The book of Galatians was written by Paul who was a Pharisee and knew the Law. Yet he spoke to the Gentile church that didn’t understand the Law. At that time, the Judaizers were trying to bring back traditions into the church despite the fact that Jesus told the religious Jews that their traditions made the Word of God of no effect. There was no New Testament yet; therefore, Jesus was referring to the Law of God as the Word of God, which they made of no effect.
The Law was not made for salvation, but it was given to keep their lives in order. With that said, the Jewish people made traditions because they couldn’t keep it without the help of the Holy Spirit. I recall years ago when I asked the Lord where the Holy Spirit was in the Old Testament; God showed me that He was in the Law, in the sense that if you obeyed what God said, He would bless you. The goal of this newsletter is to bring the realization of the Spirit of God into your life. The Law of God is not done away with, even though we are not saved by it.
Galatians 5:1-2
Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free, and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing.
We need to understand the context Paul was speaking from. Remember that the circumcision was given to Abraham as a sign of the covenant before the Law was even introduced. The reason circumcision became as nothing was because of the traditions of men. We see this in Isaiah chapter one when God rebuked Israel for their feasts. Although God ordained them, Israel made vain traditions out of them and God was angry with them. We must be above all settings of man and please God rather than men. So, it is not God who said it wasn’t good, but man who made it of no effect. The devil looks to deceive people and turn them away from the truth. On that note, Paul was combatting against people who were making traditions out of the Word of God. We need to be careful how we approach and apply the Word of God.
A man of God once said that a person who is unsure of their salvation will not like the Law and repel the Old Testament scriptures. You need to please God by walking in the Word.
Verse 3
And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole Law.
In other words, if you rely on tradition to make you right, you are compromised to the whole Law.
Verse 4
You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.
God didn’t give the Ten Commandments for salvation. When God made a covenant with Abraham, He did it through blood covenant. Even the Law of God is under the blood because everything He conceals is by the blood. We can only be saved through the blood and not by our obedience. In the Old Testament the people were required to believe the Word, but belief and the forgiveness of sins are two different things. There are many who believe, but you must enter into covenant with God through the blood.
Verse 5-6
For we through the Spirit eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.
it is not circumcision, but the blood of Christ that brought us into the covenant.
Verse 7-9
You ran well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump.
Many people neglect the law and fear going back under it, but you are not going back under the law because you are in Christ. As a matter of fact, you are going forward by celebrating what is in the word. We are not making another covenant with God, but we live by what the word says.
Verse 13
For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another.
This means that the Lord gives us liberty from sin through a blood covenant with Him. Many are afraid to lose Jesus through the Law, but that is not possible because you have a covenant with Him. Paul knew the Law and saw Christ in it; you will find Him in it as well.
Verse 14-15
For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!
From this passage we see that fleshly behaviour can still manifest even though we are saved, but Paul gives us the answer saying:
Verse 16
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
If we walk by the Spirit, we won’t cause any trouble.
Verse 17-18
For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
Even if you are born again, it is possible not to be lead by the Holy Spirit. However, when you walk by the Spirit you are not under the power of the Law because the Spirit of God doesn’t need it. In the Old testament, they didn’t have the Spirit of God within them, so they came under the boundaries of the Law. To be under the Law is when it is ruling you in order to be saved from sin. And if its so, there would be a severe punishment for disobeying it, but yet it doesn’t mean that the Law is wrong. We still live by the same Law of righteousness today through our Messiah Jesus. The Holy Spirit operates within us and through our spirit. God couldn’t help them as much He helps us in developing theist character. But they were ruled by the Law along. Today we are required to live by the same Law but through the Holy Spirit and His help.
Verse 18
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law.
Today we are under the Master ship of Christ and He is ruling by His Word which includes God’s Law. Therefore, we can have clean hands and a pure heart, without working for it because He is our helper. Jesus is our Master, but we still live by the righteous requirements of the Law.
Verse 19-21
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
When we struggle with these things, the Holy Spirit will set us free by bringing us to the Word of God. But instead of going to the Word, many hang on to grace alone, which is not possible if disobedience is in manifestation. Authentic grace is power and ability to live by the Word. When you long to live by the Spirit of the Lord, He will lead you to live by the righteous requirements of the Law. The Law is not our master, but Christ our Master causes us to live by the Law of God.
Verse 22-23
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no Law.
The reason Paul says that against such things there is no Law is because the Spirit of God doesn’t need the Law. These are the fruit of the Spirit. Despite that fact, the greatest hindrance to God in the church is sin. The reason God still struggles to deal with sin in the church despite the blood covenant of Christ is because the Holy Spirit cannot force people to live differently. He will convict but not force. We must yield to the Holy Spirit and submit to the authority of God in order for us to be changed.
Pastor Gennady.