Welcome to episode 154 of Grasp the Bible. In this episode, we continue our study in the Book of Galatians, covering chapters 4:20-5:1. The series is called “Free.” Today, we will cover:
- Stand in Freedom: Argument from Allegory
Key takeaways:
- Hagar was a slave and Sarah was free, and Paul sees spiritual significance in their status.
- The son of the slave woman Hagar (i.e., Ishmael) was born in accord with natural processes, whereas the son of Sarah (i.e., Isaac) was born in accord with God’s promise.
- Paul identifies the Judaizers as the descendants of Ishmael and sees the Galatian converts as sons of Isaac.
- Just as Hagar was Sarah’s slave and Ishmael did not receive God’s covenantal promises, so too Israel’s life under the law was marked by slavery to sin.
- The law puts to death, but the gospel proclaimed by Paul brings freedom. Further, the gospel produces true children for the Lord—children of the promise like Isaac. Therefore, the Gentiles of Galatia should exult with joy because they are the fulfillment of the promise; they are the true children of the Lord.
- Since the Galatians were born of the Spirit instead of the flesh, they were children of the Jerusalem above rather than of Hagar and were thereby children of the promise. Therefore, they are children of the free woman, belonging to the heavenly rather than the earthly Jerusalem.
- Freedom was won for believers by Christ through his redeeming work. Since the Galatians are free from the law in Christ, they must stand in that freedom.
Quotable:
- The law demands obedience and does not grant any power to keep its precepts. It slays but does not grant life.
Application:
- Christ liberated his people so that they may enjoy the freedom of the gospel.
- Christ frees and liberates believers, but the law enslaves and holds captive all those who are under its dominion.
- Liberation from sin, therefore, can never come from the law or from education in moral principles. If swift punishment is meted out, the law can restrain the outward expression of sin. Still, it does not cure the desires of the heart. The only true cure for sin is death, where the old person dies with Christ and a new person is born.
- Sometimes, because of our freedom, we engage in habits that end up enslaving us.
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