SPIRITUAL NOURISHMENT FOR TODAY (October 25, 2013) GALATIANS 4:21 GET RID OF THEM Memory Verse: GALATIANS 4: 28 (NIV) NOW YOU BROTHERS, LIKE ISAAC ARE CHILDREN OF PROMISE. From Galatians 3 through chapter 4, we have been discussing Paul’s defense against the teachings of the Judaizers. The Judaizers were the Christian Jews who had gone to Galatae to teach the Gentile believers that they could not be saved until they became Jews. They taught that a Gentile should become a Jew and then interpret everything literally and directly to himself. They therefore insisted on Jewish practices such as circumcision, ceremonial cleansing, observation of certain days and seasons, animal sacrifices at the Temple of Jerusalem etc. They had succeeded in getting some of the Galatians to begin to doubting what Paul had already taught them. Paul concluded his defense against the teachers of the law in our passage for today. Paul started by asking a rhetorical question which suggests that there had been a kind of misinterpretation of the Old Testament as the Judaizers presented to Galatian believers. He asked those who were drifting away whether they were not aware what the Law had said. By law in this context, Paul was not referring to the Ten Commandments only; he was talking about the TORAH (Pentateuch) as a whole. He then made reference to the Abraham-Hagar-Sarah story to remind them of what Scripture actually meant. Paul explained that it is obvious as the Judaizers themselves knew that, Ishmael was born in the ordinary way but Isaac was born as a result of promise. This makes Isaac the true heir of Abraham not Ishmael. He also mentioned that Ishmael’s descendents are in bondage but Isaac’s are free children. He continued to say that the Covenant at Mount Sinai bears children who will be slaves. And as we all know Mount Sinai was the place God gave the Law to Moses. By implication Paul was saying that reliance upon the law as the means of salvation will lead one into slavery. However, the Jerusalem that is above, that is the New Jerusalem, representing a gathering of all those who will believe in Jesus Christ, will be free because the New Jerusalem will be established as a result of promise. Simply put, obedience to the law as a means of salvation will lead to slavery, but faith in Jesus Christ as the means of salvation leads to freedom. This is exactly why Christ came- to set us free from the bondage of the law. The Judaizers knew this but they distorted the facts and taught the opposite of what the Law (TORAH) teaches. This is exactly what the Church is facing today. There are many people teaching different things from the same Bible. Many interpret the message of the Bible to suit their own selfish interests. Many also distort the facts unknowingly. Whatever the case may be we should all be aware that the devil is at work just to distort the facts of God’s word as he did in the Garden of Eden in order to deceive us. Let us therefore come together as children of the promise, make enough effort to study the Scriptures under the guidance of the Holy Spirit to avoid Satan deceiving us into buying into his lies. The Judaizers used the same TORAH Paul used, but they distorted the facts. Paul continued to encourage the Galatians, and by extension all believers, that we are children of promise just as Isaac was; not children of the slave woman, Hagar. He drew a comparison between the way Ishmael mocked (Isaac) according to Genesis 21:9 and how the Jews persecuted the Christians in their own time. According to Paul, the sons of slavery continued to persecute the sons of the free woman. It is the same as saying that followers of the Old Covenant persecute followers of the New Covenant. Those who believe in the covenant of works continue to persecute those who believe in the Covenant of Grace till today. We can see this throughout the world especially in countries where Muslims, Hindus and Buddhists are in the majority. The conflict between the children of works (slaves) and the children of the promise has continued to exist till now. Christianity is still persecuted in many countries throughout the world. Those who believe in the covenant of works always want to impose their practices on us or find subtle means of infiltrating our ranks. But the Scripture says: “get rid of the slave woman and her sons! (Gen 21:9-10). What does it mean then to get rid of the slave woman and her sons? The casting out of Hagar and her son is a symbol of God’s rejection of the carnal and self-righteous Jews from the Gospel church state. It is also a rejection of any carnal persons; any that are after the flesh or any that are unregenerate by God. In addition, those who trust in their own righteousness will also be excluded and thrust out of the kingdom of heaven, where no unregenerate and unrighteous, or self-righteous persons shall enter. According to the Jews this ejection of Hagar and her son will be both out of this world and the world to come. It is very important for us to understand that the spiritual seed of Abraham, shall inherit the privileges of Gods house, the blessings of grace, and eternal glory. They are children of the promise, and heirs according to it. But the children of the bondwoman, the self-righteous ones, shall not inherit the blessings of grace and eternal glory because the inheritance is not of the law. We all need to understand that the things of the flesh are against the life of the Spirit and those who walk according to the desires of the flesh will not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. We should therefore cast out anything that hinders our spiritual relationship with Christ before they cast us out of the Kingdom of God. If we continue to walk after the flesh, we shall be cast out as Hagar and her son were cast away. THE WORD OF THE LORD!
Posted on: Fri, 25 Oct 2013 08:09:29 +0000
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