Commentary: When Adding leads to Replacing

When Adding leads to Replacing

 

For a special trip a man is given a luggage full of everything he will need for the trip.  The luggage had no extra space for anything else.  The truth is he needed nothing else that was not already in the luggage. He would not have any lack or leftovers.  But, the man decided he wanted to take additional things.  These were other things he wanted.  Being that he had no space for them, he decided he would go through the luggage, to see what he could leave behind, so he could put in what he wanted.  So, addition now became replacement. 

 

Needless to say, the man regretted taking things out and replacing them.  What he left behind was valuable, and he realized he did not have enough.  What he replaced them with would not work for replacement.  These were inappropriate. 

 

For our journey of faith Christ has given us a complete package full of what we need.  But, some decide they want to add things.  They may not think the original package is enough, or is fully appropriate.  But, soon they realize that the only way they can add things is by leaving things out from the original package.  So, what they have left from the original package plus all of the additions, is either not enough or inappropriate.  The journey is not completed, seemingly because of lack or wrong supplies.  But the truth is it was not completed because they did not trust Jesus from which the original package derived.  

 

When we believe that salvation is faith plus works, we have to leave elements of grace and faith out.  This means God's grace and faith becomes incomplete and ineffective.  And, the works with which we replaced parts of grace and faith is not enough and or inappropriate to do the work.  This combination leaves us unprepared; with it we cannot endure nor overcome.  This kind of Gospel is not complete good news; it becomes partial good news, which means it is not really good news.  This implies that salvation – Christ's work - is not completed.  This message leaves us no better off than what we started.  We are still completely lost.

 

This is what happened when the Judaizers and Galatians added circumcision as a means of salvation.  It left them no better off than the pagans (Galatians 4: 8 – 9).  In fact many traits that the pagans have had started to show (Galatians 5:15).  Paul asserts that salvation in Christ is complete; that it is by grace a gift to man and man receives it by faith.  There is nothing to add or change.  This is why Paul says that in Christ neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avail anything (Galatians 6:15).  This means that circumcision nor uncircumcision are worth anything; they are meaningless.  It does not produce anything nor is it a proof of anything.  It is nothing to boast about.  In contrast Paul says,

 

Galatians 6:14 But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.

 

 Galatians 6:15 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature.

 

Why does Paul say that we should boast on the Cross (Galatians 6:14)?  Because, through the cross Paul is dead to the world and the world is dead to him the Cross is what seals our salvation.  In the Cross there is power that transforms us into new men and woman.  It is the Cross that achieves a new creation (Galatians 6:15).  So, it is the Cross that should be praised. 

 

Ellen White says of the cross. 

 

"The cross of Calvary challenges, and will finally vanquish every earthly and hellish power. In the cross all influence centers, and from it all influence goes forth. It is the great center of attraction; for on it Christ gave up His life for the human race. This sacrifice was offered for the purpose of restoring man to his original perfection. Yea, more, it was offered to give him an entire transformation of character, making him more than a conqueror.

 

"Those who in the strength of Christ overcome the great enemy of God and man, will occupy a position in the heavenly courts above angels who have never fallen.

 

Christ declares, 'I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.' If the cross does not find an influence in its favor, it creates an influence. Through generation succeeding generation, the truth for this time is revealed as present truth. Christ on the cross was the medium whereby mercy and truth met together, and righteousness and peace kissed each other. This is the means that is to move the world (MS 56, 1899)."—Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1113.

 

Going back to our analogy, this implies that what faith plus works leave out of the package is the Cross. This means that the only thing in the package that God gives us for our journey of faith is the Cross; trying to fit anything else in the package requires taking out the cross.  But, the Cross is all we need.  Anything else will not be enough or inappropriate.

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Commentary: Sowing and Reaping

Sowing and Reaping 

What is sowing?  It is to plant seed for growing, especially by scattering.  What is reaping?  It is to cut or clear with a scythe, sickle, or machine; to gather by or as if by cutting the harvest.  Another definition is reward.  What is a harvest?  As a noun it can be the mature crop of what was sown.  It can also be the act of gathering the crop.  It is also the season in which the crop is ready to be gathered. Also, it is the product or reward of effort.  As a verb it is to gather in a crop; a synonym of reaping.  How do the concepts relate?  One is the cause the other the effect.  The harvest is the product of what is sown.  So you reap or harvest what you have previously sowed.  If you sow wheat you will harvest or reap wheat.  If you sow orange seeds, you will harvest oranges.  Less we take it for granted: you cannot sow cherries and expect mangoes. 

Another thing is that there is a process for the seed to grow into what will be harvested.  This means that time has to pass by.  This implies then that there is a season to sow and a season to reap.  Sow outside of that season and your harvest will be affected.  There are other considerations: type of soil, climate, moon phase, etc.  All of these will affect the harvest you get from what you sow. 

 

The following illustration (found in our lesson study) reveals the relationship between sowing and reaping. Some potato farmers decided to save the biggest potatoes for themselves and to plant the smaller potatoes as seed. After a few disappointing harvests, they discovered that nature had reduced their potato crops to the size of marbles. Through this disaster, those farmers learned an important law of life.  They could not have the best things of life for themselves and use the leftovers for seed. The law of life decreed that the harvest would reflect the planting (sowing). Small potatoes will yield small (or even smaller) potatoes.  They reaped what they sowed.

 

There is an application to life.  "In another sense, planting small potatoes is still common practice. We take the big things of life for ourselves and plant the leftovers. We expect that by some crazy twist of spiritual laws, our selfishness will be rewarded with unselfishness."—International Student Fellowship Newsletter, March 2007.

So let's consider this: whenever believers' lives are dominated by secular media—television, radio, Internet, and so on—how can they expect signifi­cant spiritual progress?  What if on the other hand the believer spent time praying and studying the word of God?  There are higher chances of spiritual progress.

 

Paul seems to understand this.  It is probably why he applies this principle in Galatians 6:1–10.  Spiritual attainments are proportionate with spiritual investments. Those who desire greater spiritual strength must engage in spiritual exercise and avoid spiritual fast food. Little investment equals little advancement. Spiritual profitability arises from investing time with spiritual things. Now Paul's metaphor about sowing and reaping is not unique. It is a fact of life that appears in many ancient proverbial sayings. What is significant, however, is how Paul uses it to highlight his previous comments about the flesh and the Spirit.  Let us read Galatians 6:  7 - 9

 

Galatians 6: 6-9 (NKJV)

7 Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.

8 For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life.

9 And let us not grow weary while doing good, for in due season we shall reap if we do not lose heart.

 

A modern colloquialism that is based on this concept is, "no pain, no gain."  Another similar one is, "nothing ventured, nothing gained."  James D. G. Dunn notes, "A modern equivalent is that we are free to choose, but we are not free to choose the consequences of our choice."—Galatians, p. 330.  

Ellen White comments on this,

 

"The Spirit of God keeps evil under the control of con­science. When man exalts himself above the influence of the Spirit, he reaps a harvest of iniquity. Over such a man the Spirit has less and less influence to restrain him from sowing seeds of disobedience. Warnings have less and less power over him. He gradually loses his fear of God. He sows to the flesh; he will reap corruption. The harvest of the seed that he himself has sown, is ripening. He has a contempt for God's holy commandments. His heart of flesh becomes a heart of stone. Resistance to truth confirms him in iniquity. It is because men sowed seeds of evil, that lawlessness, crime, and violence prevailed in the antediluvian world.

"All should be intelligent in regard to the agency by which the soul is destroyed. It is not because of any decree that God has sent out against man. He does not make man spiritually blind. God gives sufficient light and evidence to enable man to distinguish truth from error. But He does not force man to receive truth. He leaves him free to choose the good or to choose the evil. If man resists evidence that is sufficient to guide his judgment in the right direction, and chooses evil once, he will do this more readily the second time. The third time he will still more eagerly withdraw himself from God and choose to stand on the side of Satan. And in this course he will continue until he is confirmed in evil, and believes the lie he has cherished as truth. His resistance has produced its harvest (MS 126, 1901)."—Ellen G. White Comments, The SDA Bible Commentary, vol. 6, p. 1112.

 

So, as Paul says in Romans 1: 18 – 32 that God has to let those who refuse His grace go.  Not as punishment, but because they chose to leave.  So, in making their choice they also chose the consequence.  It is not God who punishes them; they are suffering the unfortunate consequences of their own choices.  Our eternal destiny will reveal the choice we made.  It will reveal what we sowed.  In the end no one will be deceived.  

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Light Bulbs

Light Bulbs

The light bulb is nothing without electricity. It was designed for illumination, but cannot, without energy, displace darkness.  The light from a light bulb is a combination of three things: an incandescent filament that is part of an unbroken and uninterrupted electric circuit and of course, electricity.  So, several simple things occur whenever the light bulb is ignited.  The filaments within the incandescent bulb or the gases within the fluorescent tube must be intact.  Obviously, the bulb must be properly connected to an electrical source (thus closing the circuit). The electrical switch must be turned on.  Similarly, whenever Christians shine forth, there must be spiritual equivalents to the light bulb and spiritual equivalents to what makes the bulb works. 

 

Our spiritual filaments are broken beyond repair.  The Holy Spirit brings a new one.  The Holy Spirit then also makes new electrical wiring and connections; our old circuitry is inadequate for His electricity and to make His filament work.  Once the new equipment is in place and the Christian is properly connected to the spiritual energy source (God), he or she shines.

 

We can see it may take the Holy Spirit some time to set everything in place, at first the work is internal.  In reality, He is limited by how fast we let Him work, and how much space we give Him.  Once all is in place it should work continually, unless we find ways to interrupt it.  Interruptions of the energy flow (for example, switches) can stop the electric flow, meaning that the hearing of faith and the believing of the Word is interrupted.  The smallest cracks in the fluorescent tube or the tiniest breaks of an incandescent filament can destroy the bulb's capacity for lighting.  So, can a break of the wiring.  We should clarify that unlike our electrical sources, The Holy Spirit never has an outage.  So, when our spiritual bulb ceases to shine light, it is not his fault it is ours. 

 

In principle, this metaphor is very similar to the one Jesus used in John 15.  We call it the Vine and the Branches.  Christ told His disciples,

 

John 15

4 Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.

 5 I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

 6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.

 7 If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.

 8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.

 9 As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love.

 

The branch that is connected to the vine (the trunk in the case of a tree), will feed off the sap that flows through vine or trunk.  This will enable the branch to grow leaves, flowers and or fruits.  This will be visible to all, and no one well be able to deny that the branch is connected to the vine or trunk, since "by the fruit you will know them" (Matthew 7:20).  In this metaphor, if Christ is the Vine or trunk, then the Holy Spirit is the sap.  The sap lubricates and feeds the branch.  The sap gives the branch life; which is evident by the fruit.

 

What is the fruit?  It is found in Galatians 5:22 – 23,

 

 

Galatians 5

22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

23 Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

 

In the same chapter Paul contrasted the fruit of the Spirit with the works of the flesh.  This is what those who refuse to be part of the Holy Spirit circuitry or refuse to abide in Christ produce.  Let us read,

Galatians 5

19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

 

If we were to see this passage in the light of Parable of the vine and branches these branches produce no fruit, and the works of the flesh are evident.  The Father, who is the husbandman, cuts these branches away to make sure the vine or tree does not waste resources that the good branches could be using (John 15:1).  These are those of which Christ says, "depart from me you workers of iniquity, I know you not" (Matthew 7: 23) these are professed believers Christ is speaking to.  They attended church; they participated in all church activities and programs.  They sang hymns, taught Sabbath School, returned tithes, even did evangelism.  They were Sabbath School leaders, elders, deacons, etc.  Christ says to them "I do not know you.  Go away."  They never got the point that only the daily indwelling of the Holy Spirit enables us to live a God-honoring life.  Only the connection to the vine enables the Holy Spirit to produce fruit in them.  Only the connection to the electric circuit enables the Spirit to shine the Light.  How do we stay connected so the Holy Spirit can work through us? Through the hearing of faith (Galatians 3:1).

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Commentary: A List of Requirements

A List of Requirements

One day while in college I was perusing my school bulletin.  I saw that beside the description for some classes it had the word prerequisite.  Then it listed other class numbers.  I figured that it meant that I should take the listed classes before I take the class in question.  So, it seemed it was telling me what I had to do prior to taking the class in question.  But, that is not the definition of the word prerequisite.  Of course, the prefix pre- means before.  Requisite means requirement.  A requirement is something – as a condition or quality – needed.  I understood that what the bulletin was actually telling me is that I needed the knowledge and or skill set that I got from the previous classes to take the one.   But, requirements are not always about something I can achieve or acquire. 

Typically we talk about requirements in terms of fulfilling not doing.  To fulfill means to satisfy.  To satisfy is to meet the requirements.  If I wanted to join the army, I would have to be a certain weight in relation to my height.  So, to join the army I would have to meet that requirement.  But, if I wanted to be a horse jockey, I would have to be small: short and thin.  Now, let's say I am overweight, I could lose the weight.  Let's say I am more than 6 feet tall (1.8 meters) then I probably cannot be a jockey.  The average weight for a jockey is around 115 lb (52 kg).  The average height is about 5 feet and 3 inches (1.6 meters).  In this case I cannot meet the requirement not because of something I cannot acquire or achieve; I cannot meet the requirement because of something I am not. 

Out of the twenty pilots selected to fly Vosotk 1 (the first spaceship to orbit the earth), the eventual choices for the first launch were Yuri Gagarin and Gherman Titov because of their performance in training, as well as their physical characteristics — space was at a premium in the small Vostok cockpit and both men were rather short.  Gagarin, the ultimate choice, was 1.57 meters (5 ft 2 in) tall, which was an advantage in the small Vostok cockpit.  Gagarin's met the size requirement.  Not something he could acquire or achieve, but something he was by genetic inheritance. 

When it comes to the Law and the Commandments, Paul as well as Jesus, seem to refer to them as requirements.  Time and time again they speak of them as something to be fulfilled.  Here are some examples,

Romans 8:4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.

Romans 13:10 Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Romans 13:8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law.

Galatians 5:14 For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

Matthew 5:17 "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill.

 So, to Paul there is a difference between the doing of the Law and the fulfilling of the law.  Paul intentionally uses each phrase to make an important distinction between two different ways of defining Christian behavior in relation to the law. For example, it is significant that when Paul refers positively to Christian observance of the law he never describes it as "doing the law." He reserves that phrase to refer solely to the misguided behavior of those who are living under the law and are trying to earn God's approval by "doing" what the law commands.

This is not to imply that those who have found salvation in Christ do not obey. Nothing could be further from the truth. Paul says they "fulfill" the law. He means that true Christian behavior is much more than the outward obedience of just "doing" the law; it "fulfills" the law. Paul uses the word fulfill because it goes far beyond just "doing." This type of obedience is rooted in Jesus (see Matt. 5:17). It is not an abandonment of the law, nor is a reduction of the law only to love, but it is the way through which the believer could experience the true intent and meaning of the whole law!

Ellen White also sees the Law as a requirement.  And, she is clear on how we can fulfill that requirement. She says,

"Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness. Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace, but of debt. But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness" (Romans 4:3-5). Righteousness is obedience to the law. The law demands righteousness, and this the sinner owes to the law; but he is incapable of rendering it. The only way in which he can attain to righteousness is through faith. By faith he can bring to God the merits of Christ, and the Lord places the obedience of His Son to the sinner's account. Christ's righteousness is accepted in place of man's failure, and God receives, pardons, justifies, the repentant, believing soul, treats him as though he were righteous, and loves him as He loves His Son. This is how faith is accounted righteousness; and the pardoned soul goes on from grace to grace, from light to a greater light. He can say with rejoicing, "Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; that being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life" (Titus 3:5-7). {1SM 367.1}

The inheritance is given to the heirs.  The heirs are sons and daughters of God.  Paul says in Galatians 3, 

Galatians 3: 26For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 3: 27For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

Galatians 3:  28There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

Galatians 3:  29And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Those who live by faith attain the righteousness required to become children who become heirs of God.  It is not something they can achieve or acquire on our own.  It is not something they are given by genetic inheritance.  It is something they are given by grace, and they receive it by faith.  

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Commentary: The Fork in the Road

The Fork in the Road

Driving Eastbound on I-94 in Chicago (it is southbound in Chicago) the road splits.  It is what some call a fork in the road.   I-94 continues to the left (eastbound) and I-57 continues to the South.  There are signs warning of the split a mile or two before by also suggesting possible destinations each route will take you to.  Depending on where you are going you will go right or left.  There is no reason why anyone should go in the wrong direction.  But, some manage just that.  Taking one route means not taking the other.  This means that if you take the wrong route you will gradually go farther off the your intended destination.  The farther you go on the wrong road it will probably be longer and harder to get back on track. 

At Sinai the Israelites came to a spiritual fork in the road (Exodus 19 and 20).  They had had to choose which spiritual road to take.  Their issue was not that they did not want to go where God intended to take them.  They thought they could get there by going on the road of their own choosing and not God's intended road.  They sincerely thought their chosen road could take them there.  So, they deviated from God's road and took the other.

Abraham had a similar experience of a spiritual fork in the road.  Like the Israelites later, it was not that Abraham did not want what God promised him.  Abraham thought he could get there following a road of his choosing.  Abraham thought that he could fulfill God's promise to him, by performing methods not suggested nor approved by God.  Thus, Abraham conceived a child with Hagar (Genesis 16: 4).  Once Abraham went down that road, it would take years of hardship to get back on track.  God's idea and intention was that Abraham conceived with Sarah (Genesis 17: 16, 19). 

According to Paul, this event was symbolic of the Old covenant.  When Abraham finally conceived with Sarah it was the new covenant.  Let us read Galatians 4:22-26,

Galatians 4: 22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman.

Galatians 4: 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.

Galatians 4: 24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.

Galatians 4: 25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children.

Galatians 4: 26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.

In this verse Paul ties Hagar with Sinai.  In other words, the Old Covenant that Abraham followed by conceiving with Hagar is what the Israelites followed in Sinai. A covenant the Jews continued to follow even on to the day of Paul.  While, Abraham eventually, after years of hardship found God's road again, the majority of Israelites and Jews never found God's road again. 

hat road have we taken: The Old Covenant or the New Covenant?  It is important to know that a misunderstanding of the Covenants can lead you to the wrong road.  Many Christians have what is called a dispensational view of the Covenants.  To them the Old Covenant is a road that failed to take them to their destination so then they tried another road, which is the new Covenant.  The Covenants to them is a matter of time, not a heart relationship with God.  To them from Sinai to Jesus people were saved by keeping the Law and the ceremonies of the Sanctuary.  According to this view this method failed, so God then instituted the new method which is saved by grace.  Paul has argued successfully in Galatians that this is not true.  Paul's example of Abraham being under both covenants at different times in his life shows us that dispensation is wrong.  Especially, when we know what Abraham was going through at each of these stages.  Abraham's unbelief led to the Old Covenant.  When Abraham believed He was under the new covenant. 

Paul's argument also stands against Mainline Adventism view in the Covenants.  Adventists are not quite dispensational.  They believe that it is only one Covenant.  To them the Covenant is one road, which at different points has different scenery and even a different name, but it is the same road, nonetheless.  From Sinai to Jesus the covenant was to be understood and practiced though the types, forms and symbols of the ceremonial law; this is the old covenant.  Since, the ceremonial law pointed to Jesus, when Jesus came, type met antitype, and thus Christ fulfills the ceremonial law.  The Old Covenant fulfilled its purpose to show us the new Covenant, so it is no longer needed.  But, how can the Old Covenant be the Sanctuary and its services, if according to Paul 430 years before the sanctuary service was enacted, Abraham was under the Old Covenant?  

 

Now, although the Adventist view is different from the dispensational, it is similar in that they both believe the Old Covenant is past.  We need to reiterate, they are two different covenants.  And, each covenant is a different method of salvation.  Each covenant is a different attitude toward God and the Gospel.  As the author of the Lesson tells us, "The two covenants are not matters of time; instead, they are reflective of human attitudes."  One of my favorite authors states, "These two covenants exist today. The two covenants are not matters of time, but of condition. Let no one flatter himself that he cannot be bound under the old covenant, thinking that its time has passed"

These Covenants are based on a heart relationship with God.  The New Covenant is for God to fulfill His promises to us; we are just to receive them humbly and gratefully.  In the New Covenant God dwells in our hearts and writes His law in our hearts (Jeremiah 31:33).  In the New Covenant we abide in Christ and Christ in us (John 5).  In the New Covenant He becomes our God and we His people (Ezekiel 37: 23, 27).  In the New Covenant we become His royal priesthood (1 Peter 2:9).  In the New Covenant God bestows on us His inheritance:  eternal life in the new earth.   "Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God" (1 John 3:1)!

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

To Be Filled With Christ

To Be Filled With Christ

Today it is easier to know if and when a woman is pregnant than in the days of Paul.  There are tests that can let a woman know whether or not she is with child.  In the past it was pretty much known when the belly started to swell up.  No one then knew what happened inside until the woman gave birth to “final product.”  With the scientific and technological advances of today not only do we know, but there are fields of science dedicated to study it, and each phase in the formation of the human being has been named.  The first phase is called embryogenesis and it happens thanks to a process called mitosis. 

The topics of embryogenesis and mitosis are highly technical and complex.  In an oversimplified generalization, this process is what happens once a female egg is fertilized by a male sperm.  What happens is that the cell divides itself in identical parts and then splits creating twice as many identical cells.  Soon enough, a fertilized egg becomes an embryo, which eventually becomes a fetus. 

The word embryo is from the Greek Embruon, which means that which grows.  It comes from the word enbryein.  The prefix en- means in.  The suffix bryein means to swell; be full.  So the word means to fill or swell inside.  In this process of filling up inside a woman’s womb, a human being is formed. 

To apply this spiritually let us read Galatians 4:19,

Galatians 4:19  My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,

When we read Galatians 4: 19, we realize that Paul’s concern for the Galatians was not simply about theological ideas and doctrinal points of view.  His heart was bound up with the lives of the people who were brought to Christ through his ministry. He considered himself more than just a friend; he was their spiritual father, and they were his children. But even more than that, Paul likens his concern for the Galatians to the worry and anguish that accompany a mother in childbirth (Gal. 4:19). Paul had thought that his previous “labor” had been sufficient for their “safe delivery” when he founded the church. But now that the Galatians had wandered from the truth, Paul was experiencing those labor pains all over again in order to secure their well-being.

Having first described the Galatians as being formed in the womb, Paul now speaks of the Galatians as if they were expectant mothers themselves. The word translated as “formed” – morphoo - was used medically to refer to the development of an embryo. (The word morphoo is used as a suffix in the word for transformed as used in Romans 12:2 – “… be ye transformed by the renewal of your mind.”)  Through this metaphor Paul describes what it means to be Christian, both individually and collectively as a church. To be a follower of Christ is more than just the profession of faith; it involves a radical transformation into the likeness of Christ.  Paul was “not looking for a few minor alterations in the Galatians but for such a transformation that to see them would be to see Christ.”—Leon Morris, Galatians (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1996), p. 142.

In essence, to be a Christian is having Jesus swell up in you as a baby in a mother’s womb.  It is to be filled with Christ.  In the beginning the process is almost unnoticeable, but gradually it becomes more apparent.  The more He grows in you, the more you swell up, the more noticeable or obvious it becomes.  Just like a pregnant woman does not need to bring attention to herself once her belly grows, a Christian does not need to bring attention to himself once Christ is filling him or her up.  Many are spiritually abstinent, others use spiritual contraceptives, yet others perform spiritual abortions.  Few allow it allow it to become full term.  Some may be concerned with stretch marks; Paul would call them infirmities in which to glory,

 2 Corinthians 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Is Christ growing in you?  Are you swelling up with His fullness in you?  Is it obvious to others?  I pray we do allow Him to grow in us and transform us to His likeness.

Commentary: To Be Filled With Christ

To Be Filled With Christ

Today it is easier to know if and when a woman is pregnant than in the days of Paul.  There are tests that can let a woman know whether or not she is with child.  In the past it was pretty much known when the belly started to swell up.  No one then knew what happened inside until the woman gave birth to "final product."  With the scientific and technological advances of today not only do we know, but there are fields of science dedicated to study it, and each phase in the formation of the human being has been named.  The first phase is called embryogenesis and it happens thanks to a process called mitosis. 

The topics of embryogenesis and mitosis are highly technical and complex.  In an oversimplified generalization, this process is what happens once a female egg is fertilized by a male sperm.  What happens is that the cell divides itself in identical parts and then splits creating twice as many identical cells.  Soon enough, a fertilized egg becomes an embryo, which eventually becomes a fetus. 

The word embryo is from the Greek Embruon, which means that which grows.  It comes from the word enbryein.  The prefix en- means in.  The suffix bryein means to swell; be full.  So the word means to fill or swell inside.  In this process of filling up inside a woman's womb, a human being is formed. 

To apply this spiritually let us read Galatians 4:19,

Galatians 4:19  My little children, of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you,

When we read Galatians 4: 19, we realize that Paul's concern for the Galatians was not simply about theological ideas and doctrinal points of view.  His heart was bound up with the lives of the people who were brought to Christ through his ministry. He considered himself more than just a friend; he was their spiritual father, and they were his children. But even more than that, Paul likens his concern for the Galatians to the worry and anguish that accompany a mother in childbirth (Gal. 4:19). Paul had thought that his previous "labor" had been sufficient for their "safe delivery" when he founded the church. But now that the Galatians had wandered from the truth, Paul was experiencing those labor pains all over again in order to secure their well-being.

Having first described the Galatians as being formed in the womb, Paul now speaks of the Galatians as if they were expectant mothers themselves. The word translated as "formed" – morphoo - was used medically to refer to the development of an embryo. (The word morphoo is used as a suffix in the word for transformed as used in Romans 12:2 – "… be ye transformed by the renewal of your mind.")  Through this metaphor Paul describes what it means to be Christian, both individually and collectively as a church. To be a follower of Christ is more than just the profession of faith; it involves a radical transformation into the likeness of Christ.  Paul was "not looking for a few minor alterations in the Galatians but for such a transformation that to see them would be to see Christ."—Leon Morris, Galatians (Downers Grove, Ill.: InterVarsity Press, 1996), p. 142.

In essence, to be a Christian is having Jesus swell up in you as a baby in a mother's womb.  It is to be filled with Christ.  In the beginning the process is almost unnoticeable, but gradually it becomes more apparent.  The more He grows in you, the more you swell up, the more noticeable or obvious it becomes.  Just like a pregnant woman does not need to bring attention to herself once her belly grows, a Christian does not need to bring attention to himself once Christ is filling him or her up.  Many are spiritually abstinent, others use spiritual contraceptives, yet others perform spiritual abortions.  Few allow it allow it to become full term.  Some may be concerned with stretch marks; Paul would call them infirmities in which to glory,

 2 Corinthians 12:9  And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Is Christ growing in you?  Are you swelling up with His fullness in you?  Is it obvious to others?  I pray we do allow Him to grow in us and transform us to His likeness.

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

Paul's Pastoral Appeal

Lesson #9 | Paul's Pastoral Appeal | 11/26/11

How does a pastor deal with conflict in his church? For that matter, how does a prophet deal with an offshoot movement? “Paul’s pastoral appeal” is an effort at conflict resolution (Gal. 4:12-20).

 

Paul reminds the Galatians that his missionary approach was to become a Galatian to the Galatians—“I am as ye are” (vs.12). He fit in with them. He spoke their language. He ate at their table. He lived among them. Insofar as possible, without compromising Christian ethics, he lived as a Galatian.

 

Now, Paul writes, “be as I am.” And how is Paul? “I am crucified with Christ” (Gal. 2:20). Paul has so completely chosen to identify with the Crucified One that it is no longer Paul who lives, but Christ who lives in him. He lives the at-one-ment life by the faith of the Son of God. This is why their enemy stance toward Paul is no offense to him. Paul’s ego is dead in Christ (Gal. 4:12).

 

Physically speaking Paul was not “easy on the eyes” when he commenced preaching the gospel in their midst. But the gospel he proclaimed was “in demonstration of the Spirit and power” (1 Cor. 2:4), so that the people saw Christ crucified among them. The Galatians received Paul as a messenger of God, even as they would have received Jesus. And accepting Christ, they were filled with the power and joy of the Holy Spirit (Gal. 4:14).

 

But now all that has changed. “The blessedness ye spoke of” is gone (vs. 15), which is the blessing of Abraham. The blessing of knowing that Christ had redeemed them from the curse of the law through the promise of the Spirit, which is righteousness by faith activated by agape-love, has been lost. The Galatians have been “bewitched” by the false gospel of “the Pharisees which believed” (Gal. 3:1; Acts 15:5).

 

The counterfeit gospel teaches that once launched into salvation by faith in the Messiah, one must do something in order to continue in salvation; namely, “the works of the law.” And once the door has been opened just a crack for faith to be motivated by egocentric concerns, there is no end to the idols one must obey in order to be saved, including the worship of spirits on calendar days from which bondage the Galatians had been delivered (Gal. 4:9, 10).

 

While the Galatians enjoyed this blessedness, its fruit appeared in the love, which they showed to Paul. This love was the very self-sacrificing love of Christ—the abundant love of God shed abroad indeed in the heart, by the Spirit, which they had received. Seeing the apostle in need of eyes, they would gladly have plucked out their own and given them to him, if such a thing could have been done (vs. 15).

 

But now, what a change! From that height of blessedness they are driven back into such a condition that Paul is obliged to appeal to them: “Am I therefore become your enemy, because I tell you thetruth?” (vs. 16). This is the mark of the Galatian. It is the mark of the man who professes to be a Christian justified by faith, but does not have the righteousness of God, which is by faith of Jesus Christ. Whoever tells him the truth he considers his enemy.

 

The Galatian considers himself “rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing” (Rev. 3:17). When the prophet warns him that he is not in “the truth of the gospel,” he rejects the Spirit of Prophecy. The mark of Galatianism is the rejection of the prophetic gift. It is the mark of man and worldliness to persecute the messenger of truth and consider him the enemy.

Galatianism is the mark of the carnal mind that is at enmity with God (Rom. 8:7). Pride does not like the “most precious message” which uplifts and honors the Crucified One. Self does not wish to submit in repentance at the foot of the cross. “Many” in the one true denominated church of Christ did this in the 1888 era and the attitude of the “fathers” is perpetuated to this day whenever the message is proclaimed. [1] Our history of rejection of justification by faith united with the cleansing of the sanctuary truth is justified with the argument that the church did accept righteousness by faith and corrected its legalistic course. Therefore, the church has no need to repent.

 

However, the Spirit of Prophecy tells us otherwise. “We may have to remain here in this world because of insubordination many more years, as did the children of Israel; but for Christ’s sake, His people should not add sin to sin by charging God with the consequence of their own wrong course of action. [2]

 

Who has created this disunity in the church? Is it the one who has proclaimed “the truth of the gospel” or is it the Agitators who advocate righteousness by “the works of the law”? Is it the Spirit of Prophecy that creates division or is it those who reject what the prophet writes?

 

Paul squarely acknowledges the zeal of those who teach faith and works. They are the “offshoot movement” that teaches separationism out of selfish motives. He writes: “These teachers of a counterfeit gospel have great zeal to win you over to their side so you can be fellow fanatics with them in an offshoot program” (Gal. 4:17). [3]

 

You want to be zealous? Then be zealous for a good cause. Is the gospel a self-propelled vehicle? Or does its proclamation and propagation depend on church members (and pastors!) constantly being prodded by church leaders into action? “Lay Activities” leaders in churches can testify: to get much done it takes constant “promotion.”

 

The New Testament letters of the apostles reveal a strange lack of such works “promotion.” They chronicle amazing activity, but seldom if ever were believers prodded or whipped into action. Their zealous activity was simply assumed; it was natural. Their gospel was a “self-propelled vehicle.” Why?

 

Their message had the power built-in. Nobody needed to be whipped into action. The motivating force was greater than that of a steam engine, for the power was implicit in the news about the sacrifice of the Son of God. He burst upon everyone’s consciousness as “the Lamb of God,” a blood-sacrifice offered by God. Examples: “For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2). “God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Gal. 6:14).

 

Someone must travail before children are brought forth (Gal. 4:19). Herein lies the danger in human planning, in the work of God, lest human wisdom devise short cuts in methods of world evangelism, which to a lukewarm church seem very acceptable. It is easy to sit in a comfortable pew and give offerings. It appears to provide fuel for the continued operation of evangelistic machinery, 21st Century devised, labor-saving and man-power saving in its skillful design to “finish the work” in the shortest possible time with the least possible man-power and travail of soul. If an invention of a clever committee could be made to give life, then verily righteousness would come by evangelistic inventions. No running to and fro, and no knowledge that shall be increased in the time of the end will ever take the place of that “travail in birth” on the part of soul winners, “until Christ be formed in” the converts.

 

If modern methods of spiritual obstetrics are discovered which obviate the old-fashioned travail, which the church of old endured when she brought forth her children, it may be doubted whether Christ is formed indeed within the “converts.” No “push-button” warfare will close the great battle between Christ and Satan. The old hand-to-hand fighting, heart-to-heart wrestling in the Spirit against principalities and powers, alone can bring triumphs of faith.

—Paul E. Penno

 

Endnotes:

[1] Ellen G. White, “Many will not be convinced because they are not inclined to confess.” Diary, Feb. 27, 1891.

[2] Letter Ellen G. White to Percy Tilson Magan (Dec. 7, 1901). Last Days Events, p. 39.

[3] Robert J. Wieland, Galatians for Today’s Youth: A Free Paraphrase (2003), p. 15.

Sabbath School Day at Vernon Memorial Church

This week at Vernon will be Sabbath School Day. We will be discussing the Book of Galatians all day long. Two morning panels and an afternoon panel. Lunch will be served. Hope to see you there.

Vernon Memorial Company
6200 Vollmer Rd
Matteson, IL 60443-1058
708-283-1354

Map and Directions

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

No commentary

Due to extenuating circumstances there will be no commentary this week

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

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"No Longer Under the Schoolmaster"

"No Longer Under the Schoolmaster"

by The Everlasting Covenant . org


 In ancient Greece, the truant schoolboy, who with truancy in his heart played hooky, avoiding the responsibility of learning the lessons appropriate and needed for his betterment and future good might meet with the startling presence of his custodian, the slave assigned by his parents to oversee his activities.  This servant was given a special task of helping the lad to discover his need of educational advancement and his responsibility to his parents, as well as to enforce upon him their good pleasure concerning the management of his young life.  This custodian, called in Greek, the "pedagogos", was often empowered by parents to reprove, instruct, and punish the child should he be found in insubordination to their will and instructions.  The rebellious truant boy might, no doubt, be roundly condemned and whipped by the consciencious custodian, as he attempted to impress upon the youth the importance of his responsibilities.  So is the Law of God to the sinner.  The law has a specific role, according to Gal. 3, of being our pedagogue or custodian to lead us to Christ.  While the law is identified as our "schoolmaster" in the King James Version, it is actually Christ who is truly our "schoolmaster" or teacher in Paul's parable.  While we are cavorting at the swimming hole of sin, wasting away our capabilities and shunning responsibility, the Law custodian, at the good will of God, the parent, condemns and punishes us.   It is a loving purpose.  God wishes for us to have a good future, even eternal life.  But we must have righteousness for this to be.  So the law stands to condemn us as long as we are away from Christ; for it is certain that the only way we may have righteousness is not from the Law custodian who is not prepared or capable of doing that work, but only from our true School Teacher, Christ.  As long as we are running away and resisting, the servant persistently does his duty, cajoling, encouraging, inducing, blocking, confronting, reproving, and otherwise inhibiting our freedom of movement.  To use Paul's terminology, the Law is there to shut us up, imprison us or otherwise confine us until faith comes unto righteousness.  The custodian is not there to make the truant comfortable, but highly uncomfortable.  So, the Law's condemnation of sin must be presented faithfully before the sinner.  It's claims must be upheld.   The Holy Law of God still demands obedience.  This is the condition of eternal life.  Its claims derive from the highest Authority over us to whom we shall ultimately have to give an account.    Perhaps the skillful pedagogue/custodian might appeal to the heart of the Greek child, his sense of honor and love for his parents.  At last, the child sees the goodness of the command and perceives that what is required is in his best interest.  Now he feels ashamed of dishonoring his parents and sorry for disappointing them.  The faithful custodian escorts the humbled child to school.  Once the child has become connected to the School teacher in faithful school attendance, the pedagogue's task has been accomplished.  Nevertheless, He will stand by if perchance, the student should change his mind and try to slip away from class, which, of course, would once again place him at discord with his parents desires concerning his future well-being.  When the child is at school, then the custodian has no problem with him.  The child is fulfilling that which is required of him.  He is not condemned.  He is no longer "under" the mistakenly-titled "schoolmaster".  So with us, only when we, becoming ashamed of our rebellious ways and perceiving the love of a Divine Parent come to Christ, the Saviour from Sin, thus fulfilling in our lives through faith in Christ the right doing of the Law, that the Law can release us.  When we have obtained in Christ the right-doing that the Law faithfully demands, then the Law custodian will have no problem with us.  We meet its approval.  Then we are at peace with our Custodian.  The Law custodian itself will witness before our Divine Parent, that our schoolday and school responsibilities of righteousness have been met.  Then, we are no longer condemned or punished.  We are no longer under the Law because Faith, Righteousness by Faith, has come. 

Jesus Christ: Our Antibiotic

Jesus Christ: Our Antibiotic

The word antibiotic comes from the Greek anti meaning 'against' and bios meaning 'life.'  Antibiotic is also known as antibacterial, and they are drugs used to treat infections caused by bacteria. Such illnesses as tuberculosis, salmonella, syphilis and some forms of meningitis are caused by bacteria. Before bacteria can multiply and cause symptoms our immune system can usually destroy them. We have special white blood cells that attack harmful bacteria. Even if symptoms do occur, our immune system can usually cope and fight off the infection. There are occasions, however, when it is all too much and our bodies need some help - from antibiotics. 

The first antibiotic was penicillin. Such penicillin-related antibiotics as ampicillin, amoxicillin and benzylpenicilllin are widely used today to treat a variety of infections - these antibiotics have been around for a long time. There are several different types of modern antibiotics and they are only available with a doctor's prescription in industrialized countries.

Although there are a number of different types of antibiotic they all work in one of two ways: A bactericidal antibiotic kills the bacteria. Penicillin is a bactericidal. A bactericidal usually either interferes with the formation of the bacterium's cell wall or its cell contents; a bacteriostatic stops bacteria from multiplying.

So, antibiotics target not only microorganisms such as bacteria, but also fungi and parasites. However, they are not effective against viruses. If antibiotics are overused or used incorrectly there is a chance that the bacteria will become resistant - the antibiotic becomes less effective against that type of bacterium. 

Antibiotics are usually taken by mouth (orally); however, they can also be administered by injection, or applied directly to the affected part of the body.  Most antibiotics start having an effect on an infection within a few hours. It is important to remember to complete the whole course of the medication to prevent the infection from coming back. If you do not complete the course, there is a higher chance the bacteria may become resistant to future treatments - because the ones that survive when you did not complete the course have had some exposure to the antibiotic and may consequently have built up a resistance to it. Even if you are feeling better, you still need to complete the course. 

If Sin were a bacterial infection, then Jesus would be an antibiotic, of sorts (Jesus is not against life).  Why antibiotic and not vaccine?  First, vaccines are preventive, antibiotic remedial.  We are already sick with Sin (Romans 3:10 – 12; 5:12), we need a remedy.  Second, vaccines are typically a dead or weakened specimen of the same creature making you sick.  They are injected to make us immune to the disease; which is a different way of saying they are to boost our immune system to fight the disease, should we be infected.  Although Jesus became Sin for us (2 Corinthians 5:21), God's intention is not to make us stronger in case we fall in Sin.  Furthermore, it is not the Jesus that came in the likeness of Sinful flesh Jesus that enters in us and dwells in us, it is the glorified Jesus through the Holy Spirit.  Again, we are already infected, and God's intention is to kill the sin in us.  God does not inject weak Sin in us to make us stronger. 

Jesus is both bactericidal and bacteriostatic.  He stops Sin from reproducing and also kills it.  When Jesus dwells in us, He changes the way we think.  He transforms us by the renewal of our minds (Romans 12:2).  He writes the law in our hearts (Jeremiah 31:33), thus getting rid of the self centeredness of Sin.  This is what He wanted to with the Israelites.  But, they refused (Exodus 19 and 20).  So, God gave them the Law, not as a way to heal them, but as a way to diagnose their illness (Exodus 20; Galatians 3:19).  The Law was akin to a list of symptoms.  When any of these symptoms are present, you need Jesus your antibiotic, to kill the bacteria of Sin or making sure it does not keep reproducing.  It is then that either the symptoms will go away or will not bother you.  But, the Israelites thought that getting rid of the symptoms meant they were Ok.  However, the bacteria were still alive in them creating havoc inside. 

The antibiotic is free to us (given by grace), we take it by faith.  It must be taken for as long as we live in this world of Sin, because as long as we are here, the bacteria always find a way to resurface unless the antibiotic course is completed.  The date when Christ returns (Galatians 3:23, 25; 1 Corinthians 15:52 - 54) the course will be completed, we will be healed.  Until then, we will need that diagnosis list – The Law – so it will let us know when we have a symptom (Galatians 3:23 -25).

Jesus is better than an antibiotic.  There is something cool about this Jesus antibiotic that the literal antibiotic does not have.  This antibiotic not only kills the bacteria of sin, but also gives life to the Host of the bacteria.  We read in 1 John 5:11-13

 1 John 5: 11 And this is the record: that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in His Son.

1 John 5: 12 He that hath the Son hath life, and he that hath not the Son hath not life.

1 John 5: 13 These things I have written unto you that believe in the name of the Son of God, that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe in the name of the Son of God.

Since eternal life is in Jesus, when He dwells in us, we have eternal life.  So, Jesus not only eradicates Sin, He also gives us life.  Praise the Lord!

--
Raul Diaz
www.wolfsoath.com

"The Road to Faith"

Sabbath School Today

With the 1888 Message Dynamic

The Gospel in Galatians

Lesson 7: "The Road to Faith" [1]

Have you ever made a bad deal and bought a "lemon"? You had to throw good money after bad on a five-year loan. Every check written brings out an inner "tension" over a deal gone sour. Israel made a bad covenant with their faulty promises at Mt. Sinai and paid for it ever since with a constant conflict over the law of God (Heb. 8:7, 8).

In four short verses Paul contrasts the two covenants as two different experiences. These two covenant experiences have a radically different relationship to the law of God. Paul draws upon two occupations from his contemporary world of the correctional officer and the schoolmaster in order to illustrate his point (Gal. 3:22-25).

God's original plan with His covenant to Abraham was "the promise by faith of Jesus Christ" (3:22). Abraham believed God's promise because God proclaimed to him the heart-moving grand sacrifice of the Saviour. "The covenant ... was confirmed ... in Christ" (3:17). The clearest revelation of God's love for sinners is the crucifixion of Christ.

The cross is the faith of Jesus. God "preached before the gospel unto Abraham" (3:8). When God proclaims the good news it is never incomplete. It is a full exposition of the message of the cross (it "was confirmed before of God in Christ", 3:17). It was this saving truth which Abraham heard and converted his heart so that he was stirred byagape-love to believe.

Likewise, it was the faith of Jesus Christ which God proclaimed to Israel at Mt. Sinai. When in unbelief in God's provision and care for them in the wilderness Israel murmured against Moses, the Lord instructed him to strike the rock and water gushed forth bringing with it life to all who drank. Paul understood that Rock, Mt. Sinai, to represent the smitten and crucified One. "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ" (1 Cor. 10:4). So, in a vivid and practical way God proclaimed their very life was a gift to them by virtue of Christ's sacrifice. This was the ever-present cross of "Calvary at Sinai." [2]

Christ is the reality to which every sacrificial lamb pointed since Adam sinned in the garden and God covered him with the animal skin. It is by "the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world" that anyone enjoys life (1 Peter 1:19, 20).

Now when God proclaimed all of this to the children of Abraham and they still did not see their need of Christ as did their father, in their self-sufficiency they proclaimed themselves as righteous enough to fulfill the conditions of their old covenant (Ex. 19:8). Their promise to do everything just right was not God's plan. He did not have to write His law on tables of stone for Abraham. Abraham believed and God wrote His principles of moral truth on his heart that was moved by the love of the great sacrifice.

So God spoke His law from Mt. Sinai amidst the fire and lightning, the earthquake and death-boundary, in order to impress upon sinners their utter weakness and lack of power to keep their promises to obey--their old covenant. First, God by means of "the Scripture" "concluded [locked up] all under sin" (Gal. 3:22). The law condemns the sinner. The law is the "correctional officer" who is given the responsibility of securing the death-row inmate for his punishment. Second, the law was given to drive them to "the promise [the new covenant] by faith of Jesus Christ" (vs. 22).

It isn't the Jews only that are "kept under the law, shut up" (3:22). Through the entire flow of the passage Paul has been writing to Jews as well as Gentiles. He especially refers the "we" to the Gentiles (3:14; cf. 3:28, 29). [3] Paul writes "we have before proved both Jews and Gentiles, that they are all under sin" (Rom. 3:9, see also Rom. 11:32, "shut them all up together in unbelief").

To be "under the law" is identical with being "under sin." The problem with being "under the law" is not with the law itself. It is unbelief in God's promise of the faith of Jesus that perpetuates the constant tension with the law.

Another illustration Paul uses for the purpose of the law is as a "schoolmaster [disciplinarian] to bring [drive] us unto Christ" (Gal. 3:24). The law is like the Roman "tutor" who had the "child" in "bondage" as a minor before he came of age to receive the inheritance (Gal. 4:1, 2). The future estate owner was put under a disciplinarian whom he would later own.

The law was put in charge of sinners to drive them to the covenant in Christ by the converting power of the Holy Spirit in order that they might experience justification by faith--the forgiveness of sins. When the "schoolmaster" law has driven the "child" to "the promise by the faith of Jesus Christ" then he is "justified by faith." The righteousness of Christ reconciles his alienated heart to God and brings him into harmony with the law of God so that the law is actually a witness to that fact.

"Is the law then against the promises of God?" (Gal. 3:21). No, the law is in the covenant of God just as it was for Abraham who "believed in the LORD; and He counted it to him for righteousness" (Gen. 15:6). When God gives his character of agape-love to the believer he is "no longer under [in conflict with] a schoolmaster" (Gal. 3:25).

Two different experiences of the two covenants are described in Galatians 3:22-25. The two covenants are not matters of time, either before the cross or after. One may have an old covenant experience after the cross as well as another have a new covenant experience before the cross. The self-sufficient old covenant promise to do everything just right, places one in a constant tension of I ought to do this, I ought to do that, with the law of God.

God has given the capacity to every one to choose belief in His covenant promise. Christ alone brings freedom from the self-enslaving bondage to the law into the sunlight freedom of harmony and peace with the law and God. These two covenant experiences of bondage and freedom are irrespective of time either before or after the cross. At any time one may move from the old dispensation of unbelief into the new dispensation of faith.

This unique insight of the 1888 message goes far beyond Babylon's understanding of the two covenants. The counterfeit view of Galatians 3 is that the "schoolmaster" law was abolished with the old covenant "obey and live" when Jesus died on the cross. The counterfeit view says that "under grace" there is no seventh-day Sabbath in the new covenant.

Such an unbiblical "dispensational" theory is a doctrine of men. This argument was used by the late Pope to abolish the true Sabbath and promote Sunday observance as the new covenant Sabbath. What a pity that evangelicals and some ex-Adventists are doing the same thing!

When you finally wake up after a wasted life and you realize that you've blown nearly all your original "capital," you feel despondent. You've gone through one or two divorces, you've ruined your health by dissipation, your family have lost confidence in you, you need a job (and the strength to work at one if you can get it), and the loneliness you feel is oppressive. Maybe you have left some criminal record behind you. You feel that God has forsaken you. The "good news" is that Christ takes you by the hand and leads you out of old covenant despair into the freedom of His life-giving love.

--Paul E. Penno

Endnotes:

[1] According to Galatians 3:22, this is better titled, "The Promise of Faith."

[2] See Paul E. Penno, Calvary at Sinai (2001).

[3] A big point is made in the Sabbath School quarterly of the "we" in Galatians 3:23 being "the Jews who were kept 'under the law' before the coming of Christ." The Gospel in Galatians (Teacher's edition), p. 80 (Monday's lesson). But this tends toward a "dispensational" view of the two covenants as will be explained.

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