Written ~ 09-16-2024
Read Galatians Chapter Three
Galatians 3
In chapter three Paul is now turning his narrative back to the Galatian believers, in chapter two Paul was talking about some of his experiences. But now in chapter three he is turning his attention back to the Galatian believers and begins here by pointing out where they are getting things all wrong. It’s time for Paul to start setting some things straight. In chapter two we learned the difference between living a life trying to obey the law and living for Christ and that by trying to do both was causing a hypocritical ripple effect amongst Jewish and Gentile believers.
So, let’s dive in!
Galatians 3:1-5…
1 “Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of His death on the cross. 2 Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. 3 How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? 4 Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it?
5 I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ.”
In chapter one, Paul said he was shocked that the Galatian believers were turning away from God so soon after hearing and accepting Salvation in Jesus (Galatians 1:6). Now here in chapter three he is pointing out a more specific problem. The believers were trying to be perfect in their own human effort. Paul questioned why after believing and accepting Jesus as Lord and Savior would they go back to trying to obey the old covenant. He was concerned that all the effort he had put into building their faith in Jesus had been done in vain.
Paul will now have to steer them back onto the right path. He had to get them to see the reason they why put their faith in Jesus in the first place. Paul had to remind them that it was not the obedience to the law that brought them the Holy Spirit, but it was the Salvation of Jesus that brought the Holy Spirit.
Human Effort. We all have tried at some point in our lives to figure things out all on our own. We have tried to make sense of our circumstances without leaning first on the Holy Spirit for guidance. Sometimes we might even think that our way, our effort is the better way. But we will find out time and time again that it just does not work out as we had hoped.
We would forever be living under the curse of the law if God had not sent His Son to die on the cross for us and save of us from sin and death.
Galatians 3:11-13…
11 “So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” 12 This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through obeying the law that a person has life.”
13 But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When He was hung on the cross, He took upon Himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.”
Human Effort. In verse 3:11 Paul actually quotes from a verse found in the Old Testament… Paul says that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law – or you can say – by trying to do things all through their own human effort. But then he says, “For the Scriptures say, ‘It is faith that a righteous person has life.’” So, let’s look at the Old Testament Scripture Paul is quoting from…
Habakkuk 2:4…
“Look at the proud! They trust in themselves, and their lives are crooked. But the righteous will live by their faithfulness to God.”
Paul wants these believers to understand that their lives were taking huge steps backwards if they continued in their human effort to obey the old covenant law. Paul says in verse 3:14, “…Through Christ Jesus…believers receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith…” God counted Abraham as righteous because of his faith (vss.3:6-7) and through every generation since then there were countless believers putting their faith in God, which brings us all the way through today where you and I are counted as righteous through our faith. We have received the Holy Spirit through our faith in Jesus.
So, what should we learn from these few verses? We need to rely on the Holy Spirit living within us, rather than try our very hardest through human effort to get things right. We will always fall short if we continue living that way. By putting our faith in Jesus, that action alone has given us a clean slate and what God sees is righteousness because Christ lives within us. Will we make mistakes, sure. But it is Christ who makes us right with God.
In the next section of chapter three Paul explains God’s promise through Abraham and the reason for the law. To understand the full context of God’s irrevocable agreement with Abraham you may want to look over Genesis 12:7; Genesis 15:1-20; Genesis 16:1-18:15 and Genesis 21:1-13. God’s covenantal promise was given through Abraham’s son Isaac. The reason God gave the old covenant law was to show people their sin.
Galatians 3:19a…
19 “Why, then, was the law given? It was given alongside the promise to show people their sins. But the law was designed to last only until the coming of the child who was promised.”
And what child is this verse referring to? Look at verse 3:16b, “Rather, it says “to his child” – and that, of course, means Christ.” God knew, of course, that when He was making the covenant promise with Abraham and then gave the old covenant law that He was going to send His Son to bring an end to all of it. Jesus is the promise, Jesus is the New Covenant.
Now the last few verses… don’t skim over them quickly… let’s look at them deeply and meditate on the words Paul is saying to us…
Galatians 3:23-29…
23 “Before the way of faith in Christ was available to us, we were placed under guard by the law. We were kept in protective custody, so to speak, until the way of faith was revealed.
24 Let me put it another way. The law was our guardian until Christ came; it protected us until we could be made right with God through faith. 25 And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian.
26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. 28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and God’s promise to Abraham belongs to you.”
So, what are the “absolutes” in these verses that we need to know for our lives today?
- The law kept us in protective custody
- We were placed under guard until the way of faith was revealed
- Now that we have the way of faith, we no longer need the law as our guardian
- When we put our faith in Jesus Christ, we become children of God
- We are united with Christ
- We are all one in Christ
- We belong to Christ
- We are true heirs of Abraham
- Therefore, we receive God’s promise
Pretty awesome, right? We no longer need to do things with human effort! We belong to Christ; we have received the Holy Spirit, and we are heirs to the Kingdom of God.
Paul is trying to explain all of this to the Galatian believers, plus, he is trying to get it through our heads as well… trust in the Lord with everything you are going through! Whether what you are facing is good or bad, joyful or stressful! We do not need to go through this life all alone. Verse 3:9 says, “So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith.”
Have faith my friend! Jesus is with you!
~AMEN~