This lesson begins with a graphic used as an illustration of part of the core principle in today's lesson.
God's determination from the covenant to Abraham (Genesis 12:1-3) was to work continuously toward the full restoration of relationship between Himself and people. Each component was only a means [a vehicle] to take God's determination to the next component. Each component was not God's final goal. Each was a means to move God's determination toward completely restored relationship. God's determination was not time-based. It did not matter to God how long it took to move from one component to another. God's determination was intent-based.
When people concluded at any point that their component was God's goal, they misunderstood God's intent. For example, when Israel decided the restoration of their nation was God's goal rather than the means to God's goal, their misunderstanding attempted to short-circuit God's intent. The existence of the nation of Israel was important, but it was not God's ultimate goal. Or, for another example, when Christians decide the restoration of the church is God's goal rather than a means to God's goal, their conclusion attempts to short-circuit God's intent. Again, the church is important, but it is not God's ultimate goal. God's intent is to restore full relationship between Him and all people. That divine intent will not be accomplished until God's people are in His presence.
In the first century, Jewish Christians often viewed themselves as being in competition with gentile Christians. Jewish Christians at times resented gentile Christians. Jews and Jewish Christians were convinced that the restoration of physical Israel was God's goal. Jewish Christians [and Jewish people] did not believe that only conversion to Jesus Christ would [or could] make gentiles people who belong to God. Many Jewish Christians could not comprehend how faith in Jesus Christ could replace physical membership in the Israelite nation and Judaism. Statements found in scriptures such as Matthew 3:9; 7:21-23; 8:11, 12; and Romans 3:1, 29; 9:6-33 acknowledge the existence of this Jewish attitude. This truth confused them (Romans 11:33-36).
Paul was obviously distraught in his letter to gentile Galatian Christians (see Galatians 1:6-10). Some Jewish Christians known to us as Judaizing teachers successfully convinced the gentile Christians of Galatia that gentile converts had to proselytize to Judaism [at least be circumcised] if they were to have salvation. In our language, Paul asked those gentile Christians, "Did you not understand what I taught you?" To strengthen his previous message, Paul gave evidence (1) that his message did not come from any human source (Galatians 1:1-24); (2) that he was not asked by the Jewish Christian leadership to amend his message to the gentiles (Galatians 2:1-10); and (3) that he directly [face to face] withstood Peter when Peter sided with the Judaizing teachers (Galatians 2:11-21). After affirming his message to gentile Christians in Galatia (chapters 3 and 4), Paul began chapter 5 with [to us] an unusual statement in verse 1:
It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.
In what way did [does] Jesus Christ set us free? Some ways we thought about and accepted, and some ways we have not considered or accepted.
First, there is freedom granted because we have been released from slavery to Satan. Scripture speaks of that freedom by using words like forgiveness, redemption, sanctification, justification, transformation, etc. Before we were Christians, we were without choice in our bondage to Satan. In Jesus Christ, we are free from that bondage.
Second, there is freedom because God's forgiveness in Jesus' blood is continual. Nothing external of ourselves can end that freedom--we cannot against our will be separated from God's love (see Romans 8:26-39). As Christians, when we repent of the mistakes we know we make, God's forgiveness includes "all sin" or "all unrighteousness" (see 1 John 1:5-10).
Aspects of freedom that involve release from slavery to Satan or evil are commonly familiar and accepted.
Third, there is the freedom granted by God's grace. People cannot make themselves holy by following rules and regulations. We either rebel or find ourselves seeking "loopholes" rather than divine intent. We technically try to "justify" our self-centered behavior. Perhaps the best statement of God's grace is found in Ephesians 2:1-10. We were saved to be obedient to God's purposes, but our acts of obedience do not place God in debt to us. It is what God did in Jesus on the cross that enables us to stand before God. Note 1 Peter 2:24.
We are less comfortable with freedom in God's grace. Because we were taught obedience's responsibilities with such emphasis, we often fear God's grace. We struggle as we seek God's balance in combining the biblical concepts of grace and obedience.
Fourth, [in the context of Galatians] we are free to be different. Though that is a "silent" fact most of us accept as true, we likely verbally disagree with the concept. For example, we tolerate lots of differences in our preferences as Christians: the architecture of the building, the color of the carpet, who should serve as congregational leaders, where "the building" should be located, etc. We often say those differences do not involve "salvation issues," though we have been known to divide over such. We tolerate "someone who does not known as much as I do," declaring God can save him or her in their ignorance and declaring they will grow. Yet, we are quite hesitant to tolerate anyone who suggests he or she "knows more than I do." We are more likely to question the salvation of someone who knows more than we know than someone who knows less than we know.
First-century Jewish people knew the holy God for centuries. Commonly, those who were gentile Christians worshipped idols prior to becoming Christians. The differences between those two groups were enormous! Yet, God could save both sets of Christians even though they had enormous differences. In that is freedom in Christ. Why? The freedom is seen in two facts: (1) God loves people; (2) God designed His "good news" outreach in Christ to succeed.
For Thought and Discussion:
Link to Teacher's Guide
Lesson 9
