When we consider the words
of Paul the apostle to the church members in Galatia, we should keep
in mind that they are being inspired by the Holy Spirit of God, and
rather than only being the words of Paul, they are God Almighty's.
God is concerned that people know the truth about being free from the
bondage of keeping the law, and since He paid the ultimate price to
set us free from the law, He desires that we know it. The Lord Jesus
uses Paul's words in chapter four and verse thirty-one to finalize
his example of the free child of Abraham, Isaac, and to let all who
read them know they are children of the free. He wrote:
So then, brethren, we
are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.
Paul
begins, “So then, brethren,...” In other words, Paul wrote
“in conclusion to this whole pattern of thought” or “since this
example is so”. Paul has used the children of Abraham to
demonstrate how one child, Ishmael, was a work of the flesh, and
Isaac, was a work of the spirit. Isaac was promised, and Ishmael was
Abraham and Sarah's efforts to fulfill that promise. Isaac was born
of the spirit as God restored to Abraham and Sarah the time of life
so they would have a child in their old age. Ishmael was Abraham and
Sarah's effort to produce what God could only do. Isaac was born of
the “free-woman” and Ishmael was born of the “bondwoman.”
Paul
continues, “we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the
free.” Like unto Isaac who was born of the free-woman, we are
not children of the bondwoman, but we are born of the free. Our
efforts to keep the law of God are much like the efforts of Abraham
and Sarah to fulfill the promise of God. It is only a work of the
flesh to do so, and it will never produce righteousness because we
cannot keep the law of God perfectly. Only Jesus did that, and now
because He made the sacrificial offering for our sins, we are set
free. We are no longer bound to the failings of attempting to keep
the law, but we are liberated unto His righteousness. Jesus paid the
price, and we are the benefactors.
Again,
let us remember that Paul wrote words that were inspired by the Holy
Spirit of God, and it is God who desires to let us know that because
of what He did, we are free. We are free to have a relationship with
Him. We are free to have fellowship with Him, and we are free from
the bondage that was created by attempting to keep the law of God in
order to be saved. May the word “freedom” reign in our hearts
today as we ponder the wonderful love of our Savior Jesus and the
sacrifice He made on our behalf that we might be in a relationship
with Him. Thank God we are “children of the free.”
Next time we will begin a new chapter and discover how we are to be
since we are free, 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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