Gospel of John [17:13-14]. The Lord's priestly prayer; part 15. Gal 3:1-14.

Title: Gospel of John [17:13-14]. The Lord's priestly prayer; part 15. GAL 3:1-14.

 

GAL 3:1 You foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you, before whose eyes Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified [posting of a public announcement - Paul's gospel]?

 

GAL 3:2 This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?

 

They can only answer this - by faith.

 

GAL 3:3 Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected [completed, matured] by the flesh?

 

GAL 3:4 Did you suffer so many things in vain —  if indeed it was in vain?

 

GAL 3:5 Does He then, who provides you with the Spirit and works miracles among you, do it by the works of the Law, or by hearing with faith?

 

GAL 3:6 Even so Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

 

The gospel of grace came into the world that had its own definitions of joy, love, and righteousness and gave their true meanings.

 

In Christ the divine standard of these, which can fill any man, has been achieved and plainly defined from God's name or God's character. Also given in the gospel of grace or the good news is that these things are given by means of grace and are appropriated by faith. And when we set out to be what we are, or in other words, to practice to virtues of God in dependence upon the power of the Holy Spirit, we see their benefits to ourselves and others, we see how beautiful and lovely is the righteousness of God, and our faith in it being the only right way increases, which in turn brings more functioning and more faith and like a snowball rolling down a snowy hill, our growth to maturity or completion accumulates.

 

PSA 84:1

How lovely are Thy dwelling places, O Lord of hosts!

 

GAL 3:7 Therefore [conclusion from verse 6], be sure that it is those who are of faith who are sons of Abraham.

 

GAL 3:8 And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying [GEN 12:3], "All the nations shall be blessed in you." [not by means of circumcision or Mosaic Law]

 

We see here a wonderful principle that when God gives promises He foresees all the beneficiaries of them as well as all the benefits of them. The Judiazers of Paul's time and indeed most Jews of Christ's time and following did not foresee what God did in justifying the Gentiles. Never think you fully understand all the implications of a passage or verse. God sees it fully. We take time and return to the words again and again.

 

The good news announced to Abraham was that someday the Savior would arise out of his nation Israel, and that the Gentiles would be saved through Him as Abraham was saved.

 

Thus, Abraham rejoiced to see the coming of that day.

 

JOH 8:56

"Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad."

 

Abraham had prophetic understandings of the day of Christ and also had familiar conversations with the Angel of the Lord, who we know to be Christ. He also had the son Isaac at 99 years old with his previously barren wife Sarah at 90 years old, knowing that if God could do that, then God would surely bring the future Seed who would bless all nations. The fulfillment of the covenant with Abraham gave him great joy.

 

GAL 3:9 So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer.

 

It is those of faith and not works that are blessed with salvation, which in the CA carries the promises of election and predestination.

 

GAL 3:10 For as many as are of the works of the Law are under a curse; for it is written, "Cursed is everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them."

 

Paul quotes DEU 27:26 to reveal that everyone who seeks justification through the Law is cursed since laws cannot make a man righteous.

 

The preposition is ek which means from or out from. "For as many as are out from the works of the Law," meaning that they have staked their entire lives on the works and commands, but not from faith in the Messiah for salvation.

 

This is very important. While it is true that no one could fulfill all the things written in the Law, this was a symptom of depravity and not the cause. If someone could, which no one can, they would still be in their sins. Life is not had by the Law.

 

In this passage in Deuteronomy curses and blessings are pronounced that would come upon those who did not abide by the law and those who did, respectively. Keeping the commands brought the blessing and breaking them brought the curse.

 

The Law is God's commandments and so is holy. Conforming to it was conforming to a righteous system, yet that system did not make anyone righteous.

 

For instance, a man may not take another man's wife to his bed. If a man follows this command he is acting in conformity of what God deems right or righteous, but that in itself does not make him righteous in the sense that God is by nature. No man can accomplish that. And so the Law was righteous but it did not make any man righteous. Abraham was made righteous by faith, without the Law. That faith could make him righteous because of the work that Jesus Christ, his Seed, would complete on Mt. Moriah.

 

Our Lord said to the representatives of this system:

 

JOH 5:39-40

"You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me; and you are unwilling to come to Me, that you may have life.

 

They thought that keeping the words of the Law itself would give them eternal life, or justify them, but those words all led to the person and work of Christ.

 

Paul argues that on the contrary, Israel has by its attempt to be justified by the law, entailed the curse of the broken law, for no man could keep the law. By saying that I'm going to stand on the law as the source of righteousness, I have broken it since there is always a part of it that I will not do or keep.

 

This curse is not merely the wrath of God in the form of the final banishment of the sinner from His presence, with all the sorrow and misery which that includes, but represents also a present condition of alienation from God caused by a violation of His law.

 

The NT has plenty of commands as does the OT. Yet none of those commands will make any man righteous. Only faith in Christ can make a man righteous.