Galatians: Part 3 - Ch. 4

Christ & The Covenant

As Paul moves on from chapter 3, where he was talking about faith, he now bridges this conversation in chapter 4, where he starts the discussion by talking about being God’s children in Christ. Paul goes further in this chapter by also discussing the two covenants and how we are to view them now. All of this is what ultimately leads us to the finale that we will break down next week, where Paul concludes his letter to the church in Galatia. The Bible Project makes Paul’s stance on the covenant issue clear when they state, “​​Once the Messiah came, he fulfilled the purpose of the laws on Israel’s behalf. Jesus was the faithful Israelite who truly loved God and neighbor. As the messianic King, he died to take the curse and consequence of Israel’s failure into himself in order to bring redemption.” As is common with all of Paul’s writings, the focus on God’s family and the new covenant is all about Christ. When we see Paul break all of this down in this chapter, we will understand why this view of being God’s children under a new covenant is so important. With that being said, let’s dive in and see what exactly God has to teach us through Paul on this exact issue. 

Children of God

To start, Paul begins by telling the Galatians what exactly happened to them when they became saved. He does this because he wants them to know that when they walk away from the Lord, they are doing a completely idiotic thing. Look at how Paul phrases this process in Galatians 4:3-7 “So we too, when we were children, were held in bondage under the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of the time came, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons and daughters. Because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying out, “Abba! Father!” Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.” Before Christ came and before we were ever considered to be children of God, we were held in bondage. Paul is clear on this point up front because he wants everyone to know that when we choose our sin over God, we are running back to bondage instead of the freedom that God has made available to us. This is the idiocy that Paul wants us to open our eyes to. Yes, sin may be a temporary enjoyment, but it leads to permanent enslavement. However, Paul doesn’t stop here, he goes even further on this idea when he says that Christ came to free us from the Law so that we may be adopted as sons and daughters into the family of God. This adoption is also no ordinary adoption. 

Through this adoption, we receive God’s Spirit, which is how we know that we have been adopted into His family. And how do we know we have His Spirit? Because this Spirit cries out, ‘Abba! Father!’ In other words, what Paul is saying is that we are sons and daughters of God because we have His Spirit, and we know we have His Spirit because our lives call out to Him in total dependence. If you have repented and believed in the gospel of Jesus Christ, you know what this looks like. You know what it looks like to come to the end of yourself and become completely and totally reliant on God to save you. What a humbling and yet beautiful moment this truly is. Beyond this, though, Paul is clear to warn the Galatians, just as we stated a bit earlier as well. Paul says in Galatians 4:8-9 “However at that time, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those which by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles, to which you want to be enslaved all over again?” This is the warning that the Galatians and we ourselves must take to heart. When we turn from God and choose our own sin and desires over Him, we are running back to the worthless things that have enslaved us from the beginning. No matter what the temptation or what the desire is on our hearts, may we always be seeking to follow Christ and give up everything for Him because of the sacrifice He gave for us in order to purchase our salvation and set us free. 

The New Covenant

Finally, what Paul concludes with in this chapter is the idea of the two covenants. In order to communicate the overall idea of the covenants to the Galatians, Paul discusses the lives of Hagar and Sarah. Paul states that the children of the slave woman, Hagar, are born into slavery with her, with no one to rescue them. The free woman, however, has a different outcome. Paul says in Galatians 4:26-28 “But the Jerusalem above is free; he is our mother. For it is written: “REJOICE, INFERTILE ONE, YOU WHO DO NOT GIVE BIRTH; BREAK FORTH AND SHOUT, YOU WHO ARE NOT IN LABOR; FOR THE CHILDREN OF THE DESOLATE ONE ARE MORE NUMEROUS THAN THOSE OF THE ONE WHO HAS A HUSBAND.” And you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise.” As children of the free woman, we can rejoice that God has reduced us and led us to faith in Christ. We are no longer children of the slave woman, but have been set free by our God because of the gospel. Paul is clear on communicating this to the Galatians because he wants them to remember that their past life of serving sin and living in hopelessness is over. We are adopted children of God who are marked by His Spirit and no longer held captive under the old covenant. I hope and pray that as you read through this chapter and study what God has made available to us, you will find security and joy in the fact that God has marked you with His Spirit and put you under a new covenant in Christ that frees you from all former bondage to sin. 

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Sources

[1] Blue Letter Bible. (n.d.). Blue Letter Bible. https://www.blueletterbible.org/

[2] BibleProject. (2023, September 13). The Book of Galatians. BibleProject. https://bibleproject.com/guides/book-of-galatians/