Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Galatians 2:13-16


13 And the rest of the Jews along with him also concealed their true convictions and acted insincerely, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy (their example of insincerity and pretense).

14 But as soon as I saw that they were not straightforward and were not living up to the truth of the Gospel, I said to Cephas (Peter) before everybody present, If you, though born a Jew, can live [as you have been living] like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how do you dare now to urge and practically force the Gentiles to [comply with the ritual of Judaism and] live like Jews?

15 [I went on to say] Although we ourselves (you and I) are Jews by birth and not Gentile (heathen) sinners,

16 Yet we know that a man is justified or reckoned righteous and in right standing with God not by works of the Law, but [only] through faith and [absolute] reliance on and adherence to and trust in Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed One). [Therefore] even we [ourselves] have believed on Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the Law [for we cannot be justified by any observance of the ritual of the Law given by Moses], because by keeping legal rituals and by works no human being can ever be justified (declared righteous and put in right standing with God).

Thank You Father: We are not justified by the Ten Commandments. We are justified only by faith and this faith is not our own, it is Jesus’ faith which is active and alive within us. 

And that I may [actually] be found and known as in Him, not having any [self-achieved] righteousness that can be called my own, based on my obedience to the Law's demands (ritualistic uprightness and supposed right standing with God thus acquired), but possessing that [genuine righteousness] which comes through faith in Christ (the Anointed One), the [truly] right standing with God, which comes from God by [saving] faith. Philippians 3:9

Looking away [from all that will distract] to Jesus, Who is the Leader and the Source of our faith [giving the first incentive for our belief] and is also its Finisher [bringing it to maturity and perfection]. He, for the joy [of obtaining the prize] that was set before Him, endured the cross, despising and ignoring the shame, and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Hebrews 12:2

We are not justified or used by our Father by us first keeping any laws. It doesn’t matter what our church attendance is or isn’t. It doesn’t matter how we wear our hair or what clothes we wear. It doesn’t matter if we can quote verses of scripture or we can’t. We are justified by Jesus and we are ever being led by Him. He never leaves us and He never forsakes us. Fake religion hates this freedom that Jesus has delivered to us. 

[My precaution was] because of false brethren who had been secretly smuggled in [to the Christian brotherhood]; they had slipped in to spy on our liberty and the freedom which we have in Christ Jesus, that they might again bring us into bondage [under the Law of Moses]. Galatians 2:4

The circumcision party hated the freedom that Christ brought to us. They wanted our relationship with our Father to be based on our own works. The same hatred exists today in many churches for our freedom. But through Christ we are free at last, free at last, thank God through Christ we are free at last! 

No comments: