Letter to the Galatians -- Chapter 6
“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” (Galatians 6:1-2).
We stand before our fellow man in the place of Jesus Christ and so it becomes our role to gently love and restore those who fall into sin. We must reach out with the tenderness of the Gospel to those caught in sin who, by the grace of God, have come to despair and repent of their sin. We are called to rebuke men with the Law who have become complacent in their sin and yet remain infinitely kind as we apply the salve of the Gospel message of forgiveness once their heart is broken and contrite. Men who see their sin don’t need the harshness and severity of the Law (as it has already done its work), they simply need the love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul warns us to watch ourselves so that we too may not be tempted and fall in the same way that our brother has. “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!” (1 Corinthians 10:12). We must not think that we are above the errors and sins of our fellow man, but must humbly realize that if he has fallen into sin today, that we may very well be next. It is for this reason that seeing our fellow man struggle in sin brings us the opportunity to repent ourselves. When we see the sin of others we should always immediately remember our own struggles and our own faults that demand daily repentance and contrition. Instead of being so eager to condemn and chastise our fellow man, holding his sin over his head, we need to seize the moment to remove the plank from our own eye. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye” (Matthew 7:3-5).
To love our fellow man means to bear with him in his sins, faults, shortcomings, and failings. No matter how many times our brother fails and falls, we are to rebuke and restore him as we bear with him in infinite patience. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him” (Luke 17:3-4). Our gentleness and mercy must have no end as we keep no record of the wrongs of our fellow man. Love is hard in that it does not take the easy way out of ignoring the sins of our fellow man, but it instead confronts him (no matter how awkward and difficult it may be) and lovingly rebukes him in hopes of restoring him in the faith. “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). Rebuke and discipline are synonymous with God’s love for us as He is always concerned with our eternal wellbeing much more than our immediate comfort. “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent” (Revelation 3:19). So too must be our attitude towards our brother as we realize that the wellbeing of his soul is far more important than whether he likes us in this life. In the moment of discipline the child usually hates the parent, but in the end comes around to see the true love that was displayed thru that act of discipline. If we honestly rebuke and confront our fellow man with a spirit of love, patience, selflessness, and gentleness we will find that in the end he will respect us far more than if we unlovingly let him wallow in his unaddressed sin. “Love does not brag and is not arrogant…it does not seek its own…it does not take into account a wrong suffered…it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5, 7).
“For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. For each one will bear his own load” (Galatians 6:3-5).
The “success” of bringing Christ to our fellow man never lies in how well the Message is received or how popular it becomes. “Success” with the Gospel lies only in the pure and accurate proclamation of Jesus Christ and the right administration of His sacraments. We need only concern ourselves with putting all of our effort in the correct proclamation of God’s Word, for a perverted and changed proclamation of God’s Word ceases to be God’s Word at all. We must simply proclaim God’s Word as Scripture does and then trust God’s promise, “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).
To be faithful ministers of God’s Word we must be diligent regardless of how the Message is received. Like water off of a duck’s back, so must the criticism, hatred, and rejection of the world towards us be upon ours. We must not emotionally invest ourselves in the reception of the Gospel because we know that it is a weak, humble, and despised Message that is most easily rejected by the world. When men put their hope in the outward success of the Gospel they will be disappointed, let down, and burned out. Our hope, however, is in the Lord Jesus Christ and His sufficient work and not in the seeming success of our ministry for His sake. Even if every single person rejected and hated our proclamation of Jesus Christ we would faithfully continue in it because it is ultimately God’s work from first to last. “We do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:2-5).
Paul urges us to do our work for God’s glory, being diligent, hardworking, and expedient. We rejoice not in the outward fruit of our labor, but we rejoice in the work itself that we have been honored to do for Jesus Christ. Our conscience testifies that we work hard on the tasks God has appointed to us and therefore we do not care what other men think about us and our work. We also pray daily that our ego is kept in the dark with regards to our work so that we do not become prideful. “When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:3). Everything that we do in this life is an act of worship to our God and no matter how menial a task can seem we need to realize that it is ultimately for God’s glory and purposes. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Let us pray that we daily realize that the praises of men are empty and meaningless and that God our Father above is the only one worth working for. “We speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else” (1 Thessalonians 2:4-6).
“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 6:6-10).
Ironically the false teachers of the world are the ones who have no trouble getting the support of their hearers. Men are very willing to pay a pretty penny to hear what their sinful nature wants to hear; they want to believe lies that keep them from facing the reality of their existence and they will pay any price to accomplish it. The false gospels of Christianity are no different than tarot cards, fortune tellers, or palm readers; the listener is paying the other person to tell them what they want to hear, what will keep them under the veil of their false existence. “The time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4). On the other hand, the true Gospel of Jesus Christ is despised greatly because it tears us out of our comfort zone, forces us to lose our life in order to gain it, and removes all the crutches of people and idols that are in our life. The Law of God is not something that any man wants to hear, as it crushes ego, pride, and self before God Almighty. Even the Gospel itself is not something man wants to hear unless he has first been humbled by the truth of the Law of God. Man in his stubborn self-sufficiency cannot stand the thought of being completely out of control of his salvation and life. Because of this men will pay generously for any false gospel that in their mind lets them retain control of their own destiny.
Paul gives the Galatians a very harsh warning about mocking God by failing to support the ministers He has provided to them. This warning is also for us today and should be taken very seriously. Thru God’s ministers we see our fellow man who stands in the very place of Jesus Christ before us. God has sent His messengers into the world on Christ’s behalf and therefore we must respect them and treat them accordingly. “He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me” (Luke 10:16). Because of the humble nature of the true Gospel it is very easy for man to fall into the lull of failing to adequately support the ministry of the Word. The Gospel and its servants are very easily abused because they follow the Christ-like behavior of love, patience, and turning the other cheek. We must realize however that when we reject, abuse, and fail to support the men God has placed in this world to proclaim His Word that we are not just rejecting men, we are rejecting Jesus Christ Himself. “It is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me” (1 Samuel 8:7).
Paul implores us to do good in the name of Christ without tiring or wearying. This is a far-reaching request that goes way beyond our initial tendencies. As men who carry around our sinful nature in our bodies of death we often fall into the thinking that we need only to do one or two good deeds. Haven’t we heard the remark from those around us when they say, “That was my good deed for the day,” and sometimes even replace day with week, month, or year? This remark speaks to a great truth of sinful man who thinks that one or two good deeds far outweighs any “bad” that he has done. As Christians though we are implored to do good unceasingly, knowing that it benefits us nothing as far as merit or righteousness is concerned and is something that we do solely for the sake of Jesus Christ who has already become our merit and righteousness. This is a tall order that fails amongst men because they find the motivation lacking. Men will eagerly try to do good and live “clean lives” if they think that these works earn them rewards and merits, but when men see no selfish gain in their good deeds then the wheat is truly separated from the weeds. What we will do when no one is looking and when there is absolutely nothing to be gained for ourselves says a lot about what and who we are living for. Let us pray that we are broken of our selfishness and by the grace of God do His good works solely for Jesus Christ. “We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
“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).
If the Holy Spirit does not dwell in us, doing the work of God within us, then we are being mastered by an unclean spirit. Whether this is the spirit of the flesh, the world, Satan himself, or something else altogether it does not ultimately matter for apart from the Holy Spirit and faith in Christ we are helpless rejecters of God. The spirit of the self-righteous man is very deceiving because it leads many to think they follow the ways of God all while they cling to their good works, merits, and clean living; this is the spirit of the Pharisee. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness” (Matthew 23:27-28).
The world is dead to us and we are dead to the world. As followers of Christ we are by definition a “counter-culture” that will never be in sync with the world and her ways. Thru the Cross of Christ the world has died to us, meaning that we no longer are a part of its ways, desires, and trappings. Thru the Cross of Christ we ourselves have also died to the world, meaning that the world no longer sees us as acceptable or as a “friend.” “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). We are now diametrically opposed to the world because of the Cross of Jesus Christ but this does not mean that we are no longer in the world; it is our duty to live in the world as beacons of the love of Christ amidst the darkness of her ways. “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life” (Philippians 2:14-16).
Paul’s ultimate message to the Galatians was simple, clear, and reiterated often: You have been saved by Jesus Christ apart from any work, choice, merit, or anything from yourself. “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross” (Colossians 2:13-14). We were made alive with Christ while we were dead in our sins. Our sins were forgiven on the Cross while we were helplessly under the condemnation of our sin and hatred of God. “God has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time” (2 Timothy 1:9).
Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians ends the way that it starts: with focus on the grace of God. Beginning, middle, and end are always pointed to Him who is “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13), Jesus Christ our Lord, the Son of the Living God. Let us pray that our lives daily follow this example as we focus on the love and grace of God in the Cross of Jesus Christ morning and night, waking and sleeping, working and playing.
We stand before our fellow man in the place of Jesus Christ and so it becomes our role to gently love and restore those who fall into sin. We must reach out with the tenderness of the Gospel to those caught in sin who, by the grace of God, have come to despair and repent of their sin. We are called to rebuke men with the Law who have become complacent in their sin and yet remain infinitely kind as we apply the salve of the Gospel message of forgiveness once their heart is broken and contrite. Men who see their sin don’t need the harshness and severity of the Law (as it has already done its work), they simply need the love of the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Paul warns us to watch ourselves so that we too may not be tempted and fall in the same way that our brother has. “If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!” (1 Corinthians 10:12). We must not think that we are above the errors and sins of our fellow man, but must humbly realize that if he has fallen into sin today, that we may very well be next. It is for this reason that seeing our fellow man struggle in sin brings us the opportunity to repent ourselves. When we see the sin of others we should always immediately remember our own struggles and our own faults that demand daily repentance and contrition. Instead of being so eager to condemn and chastise our fellow man, holding his sin over his head, we need to seize the moment to remove the plank from our own eye. “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye” (Matthew 7:3-5).
To love our fellow man means to bear with him in his sins, faults, shortcomings, and failings. No matter how many times our brother fails and falls, we are to rebuke and restore him as we bear with him in infinite patience. “If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him. If he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times comes back to you and says, ‘I repent,’ forgive him” (Luke 17:3-4). Our gentleness and mercy must have no end as we keep no record of the wrongs of our fellow man. Love is hard in that it does not take the easy way out of ignoring the sins of our fellow man, but it instead confronts him (no matter how awkward and difficult it may be) and lovingly rebukes him in hopes of restoring him in the faith. “Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction” (2 Timothy 4:2). Rebuke and discipline are synonymous with God’s love for us as He is always concerned with our eternal wellbeing much more than our immediate comfort. “Those whom I love I rebuke and discipline. So be earnest, and repent” (Revelation 3:19). So too must be our attitude towards our brother as we realize that the wellbeing of his soul is far more important than whether he likes us in this life. In the moment of discipline the child usually hates the parent, but in the end comes around to see the true love that was displayed thru that act of discipline. If we honestly rebuke and confront our fellow man with a spirit of love, patience, selflessness, and gentleness we will find that in the end he will respect us far more than if we unlovingly let him wallow in his unaddressed sin. “Love does not brag and is not arrogant…it does not seek its own…it does not take into account a wrong suffered…it bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:4, 5, 7).
“For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But each one must examine his own work, and then he will have reason for boasting in regard to himself alone, and not in regard to another. For each one will bear his own load” (Galatians 6:3-5).
The “success” of bringing Christ to our fellow man never lies in how well the Message is received or how popular it becomes. “Success” with the Gospel lies only in the pure and accurate proclamation of Jesus Christ and the right administration of His sacraments. We need only concern ourselves with putting all of our effort in the correct proclamation of God’s Word, for a perverted and changed proclamation of God’s Word ceases to be God’s Word at all. We must simply proclaim God’s Word as Scripture does and then trust God’s promise, “So is my word that goes out from my mouth: It will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:11).
To be faithful ministers of God’s Word we must be diligent regardless of how the Message is received. Like water off of a duck’s back, so must the criticism, hatred, and rejection of the world towards us be upon ours. We must not emotionally invest ourselves in the reception of the Gospel because we know that it is a weak, humble, and despised Message that is most easily rejected by the world. When men put their hope in the outward success of the Gospel they will be disappointed, let down, and burned out. Our hope, however, is in the Lord Jesus Christ and His sufficient work and not in the seeming success of our ministry for His sake. Even if every single person rejected and hated our proclamation of Jesus Christ we would faithfully continue in it because it is ultimately God’s work from first to last. “We do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to every man's conscience in the sight of God. And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing. The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. For we do not preach ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Corinthians 4:2-5).
Paul urges us to do our work for God’s glory, being diligent, hardworking, and expedient. We rejoice not in the outward fruit of our labor, but we rejoice in the work itself that we have been honored to do for Jesus Christ. Our conscience testifies that we work hard on the tasks God has appointed to us and therefore we do not care what other men think about us and our work. We also pray daily that our ego is kept in the dark with regards to our work so that we do not become prideful. “When you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing” (Matthew 6:3). Everything that we do in this life is an act of worship to our God and no matter how menial a task can seem we need to realize that it is ultimately for God’s glory and purposes. “So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). Let us pray that we daily realize that the praises of men are empty and meaningless and that God our Father above is the only one worth working for. “We speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel. We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts. You know we never used flattery, nor did we put on a mask to cover up greed—God is our witness. We were not looking for praise from men, not from you or anyone else” (1 Thessalonians 2:4-6).
“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 6:6-10).
Ironically the false teachers of the world are the ones who have no trouble getting the support of their hearers. Men are very willing to pay a pretty penny to hear what their sinful nature wants to hear; they want to believe lies that keep them from facing the reality of their existence and they will pay any price to accomplish it. The false gospels of Christianity are no different than tarot cards, fortune tellers, or palm readers; the listener is paying the other person to tell them what they want to hear, what will keep them under the veil of their false existence. “The time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4). On the other hand, the true Gospel of Jesus Christ is despised greatly because it tears us out of our comfort zone, forces us to lose our life in order to gain it, and removes all the crutches of people and idols that are in our life. The Law of God is not something that any man wants to hear, as it crushes ego, pride, and self before God Almighty. Even the Gospel itself is not something man wants to hear unless he has first been humbled by the truth of the Law of God. Man in his stubborn self-sufficiency cannot stand the thought of being completely out of control of his salvation and life. Because of this men will pay generously for any false gospel that in their mind lets them retain control of their own destiny.
Paul gives the Galatians a very harsh warning about mocking God by failing to support the ministers He has provided to them. This warning is also for us today and should be taken very seriously. Thru God’s ministers we see our fellow man who stands in the very place of Jesus Christ before us. God has sent His messengers into the world on Christ’s behalf and therefore we must respect them and treat them accordingly. “He who listens to you listens to me; he who rejects you rejects me; but he who rejects me rejects him who sent me” (Luke 10:16). Because of the humble nature of the true Gospel it is very easy for man to fall into the lull of failing to adequately support the ministry of the Word. The Gospel and its servants are very easily abused because they follow the Christ-like behavior of love, patience, and turning the other cheek. We must realize however that when we reject, abuse, and fail to support the men God has placed in this world to proclaim His Word that we are not just rejecting men, we are rejecting Jesus Christ Himself. “It is not you they have rejected, but they have rejected me” (1 Samuel 8:7).
Paul implores us to do good in the name of Christ without tiring or wearying. This is a far-reaching request that goes way beyond our initial tendencies. As men who carry around our sinful nature in our bodies of death we often fall into the thinking that we need only to do one or two good deeds. Haven’t we heard the remark from those around us when they say, “That was my good deed for the day,” and sometimes even replace day with week, month, or year? This remark speaks to a great truth of sinful man who thinks that one or two good deeds far outweighs any “bad” that he has done. As Christians though we are implored to do good unceasingly, knowing that it benefits us nothing as far as merit or righteousness is concerned and is something that we do solely for the sake of Jesus Christ who has already become our merit and righteousness. This is a tall order that fails amongst men because they find the motivation lacking. Men will eagerly try to do good and live “clean lives” if they think that these works earn them rewards and merits, but when men see no selfish gain in their good deeds then the wheat is truly separated from the weeds. What we will do when no one is looking and when there is absolutely nothing to be gained for ourselves says a lot about what and who we are living for. Let us pray that we are broken of our selfishness and by the grace of God do His good works solely for Jesus Christ. “We are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:10).
“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).
If the Holy Spirit does not dwell in us, doing the work of God within us, then we are being mastered by an unclean spirit. Whether this is the spirit of the flesh, the world, Satan himself, or something else altogether it does not ultimately matter for apart from the Holy Spirit and faith in Christ we are helpless rejecters of God. The spirit of the self-righteous man is very deceiving because it leads many to think they follow the ways of God all while they cling to their good works, merits, and clean living; this is the spirit of the Pharisee. “Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean. In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness” (Matthew 23:27-28).
The world is dead to us and we are dead to the world. As followers of Christ we are by definition a “counter-culture” that will never be in sync with the world and her ways. Thru the Cross of Christ the world has died to us, meaning that we no longer are a part of its ways, desires, and trappings. Thru the Cross of Christ we ourselves have also died to the world, meaning that the world no longer sees us as acceptable or as a “friend.” “Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For everything in the world—the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does—comes not from the Father but from the world” (1 John 2:15-16). We are now diametrically opposed to the world because of the Cross of Jesus Christ but this does not mean that we are no longer in the world; it is our duty to live in the world as beacons of the love of Christ amidst the darkness of her ways. “Do everything without complaining or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation, in which you shine like stars in the universe as you hold out the word of life” (Philippians 2:14-16).
Paul’s ultimate message to the Galatians was simple, clear, and reiterated often: You have been saved by Jesus Christ apart from any work, choice, merit, or anything from yourself. “When you were dead in your sins and in the uncircumcision of your sinful nature, God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross” (Colossians 2:13-14). We were made alive with Christ while we were dead in our sins. Our sins were forgiven on the Cross while we were helplessly under the condemnation of our sin and hatred of God. “God has saved us and called us to a holy life—not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace. This grace was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time” (2 Timothy 1:9).
Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians ends the way that it starts: with focus on the grace of God. Beginning, middle, and end are always pointed to Him who is “the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End” (Revelation 22:13), Jesus Christ our Lord, the Son of the Living God. Let us pray that our lives daily follow this example as we focus on the love and grace of God in the Cross of Jesus Christ morning and night, waking and sleeping, working and playing.
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