The principle was simple. God Loved the Galatians. He wanted to have a relationship with them. Their Sin Separated Them from God. But Christ’s Sacrifice and later resurrection provided the means to restore their relationship with God and give the people eternal life. All the people had to do was to trust God, and follow Him. Paul taught that message and many believed. But then, competing voices began to tell the Galatians they had to perform. They had to follow Jewish law, they had to keep the rules because that was what was demanded of the Jewish nation from the time of Moses. Sadly, for many, that was actually easier than trusting God for their salvation. So many in the Galatian church started doing acts and deeds to maintain their salvation.
Paul was blunt. If your deeds and acts were not good enough to obtain salvation, what makes you think that those deeds and acts will somehow be sufficient to maintain your salvation. It was foolish to think that since they were saved by faith, that they became good enough to do Christianity on their own–under their own power. Christ’s death and resurrection was not a starter kit to make us good enough to run our lives. We will always struggle with sin. We will never be able to do the acts necessary to be perfect. Christ cleanses us of our sin and leads us to become more like Him each and every day. It was, is and always will be a gift to be saved. We will never be good enough or able to do enough to earn our way into Heaven. Those that teach that salvation can be earned are foolish. Trust Christ and allow Him to lead and direct our lives. That is how we will be saved and transformed.
God Bless You
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. 2 I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? 3 Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?[a] 4 Have you experienced[b] so much in vain—if it really was in vain? 5 So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? 6 So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”[c]
7 Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. 8 Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.”[d] 9 So those who rely on faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on the works of the law are under a curse, as it is written: “Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law.”[e]
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