Galatians 5:7-9

You were running the race so well. Who has held you back from following the truth? It certainly isn’t God, for he is the one who called you to freedom. This false teaching is like a little yeast that spreads through the whole batch of dough! We all know what is to be disappointed. It may be that someone has let you down, or that things just haven’t worked out in the way you had hoped. Paul’s letter to the Galatians is dominated by his deep and agonising disappointment that his readers had allowed false teaching to mislead them. He wondered whether his ministry to them had been a complete failure. This was clearly intensely painful for Paul because he longed to see them become joyful and fruitful Christians, and all seemed to have gone horribly wrong. They had gone back to following the rules and restrictions from which Christ had set them free. It’s easy to understand how quickly and easily false teaching spread in the early Church. Christianity was new and very few people had a deep knowledge or experience of it. Many people came from a Jewish background and found it very difficult to understand the radical nature of the changes that Christ had brought about. Others came from a background in other religions and were easily persuaded by the latest eloquent speaker. Paul was eager to help them resist false teaching and to stand strong in the freedom that Christ had brought them. Our context is very different from the Galatians, but we should be no less concerned about false teachers. Paul describes their teaching as being like yeast. It may seem small, but it can have a huge and damaging effect. These days, false teaching can spread instantly around the world through the internet, so we need to be even more on our toes. The very best way to prepare ourselves is by sticking close to the Bible’s teaching. By spending time reading, reflecting and praying through the Bible, we arm ourselves to face the latest false teaching.

Question What have you found to be the most helpful ways of getting to know the Bible better?

Prayer Loving God, thank you for the gift of the Bible and for the way in which its light shines on my life. Amen

Galatians 4:6-7

Because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, “Abba, Father.” Now you are no longer a slave but God’s own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. When I hear the word ‘father’, I immediately think of my own father. We probably all do. I think of a gentle and kind Christian man. He was a businessman and a busy member of our church, and he was always absolutely devoted to my mother and his four children. He died a few years ago, and I thank God for him. I am well aware that the word ‘father’ can trigger completely different reactions. For some people, it reminds them of someone who was cruel, dismissive and rude to them. Does that mean we should stop referring to God as a father? I don’t believe so. A number of people who have had a bad experience of fatherhood have told me how they desperately needed to know that they had a father, a heavenly Father, who was completely faithful and loving to them. Whatever experience we have had of human fatherhood, our fathers have not been perfect. Only God himself offers us that kind of fatherhood. Now that we are fully a part of God’s family, we have the incredible privilege of calling God Abba. The word comes from Aramaic, Jesus’ mother tongue, and is a word of extreme intimacy, similar to ‘daddy’. How amazing that we can address the creator of the universe with such familiarity, but that is the consequence of being children of God! We have a completely new status and security. It’s helpful to think of our relationship with God as forming the foundations of life. No building can stand for long if it hasn’t got firm foundations, but if they are in place, the building can grow strongly and securely. Life is no different. When we are clear about our unchangeable relationship with God our Father, we can build all other relationships and plans with confidence.

Question How helpful do you find it that you are able to call God ‘Abba’?

Prayer Abba Father, thank you for the love and security that you give me. Help me to build the whole of my life on the relationship that I have with you. Amen

Galatians 3:11

So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” For the apostle Paul, this was the crunch issue. The only way to be made right with God is through faith. He was addressing many people who believed that obeying the law was crucial for all Christians, but he argued that however well we live, we will always fail. We will never be able to put our relationship with God right by our own efforts. Coming from a strict Jewish background, Paul knew all about the significance of the law. From his earliest days, he had been taught that he needed to obey the letter of the law in order to please God. He had then been taught by the Pharisees, who were meticulous in their adherence to the law. Paul knew exactly what he was talking about! He knew that the law could only ever be a burden, and that’s why he was so excited that Jesus came to set us free. Because of the impossibility of pleasing God by our hard work, all we can do is receive his salvation as a gift. This all sounds so simple but, interestingly, we find it surprisingly difficult to receive free gifts. We instinctively suspect that there must be a catch. When someone offers the most precious thing in the world, we assume that it cannot possibly be true, but it is! Paul knew for himself how wonderful it was to live in the freedom that Jesus gives, and he longed for his friends in Galatia to have the same experience, but they needed to know exactly what kind of freedom this was. In chapter 5, he spelled this out. We have been set free not to do whatever we like, because that would be incredibly destructive. Christ has set us free so that we can “serve one another in love” (Galatians 5:13). It’s impossible to think of a world that is better or happier than one that is shaped by love, and that’s the gift we have been given, if only we will accept it.

Question How has Christ’s gift of freedom affected your life?

Prayer Lord Jesus, forgive me for those times when I have fooled myself into thinking that I could please you by my own efforts. I thank you for the free gift of salvation. Amen