Galatians 4

Friday, 22 April 2016

I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain. Galatians 4:11

Paul’s words of this verse are a pitiful cry from a disturbed heart, something which has been echoed countless times since by faithful pastors and teachers around the world. Martin Luther goes so far as to say, “These words of Paul breathe tears.”

He had labored for the church at Galatia, bringing them to Christ and then instructing them about their new life in Christ. However, the Judaizers had crept in and stolen the hearts of the Galatians away from that simple, beautiful gospel message. This sad note from Paul says nothing about salvation; that is a done deal for those who have received Christ.

Rather, this letter speaks of right doctrine and holding steadfastly to the soundness of that doctrine. If one turns from the truth of the gospel, they will only find themselves stuck in bondage. And those who follow after them will never come to a saving knowledge of Christ. Paul’s very heart was tied up in what was occurring in Galatia and he felt almost helpless concerning the situation.

If they didn’t see reason, all of his efforts would have been “in vain.” However, those in Galatia were not the only ones that Paul stressed over. Like a father tending to his children, he felt the same concern for his other churches. Two prominent examples are –

“Do all things without complaining and disputing, ¹⁵ that you may become blameless and harmless, children of God without fault in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine as lights in the world, ¹⁶ holding fast the word of life, so that I may rejoice in the day of Christ that I have not run in vain or labored in vain.” Philippians 2:14-16

&

“For this reason, when I could no longer endure it, I sent to know your faith, lest by some means the tempter had tempted you, and our labor might be in vain.” 1 Thessalonians 3:5

Any decent, caring pastor will agonize over the loss of any of his flock to bad doctrine. He will shake his head and ask, “How could this have happened.” Even if much effort is placed in the training of his flock, the weakness in some individuals cries out for bondage and someone to control them. They would rather be in chains to the law and under the harsh thumb of legalists than to live freely in the simplicity of the gospel of Christ.

Life application: If you have a pastor who truly cares about the doctrine you accept, you should be grateful for that, and also understand that he probably spends much time in anguish over you when you suffer through ills, trials, or even the self-inflicted wounds of bad doctrine.

Heavenly Father, You have placed people in our lives who give us instruction in Your word. For this, we are so grateful. The Bible is big, it is often complicated, and it speaks at times in styles and forms which can be hard to understand. And yet, you have enlightened our teachers to be able to grasp what is going on and to then put its truths into a simple form for us to understand. Thank You for these faithful teachers and preachers who help us with Your precious word. Amen.

Thursday, 21 April 2016

You observe days and months and seasons and years. Galatians 4:10

Paul now gets to the heart of what he means by his words of the previous verse concerning being again in bondage. The Judaizers had come in and confused the Galatians into believing that they were to be following Jewish practices. Their lies included the observance of certain appointed calendar events. The word for “observe” is paratéreó. It is a stronger word than simple observance, as if someone were merely curious about how a Passover Seder was conducted. Rather it means, “To observe scrupulously.” They were being duped into believing that they had to meticulously follow these calendar events and to follow the practices of them as the Bible details.

The “days” is specifically speaking of weekly Sabbath observances. The Galatians were told that this was the standard for a weekly rest and they needed to follow it according to the precepts of the law. This heresy has been handed down in aberrant cults such as the 7th Day Adventists. The Hebrew Roots Movement has people observing this as well. Paul is rather clear about this in Romans 14:5, 6 –

“One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each be fully convinced in his own mind. ⁶ He who observes the day, observes it to the Lord; and he who does not observe the day, to the Lord he does not observe it.”

“Months” is speaking of the monthly New Moon celebrations mandated for Israel. These are detailed, for example, in Numbers 28:11-15. Again, the Galatians had been fed the crazy idea that they needed to follow this type of observance.

“Seasons” refers to the Feasts of the Lord in Leviticus 23. These included the Passover, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the Feast of Firstfruits, the Feast of Weeks, the Day of Trumpets, the Day of Atonement, and the Feast of Tabernacles. These are all fulfilled in Christ’s first advent and they are now set aside with the rest of the law. However, the Galatians (and those who fail to follow proper doctrine even today) are misdirected by the nutty belief that observing these will make us more pleasing to God than Christ’s fulfillment of them!

“Years” would specifically be referring to the sabbatical years (every seventh year) and the years of jubilee (every fiftieth year) which are detailed in the law. Again though, Christ had fulfilled the law. In their attempt to appear more righteous than that granted by Christ, the Judaizers (and the heretics who have followed them) pass on their fanatical ideas about following these obsolete observances.

Paul addresses this again specifically in Colossians 2:16, 17 –

“So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths, ¹⁷ which are a shadow of things to come, but the substance is of Christ.”

As he notes there, these things were only a “shadow of things to come.” They only pointed forward to Christ. Now we have the fullness of what they only pictured. It is utterly ludicrous to think that anyone could properly observe most of these anyway. There is no temple and thus there is no way they could be properly observed. Thus, it becomes a pick-and-choose type of salvation. The entire premise of following these things is to be rejected.

Life application: If Christ has fulfilled the law, then let us rest in the work of Christ!

I am at peace with my God! There is no fear, no state of apprehension, and no need for me to worry. I have been saved by the precious blood of Christ – a Lamb without spot or blemish. He fulfilled the law for me and now, by an act of faith in His work, I can rest in what He has done. I am free from its constraints and I rest solely and peacefully in my sure and grounded hope. The glory that lies ahead is waiting because of His deeds which lie behind me! Thank You, O God, for the life and work of Jesus my Lord. Amen.

Wednesday, 20 April 2016

But now after you have known God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, to which you desire again to be in bondage? Galatians 4:9

In response to his previous statement, Paul now directly questions the Galatians. The word, “But” implies a contrast. They did not know God, and at that time they “served those which by nature are not gods.” In contrast to this state, he says, “But now after you have known God…” The word for “known” is not the same as in the previous verse. Instead of ignorance, they have now obtained knowledge concerning God.

And yet, to qualify the thought, he says, “…or rather are known by God.” God has testified that He knows those who are His. This sentiment is exactingly described by Paul later in his second letter to Timothy –

“Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: ‘The Lord knows those who are His,’ and, ‘Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.'” 2 Timothy 2:19

Paul’s qualification of his first words are because it is God who “has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into” their hearts. God has known them and testified to the fact that they are His by the giving of the Spirit. Because of this, they have moved from bondage to freedom. Now, to show the utterly absurd nature of what they are doing by accepting the premise of the Judaizers and inserting the law into their lives, he asks, “How is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements…?”

Paul is incredulous that they would give up on the marvel of being reconciled to God through the grace of Jesus Christ and turn back to the law. The law couldn’t save a single Jew in all of their history. It only showed them how sinful their sin was and that they needed something else. Paul spoke of the dilemma of being under the law in Romans 7 –

“For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. ²³ But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. ²⁴ O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? ²⁵ I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!”

It is this type of dilemma that caused Paul to call the law and its accompanying precepts “weak and beggarly elements.” It was ineffective in bringing salvation. In fact, even if someone delighted in the law, all it could do was make them miserable. Further, the more they delighted in it, the more misery it would produce! But, Paul notes to them that by turning to the law, it appeared that they “desire again to be in bondage?”

Wasn’t freedom in Christ enough? Wasn’t the reception of the Spirit sufficient? Did you find bondage that wonderful? Paul is stunned at the situation! If he were alive today, he would continue to be stunned. This pernicious infection is still seen in God’s people in one form or another 2000 years later. Countless souls have said, “Christ’s work isn’t enough!” In so doing, they disgrace that great and exalted Name.

Life application: The law is annulled; Christ has come and fulfilled it. Trust in Christ, and in Christ alone for your salvation.

Today is the day that You have ordained for us. Whatever happens, O God, help us to consider that You placed us here at this moment in time for Your own sovereign reasons. No matter what happens, help us to remember this and to accept everything that comes our way as a gift from You. Even if difficulty or sadness arises, help us to see Your hand of instruction in it. Nothing happens apart from Your will and so surely we can trust that the day will come out exactly as it should. Thank You for this wonderful assurance! Amen.

Tuesday, 19 April 2016

But then, indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which by nature are not gods. Galatians 4:8

Paul, addressing the Galatians specifically (he says “you” rather than “we” and the verb is plural) gives them a contrast to what he just said concerning their being sons of God and heirs of God through Christ. Before that time, they “did not know God.” At that time, there was no knowledge of the true God and how to serve Him properly.

Like people from any pagan culture, some may have known there was a God who created all things, but they only had the knowledge from general revelation. They had no specific knowledge of Him as the Jews did. For the most part, such people “served those which by nature are not gods.” In an attempt to either be reconciled to the God they were sure existed, or to appease the “gods” they thought controlled their lives and destiny, they “served” idols.

They became slaves to these false gods. They were under a type of bondage to them in that they felt obligated to them through sacrifices, rites, gifts, etc. When they heard and received the gospel of God’s grace in Christ, they were freed from these things. They were no longer under bondage, but liberated to serve the true God as sons with the promise of a full inheritance.

From this thought of where they were, and where they had now come to in Christ, Paul will next show where they were heading because of the lies of the Judaizers. He is making a logical defense against the insertion of the Law of Moses into their lives by showing them where they had been in their own lives.

Life application: We all started somewhere in our walk towards true faith in Christ. Some of us were raised in Christian homes and our walk was short and direct to His throne of grace. Others of us traveled long roads of false worship, finally ending at that same marvelous spot. However we came to Him, we were freed from the ineffective types of worship that permeate both the law and the misdirected worship of false religions. Only in Christ is the true and free expression of worshipping God realized. Why would we want to give up on that and return to something less than what Christ offers?

It sure is a marvelous thing to walk along the path of life and to see the beauty of Your creation, O God. The animals that pop out of the woods, the fish that jump up from the water, the birds which swoop down from the sky, and the little insects which drink up nectar from flowers… all of these things bring us a sense of delight. Thank You for the many wonderful creatures You have put in our path. Each reflects a small portion of Your great wisdom and You wonderful love for us. Praises to You, O God. Amen.

Monday, 18 April 2016

Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Galatians 4:7

“Therefore” is based on the fact that “God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts.” Because of this fact, a change has taken place in each one of us. This is made poignant now because Paul switches from the second person plural (you all) of the previous verse to the 2nd person singular in this verse (you as an individual). Thus he is making this a personal statement to each recipient of this letter.

As you have received the Spirit of His Son, “you are no longer a slave but a son.” A change has taken place. We go from a state of bondage (verse 4:3) to a state of freedom. We are no longer under the yoke of the law, but we have full rights within the house. This doesn’t just mean that we can now participate in the family life God has prepared, but that it is an eternal inheritance. This is evidenced by the finishing words, “…and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.”

As God is eternal, and we are heirs of God, then we have been granted His same eternality (Hebrews 9:15). We have an inheritance “incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven” (1 Peter 1:4). Vincent’s Word Studies notes the following concerning this inheritance –

“The figure is based upon Roman, not upon Jewish, law. According to Roman law, all the children, sons and daughters, inherited alike. According to Jewish law, the inheritance of the sons was unequal, and the daughters were excluded, except where there were no male heirs. Thus the Roman law furnished a more truthful illustration of the privileges of Christians.”

This is especially evident from Galatians 3:26-28 which said, “For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. ²⁷ For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. ²⁸ There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Life application: The overall intent of Paul’s words should not be overlooked in the analysis of each clause. He is constantly making a contrast between the bondage of the law and the freedom of God which is found in Christ. For those who fail to trust Christ alone for their salvation, they remain in bondage. They have failed the test and remain bound as slaves. They have not becomes sons of God. Be sure to evaluate yourself. Are you still attempting to be justified by deeds of the law? If so, you are not a true son of God.

Heavenly Father, life is routine and dull at times, it is true. But at those times we can ignore the tedium and concentrate on our relationship with You. As You are the Source of all things, then every good thing we could ever desire lies ahead when we finally stand before You. In anticipation of that day, we can fill our routine moments with thoughts of eternal extravagance! But Lord, help us not to forget You when things are fun and life is full. Help us to always live our lives with You at the forefront of our thoughts. Amen.