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December 4, 2011
When the apostle Paul wrote to the struggling Galatian church, he encouraged them to embrace their identity in Christ and rely upon His promises. Alistair Begg studies Paul’s emphasis on Jesus’ person. In His incarnation, Christ was born under the law, taking on humanity without setting aside His divinity. Only Jesus could fulfill the law’s precepts and pay its penalty. Thanks to His work, we are not only redeemed but also adopted into God’s family.
5Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and fworks miracles among you do so gby works of the law, or by hearing with faith— 6just as hAbraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7Know then that it is ithose of faith who are jthe sons of Abraham. 8And the Scripture, foreseeing that kGod would justify3 the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, l“In you shall all the nations be blessed.” 9So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10For all who rely on works of the law are munder a curse; for it is written, n“Cursed be everyone who does not oabide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that pno one is justified before God by the law, for q“The righteous shall live by faith.”4 12But the law is not of faith, rather r“The one who does them shall live by them.” 13Christ sredeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, t“Cursed is everyone who is hanged uon a tree”— 14so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might vcome to the Gentiles, so that wwe might receive xthe promised Spirit5 through faith.
15yTo give a human example, brothers:6 zeven with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16Now athe promises were made bto Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, c“And to your offspring,” who is Christ. 17This is what I mean: the law, which came d430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as eto make the promise void. 18For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but fGod gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19Why then the law? gIt was added because of transgressions, huntil the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was iput in place through angels jby an intermediary. 20Now kan intermediary implies more than one, but lGod is one.
21Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For mif a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22But the Scripture nimprisoned everything under sin, so that othe promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given pto those who believe.
23Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, qimprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24So then, rthe law was our sguardian until Christ came, tin order that we might be justified by faith. 25But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26for in Christ Jesus uyou are all sons of God, through faith. 27For as many of you as vwere baptized winto Christ have xput on Christ. 28yThere is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave7 nor free, zthere is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29And aif you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, bheirs according to promise.
1I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave,1 though he is the owner of everything, 2but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3In the same way we also, when we were children, cwere enslaved to the elementary principles2 of the world. 4But dwhen the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, eborn fof woman, born gunder the law, 5hto redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive iadoption as sons. 6And because you are sons, God has sent jthe Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then kan heir through God.
Copyright © 2024, Alistair Begg. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The ESV text may not be quoted in any publication made available to the public by a Creative Commons license. The ESV may not be translated in whole or in part into any other language.
