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“See what large letters I use as I write to you with my own hand! Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. The only reason they do this is to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ. Not even those who are circumcised obey the law, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast about your flesh. May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation. Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule, even to the Israel of God. Finally, let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.” (Galatians 6:11–18)

No one keeps the law all the time. Not even the most upstanding citizen. That is true whether you are talking about the laws of man or the law of God. We all slip up, make mistakes, and sometimes even willfully do what we know to be wrong.

That was true of those men Paul was rebuking as well. They insisted that everyone had to be circumcised to be a follower of Jesus, but Paul reminds us that they were lawbreakers as well.

The thing that matters is “a new creation.” He spoke about that in his second letter to the church in Corinth.

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

I mentioned yesterday that the cross and the resurrection have implications for us here and now in this life. Knowing what Jesus has done for us makes us want to live a new way. Call it the new life, the new man or the new creation. It is an entirely different attitude about this world and everything in it because we belong to Jesus. We know we are sinners. We know He paid for our sins. Our sins will not be held against us for Jesus’ sake. When you have that faith and confidence, you live your life a new way. You will still get tripped up, stumble and fall along the way, but your desire is to live a new way for Jesus’ sake as well.

Peace and mercy to you.

“Brothers, if someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted. Carry each other’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ. If anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. Each one should test his own actions. Then he can take pride in himself, without comparing himself to somebody else, for each one should carry his own load. Anyone who receives instruction in the word must share all good things with his instructor. Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life. Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.” (Galatians 6:1–10)

Most of us are quick to point out sins of others. Especially if they sin differently than we do. Are we as quick to do good to others? Do we as readily carry their burdens? Anyone who has tried to get volunteers knows that folks easily come up with all kinds of reasons and excuses for NOT volunteering.

The truth of the matter is that we are usually more concerned with our own wants and desires than we are with the needs of others. That is our old sinful self telling us to “watch out for number one.”  But if you think about it, number one should be Jesus, not yourself. And his instructions were very clear.

Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. (Matthew 22:37–39)

If you love God above everything and your neighbor as yourself, you will be concerned about their needs and wants and desires.

Earlier this week I came across some videos of a guy in Kansas who spends his evenings and weekends mowing and cleaning up yards for people who need it. He does this free of charge. He looks for and finds ways to use what he has to help his neighbors.

What are the gift and talents and abilities God has given you? How can you use them to “do good to all people, especially to those who belong to the family of believers.”

And let’s remember why we do this. As followers of Jesus, we know without a doubt that we have forgiveness. We have eternal life, which has already started. His death and resurrection certainly have eternal implications for us, but they also have implications for us here and now. Because we know what Jesus has done for us, we live each day with the confidence of our status as redeemed children of God. We are His. Nothing can snatch us out of His hand. That joyful confidence should be evident in the way we live, the way we treat our neighbors. Luther urged us to let the “new man … daily emerge and arise to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.”

The life we live in response to knowing we are God’s dearly loved and forgiven children should be different.  Let us not become weary in doing good.

“You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!” (Galatians 5:7–12)

Although it was a lifetime ago, the year I graduated from Seminary, I still remember watching the 1984 Olympics. One of the most infamous events was the women’s 3000 meter race, when Zola Budd collided with Mary Decker, knocking the favorite out of the race. Decker went down hard and was sobbing on the infield, unable to continue.

We will all get knocked down at times. The question is, “How will we deal with it.” I saw a video earlier this week of a 200 meter race for young girls. One young lady stepped out of her shoe at the start of the race. She went back, put on her shoe, and then continued. She ended up winning the race! She kept her eye on the goal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nmPhmU3xiWw

Errors and false doctrines will be all around us, trying to trip us and distract us from the truth that we are saved as a gift of God by believing that Jesus has paid for our sins.  Paul compares those false teachings to yeast, reminding us it only takes a little to work its way into the entire loaf. Paul has some harsh words for those who introduce the yeast of false teachings into the body of Christ. In this chapter he has been addressing those who insist on circumcision, and he says they should take it even further and emasculate themselves! He also says they will pay a penalty for their false teachings.

It is important for the followers of Jesus to know what they believe and why. That is why we always go back to the question, “What does the Bible say?” Our church body has a heritage of encouraging all believers to dig into the Word for themselves. Don’t rely on others to tell you what is in there. Let the Word speak directly to you. It is good to study and discuss the Word with others, but be sure you are getting into it individually.

Lord, keep us steadfast in Thy Word;
Curb those who fain by craft and sword
Would wrest the Kingdom from Thy Son
And set at naught all He hath done.

Lord Jesus Christ, Thy pow’r make known,
For Thou art Lord of lords alone;
Defend Thy Christendom that we
May evermore sing praise to Thee.

O Comforter of priceless worth,
Send peace and unity on earth.
Support us in our final strife
And lead us out of death to life.

(The Lutheran Hymnal #261)

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” (Galatians 5:1–6)

As long as there have been followers of Jesus, there have been those who get the message mixed up. That’s because the followers of Jesus are still sinners and make mistakes. It continues to this day. Well meaning folks think they need to add something to “just believing” in order to be truly “saved.”  That is probably the most common false teaching that continues to show up in Christian circles.

It is easy to understand why this happens. It sounds too easy. “You mean all I have to do in order to be forgiven is believe that this guy who died over 2000 years ago paid for my sins? Don’t I have to do something, too?”

This is the issue Paul is addressing among the believers in Galatia. While it sounds like he is condemning circumcision, that is not actually the case. What he is condemning is circumcision as a requirement for salvation!  The people were being told by well-intentioned but erroneous teachers that they had to do “their part” by becoming Jewish before becoming Christians, so an extra requirement (LAW) was being placed upon them.

That is not what God’s plan is all about. God is operating with grace. He gives us what we need. He paid the price. Jesus said, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)  “Yeah, but … don’t I still have to do my part?”  Nope. Grace alone. Your debt, your obligation was completely paid off with the life and death of Jesus.

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9)

Your faith grabs onto what Jesus did and receives all the blessings and benefits He merited for you.

“For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.” (Romans 3:28)

The burden is not on you. It was on Jesus. He has set you free. He declares you “not guilty” because of your trust in Him. Should you strive to live according to the Law? Certainly, but not in order to save yourself. Rather it is the best way to thank God for all He has done for you through Jesus. “Faith expressing itself through love.”  Let’s all try to do that today.

“Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods. But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you. I plead with you, brothers, become like me, for I became like you. You have done me no wrong. As you know, it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you. Even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus himself. What has happened to all your joy? I can testify that, if you could have done so, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me. Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth? Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them. It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always and not just when I am with you. My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you!” (Galatians 4:8–20)

People are zealous about things they believe in and to which they are deeply committed. With the leaked documents about the apparent impending overturn of Roe v. Wade we have seen people passionate on both sides of the issue. Zealous pro-life groups are cautiously celebrating, zealous pro-abortion groups are protesting. I find it interesting that when someone vandalizes an abortion facility, which is totally wrong and should be condemned, there is widespread news coverage. However, when zealous pro-abortion protesters use Molotov cocktails and deface pro-life facilities and churches as part of their protests, the news coverage is brief and limited.

Being zealous is not bad. Being zealous for the wrong thing is. That is what the apostle is speaking to in this part of Galatians. It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good. There will be disagreements about which purpose is good, because we live in a world where sin is working against us doing what God would have us do.

When Paul speaks here of those trying to alienate the Galatians from him and his teaching, he is most likely referring to the Judaizers. Those were Jewish people who wanted to follow Jesus but insisted that anyone who did so had to become Jewish and remain faithful to Jewish laws and traditions. They were zealous about that. The problem was that they were trying to add requirements to salvation that Jesus never put there. They maintained you had to believe in Jesus AND be a good Jew if you wanted to be saved.

This is why Paul was perplexed. He shared the message entrusted to him, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself. Jesus did everything necessary to pay for sin and accomplish our redemption. It is all His doing. We simply receive the benefit of what Jesus did when we put our faith in Him. Our response is to try and live according to His will, but that “new life” we live is not the cause of our salvation. Jesus is.

We should be zealous about sharing that Good News with our neighbors and loving others as God has loved us.

“What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba, Father.” So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.” (Galatians 4:1–7)

Have you ever had something happen in your life where everything just seemed to fall into place?  Maybe you were trying to buy a house, and one thing after another happened to make it all go smoothly. Or you were contemplating a new job, and suddenly one door after another opened for you. Some people attribute such things to the planets aligning. You and I know better, because we know the one in control. When He determines the time is right, he shows us that.

Paul speaks of that in today’s reading. “When the time had fully come” is another way of the time was just right. God in His infinite wisdom determined that the time of the Roman empire, when Caesar Augustus was emperor, was the time for Jesus to be born as one of us. He was “born under the law” so that He could live the life of perfection we have not and can not live. His death redeemed us, bought us back from death and sin, making us sons who are heirs to everything God has promised: forgiveness, salvation, and life everlasting.

That is good news for today and everyday.

“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” (Galatians 3:26–29)

I know the trend and expectation in our world today is to use inclusive language. We see it reaching ludicrous extremes. It started with not saying “all men” because that sounded like it was leaving out women. “All people” was considered more appropriate. Now the extreme expectation is that when a child is born, you shouldn’t say “It’s a girl!” or “It’s a boy!” You should not identify it as male or female so that the child can decide its own gender.

Over the years people have leveled charges of misogyny against the Apostle Paul because of the way his repeated use of masculine pronouns in his writings. Let think about that in terms of this passage. Paul writes, “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” He does this intentionally, because in that society, only male children were the rightful heirs. Females children were not legitimate heirs. But Paul is making the point that anyone who believes in Jesus is a true spiritual descendant of Abraham and therefore “heirs according to the promise.”

Instead of being exclusionary, he is being purposely inclusionary by saying “You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus.” No one is left out. “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”  There is to be no distinction, no rankings or classifications. By virtue of your baptism and your faith that the Holy Spirit has worked in you, you have been clothed with Christ. He covers you. You belong to him. So you are heirs of the promise made to Abraham, that through him all the nations of the earth will be blessed. (Genesis 18:18)

That blessing came in the form of the promised Messiah, born of a virgin, in Bethlehem. Angels announced his birth joyfully: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord.” (Luke 2:10–11)  He would live the life of perfection God requires of us. He did that in our place. He would take the punishment our sins deserve, doing that in our place as well. He would then conquer death and the grave for you to have a guaranteed place in heaven. It matters not you gender, race, age, education, nationality or any other descriptor we have here on earth. He did this for the world. Including you.

You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. Thanks be to God.

“Brothers, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say “and to seeds,” meaning many people, but “and to your seed,” meaning one person, who is Christ. What I mean is this: The law, introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise. What, then, was the purpose of the law? It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The law was put into effect through angels by a mediator. A mediator, however, does not represent just one party; but God is one. Is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God? Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that could impart life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. But the Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin, so that what was promised, being given through faith in Jesus Christ, might be given to those who believe. Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” (Galatians 3:15–25)

What is the purpose of the Law? Paul asked that question here. People often get confused about that. Yesterday’s reading and devotion addressed the problem of thinking that God’s Law is simply a checklist of behavior in order to curry God’s favor. Other Christians think the Law no longer has any purpose in our lives. They don’t want to mention it or bring it up. They simply want to focus on Jesus and the Gospel.

Paul tells us here that Law and Gospel go together. They are not the same thing, and they have different purposes or functions, but they are both part of how God has revealed Himself to us. We should be careful not to confuse the two, and we need to understand that both are necessary.

I tried to explain this in simple terms when I taught catechism class. Both the Law and Gospel have an SOS. The Law Shows Our Sin. The Gospel Shows Our Savior. Both messages come from God. Both are needed in our spiritual formation. And this is not just prior to coming to faith, but throughout our lives. The Law always shows us our sins and why we need a Savior. It accuses us to lead us to repent. The Gospel tells us who that Savior is. Jesus lived, suffered, died and rose again so that we could have the forgiveness and life God wants us to have. His payment for our sin is what saves us.

Verse 24 of this passage says “So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith.” Faith in Jesus is what claims the righteousness He provides and ensures our salvation. But I want to point out that phrase “the law was put in charge.”  That expression is a translation of the Greek word paidagogos, from which we get the English word “pedagogue.” It referred to a personal slave-attendant who accompanied a freeborn boy wherever he went and exercised a certain amount of discipline over him on behalf of the boy’s parents. His function was to be a caretaker and babysitter and guardian for the boy until he reached adulthood. That is why the ESV renders this phrase “the law was our guardian until Christ came.” The Law prepares us for the Gospel, the Good News of Jesus.

Verse 25 tells us “Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.” Some take this to mean the Law is no longer needed. A better understanding is that we see the Law in a different way after we come to faith, just as an adult sees a former babysitter in a different light than when he or she was a child. While the Law will still point out our sin, we know of the pardon and peace we have for Jesus’ sake. We now understand that while the Law is not what saves us, it does show us how to live a life that is God pleasing. That is what we should strive to do in response to knowing what Jesus has already done for us.