, and responsibility no longer mattered. They couldn’t get to the place where they felt that everybody else’s hard work and discipline would cover up for their own laziness, shortcuts, or failings. Yes, they were a team, but they also had the individual responsibility to do their own part to be a part of that team.
The same concept applies to those who have laid down their own individual lives, dying to selves, and entered into the common life of the Messiah that all believers share. We are called to be one body, one community in the Messiah. This is a community where we truly strive to live with the concept, "one body, one mind" (the body and mind of Christ). This was a particularly important message for those in Galatia who were struggling with quarreling and infighting as a result of the controversial teachings of the Judaizers. It was time to leave all of that behind and truly become one in Christ again. Yet, at the same time, they had to be careful not to get into the mindset that they could skate by without taking any personal responsibility, merely relying on the holiness and forgiveness of the other people in the community.
Although Paul’s opening words here of chapter 6 form some principles that rightly can and should be applied universally within the body of Christ when dealing with those who had fallen into sin, he is clearly addressing a specific situation. The Judaizers had come into the churches and stirred up all kinds of factions and feelings as a result of their teachings on circumcision and following the rules of the Jewish law. When that type of thing happens it is easy to fall into bitter modes of thinking and not want to forgive in a godly way. Paul will have none of that. A body of Christ that will not forgive and gently restore those who desire restoration after falling into sin is really not behaving like a body of Christ at all. There has been sin and divisions in the churches in Galatia, but now is time for gentle restoration. The temptation would be for people in Galatia to think of themselves as one type of Christian, perhaps a ‘free’ Christian, and look down on other types that had showed themselves. It would be easy to get arrogant and act smugly towards those who had erred. This, however, would run directly counter to Paul’s vision of all people being on equal footing in the body of Christ (Gal. 3:26-29). If everyone is going to be equal and care for one another, then this applies to them not just in theory but also in practice. If Christ carried his cross for others, so must his people be prepared to shoulder burdens and show concern for one another. As Paul usually does, though, he gives them a general principle and leaves it to them to work out the specific situations to which it will apply.
Paul again returns to the concept of law since it has been the center of so much of the controversy. If they really want to follow a law, then it isn’t the checklist mentality of the law of Moses that they need. It is the love-centered law of Christ. It is, after all, love the embodies and characterizes the law of Christ. In fact, Paul uses a key word, ‘fulfill’, to get that point across. One needed to keep the law of Moses, but you fulfill the law of Christ. It is not something that can be kept, but must be thought through, discerned, and finally embodied.
When Paul says if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he is not referring to their social status, but rather their spiritual state. He could be and probably is referring to both sides of the major issue here. Those who tend towards the Jewish law certainly shouldn’t think of themselves as a better sort of Christian, but neither should those who were never tempted by following the law. The issue at hand is about being a single body in the Messiah, not who was right or wrong. If you begin to think that, Paul says, you have fallen into deception. If you somehow think that you have attained a level of Christianity from which you can look down on others, then that is evidence all by itself that you have not. It is like taking pride in being humble; it simply cannot happen. Instead, each person should scrutinize their actions and see whether they are truly in Christ or not. If they are, then they can boast in Christ for what he has done in transforming them into the character of Christ. This is not the kind of worldly boasting and pride where you compare yourself to someone else. It is the godly sort of boasting that directs all praise and glory to God.
Paul makes a statement in verse 5 that, at first glance, seems to contradict what he just said in verse 2. In verse 5 he says, each one should carry his own load, but he had just written that they should carry each other’s burdens. This is the great paradox of truly being a part of a team or a community. You must be unified and help one another by carry the burdens (a word which means something along the lines of shouldering a heavy boulder) but at the same time you can’t sit back and try to slide by on the work and genuine efforts of everyone else. If you do that then you are not really a part of that community. When it comes to one another, we must offer help and love one another, but when it comes to ourselves, we have to bear the responsibility for our own load (a word that means something like shoulder bag). Thus bearing one another’s burdens is balanced out in a healthy community by carrying our own load. When we find that balance as a body of Christ we will be well on our way to realizing the true life of the body of Christ in a world that knows little of this type of genuine community life.
Devotional Thought
When you come across someone who is caught in sin, what is your response? Do you, by your actions, try to distance yourself from that as quickly as possible and deal with them harshly? Or do you carry their burden and restore them gently? Remember, we are also called to carry our own load. Are you doing that or do you often rely on the efforts of others in the community to help others and support the life of the community?
1Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. 2Carry each other's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. 3If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. 4Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, 5for each one should carry his own load.
Dig Deeper
At the end of every timeout or similar situations, the basketball team I coached would put their hands in the middle of our huddle and shout "one team, one mind." This was meant to stress for them over and over again that they were in it together. All the divisions and self-attention that might tempt them should be left at the door when it came to truly playing like and being a team. If they really wanted to win then they had to be the type of community that thought together, worked for a common goal, and helped one another when a teammate got into a bad spot. At the same time, however, that couldn’t go too far. We had to make sure that they didn’t take the team concept to the point where their individual work, effort, and responsibility no longer mattered. They couldn’t get to the place where they felt that everybody else’s hard work and discipline would cover up for their own laziness, shortcuts, or failings. Yes, they were a team, but they also had the individual responsibility to do their own part to be a part of that team.
The same concept applies to those who have laid down their own individual lives, dying to selves, and entered into the common life of the Messiah that all believers share. We are called to be one body, one community in the Messiah. This is a community where we truly strive to live with the concept, "one body, one mind" (the body and mind of Christ). This was a particularly important message for those in Galatia who were struggling with quarreling and infighting as a result of the controversial teachings of the Judaizers. It was time to leave all of that behind and truly become one in Christ again. Yet, at the same time, they had to be careful not to get into the mindset that they could skate by without taking any personal responsibility, merely relying on the holiness and forgiveness of the other people in the community.
Although Paul’s opening words here of chapter 6 form some principles that rightly can and should be applied universally within the body of Christ when dealing with those who had fallen into sin, he is clearly addressing a specific situation. The Judaizers had come into the churches and stirred up all kinds of factions and feelings as a result of their teachings on circumcision and following the rules of the Jewish law. When that type of thing happens it is easy to fall into bitter modes of thinking and not want to forgive in a godly way. Paul will have none of that. A body of Christ that will not forgive and gently restore those who desire restoration after falling into sin is really not behaving like a body of Christ at all. There has been sin and divisions in the churches in Galatia, but now is time for gentle restoration. The temptation would be for people in Galatia to think of themselves as one type of Christian, perhaps a ‘free’ Christian, and look down on other types that had showed themselves. It would be easy to get arrogant and act smugly towards those who had erred. This, however, would run directly counter to Paul’s vision of all people being on equal footing in the body of Christ (Gal. 3:26-29). If everyone is going to be equal and care for one another, then this applies to them not just in theory but also in practice. If Christ carried his cross for others, so must his people be prepared to shoulder burdens and show concern for one another. As Paul usually does, though, he gives them a general principle and leaves it to them to work out the specific situations to which it will apply.
Paul again returns to the concept of law since it has been the center of so much of the controversy. If they really want to follow a law, then it isn’t the checklist mentality of the law of Moses that they need. It is the love-centered law of Christ. It is, after all, love the embodies and characterizes the law of Christ. In fact, Paul uses a key word, ‘fulfill’, to get that point across. One needed to keep the law of Moses, but you fulfill the law of Christ. It is not something that can be kept, but must be thought through, discerned, and finally embodied.
When Paul says if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he is not referring to their social status, but rather their spiritual state. He could be and probably is referring to both sides of the major issue here. Those who tend towards the Jewish law certainly shouldn’t think of themselves as a better sort of Christian, but neither should those who were never tempted by following the law. The issue at hand is about being a single body in the Messiah, not who was right or wrong. If you begin to think that, Paul says, you have fallen into deception. If you somehow think that you have attained a level of Christianity from which you can look down on others, then that is evidence all by itself that you have not. It is like taking pride in being humble; it simply cannot happen. Instead, each person should scrutinize their actions and see whether they are truly in Christ or not. If they are, then they can boast in Christ for what he has done in transforming them into the character of Christ. This is not the kind of worldly boasting and pride where you compare yourself to someone else. It is the godly sort of boasting that directs all praise and glory to God.
Paul makes a statement in verse 5 that, at first glance, seems to contradict what he just said in verse 2. In verse 5 he says, each one should carry his own load, but he had just written that they should carry each other’s burdens. This is the great paradox of truly being a part of a team or a community. You must be unified and help one another by carry the burdens (a word which means something along the lines of shouldering a heavy boulder) but at the same time you can’t sit back and try to slide by on the work and genuine efforts of everyone else. If you do that then you are not really a part of that community. When it comes to one another, we must offer help and love one another, but when it comes to ourselves, we have to bear the responsibility for our own load (a word that means something like shoulder bag). Thus bearing one another’s burdens is balanced out in a healthy community by carrying our own load. When we find that balance as a body of Christ we will be well on our way to realizing the true life of the body of Christ in a world that knows little of this type of genuine community life.
Devotional Thought
When you come across someone who is caught in sin, what is your response? Do you, by your actions, try to distance yourself from that as quickly as possible and deal with them harshly? Or do you carry their burden and restore them gently? Remember, we are also called to carry our own load. Are you doing that or do you often rely on the efforts of others in the community to help others and support the life of the community?
Wednesday, February 06, 2008
Galatians 5:13-26
13You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. 14The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself." 15If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
Life by the Spirit
16So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 17For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Dig Deeper
The first year that I went out to Oklahoma Wesleyan University, I went to be part of the basketball team. A few weeks before we had our first official practice, we began what was going to be three weeks of conditioning, a brutal stretch of running and weight lifting intended to get us physically and mentally ready for practice. After two weeks, the coach informed us that we had three days off over the weekend to get away from campus and enjoy ourselves. Just as we were looking forward to our freedom, he informed us that he expected that we would continue our intense training on our own over the weekend. He then gave us a list of things that we should and shouldn’t do over the weekend. He made it clear that it was not as though are status on the team would be determined by whether or not we followed the list, but whether we followed the list would prove whether we were really on this team in our heart or not. In other words, he wasn’t going to ask us whether we followed the plan, but he would know based on our performance on Monday and the days following. The list he gave us wasn’t a checklist to keep us on or kick us off the team. It was a description of what the weekend of the guys who were truly committed to the team would look like. That would only become clear if we had the freedom to not follow it. He wasn’t as concerned with finding out who followed it as he was with us discovering for ourselves what kind of players we were. Interestingly, I knew of several guys that didn’t follow the regimen, and nearly everyone of them quit the team before we got to our first game. The freedom and the list were warnings so that we could look to see what kind of people we were.
This is basically what Paul is doing here. He is entailing the difference between those who are living in Christ and those who are not. The lists of the acts of the flesh (the NIV translates it "sinful nature") and the fruit of the Spirit are not a checklist of "do this and you’re in" or "do these and you’re out." They are all about the Christians in Galatia, and all Christians, being able to judge what kind of people they are. Just like the guys on our team, though, they could only truly examine themselves if they had the freedom that comes from Christ. Then they could look at their behavior and see whether they were people of faith or unbelief.
Freedom is part and parcel of the life in Christ, we have the freedom to choose to be driven by the Spirit or out flesh (the realm of our natures continues in disobedience to the will of God), a choice that those still in complete slavery to sin and the flesh do not have. The person who is not in Christ cannot live a life according to the will of God. Paul warns his brothers in Galatia to remember that they were called to freedom and should not abuse that by indulging in the flesh and focusing on themselves. Rather the goal of freedom in Christ is to serve one another in love. You want to know what kind of person you are, says Paul, whether you are truly in Christ or not, take a look at your life. What do you see? Do you see someone who constantly is animated by the flesh and self-indulgent or do you see someone who follows the example of the Messiah by loving and serving others (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45)?
If they really want to keep the law, then the entire law is summed up in one command, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Of course Paul knows that Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love God, and the love for neighbors came in at number two (Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27), but the only way for one to examine whether they are really living out the greatest commandment, to see whether they are in the Spirit or not, is to examine themselves by their love for others (John 13:35). As it is, all of the infighting and arguing that has gone on surrounding the issue of circumcision and other matters are a dangerous warning that their loyalties seem to be siding more with their own flesh than with the desires of the Spirit. They need to watch out or the church will quickly find themselves devouring one another to the point that they are no longer a church of believers in Christ. That’s Paul’s point; if one is animated by and driven according to the flesh it is solid evidence that they are not walking according to the Spirit and that’s a clear warning sign that someone is not remaining in Christ as He said they must do (John 15:4-6).
People often misunderstand what Paul is saying in this section. It is not about where you are going, whether it be heaven or hell, although that will ultimately come into play. It is not a list of do’s and don’ts where if you get it wrong the hammer will come down on you. No, it’s not so much about where you are going, it’s about where you stand. Paul talks of the works (acts in the NIV) of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit as signs to point to where you truly stand, whether in Christ or in the flesh. Do you put your faith in the life of Christ or the works of the flesh? It should not be missed, the difference that Paul makes between works and fruit. Works are something we do externally that do not last. Fruit is not something that we cannot produce on our own. It comes from surrendering to the Spirit and allowing him to produce the fruit in our lives, and it lasts for eternity.
In the end, it comes down to what kind of substance people are. There will be a time when the presence of God, which is a consuming fire for those in the present age (Deut. 4:24; Ps. 97:3;; Gen. 19:23-24; Ex. 19:18-22; Lev. 10:1-2; Num. 11:1-3; 26:9-10; Deut. 4:33; 5:26; 9:3; 1 Ki. 18:36-39; 2 Ki. 1:10-15; Ex. 3:2; 13:21; 14:19-20; Ps. 78:14; Ex. 24:15-18; Num. 9:15-16; 2 Ki. 2:11; 6:17; Is. 6:6; Ezek. 1:5-6; Dan. 3:19-27; 7:9-11; Acts 2:1-3; Ex. 35:3; Lev. 9:23-24; 2 Chron. 7:1-3). The Bible depicts things that are profane being burned up by God while things that God has deemed holy as being purified and protected by His consuming fire. The prophets spoke of a time when God’s presence would fill the earth and would either consume or purify everything based on it’s substance (Is. 4:4-5; 33:14-22; 66:15-18, 22-24; Jer. 23:29; Zech. 2:3-5; 13:7-9; Mal. 3:2-4, 2 Pet. 3:3-13; Ps. 102:25-26; see also 1 Cor. 3:10-15). Paul wants the Galatians to examine themselves and see if they are people exhibiting the signs of people of the age to come or not, people that will be able to withstand the holy presence of the living God.
Those who are in Christ, have died to self, and made a commitment to live according to the animating power of the Holy Spirit rather than the flesh. When one is living is Christ and exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit, there is no law that is needed. Paul makes an important judgment that he wants the Galatians to recall. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Paul has already said that he is convinced in the Lord that they will remember who they are in Christ, now he confirms his belief in them. The issue is not that he thinks that they have walked out of their life in Christ, although that is a danger if they choose to keep walking according to the flesh. The issue is that they stop all of this infighting, arguing, and clinging to the flesh and keep in step with the Spirit. The law could never produce fruit only demand works. If they, and we, want to be people of the age to come, then we need the power of the Spirit to produce true fruit in our lives.
Devotional Thought
When is the last time that you truly examined yourself according to the fruit of the Spirit and the works of the flesh? When is the last time you asked someone close to you about which ones they see evident in your life?
Life by the Spirit
16So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 17For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
19The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
22But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26Let us not become conceited, provoking and envying each other.
Dig Deeper
The first year that I went out to Oklahoma Wesleyan University, I went to be part of the basketball team. A few weeks before we had our first official practice, we began what was going to be three weeks of conditioning, a brutal stretch of running and weight lifting intended to get us physically and mentally ready for practice. After two weeks, the coach informed us that we had three days off over the weekend to get away from campus and enjoy ourselves. Just as we were looking forward to our freedom, he informed us that he expected that we would continue our intense training on our own over the weekend. He then gave us a list of things that we should and shouldn’t do over the weekend. He made it clear that it was not as though are status on the team would be determined by whether or not we followed the list, but whether we followed the list would prove whether we were really on this team in our heart or not. In other words, he wasn’t going to ask us whether we followed the plan, but he would know based on our performance on Monday and the days following. The list he gave us wasn’t a checklist to keep us on or kick us off the team. It was a description of what the weekend of the guys who were truly committed to the team would look like. That would only become clear if we had the freedom to not follow it. He wasn’t as concerned with finding out who followed it as he was with us discovering for ourselves what kind of players we were. Interestingly, I knew of several guys that didn’t follow the regimen, and nearly everyone of them quit the team before we got to our first game. The freedom and the list were warnings so that we could look to see what kind of people we were.
This is basically what Paul is doing here. He is entailing the difference between those who are living in Christ and those who are not. The lists of the acts of the flesh (the NIV translates it "sinful nature") and the fruit of the Spirit are not a checklist of "do this and you’re in" or "do these and you’re out." They are all about the Christians in Galatia, and all Christians, being able to judge what kind of people they are. Just like the guys on our team, though, they could only truly examine themselves if they had the freedom that comes from Christ. Then they could look at their behavior and see whether they were people of faith or unbelief.
Freedom is part and parcel of the life in Christ, we have the freedom to choose to be driven by the Spirit or out flesh (the realm of our natures continues in disobedience to the will of God), a choice that those still in complete slavery to sin and the flesh do not have. The person who is not in Christ cannot live a life according to the will of God. Paul warns his brothers in Galatia to remember that they were called to freedom and should not abuse that by indulging in the flesh and focusing on themselves. Rather the goal of freedom in Christ is to serve one another in love. You want to know what kind of person you are, says Paul, whether you are truly in Christ or not, take a look at your life. What do you see? Do you see someone who constantly is animated by the flesh and self-indulgent or do you see someone who follows the example of the Messiah by loving and serving others (Matt. 20:28; Mark 10:45)?
If they really want to keep the law, then the entire law is summed up in one command, "Love your neighbor as yourself." Of course Paul knows that Jesus said the greatest commandment was to love God, and the love for neighbors came in at number two (Matt. 22:37; Mark 12:30; Luke 10:27), but the only way for one to examine whether they are really living out the greatest commandment, to see whether they are in the Spirit or not, is to examine themselves by their love for others (John 13:35). As it is, all of the infighting and arguing that has gone on surrounding the issue of circumcision and other matters are a dangerous warning that their loyalties seem to be siding more with their own flesh than with the desires of the Spirit. They need to watch out or the church will quickly find themselves devouring one another to the point that they are no longer a church of believers in Christ. That’s Paul’s point; if one is animated by and driven according to the flesh it is solid evidence that they are not walking according to the Spirit and that’s a clear warning sign that someone is not remaining in Christ as He said they must do (John 15:4-6).
People often misunderstand what Paul is saying in this section. It is not about where you are going, whether it be heaven or hell, although that will ultimately come into play. It is not a list of do’s and don’ts where if you get it wrong the hammer will come down on you. No, it’s not so much about where you are going, it’s about where you stand. Paul talks of the works (acts in the NIV) of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit as signs to point to where you truly stand, whether in Christ or in the flesh. Do you put your faith in the life of Christ or the works of the flesh? It should not be missed, the difference that Paul makes between works and fruit. Works are something we do externally that do not last. Fruit is not something that we cannot produce on our own. It comes from surrendering to the Spirit and allowing him to produce the fruit in our lives, and it lasts for eternity.
In the end, it comes down to what kind of substance people are. There will be a time when the presence of God, which is a consuming fire for those in the present age (Deut. 4:24; Ps. 97:3;; Gen. 19:23-24; Ex. 19:18-22; Lev. 10:1-2; Num. 11:1-3; 26:9-10; Deut. 4:33; 5:26; 9:3; 1 Ki. 18:36-39; 2 Ki. 1:10-15; Ex. 3:2; 13:21; 14:19-20; Ps. 78:14; Ex. 24:15-18; Num. 9:15-16; 2 Ki. 2:11; 6:17; Is. 6:6; Ezek. 1:5-6; Dan. 3:19-27; 7:9-11; Acts 2:1-3; Ex. 35:3; Lev. 9:23-24; 2 Chron. 7:1-3). The Bible depicts things that are profane being burned up by God while things that God has deemed holy as being purified and protected by His consuming fire. The prophets spoke of a time when God’s presence would fill the earth and would either consume or purify everything based on it’s substance (Is. 4:4-5; 33:14-22; 66:15-18, 22-24; Jer. 23:29; Zech. 2:3-5; 13:7-9; Mal. 3:2-4, 2 Pet. 3:3-13; Ps. 102:25-26; see also 1 Cor. 3:10-15). Paul wants the Galatians to examine themselves and see if they are people exhibiting the signs of people of the age to come or not, people that will be able to withstand the holy presence of the living God.
Those who are in Christ, have died to self, and made a commitment to live according to the animating power of the Holy Spirit rather than the flesh. When one is living is Christ and exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit, there is no law that is needed. Paul makes an important judgment that he wants the Galatians to recall. Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Paul has already said that he is convinced in the Lord that they will remember who they are in Christ, now he confirms his belief in them. The issue is not that he thinks that they have walked out of their life in Christ, although that is a danger if they choose to keep walking according to the flesh. The issue is that they stop all of this infighting, arguing, and clinging to the flesh and keep in step with the Spirit. The law could never produce fruit only demand works. If they, and we, want to be people of the age to come, then we need the power of the Spirit to produce true fruit in our lives.
Devotional Thought
When is the last time that you truly examined yourself according to the fruit of the Spirit and the works of the flesh? When is the last time you asked someone close to you about which ones they see evident in your life?
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
Galatians 5:7-12
7You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? 8That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9"A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough." 10I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. 11Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!
Dig Deeper
Years ago, while I was teaching, one of my fellow teachers at our high school had a geography class that was pretty well behaved and seemed to be doing well. The school took in a new transfer student who was a senior. He had to take that particular geography class in order to graduate on time. The problem is that he was an extremely difficult student to deal with and he was also quite a leader among the other students, many of whom knew him already. He immediately changed the entire atmosphere of the class to the point where the teacher pretty much lost control of the class. They were doing well but he had cut in on them in the middle of the semester and his influence had spread throughout the entire class like yeast. The administration was determined that they were not going to take the young man out of the class so they decided to give some excuse (that I can’t recall) to the class, moved the other teacher into a different class, and moved me in to take the class over for the semester. It was my job to come in and get the class back on course, convincing them that this young man had led them down the wrong path.
This is what has happened, in Paul’s eyes, to the churches in Galatia. They were doing well, going down the right path and then the wheels came off. It was not due to them being lukewarm or unconcerned. Quite the opposite, in fact. Paul never questions their sincerity but he does feel that they have allowed themselves to be influenced inappropriately by the Judaizers. We can almost feel Paul’s emotion welling up in this section as he breathlessly switches from one metaphor to another to make his overall point, which is that they have gotten off track and it is his job to get them back on course.
Paul’s first image comes from the world of Greek athletics, an image that might not have worked so well with a strictly Jewish audience. The type of games and races in which the Greeks competed were off limits for Jews because they competed in the nude. This doesn’t stop Paul from using a good metaphor when he sees one, though. This is not the only place in his writings where Paul compares the Christian life to a race. Here he gives the image of the Galatians running well, then suddenly another runner cuts in front of them and obstructs their path causing them to swerve. His point is that the Judaizers haven’t just slowed them down, or weighed them down with a heavier yoke, they have actually caused them to swerve off course which has kept them from obeying the truth. This shows us how seriously Paul takes false teaching. It is not a small matter than can actually obstruct otherwise sincere Christians and force them into a different path altogether.
Paul, in verse 8, quickly moves into the image of a courtroom (to which he will return in verse 10). The word ‘persuasion’ carries the meaning of a legal argument which persuades others. Paul’s point is that the agitators have come in with their impressive sounding arguments (false teachers always sound good and are quite fascinating, otherwise know one would be swayed by them) and have persuaded the Galatians to follow a different course. One thing that Paul is sure of is that this sort of destructive teaching did not come from the one who calls you, which is one of Paul’s frequent terms for God.
Another verse, another image from Paul, this time from the world of the kitchen. Paul gives a picture of a small amount of yeast working through an entire batch of dough and changing its composition. Only a few bits of yeast are necessary as they will quickly make its way through the whole loaf. For a Jew, there was more to this than just a cooking image, however. Yeast is traditionally banned from a Jewish kitchen during Passover time as it became a picture of compromising with sin. If left unchecked, the yeast of the Judaizers will not just be a small aberration in an otherwise wonderful church. It will quickly work its way through the entire belief system of the congregation and fundamentally change who and what they are.
Paul says that he is confident in the Lord that they will see thing his way. By this, Paul probably means that he has prayed this matter over thoroughly, and, as one who is in Christ. is confident that they, who are also in Christ, will see things in the proper perspective. He is convinced that they will make the right choice and they will make the godly decisions. Paul returns to the courtroom saying that the person throwing them into confusion will pay the penalty. It is not certain whether Paul does not really know the identity of the primary agitator (he seems to be implying that there is one individual that is behind stirring things up), or if he is referring to his uncertainty as to the actual position of this person while intentionally not mentioning his name. Whatever it is, he has come to the conviction in the Lord that the Galatians will make up their minds and return to the life of Christ, while these false teachers will be left to pay the stricter penalty that comes along with the office of teacher.
Paul makes another quick jump, this time to his own life and work. Verse 11 is most likely a reference to the fact that Paul had once taught the importance of circumcision before his conversion or it could be more nefarious than that. It is possible that the Judaizers were claiming that Paul still taught the importance of circumcision but had just not gotten to it while in Galatia, so they were coming and filling in the gaps for him. The apostle wants them to understand that this is absolutely false. If he were still preaching that circumcision was necessary then most Jews would not have had a problem with him. There was plenty of room within the walls of Judaism for someone who taught the importance of upholding the law, even if they had a belief that a particular teacher was or had been the Messiah. Paul says elsewhere that the Cross was a stumbling block to the Jews (1 Cor. 1:23). The term ‘stumbling block’ actually means ‘scandal’. So, what was the scandal that stood in their way? The scandalous part of the message of the Cross for Jews was that it required them to trust in the life of the Messiah rather than their own ethnic identity; it removed the boast that they were the true people of God.
When Paul says that he wished that if they were so concerned with circumcision, he wished they would go the whole way and castrate themselves, this is probably not a coarse, if not somewhat hyperbolic joke. It was the pagan eunuch priests of Asia Minor that castrated themselves in honor of their barbarous gods. Paul’s point is that if they are going to put confidence in things of the flesh like circumcision, which no longer held any relevance for those in Christ, then they might as well go all the way and engage in obviously pagan practices. A clock that is five minutes off and one that is five hours off, are both wrong, but the one that is five minutes wrong has much more potential to fool someone. Paul wishes that these false teachers would just engage in full-blown pagan practices so that it will not fool any more Christians (of course, Paul doesn’t really want anyone to engage in those sort of acts, but his point has been made).
The warning of this passage for us is clear and stark. False teachings matter and are dangerous. If we fail to confront them head on and with assertiveness, lasting and profound damage can be done to individuals and the church as a whole. This is not just a task for teachers and ministers, but is one for which all Christians must be on guard.
Devotional Thought
What would you do if you felt that a serious false teaching had crept into your Christian community? Would you even be aware of it? What if it were in a fellowship that was in other town? Would you stand up for the truth or just assume that it was their problem to deal with? Why is it important for each of us to be prepared against false teaching?
Dig Deeper
Years ago, while I was teaching, one of my fellow teachers at our high school had a geography class that was pretty well behaved and seemed to be doing well. The school took in a new transfer student who was a senior. He had to take that particular geography class in order to graduate on time. The problem is that he was an extremely difficult student to deal with and he was also quite a leader among the other students, many of whom knew him already. He immediately changed the entire atmosphere of the class to the point where the teacher pretty much lost control of the class. They were doing well but he had cut in on them in the middle of the semester and his influence had spread throughout the entire class like yeast. The administration was determined that they were not going to take the young man out of the class so they decided to give some excuse (that I can’t recall) to the class, moved the other teacher into a different class, and moved me in to take the class over for the semester. It was my job to come in and get the class back on course, convincing them that this young man had led them down the wrong path.
This is what has happened, in Paul’s eyes, to the churches in Galatia. They were doing well, going down the right path and then the wheels came off. It was not due to them being lukewarm or unconcerned. Quite the opposite, in fact. Paul never questions their sincerity but he does feel that they have allowed themselves to be influenced inappropriately by the Judaizers. We can almost feel Paul’s emotion welling up in this section as he breathlessly switches from one metaphor to another to make his overall point, which is that they have gotten off track and it is his job to get them back on course.
Paul’s first image comes from the world of Greek athletics, an image that might not have worked so well with a strictly Jewish audience. The type of games and races in which the Greeks competed were off limits for Jews because they competed in the nude. This doesn’t stop Paul from using a good metaphor when he sees one, though. This is not the only place in his writings where Paul compares the Christian life to a race. Here he gives the image of the Galatians running well, then suddenly another runner cuts in front of them and obstructs their path causing them to swerve. His point is that the Judaizers haven’t just slowed them down, or weighed them down with a heavier yoke, they have actually caused them to swerve off course which has kept them from obeying the truth. This shows us how seriously Paul takes false teaching. It is not a small matter than can actually obstruct otherwise sincere Christians and force them into a different path altogether.
Paul, in verse 8, quickly moves into the image of a courtroom (to which he will return in verse 10). The word ‘persuasion’ carries the meaning of a legal argument which persuades others. Paul’s point is that the agitators have come in with their impressive sounding arguments (false teachers always sound good and are quite fascinating, otherwise know one would be swayed by them) and have persuaded the Galatians to follow a different course. One thing that Paul is sure of is that this sort of destructive teaching did not come from the one who calls you, which is one of Paul’s frequent terms for God.
Another verse, another image from Paul, this time from the world of the kitchen. Paul gives a picture of a small amount of yeast working through an entire batch of dough and changing its composition. Only a few bits of yeast are necessary as they will quickly make its way through the whole loaf. For a Jew, there was more to this than just a cooking image, however. Yeast is traditionally banned from a Jewish kitchen during Passover time as it became a picture of compromising with sin. If left unchecked, the yeast of the Judaizers will not just be a small aberration in an otherwise wonderful church. It will quickly work its way through the entire belief system of the congregation and fundamentally change who and what they are.
Paul says that he is confident in the Lord that they will see thing his way. By this, Paul probably means that he has prayed this matter over thoroughly, and, as one who is in Christ. is confident that they, who are also in Christ, will see things in the proper perspective. He is convinced that they will make the right choice and they will make the godly decisions. Paul returns to the courtroom saying that the person throwing them into confusion will pay the penalty. It is not certain whether Paul does not really know the identity of the primary agitator (he seems to be implying that there is one individual that is behind stirring things up), or if he is referring to his uncertainty as to the actual position of this person while intentionally not mentioning his name. Whatever it is, he has come to the conviction in the Lord that the Galatians will make up their minds and return to the life of Christ, while these false teachers will be left to pay the stricter penalty that comes along with the office of teacher.
Paul makes another quick jump, this time to his own life and work. Verse 11 is most likely a reference to the fact that Paul had once taught the importance of circumcision before his conversion or it could be more nefarious than that. It is possible that the Judaizers were claiming that Paul still taught the importance of circumcision but had just not gotten to it while in Galatia, so they were coming and filling in the gaps for him. The apostle wants them to understand that this is absolutely false. If he were still preaching that circumcision was necessary then most Jews would not have had a problem with him. There was plenty of room within the walls of Judaism for someone who taught the importance of upholding the law, even if they had a belief that a particular teacher was or had been the Messiah. Paul says elsewhere that the Cross was a stumbling block to the Jews (1 Cor. 1:23). The term ‘stumbling block’ actually means ‘scandal’. So, what was the scandal that stood in their way? The scandalous part of the message of the Cross for Jews was that it required them to trust in the life of the Messiah rather than their own ethnic identity; it removed the boast that they were the true people of God.
When Paul says that he wished that if they were so concerned with circumcision, he wished they would go the whole way and castrate themselves, this is probably not a coarse, if not somewhat hyperbolic joke. It was the pagan eunuch priests of Asia Minor that castrated themselves in honor of their barbarous gods. Paul’s point is that if they are going to put confidence in things of the flesh like circumcision, which no longer held any relevance for those in Christ, then they might as well go all the way and engage in obviously pagan practices. A clock that is five minutes off and one that is five hours off, are both wrong, but the one that is five minutes wrong has much more potential to fool someone. Paul wishes that these false teachers would just engage in full-blown pagan practices so that it will not fool any more Christians (of course, Paul doesn’t really want anyone to engage in those sort of acts, but his point has been made).
The warning of this passage for us is clear and stark. False teachings matter and are dangerous. If we fail to confront them head on and with assertiveness, lasting and profound damage can be done to individuals and the church as a whole. This is not just a task for teachers and ministers, but is one for which all Christians must be on guard.
Devotional Thought
What would you do if you felt that a serious false teaching had crept into your Christian community? Would you even be aware of it? What if it were in a fellowship that was in other town? Would you stand up for the truth or just assume that it was their problem to deal with? Why is it important for each of us to be prepared against false teaching?
Monday, February 04, 2008
Galatians 5:1-6
Freedom in Christ
1It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
2Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
Dig Deeper
My last year in college I had to do a semester of student teaching, as I was a secondary social studies education major. I was lucky enough to receive a mentor teacher who was a National Geographic Teacher of the Year award winner. Student teaching was a good thing for me because I had much to learn; I was not ready to handle a classroom by myself. As the semester started, I taught with my mentor teacher in the room and I was basically teaching his lesson plans. As the semester went on, he was in the room less and less and I used my own material, but I still had to follow his basic guidelines and structure. It was helpful at the time, but it was also rather limiting. Once I graduated and was hired as a teacher, I no longer needed my mentor teacher nor his structure and guidelines. I had learned valuable things from him, but I was now free to think things through for myself and do things in a manner that was more appropriate with the situation in which I was teaching.
Paul believes the law to have been a necessary but temporary aspect of the old covenant. It was not part of the original promise although it helped Israel to get to the time when the Messiah had come and God’s promise fulfilled. Imagine, though, if while being employed as a full-time teacher I tried to rely on my mentor teacher the way I had while student teaching. That simply wasn’t available to me and I would have been in a bit of trouble if I firmly believed that I still needed him. This is Paul’s point. The time has come for God’s people to go out on their own. The law was a temporary time of both restriction and instruction but now the time had come for their own freedom in Christ. Their mentorship under the law had come to an end and was no longer available. God’s new age had broken in and they simply could not go back to the old age, nor (Paul wants them to understand) should they want to.
Perhaps one of the most misunderstood and misused concepts in Christianity today is the topic of freedom in Christ. Before we can rightly examine what freedom in Christ is, we need to be clear about what it is not. When Paul talks of freedom in Christ he doesn’t mean that Christians have the right to do whatever they want regardless of what others around them might think and with no thought to the impact of our decisions on others. Many have used freedom in Christ as a license to justify whatever behaviors or patterns in which they have decided to engage (1 Cor. 10:23-33 dispels that notion). We will leave that topic for another discussion, but suffice it to say, that is not at all what Paul is talking about here.
In the past, the way to demonstrate that Israel was the people of God was by following the law, the most obvious aspect of which was circumcision. This was their way to God, but what Paul is telling them is that that option is no longer available to them. If they still want to cling to a temporary physical covenant then they are clinging to slavery. God’s ultimate purpose has always been to have a free people that have willingly chosen a relationship with him, thus it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Freedom in Christ is not about being able to skip church when you want or take up your agenda in opposition to what church leadership has chosen (again, those are different topics for a different discussion), it is about being free from the slavery of sin and the present age.
If they continue to cling to things like circumcision then they are saying that the life of Christ is not enough. In that case, Christ will be of no value. If we cling to any aspect of the present age as though it were supreme to the life of Christ, even if it is something as holy as God’s law, then we have missed the whole point of Christ and the freedom that he brings by allowing us to die to our lives and enter into His. If they put even one part of the law on an equal plane with Christ, then they have obligated themselves to obey the whole law.
They were trying to be shown to be the people of God through means other than the life of Christ, which no matter how you work it, means that they believed they could enact their own righteousness. It would be to fall away from grace and believe in the works of the law to demonstrate that they were the people of God. To cling to the law meant to declare that they didn’t want to be people that were recognizable solely by living by faith in the life of the Messiah.
Those who are the true people of the Messiah, wait eagerly by faith through the Spirit for the righteousness for which we hope. When Paul speaks of righteousness he refers to the evidence that we are standing in the right place before God, that we are the true people of God. What he means then, is that there will be a time when God will publicly and unquestionably declare that all those who have been hidden in Christ (Col. 3:3) are His people. The hope for righteousness is confidently waiting for that time when God will vindicate and justify His people in the age to come. We wait for this time not by the works of the law or the flesh but by the Spirit of God. He is the only means through which we can enter in and maintain the life of Christ. We can recognize the status we have in Christ not by a minor surgery or by maintaining the works of the law, but by a life characterized by the presence of the Spirit (something Paul is about to discuss further in the latter portion of this chapter).
In several other places in his writings, Paul has made clear that any status or position outside of Christ becomes irrelevant to that (Gal. 3:27, 1 Cor. 7:17-24; Philemon). He continues that thought in the discussion at hand concerning circumcision. Paul does deal with the matter evenhandedly, though. Circumcision is of no value, but it is not as if those who are not circumcised are at an advantage either. When it comes to the matter of being the people of God, circumcision is simply irrelevant (it is not wrong to be circumcised, only to claim it is necessary for one’s status with God). Physical marks do not make one a part of Abraham’s family; it is faith and faith alone. Faith in the life of Christ that is made available to all by love and continues to express itself through love.
Devotional Thought
What does freedom in Christ mean to you? Have you truly taken advantage of your freedom that you have in Christ? Have you ever been tempted to abuse it and define it improperly? Take some time to meditate on what Paul meant by freedom in Christ and what it means for you.
1It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
2Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
Dig Deeper
My last year in college I had to do a semester of student teaching, as I was a secondary social studies education major. I was lucky enough to receive a mentor teacher who was a National Geographic Teacher of the Year award winner. Student teaching was a good thing for me because I had much to learn; I was not ready to handle a classroom by myself. As the semester started, I taught with my mentor teacher in the room and I was basically teaching his lesson plans. As the semester went on, he was in the room less and less and I used my own material, but I still had to follow his basic guidelines and structure. It was helpful at the time, but it was also rather limiting. Once I graduated and was hired as a teacher, I no longer needed my mentor teacher nor his structure and guidelines. I had learned valuable things from him, but I was now free to think things through for myself and do things in a manner that was more appropriate with the situation in which I was teaching.
Paul believes the law to have been a necessary but temporary aspect of the old covenant. It was not part of the original promise although it helped Israel to get to the time when the Messiah had come and God’s promise fulfilled. Imagine, though, if while being employed as a full-time teacher I tried to rely on my mentor teacher the way I had while student teaching. That simply wasn’t available to me and I would have been in a bit of trouble if I firmly believed that I still needed him. This is Paul’s point. The time has come for God’s people to go out on their own. The law was a temporary time of both restriction and instruction but now the time had come for their own freedom in Christ. Their mentorship under the law had come to an end and was no longer available. God’s new age had broken in and they simply could not go back to the old age, nor (Paul wants them to understand) should they want to.
Perhaps one of the most misunderstood and misused concepts in Christianity today is the topic of freedom in Christ. Before we can rightly examine what freedom in Christ is, we need to be clear about what it is not. When Paul talks of freedom in Christ he doesn’t mean that Christians have the right to do whatever they want regardless of what others around them might think and with no thought to the impact of our decisions on others. Many have used freedom in Christ as a license to justify whatever behaviors or patterns in which they have decided to engage (1 Cor. 10:23-33 dispels that notion). We will leave that topic for another discussion, but suffice it to say, that is not at all what Paul is talking about here.
In the past, the way to demonstrate that Israel was the people of God was by following the law, the most obvious aspect of which was circumcision. This was their way to God, but what Paul is telling them is that that option is no longer available to them. If they still want to cling to a temporary physical covenant then they are clinging to slavery. God’s ultimate purpose has always been to have a free people that have willingly chosen a relationship with him, thus it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Freedom in Christ is not about being able to skip church when you want or take up your agenda in opposition to what church leadership has chosen (again, those are different topics for a different discussion), it is about being free from the slavery of sin and the present age.
If they continue to cling to things like circumcision then they are saying that the life of Christ is not enough. In that case, Christ will be of no value. If we cling to any aspect of the present age as though it were supreme to the life of Christ, even if it is something as holy as God’s law, then we have missed the whole point of Christ and the freedom that he brings by allowing us to die to our lives and enter into His. If they put even one part of the law on an equal plane with Christ, then they have obligated themselves to obey the whole law.
They were trying to be shown to be the people of God through means other than the life of Christ, which no matter how you work it, means that they believed they could enact their own righteousness. It would be to fall away from grace and believe in the works of the law to demonstrate that they were the people of God. To cling to the law meant to declare that they didn’t want to be people that were recognizable solely by living by faith in the life of the Messiah.
Those who are the true people of the Messiah, wait eagerly by faith through the Spirit for the righteousness for which we hope. When Paul speaks of righteousness he refers to the evidence that we are standing in the right place before God, that we are the true people of God. What he means then, is that there will be a time when God will publicly and unquestionably declare that all those who have been hidden in Christ (Col. 3:3) are His people. The hope for righteousness is confidently waiting for that time when God will vindicate and justify His people in the age to come. We wait for this time not by the works of the law or the flesh but by the Spirit of God. He is the only means through which we can enter in and maintain the life of Christ. We can recognize the status we have in Christ not by a minor surgery or by maintaining the works of the law, but by a life characterized by the presence of the Spirit (something Paul is about to discuss further in the latter portion of this chapter).
In several other places in his writings, Paul has made clear that any status or position outside of Christ becomes irrelevant to that (Gal. 3:27, 1 Cor. 7:17-24; Philemon). He continues that thought in the discussion at hand concerning circumcision. Paul does deal with the matter evenhandedly, though. Circumcision is of no value, but it is not as if those who are not circumcised are at an advantage either. When it comes to the matter of being the people of God, circumcision is simply irrelevant (it is not wrong to be circumcised, only to claim it is necessary for one’s status with God). Physical marks do not make one a part of Abraham’s family; it is faith and faith alone. Faith in the life of Christ that is made available to all by love and continues to express itself through love.
Devotional Thought
What does freedom in Christ mean to you? Have you truly taken advantage of your freedom that you have in Christ? Have you ever been tempted to abuse it and define it improperly? Take some time to meditate on what Paul meant by freedom in Christ and what it means for you.
Friday, February 01, 2008
Galatians 4:21-31
Hagar and Sarah
21Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? 22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. 23His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise.
24These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. 25Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. 26But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written:
"Be glad, O barren woman, who bears no children;
break forth and cry aloud, you who have no labor pains;
because more are the children of the desolate woman
than of her who has a husband."
28Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29At that time the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. 30But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." 31Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
Dig Deeper
In the days leading up to the Civil War and the early days of the War, many people who had previously just been Americans now had to think about where their loyalties were going to lie. Were they going to side with the North or the South. This was a decision that many in both the North and South had to make and it was really a decision that went beyond mere geography. There were some Northerners who threw their lot in with the South and some Southerners who sided with the North, even though the perception is that it was usually an issue of geography. The Civil War is also seen as an issue over slavery, yet that didn’t quite explain people’s loyalties as there were many Southerners (Robert E. Lee for instance) who found slavery distasteful and many Northerners who didn’t mind it. When all was said and done, the determining factor of whether people sided with the North or South, though, came down to whether their loyalties laid with their state or with the country as a whole. Those who chose the rights of and loyalties to states, sided with the South regardless of the other factors. Southerners like Andrew Johnson preferred national loyalty and so stayed loyal to the North. If we understand that underlying issue everything else falls into place.
For Paul, the issue at hand is whether the Gentiles are going to be loyal to Christ or to the law. In making this distinction, he will appeal once again to Abraham, but will use many different angles to separate the two sides. Among those, he will talk about Isaac and Ishmael, slave and free, earthly Jerusalem and heavenly Jerusalem, but at the root of all of those things is faith and unbelief. If we keep this as our central understanding of this passage, all of his arguments and distinctions will fall into place.
Paul assumes, in verse 21, that they want to be under the law, so he asks if they are really aware of what the law says. No doubt, the initial response from the Galatians would have been an indignant, "yes we do want to be under the law, and of course we know what it says." Paul is setting them up to engage in an extremely rabbinic style of argument, one that would probably hold more sway with the agitating Judaizers, as it was a style they would have been used to. They have claimed that they have the Jewish law on their side, and have clearly appealed to it, probably claiming that Paul didn’t know the law very well. Paul is not about to let them get away with that, and in fact, will use the law to make his point and destroy theirs.
He briefly describes the account of Abraham and Sarah, who had received the great promise from God in Genesis 15 to bless their descendants. Rather than trusting in God to provide, they hatched a plan to provide a child themselves by using Sarah’s slave woman to have a baby, Ishmael. The plan backfired and Hagar and Ishmael became a source of great irritation for Sarah and Abraham, who would later have Isaac, a child born from God’s provision according to the promise. Ishmael was born by their own provision, or in the ordinary (or natural) way, while Isaac was born by God’s provision as a result of a promise.
Paul certainly would not deny that this account was real history, but he also sees it as a foreshadowing of what was to come. These two women and their children represent two covenants. Paul’s thinking here can become a bit confusing unless we remember that the root of his argument is the difference between faith and unbelief. Hagar and Ishmael represent the covenant of the law that came from Mt. Sinai, and Paul has already discussed how the law kept Israel in protective custody or slavery of sorts. While, Sarah and Isaac represent the promise and freedom. Paul’s opponents have claimed to be presenting the true Israel, the true Jerusalem (a common term used in the Old Testament to describe all of Israel) but that Jerusalem is still tied to the law. If they looked to the law as their means to being God’s people, then they were enslaved to it, thus they were, in fact, Ishmael people. This argument was virtually unanswerable, as Paul has completely turned the tables on his opponents.
On the other hand, Paul describes the Isaac people. These are the people who are free and who belong to the Jerusalem that is above. As Paul says in Ephesians 2:6, all those who in Christ are already seated in the heavenly realms, we have already entered into the age to come and are people of the age to come. The Jerusalem from above is the true Israel, the true people of God. Paul’s opponents have claimed authority from Jerusalem, but as Paul makes clear, it is the present earthly Jerusalem, not the Jerusalem from above which is the real home and place of authority for those in Christ. To illustrate this he quotes from Isaiah 54, a passage addressed to Jerusalem during the old covenant, promising that, although she was now spiritually barren, there would be a time when she would bear many children. For Paul, this passage applies to the Jerusalem from above. Thus, the Jerusalem from above was once bereft of children but now is fruitful in abundance, while the present Jerusalem is still in slavery with her children. Belonging to the present Jerusalem should be nothing to desire or to brag about, yet it was the very thing that had enticed the Galatians.
Those who are believers in God’s promise rather than trusting in their flesh, belong to the family of Isaac, they are the children of promise. Those who continue to cling to the present age, including the present Jerusalem, belong to the family of Ishmael, a charge that would have been particularly devastating to those who considered themselves as Jews and the children of Abraham. And, says Paul, they are behaving just as Ishmael did with Isaac, persecuting the children of the promise and faith. The Ishmael-people will persecute the Isaac-people but they will eventually be cast out of the family because the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son. Paul wants the Galatians as well as the Judaizers to know that they can continue to cling to the slavery of the law but the law will not bring them into God’s inheritance. Those who cling to faith in the life of Christ will. There is no way that anyone can claim that those who believe in the life of the Messiah can be called outsiders or second-class members of the family of God. They are just like Isaac, children of the promise and part of the true family of God, and if we cling to faith in Christ then so are we.
Devotional Thought
Paul says that those who believe in the gospel are like Isaac, part of the free family of God. What does it mean to you to be a part of the free family of God? What responsibilities come along with that distinction?
21Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? 22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. 23His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise.
24These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. 25Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. 26But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written:
"Be glad, O barren woman, who bears no children;
break forth and cry aloud, you who have no labor pains;
because more are the children of the desolate woman
than of her who has a husband."
28Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29At that time the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. 30But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." 31Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.
Dig Deeper
In the days leading up to the Civil War and the early days of the War, many people who had previously just been Americans now had to think about where their loyalties were going to lie. Were they going to side with the North or the South. This was a decision that many in both the North and South had to make and it was really a decision that went beyond mere geography. There were some Northerners who threw their lot in with the South and some Southerners who sided with the North, even though the perception is that it was usually an issue of geography. The Civil War is also seen as an issue over slavery, yet that didn’t quite explain people’s loyalties as there were many Southerners (Robert E. Lee for instance) who found slavery distasteful and many Northerners who didn’t mind it. When all was said and done, the determining factor of whether people sided with the North or South, though, came down to whether their loyalties laid with their state or with the country as a whole. Those who chose the rights of and loyalties to states, sided with the South regardless of the other factors. Southerners like Andrew Johnson preferred national loyalty and so stayed loyal to the North. If we understand that underlying issue everything else falls into place.
For Paul, the issue at hand is whether the Gentiles are going to be loyal to Christ or to the law. In making this distinction, he will appeal once again to Abraham, but will use many different angles to separate the two sides. Among those, he will talk about Isaac and Ishmael, slave and free, earthly Jerusalem and heavenly Jerusalem, but at the root of all of those things is faith and unbelief. If we keep this as our central understanding of this passage, all of his arguments and distinctions will fall into place.
Paul assumes, in verse 21, that they want to be under the law, so he asks if they are really aware of what the law says. No doubt, the initial response from the Galatians would have been an indignant, "yes we do want to be under the law, and of course we know what it says." Paul is setting them up to engage in an extremely rabbinic style of argument, one that would probably hold more sway with the agitating Judaizers, as it was a style they would have been used to. They have claimed that they have the Jewish law on their side, and have clearly appealed to it, probably claiming that Paul didn’t know the law very well. Paul is not about to let them get away with that, and in fact, will use the law to make his point and destroy theirs.
He briefly describes the account of Abraham and Sarah, who had received the great promise from God in Genesis 15 to bless their descendants. Rather than trusting in God to provide, they hatched a plan to provide a child themselves by using Sarah’s slave woman to have a baby, Ishmael. The plan backfired and Hagar and Ishmael became a source of great irritation for Sarah and Abraham, who would later have Isaac, a child born from God’s provision according to the promise. Ishmael was born by their own provision, or in the ordinary (or natural) way, while Isaac was born by God’s provision as a result of a promise.
Paul certainly would not deny that this account was real history, but he also sees it as a foreshadowing of what was to come. These two women and their children represent two covenants. Paul’s thinking here can become a bit confusing unless we remember that the root of his argument is the difference between faith and unbelief. Hagar and Ishmael represent the covenant of the law that came from Mt. Sinai, and Paul has already discussed how the law kept Israel in protective custody or slavery of sorts. While, Sarah and Isaac represent the promise and freedom. Paul’s opponents have claimed to be presenting the true Israel, the true Jerusalem (a common term used in the Old Testament to describe all of Israel) but that Jerusalem is still tied to the law. If they looked to the law as their means to being God’s people, then they were enslaved to it, thus they were, in fact, Ishmael people. This argument was virtually unanswerable, as Paul has completely turned the tables on his opponents.
On the other hand, Paul describes the Isaac people. These are the people who are free and who belong to the Jerusalem that is above. As Paul says in Ephesians 2:6, all those who in Christ are already seated in the heavenly realms, we have already entered into the age to come and are people of the age to come. The Jerusalem from above is the true Israel, the true people of God. Paul’s opponents have claimed authority from Jerusalem, but as Paul makes clear, it is the present earthly Jerusalem, not the Jerusalem from above which is the real home and place of authority for those in Christ. To illustrate this he quotes from Isaiah 54, a passage addressed to Jerusalem during the old covenant, promising that, although she was now spiritually barren, there would be a time when she would bear many children. For Paul, this passage applies to the Jerusalem from above. Thus, the Jerusalem from above was once bereft of children but now is fruitful in abundance, while the present Jerusalem is still in slavery with her children. Belonging to the present Jerusalem should be nothing to desire or to brag about, yet it was the very thing that had enticed the Galatians.
Those who are believers in God’s promise rather than trusting in their flesh, belong to the family of Isaac, they are the children of promise. Those who continue to cling to the present age, including the present Jerusalem, belong to the family of Ishmael, a charge that would have been particularly devastating to those who considered themselves as Jews and the children of Abraham. And, says Paul, they are behaving just as Ishmael did with Isaac, persecuting the children of the promise and faith. The Ishmael-people will persecute the Isaac-people but they will eventually be cast out of the family because the slave woman’s son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman’s son. Paul wants the Galatians as well as the Judaizers to know that they can continue to cling to the slavery of the law but the law will not bring them into God’s inheritance. Those who cling to faith in the life of Christ will. There is no way that anyone can claim that those who believe in the life of the Messiah can be called outsiders or second-class members of the family of God. They are just like Isaac, children of the promise and part of the true family of God, and if we cling to faith in Christ then so are we.
Devotional Thought
Paul says that those who believe in the gospel are like Isaac, part of the free family of God. What does it mean to you to be a part of the free family of God? What responsibilities come along with that distinction?
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