The age of (extreme) grace
Insulting
the spirit of grace
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God's grace
vs. personal holiness
All believers instructed in Scripture know the primary theme of Galatians.
The author Paul rebukes Judaizers who teach that in order to be
justified believers in Christ must be circumcised according to
the law of Moses. Jesus Christ has already set us free from the
yoke of slavery to the Law. Therefore we are under grace, and not
law.
How
can obedience
to God's commands and personal holiness therefore fit in with the
primary theme of Galatians?
Galatians 5:1 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. 2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves
be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I
declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated
to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by law
have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5
But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness
for which we hope.
In verses 4 and 5 Paul teaches that believers will
not be justified by Law, but rather by faith by which we eagerly
await “the righteousness
for which we hope.”
What is this righteousness which we eagerly await and for which we
hope? As we shall see, it is more than simply the righteousness which
is imputed to us when we put our faith in Christ. We need not await
and hope for the imputed righteousness which we are taught is given
to us by grace the moment we repent and put our faith in Christ. So
what is the righteousness to which Paul refers here?
Freedom in Christ is not a license to sin
Galatians 5:13 You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not
use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another
in love.
Paul warns us that our freedom in Christ does not mean
that we are free to sin. God’s grace is not a license for us
to sin and to indulge the sinful nature. Rather, we should use our
freedom to serve
one another in love.
14 The entire law is summed up in a single command: “Love your
neighbor as yourself.” 15 If you keep on biting and devouring
each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.
16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires
of the sinful nature. 17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary
to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature.
They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you
want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law.
If we live by the Spirit and are led by Him, we will
not gratify the desires of our sinful nature. It is extremely important,
therefore,
that we learn to “live by the Spirit.” If we do so, we
will not commit the following acts:
19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity
and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy,
fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy;
drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that
those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.
“Faith” will not save you if you
submit to your sinful nature
If we live by our sinful nature, we will practice sin
and we will not inherit the kingdom of God. Going to church faithfully
does not
guarantee that we will inherit the kingdom of God. “Blessed rather
are those who hear the word of God and obey it.” (Luke 11:28)
22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such
things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified
the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by
the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. 26 Let us not become
conceited, provoking and envying each other.
If we truly belong to Christ Jesus, we will have crucified
and put to death our sinful nature with its passions and desires. We will be
living by the Spirit, and will bear good fruit in our personal character
and behavior for the Lord. We will be living in holiness.
Believers can be deceived
Galatians 6:7 Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps
what he sows. 8 The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from
that nature a will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the
Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
In this final chapter of his epistle, Paul reveals
the bottom line. We can wax eloquently about justification by faith,
but ultimately
we will reap what we sow. We cannot mock God by claiming to be justified
by Him through our “faith” all the while sowing to pleasing
our sinful nature. Paul clearly tells us that we will reap destruction.
But if we sow to please the Spirit by walking in holiness and producing
the fruit of the Spirit, we will reap eternal life.
The true grace of God
Now we can understand what Paul meant by “the righteousness
for which we hope” and “living by the Spirit.” When
we live by the Spirit we will be walking in holiness and bearing the
fruit of the Holy Spirit. We will become righteous in the Lord’s
sight not simply by faith, but because we are actually becoming like
Him. “And we, who with unveiled faces all reflect the Lord’s
glory, are being transformed into his likeness with ever-increasing
glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit.” (2 Corinthians
3:18)
True saving
faith brings justification, justification leads to holiness, and
the result is eternal life. This is the true grace of God.
Romans 6:22 But now that you have been set free from sin and have
become slaves to God, the benefit you reap leads to holiness, and the
result is eternal life.
There is a way taught in Scripture by which we can actually put to
death the desires of our flesh, and thus actually live in holiness
to please God.
The
age of (extreme) grace
Insulting
the spirit of grace
Other articles | Featured
essays