Morning Moments

VII. THE ARGUMENT FOR ADVANCEMENT 5:1-26

Why should we who are free from the entanglements of the law ever wish to be pulled back into them? I can think of several reasons some people would -

1. It appeals to the flesh - the flesh wants to "feel" religious and liturgy and ritual make it "feel" so.

2. It requires work or self effort - remember the words of the rich young ruler, "what must I DO?" We tend to want to DO something that proves to God we are "worthy" of justification.

3. It makes sense - we have been led to believe that God helps those who helps themselves, so it stands to reason that if we "try" hard enough and are sincere about our "trying" surely God will accept us. WRONG!

He accepts us by faith and we advance by faith - that's it!

A. The Position

The position we have is one of liberty because whom the Son sets free is free indeed. We are no longer under the curse of the law and should live like it. BUT we must use our liberty to cause another to stumble. We are free not to sin and live in fellowship with God and one another as we agree with God about our sins.

1. Stand Tall 5:1

Clear thinking is essential to clean living in the Christian life. It is why meditating in the Word of God is so important. We cannot trust our feelings or thinking until we learn to think and feel Biblically. There are things we stand for or stand against simply because the Word of God stands for or against it. It Authored the Bible and lives in us, so He guides us by the Bible. When one stands with God it doesn't matter who stands against him/her, that one stands against God.

2. Think Straight 5:2-6

The Galatians had not succumbed to the requirement of the Judaizers to be circumcised, but the were giving it serious thought. Circumcision was only the first step and to give here was only the beginning of a long journey. The Love Journey is a Grace Journey. The Law Journey is a Legalistic Journey and the two do not mix. If you choose to live by the law after being justified by grace, you are fallen from grace.

Just as failure to keep one law makes one guilty of all, willingness to live by one (circumcision) demands or obligates you live by all. That is Paul's point here. The law justifies NO ONE! Law nullifies grace. Human effort negates God's work. God justifies and we either receive with gratitude or reject in preference to our own merit.

In verses 5 and 6 Paul continues his thoughts regarding justification by making it clear that our abiding confidence BASED upon God's declaration of righteousness alone (justification), has absolutely nothing to do with whether or not one is circumcised. He wanted the Galatians not to take the same pride in not being circumcised that the Judaiszers were taking in their circumcision. Let me illustrate:

Suppose you have never drunk, doped, been immoral, stolen, etc, and you neighbor has done all those things. Both of you are in the same condition apart from faith in Christ. You are LOST. Being good is no different from being bad as far as God is concerned if you are LOST. But if you receive salvation in Christ and God has declared you righteous (justified you), then you both have the same standing with God. Having not done all those things doesn't give you a better position with God.

3. Run Well 5:7

Paul says you had a great start in your Christian life but you were distracted, so get back on tract and continue the race. Don't stop because you stumbled. There are so many things that can and will attempt to distract us as believers but we cannot allow those things to rob us of the race. The race is not to the swift. Pace yourself, purify yourself, lay aside every weight and the sin that besets you and run the race with patience that is set before you. The air is clean, your head is now clear, so run and run well.

BLESSINGS!