Good Morning Friends,
"You foolish Galatians! Who has
bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as
crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the
Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so
foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your
goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing -- if it really was
for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because
you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard? Consider Abraham: 'He
believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.' Understand, then,
that those who believe are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God
would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to
Abraham: 'All nations will be blessed through you.' So those who have faith are
blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith." (Galatians 3:1-9)
How foolish the Galatians were! They received
a relationship with God freely from Him by faith. Then, having received it by
faith, they tried to add to that relationship by keeping the law. The law
couldn't get them into a relationship with God and it could not add anything to
that relationship either. Why did they think it could?
I think they went back to the law because
they wanted to feel like they had earned something from God. But we never earn
anything from Him, we only receive by His grace! He doesn't bless us because we
are so marvelous and do so much for Him. He blesses us because He loves us and
because we are in relationship with Him through His Son.
The Galatians weren't the last ones to go
back to law-keeping. The temptation is always there, in every generation of
believers, even among us.
Law-keeping will never get us anywhere, only
trusting Him will!
His, by Grace,
Steve
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