Thursday, September 18

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2014

Isaiah 28:14–30:11

Galatians 3:23–4:31

Psalm 62:1–12

Proverbs 23:19–21

 

 

“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)

 

 

Paul’s letter to the Galatians addresses this church’s struggle with outside forces that threatened to re-institute the Jewish law as the vehicle for “receiving” salvation.  Paul argues that, before “this faith [in Christ] 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 3:23–25)

 

Paul explains that the law revealed our desperate need for grace and forgiveness, and, now having received this grace, the law no longer dominates.  He does not suggest that we may live a careless, devil-may-care existence; instead, we must transform our thinking from that of a slave (forced obedience) to a son (joyful fellowship).  Even with many years of Bible teaching and discipleship, the Church has consistently wrestled with this concept.  In fact, Martin Luther relied heavily on this letter in posting his 95 Theses, lending Galatians the nickname of “Luther’s book.”

 

For us today, we still cannot grasp the fullness of our sonship in the Kingdom through the merciful blood of Christ.  Many of us live to please God and others – but not out of love, but rather fear.  Our fear stems from a prideful belief that we may somehow fall short of our own lofty standards, thereby trashing our self-worth and identity.  This fear impedes our trusting God through all circumstances and urges us not to take risks.  The accompanying self-justification becomes mentally agonizing and crowds out better motivations.  Even if we achieve some measure of “success” through meeting these standards, we recognize that failure may be just around the corner and become even more vigilant.  This cycle of perfectionism leads to unfulfilled misery and distance from God.

 

As I mentioned, our full adoption as sons and “heirs according to the promise” should negate attempts at perfectionism.  Paul details that “God sent his son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights as sons.” (Galatians 4:4)  Christ’s fulfillment of the law – through His sinless life and death that brought satisfaction of God’s wrath against sin for those who have trusted in Him – is complete.  Because of His completed work, we may “approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.” (Hebrews 4:16)

 

For many of us, it may be difficult to grasp what the Fatherhood of God and our “full rights as sons” implies, due to our family background.  By God’s grace, I have two parents who deeply love me and showed this love in innumerable ways.  I may look at their great love and then extrapolate to consider God’s unfathomable and lavish love for me.  Even with these obvious facts, however, I still fall into the slave-works trap against which Paul cautions.  If you have suffered through family strife, the nature of God’s familial love may seem foreign and indiscernible.

 

I encourage you to join me in reflecting on God’s amazing fatherly love for us today.  I have found that joy may oversweep me as I reflect on God’s goodness to us:  His grace, His blessings, and His awesome power.  In this exercise, I often reflect on His amazing creation and yet His desire to speak to us through His Word and Holy Spirit.  How are you able to connect with Him and experience the full depth of His love?  Will you take some time today to reflect – and be richly encouraged?

 

With such reflections in our mind, our motivation to please God and others turns from fear to love.  We wish to lavish on others the love that God has lavished upon us and to bring glory to our great and loving Father.  The negative, vicious cycle of fear and rejection becomes replaced by a positive, virtuous cycle of love and acceptance.  May God carry us into such a positive cycle, to His honor and glory.

 

 

Lord God, thank You for making it possible for us to approach You as sons through the completed work of Christ on the cross.  We are amazingly blessed to know You and experience the eternal life that You desired for us, even now as sons and heirs.  Help us to become so overwhelmed by Your fatherly love that we may deeply love and compassionately care for those around us.  Bring to mind today images of Your deep and amazing love and cast out our wrong notions that make us slaves to fear.  Bring the freedom as sons that You have always desired for us.  In Jesus’s Name, amen.

 

 

“How Deep the Father’s Love for Us”:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YV2zMZ-nZ7k

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