November 25 - Galatians 4-6: Arguing over Religion is a Waste of Time

Today’s Reading: Galatians 4-6

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

Jesus brought us into an intimate relationship with God. The circumcision sect wanted to separate the Gentiles from God once more.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Paul continued:
Jesus' Coming made us God's Children, not God's Slaves. Abraham had two sons: one symbolized slavery (Ishmael), the other freedom (Issac). You can either be free in Christ or a slave to the Law.
Religion is meaningless. Only faith expressed in love matters.
Use your freedom to set things right—love others as you love yourself. God's Way makes life worth living.
Whatever you plant you reap. Sow good!
Remember that the circumcision sect doesn't obey the Law, either. Basically, what is important isn't what we do, it's what God's doing.
May Jesus' Blessings be yours.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

Now we have something greater than the Law of Moses.

The Law of Moses was the greatest Law that existed. So when Paul writes that something better has come, it is saying more about Jesus than the Law of Moses. Jesus brings us into an intimate relationship with God where the Law kept the people at a distance. It is this reason that the ones pushing circumcision are doing the Galatian Christians a disservice. They value tradition and religion over relationships. They are separating God and the people again. Paul wants to make sure the Galatians do not fall for it.

Paul warned the Gentiles to question their teachers' motives.

Paul wrote how the teachers were looking for dependent students who needed them, not God. They wanted the Gentiles to obey a law they did not obey. Gentile converts would add to the individual Jew's prestige but the Gentile would lose out on a personal relationship with God. Beware teachers who make you dependent on them to understand God. God has made Himself known to the world.
We cannot read this without questioning the goals of our evangelism. Do we want more funding to "teach more people" or are we willing to encourage believers to interact with God independently, regardless of how it looks to us? To suggest they "need us" because no one knows what would happen is to suggest that the Holy Spirit cannot guide and to suggest your religion and traditions are more important than a relationship with God.

Once you accept a law, you accept the entire law.

Paul wants the Gentiles to know that if they want to obey the Law of Moses they cannot stop with circumcision. They have to continue to unclean foods, not mixing fabrics, and all of the other 600+ laws in the Law of Moses. They cannot pick-and-choose their favorite few laws that are easy to do. They have to do it all.
When we call people to become God's Chosen People and join a local church, we need to remind them that this commitment is not to attend worship only when we get together to eat. The commitment is to do everything that the fellowship agrees to do or abstain. The worst thing that can happen is a person come into a church and half-heartedly participate. Either join a church or don't. Once you do, do everything they agree to do. To willingly abstain is to do wrong—in essence, not set things right.

Freedom is meant to help us set things right unencumbered, not stop setting things right.

One of the strongest arguments against freedom in Christ (and freedom in general) is that people would abuse that freedom and do whatever they wanted to do, regardless of the consequences on others. Paul makes sure this is discussed, too. Freedom does not give us the ability to do as we wish. Freedom gives us the ability to focus on setting things right instead of pleasing God with our religion. The Galatians knew how sin hurt a person and their relationships. Freedom in Christ does not include evil. Christ is wholly good. God is wholly good. If we want freedom in Christ, we must be holy, too.

Disputes over religious observances and other religious acts are tedious and not worth our time.

With so much going wrong in this world, spending time arguing over circumcision, baptism, musical instruments, meals in the church building, music styles, teaching styles, etc. are a colossal waste of time. People live in darkness because they do not realize God is calling to them. Disputes over religious observances are wastes of time because God calls us to much higher things than these. When we limit ourselves to observing a law perfectly we miss the opportunity to help set relationships right. In the end, it's not about what we do anyway. It's what God is doing and if we join in His Work.

Do you argue over religion or fight to set relationships right?

November 24 - Galatians 1-3: Don't Force Outsiders to Conform to the Law

Today’s Reading: Galatians 1-3

The Message

English Standard Version

Thought to Guide Your Reading

The Messianic Jews (Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah) wanted the Gentiles to obey a Law they themselves could not obey.

Summary in 100 Words or Less

Paul to the Galatian churches:
My authority is from Jesus. Why are you going away from His Message?
God called me, an uber-faithful Jew, to teach non-Jews about Jesus. Gentiles saw God because of me!
Some made attempts to circumcise the Gentiles. We resisted.
Jews had the best rulebook in the world and blew it. We trust in Jesus and aren't going back. Christ died to free us from rules.
Abraham's righteousness came by faith. You cannot impress God through rule-keeping. The Law was meant to guide us to Jesus. Now we have arrived. Don't make the Law separate us.

How Today’s Reading Contributes to the Gospel: God is Setting All Things Right

The problem in Galatia is the Law of Moses.

… Or Messianic Jews trying to impose the Law of Moses on Gentiles. Paul's message is quite blunt and to-the-point—it didn't make people set things right in the past, so don't force the Gentiles to do it. Paul has quite the résumé when discussing these matters which he will bring out when this issue surfaces in several books. Paul's authority comes directly from God when he tells them to stop focusing on the Law. If Abraham was considered righteous because of faith, so should they. The Law has no place there.
The impetus for having the Gentiles obey the Law comes from a good heart—it was the law given by God through Moses. Lasting over a thousand years, it gave the Jews an identity and one thing to feel proud of. It was the best law ever created. Who wouldn't want to obey the greatest set of moral laws in the world?
Except they forgot one important fact—Jesus came to remove the focus from the Law of Moses to the God who sacrificed Himself to set everyone's relationship right. To focus on the Law was to deny Jesus' purpose in coming to give Light to the world.
Christians must read this section of scripture with the understanding that we are the Jews of the first century. As I mentioned before, Israel's problems came from generations of people not taking God seriously—wanting the blessings of being God's Chosen People but not the responsibility of being lighthouses to the nations. Christians, especially those who grew up in multi-generational Christian homes, need to understand that the world does not see Christianity as a group of God's Chosen People setting things right. They see Christianity as judgmental groups of law-abiding citizens who can't keep their own members faithful to their god. If we want to help others set their relationships with God right we cannot add on the "oughts" that Christians expect—corporate Bible study, corporate worship, correct theology, etc. It doesn't work for Christians. It won't work for non-Christians, either. This isn't to say corporate Bible study, corporate worship, correct theology, etc. are bad or that we should stop doing them. Good people with good hearts believe being part of a church and doing all of these things helps set relationships right. Just like the Law of Moses, churches provide the best mechanism for setting things right. However, they are not essential to every person in the world having their relationship with God set right. To teach that they are is to negate Jesus' Purpose for coming.

Paul wants to keep the peace.

Yesterday we read how Paul had Timothy circumcised so they could enter synagogues without causing problems. Today Paul recounts how he did not openly flaunt his work with Gentiles when he returned to Jerusalem. As much as Paul wants to help Gentiles set their relationships right with God and keep their freedom from the Law of Moses, he also wants to live in peace and harmony with the Jews. He challenges the Pharisees and Peter in the open, since he wants them to live out the Truth they teach, but he doesn't parade freedom in Christ in front of the people who want to obey the Law of Moses. Before boasting of what God is doing, remember that God prefers right relationships over right mindsets. Don't try to get someone to agree with you and miss God. That defeats our purpose as His Chosen People.

We cannot impress God with our righteousness.

Undergirding the problem with imposing the Law of Moses on Gentiles is the belief that God wants to be impressed with how much good we do. Paul is clear: we can never impress God with our righteousness. The reason is two-fold: we can never be wholly righteous and God, through Jesus, has already done it. The first time is impressive. The second merely follows the trend. If we cannot impress God with our goodness, what does God want? God wants us to impress Him with our trust in His Way. We do that by accepting His Spirit, His Baptism, and His Life. When we allow Him to work in us we no longer focus on law, what to do or not do, and "us" vs. "them". We want to set things right with everyone because that's how God is! We want to be heirs of God's Way of Life because His Way blesses everyone in the world.

The Law was meant for us to realize we do not have a right relationship with God because we do not measure up to His Righteousness.

You might consider the Law the list of things God would not put up with. Although God prevented His Chosen People from terrible fates, the Law could not make a person holy. Why would God do such a thing? God wanted to make sure we understood that we do not measure up Him. We do not deserve a relationship because we do not set things right. Instead, God came and set our relationships right by being the sacrifice that covers what separates us. He came to humans when humans were the ones keeping us apart. There is no amount of religion that can teach people to live a life worthy of that honor. Only trust in Him will do it. How awesome is our God!

Do you teach setting relationships right or being religious?