Paul has told the church
members in Galatia that he is crucified with Christ, and yet he
lives. The life which Paul now lives is by the faith of Jesus Christ
who loved him and gave himself for him. We enjoy the same benefits
when we believe that Jesus Christ came into the world to pay the
price for our sins by His death on the cross and resurrection from
the grave. Jesus' substitutionary sacrifice is appropriated to us,
and it is only by His grace that it is offered. Paul continues his
words to the Galatians in chapter two and verse twenty-one by giving
one final reason as proof that Jesus Christ came to save all who will
believe. He wrote:
I do not frustrate the
grace of God: for if righteousness [come] by the law, then Christ is
dead in vain.
Because
of the great offering of grace from God to man, Paul wrote first, “I
do not frustrate the grace of God”
which means he doesn't “do away with, set aside or disregard” the
grace of God. Paul will not “nullify, void, reject, refuse or
slight” God's grace. Grace is a gift from the Almighty God, and
there is no way that Paul was going to do anything that would keep
himself from receiving it. It is by grace that we are saved. It is by
grace that we have a relationship with God at all. To do away with
that access would not only keep us from fellowship with God, but it
would also be foolish as well.
Paul
reasons once again, “for if righteousness [come] by the
law, then Christ is dead in vain.” If
there was any way to keep the law of God, there would be no reason
for Jesus to die. If it wasn't for our failure to abide perfectly by
every aspect of the law, there would have been no reason for Jesus to
come. Christ would have come and died in vain and undeservedly. There
would have been no purpose for Jesus' death if there was any other
way for us to be righteous. There was and is no other way to be
righteous before God, and because Jesus came, died, and rose again
from the grave, we now can be righteous by believing in Him and His
finished work.
When we attempt in our feeble ways to
somehow show God that we are righteous before Him, we really have no
other work to show other than the work of His Son Jesus. Because of
Jesus and the sacrifice He made, we now have fellowship with God. God
Himself was the originator of us, knew that we would turn from him
and not keep His law, sent a substitute in His Son Jesus to pay the
price for our disobedience, and extended His grace, His unmerited
favor, to all who will receive Him. May all who read these words
today appreciate and thank the Lord Jesus for all the wonderful works
He has done.
Next
time we will begin the third chapter and find Paul addressing the
Galatians directly again, so read ahead, and let us join together
then.
Until
tomorrow...there is more...
Look for
the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation
to Generation” in all major
bookstore
sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to
e-books, and find it
locally
at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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