Insights from Galatians

The glorious gospel of God—that faith in Jesus Christ apart from the works of the law is what saves—this is the truth which prompted Paul to exercise his rebuke of the Galatians in embracing a counterfeit gospel. This true gospel which excluded boasting, this gospel which sought the approval of God, this gospel which was free and gave freedom, was the Apostle’s mainstay and foundation upon which all love and sin-killing would follow. By clinging to even one thing, circumcision, as being necessary to become a child of promise, those who had fallen away from grace revealed that their hope and reliance was not in the righteousness that comes through faith, but in their own righteousness, thereby nullifying the death of Christ. It was because of this reality that Paul wrote vehemently against such heresy.

From the outset, Paul made plain the purpose of his writing, namely, that the Galatians were turning away from the gospel which saves them from their sins (1:4, 6-9) and depending on something else which would bring about their destruction (1:8-9). Paul repeatedly throughout the letter states that this “gospel” which they were embracing was the law, and one particular thing about the law, namely circumcision (5:2-3, 6; 6:12-15; cf. 2:15-16). Thinking that circumcision was necessary to make one righteous, they enforced this upon others (2:14) thereby enslaving others to the law which would bring forth death (3:13) instead of embracing Christ alone through faith (2:16; 3:7, 14, 22) which brings forth life (3:12) and imputes to us the righteousness of Jesus (2:4-5). Paul repeats the gospel theme of Christ defeating sin and becoming a curse for us (3:13), delivering us through his death and resurrection. As he begins by saying that through Christ who was raised and through Christ who delivered us from the present evil age (1:4), he says that only through this Christ can we be delivered from the principles of this world which bring slavery (4:3, 9) and this is done by a trust in Christ alone (2:16; 4:4-6)

Justification by grace alone, through faith alone excludes boasting (1:4-5, 10; 6:14) and clings to Christ for adoption as sons (4:1-7). As we cling to Christ alone, love follows (5:16ff), not out of slavery because of the law (4:7), but out of freedom from the law by the Spirit. This Spirit is the means in overcoming the passions of the flesh (2:20; 5:16, 24) and living as believers who are not afraid of man’s opinion or of seeking man’s approval (cf. 1:10, 2:11-14; 6:14). Apart from Christ, there is no hope to be made right with God. Even in adding just circumcision to the gospel, one thereby shows that one’s hope is not set fully on the righteousness of Christ, but instead one is depending on one’s own righteousness. The comforting aspect of the message of the gospel is that Christ became a curse for us in dying on the cross, and rose triumphant from the dead so that we who only deserve the curse of God may receive the blessing of being an heir through faith. It is because of this adoption that we are to walk in step with the gospel and live according to the Spirit.

In this study, the connection between being justified by grace alone through faith (2:16) and being an heir of God from which dependency comes (4:6-7) and grace to overcome the passions of the flesh and even the fear of man, was made known to me in a new way. The nuance of boasting in the cross alone and not one’s own righteousness was a blessed one to see, for in doing so I will not be afraid of man, but instead seek the approval of God (cf. 1:10; 6:13). This is in stark contrast to the boasting of others who do not embrace the gospel, for these people rely on their own strength and law-keeping. Oh, how grateful I should be and how radical should my life look, leaning on the cross of Christ and living by the Spirit, from whom fruitfulness arises and from whom godly reliance is fostered, for it is by grace that I am saved and by grace will I be sanctified (2:20).

The Life I Now Live

I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.
Galatians 2:20

Around the nearly twenty five years in which I have lived there has been the desire to be known and loved by others. Inherent in my flesh has been a prideful longing for praise and affirmation. I have been satisfied in it when it has come and have gravitated toward it when I see this affirmation in others. Before I came to faith in Christ, I was my own and counted it my duty to see myself satisfied in this world and in the applause of others. But now the battle is different because victory is assured.

Growing up in a home in which my mother was a believer and my father largely not in the picture was a challenge in many ways. Presents, toys, and even food at times was hard to come by. I saw how I physically needed God's help and grace most poignantly when I found a one hundred dollar bill near the floor of a bank during Christmastime when we needed it most. This brought tears to my mom's eyes and was an illustration of God's grace and mercy.

The Holy Spirit showed me that I am spiritually destitute and empty just as I was physically destitute and dependent upon God. Nothing that I could do, however well-intentioned or pure in my eyes would cover the sin which I have and would commit because a holy God demands holiness. The separation between my Creator and myself because of my transgression, I learned, was infinite and could only be bridged by Christ, the perfect, holy God-Man who died to take the punishment for my sin and was raised to defeat death and cause His people to be united to Him through faith. This faith, this simple rest, trust, embrace of Christ's work for my own, was a truth that became my treasure and a heart-embraced reality early in my preteen years. It was a starting point upon which God would grow fruit which continues to this day.

The reality of being apart of God's kingdom purely by grace breaks one from a self-sufficient attitude, and this was certainly true of this young believer. But a battle between the flesh and the Spirit within me was waging, in which the skills God had entrusted to me (most notably my basketball skills at that time) were a distraction away from God's grace rather than a reminder of his mercy. I cherished applause and did not give glory to God in my heart, even if lip-service was made outwardly. Incidentally, the pride that fueled a desire for more recognition brought me to a Christian high school through a scholarship and revealed the futility of both outward and inward vanity. When performance waned and was assured to be lasting after hyper-extending my thumb during the year in which I most desired greatness, I began to be touched in a significant way by a teacher who was dying.

My teacher of Bible, Ethics, Apologetics, and Worldviews loved the Scriptures and knew the Scriptures more intimately than anyone else that I knew. He quoted and turned to multiple passages for every question that was asked of him and every desire for advice that was expressed. His illustrations and images to drive home points were significant in reminding me of the truth of the Old and New Testaments. He genuinely loved God's Word and spent His last years communicating it with students for whom he would hope to bring to faith and deeper satisfaction in God through the work of the Holy Spirit.

Mr. Sheehan made no qualms about showing in word and in practice that everything else was vanity if not coupled and driven by the desire to have others come to know Jesus and grow in Him to make Him known and loved. He knew he was dying of cancer and did not want to be anywhere else, do anything else, but pour his life into others to form them into passionate Christ-worshipers who would lay down their lives for the sake of the gospel. No one else taught me to love and cherish and memorize and base my life upon the Bible as much as this man. It was in his classes and outside his classes in my discussions with him that I would be drawn to have a ministry that would be based upon the truthfulness, solidity, and joy in the Word of God, all the while depending upon God. I was one who was drawn to love Jesus more through his work, and I wanted to have that effect on others by God's grace.

The way in which these ends can be accomplished is in any number of different ways, not the least of which is preaching. Part of the ministry orientation to which I was drawn came through the ministry of John Piper who pastored the church that I started to attend during my time at the Christian school. This man is the other influence that showed me the way to go about Bible study and exegesis, counseling, leadership, and communication through the pulpit in a God-centered, Christ-exalting, Spirit-dependent manner. And in my limited experience, this was rare, and it was needed.

If it was for this purpose that I am made: to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, then surely this should be the center in each facet of ministry. If I am designed to reflect as with a telescope the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ and project that to the world who needs a Savior, then surely I can partner in proclaiming and living out this truth if God leads me to teach or preach. Through different opportunities that presented themselves, I was able to teach and preach and lead and receive positive feedback which was geared not to vain praise, but Godward praise. This confirmed in large measure that full-time vocational ministry is where I should be.

Even in preparing for this, I ironically am tempted with glorying not in the grace of God and His continual mercy and presence in my life, but my abilities, accomplishments, and affirmation. It feels good to receive more praise by a professor or your peers in a Preaching class in which you are evaluated. It feels good to be told that you have a gift in writing or in speaking. The very thing for which I am ministering (glorifying God and enjoying Him) is the very thing which is jeopardized when my heart is not set in the right place.

But God in His mercy has saved me. God in His mercy is saving me. And God in his mercy will save me. I have been set free from the curse of the law and have been united to another so that everything that I do stems from and is based upon the faith in Christ which is mine by grace. Grace. That all-encompassing word for which I am eternally grateful! For without Him, I cannot believe, and without Him I can do nothing of spiritual significance. It is the reality which gives me the strength to overcome pride and obtain victory, for I have already obtained a victory of forgiveness and right standing in Him.

This truth stuns me rightly, because I am not one that deserves the love and forgiveness of a holy God who cannot stand sin. When applause and congratulatory remarks came in the past, I found the sustainability of my strength, and even my strength itself, protruding from my own ability and nature, and did not divert praise to Another. But now that I have grown to see my need of Him and the grace found in Him, the struggle to give the praise and glory to God from which all blessings come is a reality that has been achieved in Christ.

I am found in Him, not having my own righteousness which comes from the law, but that which comes through faith in Christ (Phil. 3). I am united to Him in His death and resurrection by grace through faith and stand in Him forgiven. I have victory not by my own doing, but in and through the Holy Spirit within me. The life I now live I live by faith in the Son of God who gave Himself for me; I do not live it through my self-sufficiency. It is in this dependence that God is honored and it is in this dependence that I hope to live even three more quarter centuries, if Jesus tarries. May it be Lord, for your name's sake.

Coloss. 3.3. Our life is hid with Christ in God.

My words and thought do both express this notion,
That Life hath with the sun a double motion.
The first Is straight, and our diurnal friend,
The other Hid, and doth obliquely bend.
One life is wrapt In flesh, and tends to earth.
The other winds towards Him, whose happy birth
Taught me to live here so, That still one eye
Should aim and shoot at that which Is on high:
Quitting with daily labour all My pleasure,
To gain at harvest an eternal Treasure.

George Herbert