Read: Galatians 3
Each of us began our walk with Christ by
the work of the Spirit, not our own doing (John 6:44). How often we fall into
deception as we continue forward in our walks. As we become familiar with the
Bible and “church culture,” we begin to alter our behaviour. This is not
entirely a negative process. It is pleasing to God when we repent of sin and
obey Him out of love (John 14:15, 1 John 5:3, and many more verses). The
problem arises when we begin to believe that our obedience can result in true,
eternal life (v 21b). Very few Christians would say outright, “I am going to
heaven because I do my best to follow God’s law.” Legalism is a more subtle
belief than that. It is a hidden condition found in the heart that refuses to
fully trust Christ for salvation. It is the prideful belief that Christ’s work
on the cross is not enough.
Galatians 3 addresses this issue in the
lives of believers. We are made right through faith in Christ, not because of
our own good works. We will not enter heaven because we did good deeds. We will
enter heaven because we chose to place our trust entirely in Christ. God’s plan
for salvation has always hinged on our faith, not on our works (v 6-9, 18). However,
in His sovereignty, God knew that there was a perfect time to send His Son to
die for our sins. Until this time, mankind could not fully understand salvation
through faith. God gave the law as a practical guide for His chosen people
(Israel) until the time came for Christ to reveal the fullness of God’s plan (v
23-24). The Law protected Israel from the chaos of the sinful human nature left
unchecked. It provided structure to a new society and defined good and evil.
Without the Law as a guide, Israel would have looked no different from the
sinful, pagan nations of its time. On a deeper level, the Law revealed God’s
holiness and the extremely high standards needed to have a relationship with
Him. It also revealed how far short we fall of these standards (v 10-11). Thus,
the Law became “our tutor to lead us to Christ, so that we may be justified by
faith” (v 24). It revealed how powerless we are to change ourselves and how
greatly we needed a Saviour.
Journaling
and Prayer
1. Search your heart. Are there any areas
where you believe that you can earn your salvation with good works?
2. In the North American Church, we often
take salvation for granted. Having new life and being saved from our sins have
become cliché phrases that ignite apathy, instead of foundational truths that
ignite passion. Reflect on why salvation through faith is so wonderful, asking
God for revelation into this question. Write down what comes to mind and spend
time thanking Jesus for this gift. For example, you may write down “Salvation
is a beautiful gift because I do not have to earn it.” You can then thank Jesus
that He is powerful enough to save, that He loves you enough to choose to save
you, that you did not have to have your act together before receiving
salvation, etc.
3. Regardless
of any other factors, the Church can find unity through our common faith in
Jesus Christ (v 26-29). Pray for unity in the Church today. Pray that we would
set aside cultural differences and personal preferences (for example, styles of
worship) and love each other as brothers and sisters in Christ. Pray that old
wounds caused by division would heal. Pray for unity specifically across
denominational lines. Pray that with this newfound unity, the Church would move
forward powerfully to accomplish God’s mission of making disciples of all
nations (Matthew 28:19-20).
