Down an Unfamiliar Road

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XXIII)

Thomas Aquinas gives a somewhat philosophical answer to the question of whether during the reign of the Law, the ceremonies prescribed by the Law possessed any power to justify? He answers that it did up to a certain point. They were justified as being called right in that they met the demands of the Law, but it did not justify them before God, making them eligible for everlasting life. They passed the test with the Law but failed the test with God. The Law required physical cleanliness but not spiritual purity, something the Law was unable to do. The sacrifice of lambs satisfied the Law, but only the death of the Lamb of God could satisfy God. The blood of animal sacrifices only covered their sins while it required the blood of the Lamb of God to wash away their sins.

Aquinas goes on to say that these animal sacrifices and physical washing possessed no power of purging uncleanness from the soul, namely, from the filth of sinful tendencies. The reason for this was because sin is only removed through the death and blood of the Anointed One.^[1] And since the mystery of the Messiah’s Incarnation and Passion was not yet revealed, those ceremonies of the Old Law contained in them no power flowing from the Anointed One as being already incarnate and crucified, such as the sacraments of the New Law would include. Consequently, they failed to cleanse from sin. That’s why the Apostle Paul says, “…it is impossible that with the blood of oxen and goats’ sin is taken away.”^[2] That’s why here in verse nine, Paul calls them “weak and lacking elements.” Weak indeed, because they cannot take away sin; but this weakness results from their being needy, namely, from the fact that they do not contain any love, grace, and forgiveness within themselves.^[3]

Paul was also targeting the Gentile believers and those pagan holidays used to worship their idol gods.  Later on, in his letter, he admonishes the Jewish believers and asks them why they continued to observe those Jewish holidays and feasts in order to merit favor from God. He wanted them to know that when they celebrate Jesus, all the intentions of those feasts are fulfilled in Him. Therefore, as Christians, we must ask ourselves why we celebrate our Christian holidays? What is our purpose for all the decorations and displays used to show our gratitude for those days that make them holy? Do we honestly feel that God is moved to grant us more favor and give us special attention when we do so?

As a matter of fact, it is hard to find anywhere that Jesus points to any single day and tells His followers to make it a special holiday. The only ordinances that our Lord gave special meaning to were water baptism, communion, and washing each other’s feet. These were all meant to serve the purpose of reminding us of what He did for us through His suffering and death on the cross, but never intended to become holy days. Therefore, it seems logical that no matter which day we choose to stop and reflect on what happened in the life of the Anointed One, that the emphasis is on remembering Him for all He did for us, not just memorializing the day itself. Furthermore, the days we do celebrate are meaningless unless we do them out of love and gratitude for the One who saved us, and the One we serve.

Reformer John Calvin (1509-1564) addressed this same issue. He mentions that he plans no condemnation to such observance of dates as part of civil society. This is all fixed based on the way nature works and is permanent and constant. How else can months and years be computed if it were not for the revolution of the sun and moon? What distinguishes summer from winter, or spring from autumn by the appointment of God, – an appointment promised to continue to the end of the world?^[4] The traditional observation of days contributes not only to agriculture, matters of politics, and ordinary life, but is even extended to the government of the church. So, we must ask, what was the nature of the observances which Paul disapproves of? It was that which binds the conscience in a religious context thought necessary to the worship of God. And those Paul mentions in his Epistle to the Romans as being given important religious emphasis one day over another.^{[5] [6]} We see this today in the practice of the Seventh Day Adventists that worship on Saturday in contrast to the Catholic and Protestant churches who worship on Sunday.

Wesleyan theologian Adam Clarke (1760-1832) makes the point that if the Galatians were going back to their former way of righteous living worship, it is evident that they were still addicted to them as formalities making their salvation more holy based on works. This certainly was possible seeing that they converted from heathenism to Judaism, and from Judaism to Christianity.^[7] Clarke feels that Paul’s disappointment was in fact that such rites were too weak to counteract their sinful habits and too poor to purchase pardon and eternal life for them, so why push aside the Way, the Truth, and the Life for something so anemic and powerless. Clarke goes on to note that Paul identifies these useless rituals as those tied to days, months, and years. But none of this should be taken as a license to stop singing, praying, worshipping, and fellowshipping together as the family of God.

Catholic writer Cornelius à Lapide (1567 -1637) uses verse nine to take a poke at others around him. He begins by pointing out that Paul regards all people without distinction as having been under the Law as their tutor, and accuses the Galatians of again setting up, by their actions, the obsolete rites of Judaism. But it’s necessary to look at the word slavery again, not to the whole but to the part, as signifying only that slavery was restored in general, not particularly in this or that. The Galatians at one time served idols, and afterward, Judaism, and they are here exhorted not to become slaves once more, whether to demons or to Jewish illusions. Lapide takes a Calvinist, for example, who embraced the Catholic faith and afterward slipped back into Calvinism. The question may be asked: How can you lapse again into Calvinism, that is, into protestant teaching? It is not Calvinism that is the significant word, but lapse and the force of the question lie in its appeal against deserting the Catholic faith for the heresy of any kind whatsoever.^[8] Obviously, Lapide did not realize the opposite was true. Reform means made better.

Church of England priest William Law (1686-1761) who lost his position at Emmanuel College, Cambridge because he refused to take an oath of allegiance to any king other than the King of Kings, appealed to other clergy to be aware of what Paul says here in verse nine concerning the “bondage of the weak and beggarly elements of the world.” When the Anointed One was here on earth, He instructed the disciples in heavenly truths, enabling them to work miracles in His Name while yet unqualified to know and teach the mysteries of His kingdom. After his resurrection, while conversing with them, He breathed on them and said, “receive the Holy Spirit.^[9]” Yet, even this was not enough to qualify them to preach or bear witness to the truth.

Law says that the reason for this was their need for a higher anointing to come. For although He told His disciples the necessity of being born again of the Spirit, He also told them that it was necessary that He go away because until He goes away the comforter, they needed in order to minister will not come. But He promised that once He went away, He would send the Comforter to them, who was the Spirit of truth, the One to guide them into all truth that will glorify Him.^[10] In the meantime, there were not to go out and preach or teach but remain in Jerusalem until they were endued with power from on high; that they would receive power, after that the Holy Spirit came on them. Then, and only then would they share their testimony about Him in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and to the furthest part of the earth.^[11]

From this, says Law, there are two essential and fundamental truths to be learned. First, that the truth and perfection of the Gospel dispensation could not begin until the Anointed One was glorified, and His kingdom in the world resulted in an immediate, continual outreach of the Holy Spirit. That everything up until now was subservient to the Law for a period of time in preparation for this last dispensation of Grace. Everything else was communicated through types, figures, and shadows of the real thing, leading to the actual possession and enjoyment of that which is the spirit and truth of divine life. For an ending is not possible without a beginning; that is, the future God holds for mankind will not become a reality until an end is brought to the “bondage of weak and beggarly elements,” that Paul speaks of here. It ends up restoring the human race to that personal relationship with God they enjoyed in the beginning.^[12]

In other words, after that close and personal kinship humanity experienced before Adam’s fall was broken, they’ve attempted for centuries to reestablish it on their own from the Tower of Babel using objects in the sky and on the ground to represent the God they lost touch with, using the forms of objects and idols. God even gave the Law to Moses to bring them closer, but only the children of Israel were given that privilege. It wasn’t until He sent His Son, the Messiah came that this bond was reestablished, putting an end to all their idols, altars, ceremonies, feasts, rites, rituals, festivals, laws, and moral laws. Now there is but One who is able to clear away the debris and cement that fusion with the Almighty, His name is Jesus the Anointed One.

Another Roman Catholic writer, George Haydock (1774–1849), agrees that the same conflict that Paul finds here between the Christian believers in Galatia and the Messianic Jewish teachers who came to instruct them on the necessity of continuing Jewish observances, now caused friction between the Catholic and Protestants that continued up to his day. He mentions that some of the later reformers used Paul’s text here to criticize the feasts and holy days kept by Roman Catholics. Jerome, in his commentary on these words, tells us that some already made a similar objection in his time (347–420 AD).

Haydock believes that Jerome’s answer to such criticism as a key to defusing such contention and put a stop to this unnecessary rashness. That is that Christians continue observing Sunday as their day of worship instead of Saturdays as the Jews do. Also, Christians are to continue keeping certain holy days and days on which great saints suffered martyrdom. Let everyone take note that while the dates may be different, the motives of keeping them is the same.[13] (It is also important to take note that the Jews observe no holy days that celebrate Moses’ birth or death. In fact, neither the day they were led out of Egypt, and the day they entered the Promised Land is not celebrated as a national holiday.) What Haydock does not address is the idea that keeping such holy days is important to one’s salvation and loyalty to the Church that will save them.

[1] John 1:29

[2] Hebrews 10:4

[3] Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica, op cit., Part 2a-Question 103-Answer 2, p. 1224

[4] See Genesis 8:22: “So long as the earth will exist, sowing time and harvesting time, summer and winter, day and night will follow a regular pattern.”  – The translation used by Rabbi Abraham Saba in Tzror Hamor.  The Rabbi goes on to say that this is meant to tell mankind that retribution, when it does come, will not be delayed as it was until the deluge occurred.  May must remain on his guard day and night not to offend his Creator by his conduct. p. 159

[5] See Romans 14:5

[6] John Calvin: Commentary on Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit.

[7] Adam Clarke: Commentary on Galatians, loc. cit.

[8] Cornelius à Lapide: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit.

[9] John 20:22

[10] Ibid. 16:1-15

[11] Acts of the Apostles 1:8

[12] William Law: Address to the Clergy, op. cit., pp. 12-13

[13] George Haydock: Catholic Bible Commentary, loc. cit.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XXII)

Apparently, the same problem existed in the church at Colossæ because Paul also wrote them and told them not to let anyone make rules for them about what to eat and drink or not eat or drink at the Agape Feasts following communion. Also, about Jewish ceremonial festivals, whether they are New Moon celebrations, or observing the Sabbath as a day of rest, these things were only hints as to what was on the way. The important object is what we discover in the Anointed One.^[1]

Victorinus touches on those Paul calls in the latter part of verse nine, “The beggarly elements of the world” (KJV). Victorinus believes this is a reference to the Gentiles, who made gods for themselves even from the elements of this world. Since, however, the whole of this discourse, as well as the whole Epistle, was undertaken to reprimand the Galatians for their return to Judaism, these things are really aimed at the Jews. How then do we understand Paul’s charge just before this, “you have turned again to the weak?” When, therefore, he says “the beggarly elements” of this world, he means those who, understanding the Law by human reasoning, are putting themselves again under the authority of the basic elements of the world, such as the moon, stars, days of the week and so forth to guide them spiritually. For our carnal passions are always hungering. They yearn for the gratification provided by the sustenance of food and drink and objects of desire. This is a sign of their spiritual weakness.^[2] The NIV calls them “weak and miserable forces.”

Basil, Bishop of Cæsarea (329-379 AD) in answering questions sent to him by Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium, concerning how people could carve a piece of wood and believe that it can become a god as an object of worship, and no longer look on gold as money but the highest covering of an object of adoration? So, he asks what can we say about what constitutes the essence of an object of worship? Basil starts by asking, in what sense did Paul say, “Now we know in part?”^[3] But, says Basil, can we know His essence in part? And, is what we know part of His essence? No. This is absurd; God is without parts. But do we know the whole essence, some may ask? How is that possible when the Scripture says, “When that which is perfect comes, then that which is in part will be done away with.”^[4] That’s why idolaters are at fault in their thinking. It’s not because they didn’t know about God, but because they did not honor Him as the true and Living God.

So why then, asks Basil, are the “foolish Galatians” reprimanded by Paul in his words here in verse nine, “After you came to know God, or rather, known by God, why are you returning to put your trust in the weak and beggarly elements of this world?” How did the Jews know God? Was it because in the Jewish religion, they know what His essence is? The prophet Isaiah said that even the ox knows its owner.^[5] So it can be said that the ox knows its master’s essence, and the donkey knows its master’s manger. Therefore, even the donkey knows the essence of the manger. If all this is true, why then was Isaiah forced to say that Israel did not know God? I like this rendering in Isaiah: “An ox recognizes its owner, a donkey recognizes where its owner puts its food; but Israel does not recognize Me, My people do not understand.”^[6] So, according to what Amphilochius was thinking, he finds Israel to be at fault for not knowing what the essence of God is.^[7]

Early church preacher Chrysostom (344-386 AD) takes this text here in verse nine and reconstructs it to read as follows: When you were wandering without the light of the Anointed One and lived a life full of mistakes, you were ill and in painful misery. But now, since you came to know God, or rather been known by Him, don’t you realize that after so much spiritual therapy you’re bringing on yourselves an even greater and harsher punishment than when you suffered from this same disease of darkness, to begin with?^[8]

Early church writer Ambrosiaster empathizes with Paul, who noted the Galatians’ serious admission that after coming to know God, they began to partake of pagan ceremonies again. He goes on to add that it was not so much that they knew God, as much as it was that God knew who they were. Even though they were not seeking Him, still He called them into His throne room of grace and mercy to make peace. Yet, they were so ungrateful for this that they started turning back to the idols they worshiped before in Egypt. Didn’t they remember that when they didn’t know God at all, they reverenced simple thinks like the elements on earth and in the sky instead of adoring the Anointed One, in whom the whole Godhead dwells, with all their whole heart?

Ambrosiaster points out that the elements of this world are elementary and uncomplicated because they are defective and lack what is needed to control how the world works to keep it from falling apart. Salvation from such a disaster can be found only in the Anointed One.^[9] While the intention to show this is clearly present in what Paul says, Ambrosiaster fails to note that Paul was making a comparison between the man-made rites and rituals that the Judaizers were propagating among the non-Jewish members of the churches in Galatia. Apparently, they became part of their teachings based mostly on taboos built on superstitions, such as don’t travel on certain days, beware of a full moon, and other climate and calendar observances and celebrations that the ceremonial law required.

Paul’s major concern involved his fear that once the Galatian believers returned to their religious rites, rituals, and regulations were, unfortunately, returning to addiction. Paul uses two Greek adjectives that may register with more impact on today’s society than even in his day. The NIV translates them as “miserable” and “enslaved” (KJV “weak” and “beggarly). The first adjective asthenēs means something feeble and handicap. In other words, it possesses insufficient strength to accomplish anything great.^[10] The second adjective douleuō means to be poor and needy, unable to support oneself. It can also indicate becoming so dependent on financial assistance that you can’t live without it.

Today, we might point to an addiction to alcohol or drugs that provide a momentary escape from everyday stress but leads to long-lasting misery.  In Paul’s mind, he saw a similar addiction in the Galatians’ desire and need to feel saved and justified before God by their own efforts. Did you know that even today, there are believers who will accept church discipline for failure to keep an ecclesiastical rule in order for the church to ensure their salvation? But in so doing, they’ve completely lost sight of what the Anointed One did on the cross for them to bring freedom. Thus, they become enslaved to their religion.

Paul doesn’t leave the Galatians in the dark about what he means by becoming enslaved to things that cannot increase or improve on their salvation. He mentions their observance of special days and months and seasons and years. He is obviously not only speaking of pagan holidays but of Jewish feasts and festivals as well. Paul does not hold anything against such observances done out of respect or honor for what that day or month or season or year represents, but he opposed their mistaken idea that obedience in observing such ceremonies will enhance their standing with God and guarantee their salvation.

Perhaps Paul recalled Peter or James telling him what Jesus said to the critical Pharisees who complained about His disciples not observing the Sabbath: “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath.”^[11] Should believers then still gather together for worship? Yes, of course, but not with the understanding that this will add gold ornamentation to their crown in glory and make them better than anybody else! In fact, if a person goes to church on Sunday just because it’s Sunday and they want to impress God and their fellow Christians as being super holy, rather than going with joy because it’s another opportunity to worship and magnify the LORD with their fellow believers as part of the family of God, they are no better than the Galatians.

The venerable and respected medieval Jewish Rabbi Moses Maimonides took a look at all the Jewish festivals and holidays and made this assessment: All these commemorative fasts will be nullified in the Messianic era and, indeed, ultimately, they will be transformed into holidays and days of rejoicing and celebration. The Scripture states: “Adonai-Tzva’ot^[12] says, ‘The fast days of the fourth, fifth, seventh and tenth months are to become times of joy, gladness and cheer for the House of Judah. Therefore, love truth and peace’.”^{[13] [14]}

Another medieval commentator named Bruno the Carthusian feels that Paul is saying to the believers in Galatia: “Surely you have been converted to the Law, for you are observing days, the Sabbath, and months, new moons, and seasons, Hebrew fasts established for certain times. You even observe years, referring to the seventh year, which by Hebrew custom is the jubilee year.”^[15] This scholar goes on to say that he believes Paul’s disappointment over this reversal in the Christian walk of the Galatians might wipe out any gains they experienced through the Gospel that he preached to them. When we consider the expense, travel time, and physical strain, Paul went through, his disappointment and letdown doubled.

A later medieval scholar named Nicholas of Lyra opines that Paul was referring to the legal observances, called elements, which are said to be weak and begging for help because they bring justification and did not contain the grace that the sacraments of the New Law provide. Paul says again, not because the Galatians were observing the legal rituals before their conversion, but because they worshiped idols back then, whose cult was illicit. Thus, in a similar vein, the Galatians were now placing their hope in the rites of the legal precepts of the Law as though they were necessary for salvation.^[16] Nicholas goes on to add that Paul knew full well what it meant to be tied to those customs and manners, but also knew the freedom that came through the Anointed One’s deliverance, therefore, he was sorely grieved to see these Galatians going back into the same bondage he experienced before being freed.

[1] Colossian 2:16-17

[2] Edwards, M. J. (Ed.). On Galatians, op. cit., p. 59

[3] 1 Corinthians 13:9

[4] Ibid. 13:10

[5] Isaiah 1:3

[6] Ibid. New English Translation

[7] St. Basil: Letters and Selected Works, To Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium, Letters 231-234, pp. 315-321

[8] Ibid. p. 60

[9] Ambrosiaster, op. cit., p. 22

[10] See Matthew 26:41; Acts of the Apostles 4:9; 1 Corinthians 1:27

[11] Mark 2:27

[12] LORD of Hosts

[13] Zechariah 8:19 – Complete Jewish Bible

[14] Moses Maimonides, Mishnah Torah, Sefer Zemanim, Ta’aniyot, Chap. 5, Halacha 19

[15] Bruno the Carthusian, op. cit., loc. cit.

[16] Nicholas of Lyra, Commentary on Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XXI)

Did Paul carry any particular idea in his mind when he speaks about “knowing God?” Was there some source the Galatians were all familiar with that needed no further explanation? We find that what Paul is speaking about knowing God, was part of Jewish thinking from ages past. When King Solomon consecrated the first Temple he built to God, part of his prayer was that when a stranger who is not one of God’s chosen people – Israel, comes from a far country to pay homage to Him, (for they heard of His great Name and His powerful hand and His long arm,) when they come and pray toward God’s house, for Him to please listen in heaven where He sits. For Him to fill all the requests, this stranger asks so that everyone everywhere on earth may know His Name and reverence Him, as did His people Israel. Then they may know, says Solomon, that this house I built was in honor of Your name.^[1]

In other words, those who heard of God but do not know God must be willing to find Him because He will be right where He wants them to be when they meet. As the Psalmist said of the LORD: Those, who know Your reputation can put their trust in You, for You did not abandon those who seek You, Adonai.^[2] And in his Proverbs, Solomon was certain of this truth: those who look for God like a person looking for silver or searching for hidden treasure will come to understand what it means to reverence the LORD, and thereby gain more knowledge about Him. We do not absorb God into our minds by meditation, nor do we increase in knowledge just by reading the Bible. It must be studied and examined, and questions asked of those with a greater understanding of God’s Word.^[3]

When Jesus prayed concerning His disciples’ well-being during the time of His death and resurrection, that they did not forget the life He came to give was more than just what they experience down here. He told His Father in heaven, this is a life that lasts forever. It is to know You, the only true God, and know Me, Jesus, as the Messiah Whom You sent.^[4]

Sad to say, but Paul found a similar situation in the Corinthian church. So, he wrote to them: Come to your senses! Live right and stop sinning! In fact, you have some members there who don’t know God at all – I say this to your shame. In other words, even though they attend church and participate in worship, they still don’t really know God!

Then, in his second letter, he reminded them of when God said, “Let there be light,” and when He sent His Son Jesus, He, more or less, again commanded that there be Light, only this time, Paul says, the light He caused to shine in our hearts and give us more light in getting to know Him was reflected from the face of Jesus the Anointed One.^[5] So we can understand why the writer of Hebrews told us to keep our eyes on Jesus.^[6]

Apparently, the believers in Ephesus were more advanced than those in Corinth or even Galatia. When Paul wrote, he told them he was praying that God the Father and the Lord Yeshua His Son would give them a spirit of wisdom and revelation so that they might know them better.^[7] The Apostle John was more direct when he wrote that we can be sure that we know Him if we obey His teachings. Anyone who says, “I know Him,” but does not obey His teaching, is not telling the truth because there is no truth in them.^[8] But here is what can be known that is true: We know God’s Son came. He gave us an understanding to know who is the true God. We are joined in unison with the true God through His Son, Jesus the Anointed One. He is the true God and the Life everlasting.^[9]

But it’s not only a case of knowing God but that He also knows us. When Moses prayed to God: If I’ve found favor in Your eyes, let me know Your ways. Then I may know You and find favor in Your eyes. Then the Lord answered Moses and told him: I’ll do what you asked me to do because you found favor in My eyes, and I know you by name.^[10] That was another way of God saying, I know you personally, we’re good friends. The Psalmist also found this to be true. He said that the Lord keeps track of those who are right with Him.^[11] That’s why Jesus was able to tell His disciples that as a Good Shepherd, He knows who His sheep are and His sheep know Him. So, when He calls out to His sheep, they know who is calling and follow His voice.^[12]

In verse nine, Paul’s expression, “now you know the true God,” then adds, “but really it is God who knows you,” does not refer merely to a knowledge-based acquaintance on a purely religious sense or an intellectual sense. No doubt, the Apostle Paul regarded such knowledge by God as an eternal present fact. Therefore, the phrase must refer to God knowing the Galatians in a saving way.^[13] In other words, both the Galatians and God experienced something that made them intimately aware of each other. And since God knew them all along, He was happy that now they got to know Him on an individual basis.

Furthermore, we see that Paul adds the phrase, “are known by God” to the phrase “after that you have known God,” for the following reasons: It is to remind the Galatians that they do not owe their knowledge of God to themselves, but only to Him. Their escape from idolatry and bondage to the Law was not affected by any knowledge they acquired about God on their own, but by them also getting to know God in a saving way. In other words, His hand was already extended toward them for redemption before they extended their hand toward Him for salvation. That’s why they should clearly see the folly and foolishness of abandoning this advantageous position to take an inferior one from which they were rescued.

John Eadie (1810-1876) put it this way: “God knew them before they knew Him, and His knowing them was the cause of their knowing Him.”^[14] Then, the Dean of Westminster in London, Arthur P. Stanley (1815-1881), remarks that “Our knowledge of God is more His act than ours.” If God knows a person, that means that something that God did was given to them. And, as the receiver of God’s knowledge, they enter into a personal relationship with Him. The Greek verb ginōskō translated as “known” (KJV), which in the Final Covenant most often implies that an individual’s relationship is between the knower and those who are known.^[15]

That, then, begs the question: Did God know something He kept secret? No, says Paul, in fact, God knew from the beginning who would put their trust in Him. So, He chose them and made them be like His Son, the Anointed One who was first, and all those who belong to God are His brothers.^[16] And when Paul wrote to Timothy who was dealing with false teachers and those claiming to be the Christians but were followers of some sect, Paul told him not to worry, God’s solid foundation stands firm, sealed with this inscription: “The Lord knows those who are His,”^[17] that’s because they don’t run with the crowd that continually practices sinful living.^{[18] [19]}

Paul explained it to the Romans this way: We are not freed from sin’s slavery just by knowing God’s commandments because it lacks the power to make the old nature cooperate. So, God put into effect a different plan to save us. He did this by sending His own Son in a human body like ours – except that ours are sinful – and destroyed sin’s control over us by giving Himself on our behalf as a sacrifice for our sins.^[20] So no wonder Paul was confused with the Colossians and wrote and asked them: Since, in a way, you died along with the Anointed One, and this set you free from the powers that influence this world’s behavior, why do you act as though you still belong to them by doing good deeds and obeying various rules? Why do you keep right on following them anyway? Don’t you know that this means you are still bound by directives that say: You must not put your hand on this; do not put this into your mouth; you must not put a finger on this or that, etc.?^[21]

The writer of Hebrews dealt with a similar situation. He points to what the Scriptures say about the return of the Anointed One that may happen very soon. So, he cautions his readers that those who are right with God will continue to live by faith. God forbid that anyone turns back into what they once were.  Said the author, who many believe to be the Apostle Paul, he would not be pleased with them. Refuse to belong to the crowd that turns back and ends up being lost again. We are people saved by faith.^[22]

What seemed to be these people’s problems? It appears, they just couldn’t follow all the ceremonial laws of Judaism even though they felt compelled to participate in all the observances anyway.^[23] Paul found this so prevalent in the Church in Rome that he was forced to write them and caution them about being too harsh and strict with these conformists who just couldn’t break with their past allegiance to the ceremonial laws of the First Covenant. He advised them to be willing to accept those who still struggle with doubts about what believers can or cannot do and keep them as part of the fellowship. Don’t keep arguing over what they think is right as opposed to what you think is right.

For instance, there are some who believe they may eat any kind of food while another person with weak faith eats only grains and vegetables. The person who eats everything should not think they are better than the person who only eats meatless meals. The person who stays away from meat should not say the other person is wrong for eating meat. God also claims them as His own. Think of it this way, who are you to tell another person’s servant if you think they’re competent or incompetent? They don’t work for you, so it’s up to the owner to make that decision. Their master will take care of advising them. The same goes for the believer who thinks one day is more important than another, while another person thinks every day is the same. Everyone must be sure of where they stand on issues in their own mind.^[24]

[1] 1 Kings 8:41-42

[2] Psalm 9:10 (11 in Jewish Bible)

[3] Acts of the Apostles, 17:11-12

[4] John 17:3

[5] 2 Corinthians 4:6

[6] Hebrews 12:2

[7] Ephesians 1:17

[8] 1 John 2:3-4

[9] Ibid. 5:20

[10] Exodus 33:13, 17

[11] Psalm 1:6

[12] John 10:14, 27

[13] See Psalm 1:6, Nahum 1:7, I Corinthians 8:3, Matthew 7:23.

[14] John Eadie: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., p. 310

[15] See Kenneth S. Wuest: Word Studies on Galatians, op. cit., p. 62

[16] Romans 8:29

[17] Numbers 16:5; Nahum 1:7

[18] Numbers 16:26

[19] 2 Timothy 2:19

[20] Romans 8:3

[21] Colossians 2:20-21

[22] Hebrews 10:37-38

[23] See Leviticus 23:1-44; 25:1-13; Numbers 28:1-29

[24] Romans 14:1-5

Keith Butler tells us that there are somethings about faith to remember because faith takes the place of what you do not physically see. It is the confidence of your hope based on God’s Word.

• The first fact about faith is: If God’s Word said it, even though I may not see it or feel it yet, I still believe God’s Word. It’s not what I feel or see that matters, it’s what I believe.
• The second fact about faith is: Faith comes by hearing. Romans 10:17 says, “So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God.” Notice this verse doesn’t say, “Faith comes by having heard.” It’s not a one-time deal. Hearing is continual, so you have to stay exposed to the Word of God.
• The third fact about faith is: Faith is present-tense only. Hebrews 11:1 says, “NOW faith is….” If it’s not now, it’s not faith. Faith speaks and acts in the present. It doesn’t say, “It’s going to happen one day.” Faith says, “I believe I receive now. It’s mine now! I have the victory!”
• The fourth fact about faith is: Faith affects the words you speak and the actions you take. For example, when you approach God, you must not only believe that He is Yahweh, but you must talk like He is Yahweh. You must not only believe that He can create something out of your nothing; that He can bring cosmos to your chaos; that He is covenant-keeping…you must talk that way and act that way too!
• The fifth fact about faith is: Faith affects your attitudes and thoughts. When you are living by faith, you’re thinking God’s Word and His victory instead of thinking defeat. In 2 Corinthians 10:5, it tells us to cast down every imagination and high thing in our mind that comes against the Word of God.
• The sixth fact about faith is: Praise is an expression of your faith in God. As my son teaches, says Butler, when he’s teaching the subject, “Praise is the very language of faith.” Praise is God’s way of talking. When you praise God, it’s music to His ears. When you can praise God in the middle of contrary circumstances, you’re doing all right!
• The seventh fact about faith is: Faith provides an understanding of how God works. Therefore, the only way you can understand how God does what He does is through faith.
• The eighth fact about faith is: The meditation of God’s Word provides a capacity for faith.
• The ninth fact about faith is: Faith sees the victory in advance. Faith expects the victory no matter what the present circumstance looks like. Remember, we are moved by faith, not by sight!
• And the tenth fact about faith is: Faith is of the heart.

The most amazing factor about faith is that it tests our commitment to see the unseen and act as though it is real. King Solomon left us with a saying that we all know well: Trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths.[1] The keyword here is “trust.” It is another way of saying, have faith in God’s ability to do what He said He would do. In other words, do you trust God? Our Lord also stated that whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”[2] And the Apostle Paul tells us how we can get and build our faith that comes from listening and hearing what comes through the Word of God.[3] And why is faith so important? The writer of Hebrews tells us: And without faith, it is impossible to please God, for whoever would draw near to Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him.[4]

And the Apostle James hits the nail right on the head when he said: If any of you lacks wisdom, ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given. But ask in faith, with no doubting, for the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For if that person must not suppose they will receive anything they ask from the Lord, is a double-minded individual, unstable in all their ways.[5] So why not start by asking God what the disciples asked: “Lord, increase our faith!”[6] – Dr. Robert R Seyda

[1] Proverbs 3:5-6

[2] Matthew 21:22

[3] Romans 10:17

[4] Hebrews 11:6

[5] James 1:5-8

[6] Luke 17:5

Benjamin Franklin Learned How to Teach Himself to Master Subjects Starting with Writing… by Geoff Colvin

Geoff tells us that he just finished reading a book called “Talents are Overrated” that describes the way great people became great. In it, he learned that developing abilities usually starts with talent, but then hard work and determination sharpen those abilities into spectacular traits. Several examples of famous successful people are cited to show this progression. For instance, Benjamin Franklin became a great writer in a very unusual but inventive way.

Ben was born into a huge blended family, one of 17 children! His dad planned to make him a minister, so he sent him to school. Ben did well, but the family ran out of money for his schooling after just two years. Ben’s dad then had him work in the family soap and candle business. At age 12, he sent Ben to live with Ben’s older brother to learn the printing trade. Ben apprenticed with his brother to eventually become a printer himself.

Learning to read made a significant impact on Ben. He once read a book about swimming and using the book as a guide, he taught himself how to swim. He even built paddles that he strapped to his hands that helped him swim faster. He learned how to educate himself using books. While working in the print shop, Ben decided that he wanted to be more than a printer, he wanted to be a writer. Perhaps he could teach people how to do things. One day, his dad read something Ben wrote and evaluated it. Ben had used proper spelling and punctuation, but his writing was “inferior in elegance of expression, in method and in explicitness.”

Using this feedback, Ben set up a plan to teach himself how to be an excellent writer. He found the best writings he could, choosing a book called The Spectator by Joseph Addison and Richard Steele. Then he read the book one article at a time, making notes about the sentence structure of each sentence. After doing this for several days, he’d go back to the first notes he’d made, rewrite the sentences in his own words, and compare them with what was in the book. He’d see his faults and improve them until they were the same as the books. He did this over and over again, trying to learn how to compose sentences like these polished writers did.

He realized that he really lacked in having a broad vocabulary. So, he thought of poetry, which usually is composed of vivid vocabulary. He decided to take the same sentences he was studying in the book and write them as poetry using descriptive words freely. Then he’d come back to them after progressing with other exercises and write these poems into prose like it would have appeared in the book. He’d then compare what he had written with the original text to see how close he got to the original. That helped him write with a more extensive vocabulary.

Then he attacked his other weak spot – organization. He took apart good sentences in an essay in the book, writing the content onto slips of paper. Then he’d mix up the notes and set them aside while he worked on another exercise. When he came back to them, after he forgot the original essay, he’d rewrite the sentences and try to put them in order. He’d then compare what he’d written with the original essay. Doing this reinforced what he was learning about sentence structure, vivid vocabulary, and now, ordering sentences in an essay.

Ben did this instead of playing with friends, attending church (his family was devout Puritans), and doing the many other things a young man would want to do with his free time. This was after working hard all day at his brothers’ print shop. He awoke early and went to bed late to fill his spare time with this effort. What he couldn’t get from the books was consistent feedback. So, Ben came up with another strategy to fill this need:  he started writing letters to the editor secretly using the pen name “Silence Dogood.”  He’d slide them under the door of his brother’s office.

Ben’s brother loved them, printing each one in his newspaper, some on the front page, all the while wondering who Silence Dogood really was. Ben satisfied that curiosity by creating a persona behind the letters, saying in them that he was an elderly widow left with many children.  “Silence Dogood,” wrote letters every two weeks and discussed a variety of topics, offering opinions and observations of local life. It was an ingenious way of getting his work published so he could get the feedback on his writing that he needed. Ben’s brother vocally assessed the writings in front of Ben as he read them. And he heard the buzz in the print shop from the readers about what “Silence Dogood” recently wrote.

Using this system, Ben effectively taught himself to be a great writer by the age of 16 with hours and hours of diligent work. Many consider Benjamin Franklin, “America’s first great man of letters.” He was not given this title, he earned it! He went on to succeed in many other fields besides being an author like invention, science, democracy, and politics. He likely used the same system to become familiar with and master these endeavors.

We can learn how to be excellent in any field by employing these same techniques. We can do the hard practice needed to master any skill or trade. We can do the hard things we need to do to conquer our obstacles and reach our goals. This applies to us as believers. As the Apostle Paul told his young protégé, Timothy, do your best to be the kind of person God will accept, and give yourself to him. Be a worker who has no reason to be ashamed of his work, one who applies the true teaching in the right way. (2 Tim. 2:15). That’s because God’s Word is alive and working. It is sharper than the sharpest sword and cuts all the way into us. It cuts deep to the place where the soul and the spirit are joined. God’s word cuts to the center of our joints and our bones. It judges the thoughts and feelings in our hearts. (Heb. 4:12).

No wonder the Psalmist told the Lord that His Word was a lamp helping him to see where he was stepping and a light to show the path he was on. And in his revelation, John the Apostle said that great blessings belong to the person who reads the words of this message from God and to those who hear this message and do what is written in it. I like the way one Bible Study Tools Staff member put it: Whether you’re studying the Bible with the goal of pursuing God’s plan for your life or you are studying Chemistry notes to pass your class, the Bible offers much wisdom! When it comes to our pursuit of knowledge, God’s Word gives us the encouragement and inspiration we need to keep going!

But this is not easy. It takes more than just reading God’s Word, it involves study. There is a difference between reading and research. Reading is like looking down on the stones you are stepping on, while research involved lifting up each stone to see what’s under it. But most of all, the help of the Holy Spirit is needed to understand what you find and how it applies to your everyday life. – Dr. Robert R Seyda

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XX)

Pastor of the Congregationalist Church in Northampton, Massachusetts Bay Colony, Solomon Stoddard (1643-1729), wrote about the resemblance between common grace and saving grace. For instance, Pharaoh justifies God’s existence; Saul weeps over his disobedience to God’s orders, David wept over his adulterous affair with Bathsheba, and the Israelites sang Gods praises, but soon forgot His works. Even though they experienced such pangs of affection for God and His patience with them, Stoddard says it was very hard for them to see their hypocrisy. Their fear of damnation made them reach into their hearts for any appearance of sincerity. It is a dangerous thing for them to think they were being sincere when they were not. All the time they were blessing themselves, God’s curse was hanging over their heads. These were cases of common grace, not saving grace. This, no doubt, may be the case between Paul and the Galatians.^[1]

Also, Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) wrote that there is no evidence that affections for Christianity or the Church will bring salvation or that there is any appearance of love in such affections. In fact, Edwards points to what the Anointed One said about the last days. He told His disciples that because of the rise in immorality, the love of many will grow cold.^[2] If their affections for the Anointed One, Christianity, and the Church was true love, it would become hotter, not colder. That’s what happened to the Jews’ affection for Moses and the Law. But the Apostle Paul prayed that the same would not happen to believers who were sincere in their love for the Lord.”^[3] So it’s no wonder that there are those who profess Christian love yet, in fact, are possessors of counterfeit love. Any love for the Anointed One and the Church that is not rooted in God’s saving grace is mere infatuation. That makes it no surprise that the Apostle Paul indicates here in verse eleven that all the love the Galatians showed for him, and his Gospel now appears to be counterfeit.^[4]

There is mentioned in the Scripture about the “Godhead,”^[5], and His supernatural existence. These can never become man-made objects of worship. That’s because Paul says here in verse eight that such idols are “by nature are not gods.” Now, this supernatural “godhead” of God is His essence, with all the holy, divine excellencies which are supernaturally and necessarily included. Such as words like eternity, universal, omnipotence, infinite holiness, everlasting goodness, and the like. This one essence is the divine nature of God, the substance of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, absolutely the same in and through each of them. That means, no carved icons can be a god as they are perceived to be, but by virtue of this divine essence and being.^[6] So it is plain to see that even though an object made by man’s hands or worshiped in nature such as the Sun or Moon cannot be a god unless the same essence of the One True God is resident within them.

Joseph Beet (1840-1924) in examining the subject here in verse eight of being in bondage to the ABC’s of worldly philosophy and Jewish Law, that Paul assumes that both himself^[7] and his Gentile readers^[8] were formerly under the same rudiments, and in bondage to them. In other words, they committed themselves to follow these rudimentary principles no matter what, in order to find salvation. It’s another way of saying that they sold their souls to the Law and Heathenism. This also implies that not only was Judaism powerless to save and to enrich, but heathenism as well. What made the situation worse was that the Law and heathenism condemned them to die if they disobeyed, but offered no forgiveness.

Beet feels that heathenism, as well as Judaism, were in some way a preparation for the coming Gospel of the Messiah. Heathen Wisemen taught the great principles of right and wrong, and that God’s favor was to be obtained only by doing right: and even the rites and rituals of heathenism, as deeply corrupt as many of them were, contained elements expressive of man’s desired need for salvation from God. In other words, the First Covenant did reveal, with greater distinctness and depth and certainty, than the truths already revealed in Nature and in the law written on their hearts that there was such a thing as future salvation to the Jew but only the faintest offer to the heathen world.

Consequently, says Beet, for the Galatians to seek salvation by the Mosaic Covenant of works, was to go back, ignoring the noblest element in earlier revelations,^[9] to the fact that heathenism possessed, in a lower degree, what they shared in common with Judaism, namely, that none of this they examined offered any hope of it saving them from God’s wrath. That’s why the Law is called here weak and poor,^[10] although it does not deny its infinite worth as a means^[11] of leading people to the Anointed One.^[12] It is good as a stepping stone to the Gospel but is utterly ruinous when chosen as a permanent rock of deliverance in preference to the salvation proclaimed in the Gospel.^[13]

Don Garlington gives us a clear view of what Paul says here in verse eight about the time when the Gentiles did not know God. But then, in becoming the children of God and possessing the “Spirit of His Son,” Paul’s readers came to experience God in the intimacy of a father-child relationship. In their new knowledge of God, these former pagan idolaters assumed the identity of a spiritual Israel. Their former ignorance of the true God and their service of man-made deities were no less than slavery, because far from delivering them from their sins and giving them an authentic reason for existence, their “gods” simply reinforced the sinful tendencies of their own hearts, thereby enslaving them to a lifestyle solely meant for self-gratification and self-aggrandizement. Added to this is the fact that Paul conceives of pagan religions as under the dominance of demonic powers,^[14] making life outside the Anointed One a regular service to Satan as his slaves.^[15]

Now consider this: Once upon a time, a Canaanite named Reprobus, who lived from (249-313 AD), converted to Christianity and chose the name, Christopher. One day he went to wade across a river and saw a little child wanting to get to the other side, but the water was too deep. So, Christopher put the child on his shoulders and carried him across. As word of his act of kindness spread, it made him very popular as a man of compassion. Later on, Christopher died as a martyr under the rule of Emperor Decius of Rome.  As his legend grew, he was canonized by the Church as the patron saint of travelers in 251 AD. His feast day was held on July 25th by the Roman Catholic Church, and May 9^th by the Greek Orthodox Church and his medal hung from necks, car mirrors, and other transportation vehicles for centuries.

But in 1969, under the rule of Pope Paul VI, the Roman Catholic Church removed ninety-three saints from its list, including St. Christopher, since his story was impossible to document as being anything other than a rumor. This news came to both Catholic and Protestant believers as a shock. I heard one Catholic friend vow; they didn’t care what the Catholic Church said; they were going to pray to St. Christopher and display his medal no matter what. In addition, the Catholic Church no longer gave them credit for praying to St. Christopher to earn an early exit out of purgatory. Can you imagine the terrible disappointment of those who offered up thousands of prayers to get a loved one out of purgatory learning their prays were all vetoed by the Church! In a way, this is what Paul was trying to point out to the Gentile believers in Galatia.  Instead of the Anointed One being the only One they now trusted and believed in for every aspect of their lives, they went back to focusing their faith on meaningless figurines, medals, statues, and icons for safety and security.

I saw something similar while living the minor Basilica of the Black Nazarene in the Quiapo district of Manila, Philippines. I heard quite a bit about the “Black Nazarene” who lay enshrined there. It was brought to the Philippines from Spain in 1606 by Augustinian Friars and enshrined in Quiapo in 1787. One day I decided to visit this Church so I could speak about it with firsthand knowledge. The church doors were all open as vendors selling religious icons and trinkets surrounded the cathedral. People flowed in and out of the sanctuary on a continuous basis.

The “Black Nazarene” lay on an elevated pedestal looking somewhat like he was lying in state, it was painted black and covered with a purple cloth. As people streamed by, they reached out and touched the feet with their hands or cloths. I was told they believed there was healing in the Black Nazarene’s figure, so they wiped cloths on themselves or took them home to sick family members. I also saw people crawling down the aisles toward the altar on their knees as they prayed using the Rosary. I left with a heavy heart, wondering that if the Apostle Paul was with me, might he ask that since this was a Christian church, did they know that the living Nazarene was standing at the right hand of God on high ready to make intercession for them, and by His stripes, they were healed. I also pondered: what might Paul think because these brothers and sisters in Manila became like-minded with the Galatians by depending on such rituals to meet their spiritual needs?

4:9-10:  But now that you know the one true God and He knows you, why would you want to go back again to those weak and miserable religious elements of this world? Why would you want to idolize them again? Are you trying to impress God by observing special holidays, holy months, sacred seasons, and anniversaries?

No wonder Paul seemed puzzled by the Galatians’ turnabout. Why did they go from something so alive to something so dead? Why did they turn around after becoming personally acquainted with the living God who called them and accepted them, and return to their old ineffective attempts to accomplish on their own what the Anointed One did for them on the cross? Did Paul now see them stumbling around in the darkness of legalistic religion after leaving the freedom of grace in His Light? Could it be that they who were saved from certain death under the condemnation of Mosaic Law and given eternal life through the grace of God in the Anointed One now live back under condemnation? Didn’t the Psalmist say that those who worship idols took on the personality of those idols? Maybe this explains why some people are considered perfect church members because they strictly adhere to every ceremonial law, but when it comes to sharing the Gospel and the love of the Anointed One to a fallen world, they are as inexpressive, inarticulate, and inanimate as their idols.

[1] Solomon Stoddard: Guide to The Anointed One, Published by William D’Hart, Princeton, N. J., 1827, pp. 60-61

[2] Matthew 24:12,13

[3] Ephesians 6:24

[4] The Complete Works of Jonathan Edwards: op. cit., (Kindle Location 11492-11521)

[5] Romans 1:20

[6] John Owen: op. cit., A Brief Declaration and Vindication of the Doctrine of the Holy Trinity, p. 56

[7] Galatians 4:3

[8] Ibid. 4:8-9

[9] e.g. Genesis 15:6; Habakkuk 2:4; Jeremiah 31:31ff; Ezekiel 36:25ff

[10] Cf. Romans 8:3

[11] Galatians 3:24

[12] Cf. Romans 7:12

[13] Joseph Beet: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., pp. 110-111

[14] 1 Corinthians 10:20-21

[15] Don Garlington: On Galatians, op. cit., p. 122

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XIX)

One of Augustine’s early contemporary scholars, Marius Victorinus (280-355 AD), views these non-divine deities of worldly and other imaginary powers, are all made up by the devil who tries to pass them off as being real.^[1] Victorinus, no doubt, was concerned about all those who claimed to see visions, dreams, and apparitions of various saints to which they assigned special powers, but can find no backing in the Scriptures. He also goes on to say that all this relates more to pagans, who even think up gods for themselves from the elements of this world or make the elements themselves gods, to worship nature, wind, water, fire, sun, moon, and stars. For there is no doubt that they believe these single elements are gods or believe that these gods produced the elements themselves. So, it is not surprising that pagans use these very same elements to make gods which they worship as a substitute for the true living God. This belief spawned certain demons that operate in and through these elements. So, says Augustine, if the pagans do these things, it appears as if Paul is rebuking the Galatians for returning to their paganistic ways!^[2]

For me personally, I feel that Augustine and Victorinus are themselves culpable in promoting this type of belief while trying to explain it. There is no doubt that the devil and his demons are at work in the earth. Jesus Himself cast out several of these demons, one called Legion, because there were so many possessing one person. And we are also told that upon His death and resurrection, the Anointed One was given the keys (authority over) hell, death, and the grave.^[3] But to say, as Augustine did, that by worshiping them or using them to glorify is unknowingly worshipping God violates the first and second Commandments.

The possibility that these Gentiles first converted to Judaism before becoming Christians seems clear by what Paul says later on. So, in effect, they traded one form of religious slavery for another. Now looking back, didn’t they see that even this exchange did not improve on their knowing God any better than the way they came to know Him after being born again in union with the Anointed One? Couldn’t they see that the bondage that enslaved them before they were set free to be one with the Anointed One was now demanding their obedience only under a new name? To Christian Reformers in Luther and Calvin’s day, the heathen idols that the converted Galatians worshiped before, were now being replaced by Christian icons of saints and beatified individuals who were being credited with helping them with prayers and petitions to Jesus and God the Father.

Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274) writing about whether or not we can refer to God as “Nature” or to Nature as “God,”  He specifies that since divine nature cannot be multiplied (or evolve), it follows that the name “God” cannot be transmitted in reality but in imagination; just in the same way as this name “sun” would be transmitted according to the opinion of those who say there are many suns. Therefore, it is written here in verse eight of Galatians: “You served them who by nature are not gods.” But that does not mean many gods exist in nature, only in the human imagination. Nevertheless, this name “God” is transmitted not in its full signification, but in similitude; so that those who are called gods share only in divinity by likeness. This is what the Psalmist said, “I have said, you are gods.”^{[4] [5]}

If this seemed to be a problem back in Aquinas’ day, it is even more prevalent today. Some try to be civil and refer to God as “a Great Power,” or even dare to call Him “Our Creator.” But to the Israelites, the Hebrew noun “Elo’ah” means “Deity.”  Now we know why Moses asked the voice in the burning bush, “What is your name?” And Deity answered, “I AM who I AM and always will be.”^[6]

As Reformer Martin Luther sees it, Paul concludes his discourse on justification at this point. From now to the end of the Epistle, the Apostle writes mostly about the Christian’s conduct. But before he goes on with his doctrinal discourse with practical precepts, he feels the necessity of once more admonishing the Galatians. He is very displeased with them for relinquishing their divine doctrine. He faults them for listening to teachers whose intention is to make them subject once more to the Law. He called them out of the darkness of ignorance into the wonderful light of the knowledge of God, he led them out of bondage into the freedom of being children of God, not by using the Law or writing more laws for them to follow, but by the gift of heavenly and eternal blessings through the Gospel of the Anointed One Jesus. So, why did they so suddenly forsake the light and return to darkness? Why did they so quickly stray from the open pasture of Grace back into the sin-pen of bondage?^[7]

Luther goes on to make the point that God will and can be known in no other way than in and through the Anointed One. Some of those who did not know God through the Anointed One drew this erroneous conclusion: I will serve Him by doing this or doing that. I will become a member of this or that ministry. I will be active in this or that not-for-profit charitable organization. They were certain that God would endorse their good intentions and reward them with everlasting life. After all, He doesn’t just love me, He’s in love with me.

Not only that but hasn’t He been known to give blessings to the unworthy and ungrateful to show His love? How much more will He grant them everlasting life as a due reward for their hard work? Luther says this is the religion of human reasoning. This is the natural thinking of the world. The way a worldly person expects things from God, they will never realize. It’s their wish, not the desire of the Spirit of God.^[8] They don’t seem to understand this is not the way to God.^[9] That’s why there’s really no difference between a Jew, a Muslim, and an Atheist. There may be differences between people of different countries, races, ethnicities, religions, manners, and customs, but as far as their fundamental beliefs are concerned, they are all alike.^[10]

Then Luther continues by sharing his reaction to the situation in the church in his own day. He notes that God promised to save anybody for their religious observance of ceremonies and ordinances. Those who rely upon such things do serve a god, but it’s one of their own imagination and not the Living God. The true God says that no religion pleases Him that does not come through His Son Jesus. In other words, all who put their faith to His Son will have Him as their God and Father. Those are the ones He redeems, calls justifies, sanctifies, and makes them His chosen people. Everyone else is still sitting under His curse upon sin because they worship creatures instead of Him. Without the doctrine of justification, there can be only ignorance of God. Those who refuse to be justified by the Anointed One are idolaters, says Luther. They remain under the Law, sin, death, and the power of the devil. Everything they do is wrong and worth nothing as far as God is concerned.^[11]

Reformer John Calvin explains how God is distinguished from idols so that He may be the exclusive object of worship. He wants to get down to the bare facts and brings in what Paul says here in verse eight to the Gentiles reminding them that before they knew God, they were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist. Calvin then points out that Paul does not use the Greek verb latreia, meaning “worship” – a form of reverence directed only to the Holy Trinity. Instead, he used the Greek verb dulia, which means “veneration.” This is the same distinction that the Roman Catholic Church uses to defend that while they worship God, they only venerate the blessed Virgin Mary. While such adoration expressed in praise and worship belongs only to God, Mary is deserving of adulation – excessive admiration and praise because of her unique role in the mystery of Redemption, her exceptional gifts of grace from God, and her preeminence among the saints. Unfortunately, she has replaced her Son as the object from whom alone grace and salvation is received.

Calvin then goes on to say that when the Anointed One repelled Satan who came to tempt Him, He did so as an insult by reminding the devil of the Scriptures where it says that we are to worship the Lord our God and serve only Him!^[12] Here, there is no question that worship and adoration are involved, not veneration and adulation. All Satan was asking our Lord was for proskyneō^[13] (“worship” KJV), which means to fall on one’s knees and touch the ground with the forehead as an expression of profound reverence. This was a sign of great respect for someone highly admired and honored. This is what happened to the Apostle John when he fell on his knees before the angel to worship him and was rebuked by the angel because he was not divine, only a servant of the Divine.^[14] Calvin says it wasn’t the case of John being so wrapped up that he forgot that it wasn’t possible for him to transfer the honor due to God alone through an angel. It wasn’t until later he realized that to show the angel adoration instead of adulation, he denigrated the glory of God.^[15]

This is a problem between Protestants and Catholics, both of whom think highly of the great saints in Scripture. A Roman Catholic priest will tell you that they “do not” pray to the saints, they only ask the saints to pray to God or the Anointed One on their behalf. In Calvin’s eyes, as it was in the eyes of the Apostle John, to do so denigrates the glory of God, who sits in His beautiful throne-room of grace and mercy where our prayers are delivered by the Holy Spirit to the Anointed One who then intercedes for us.^[16] To ask anyone lower than the Spirit of God to deliver our prayers is an insult to the merciful intercession of God’s Son and God, our Heavenly Father.

John Owen (1616-1683) is writing in defense of the Trinity and how the Scriptures fully express this divine truth as to leave no doubt about the makeup of the Godhead: – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit which are divine, distinct, intelligent, voluntary, principles of operation and working together. So, Owen is not writing to prove it but to substantiate what is already proven. He goes on to say that this oneness involves nothing more or less than the essence of God. The Father, Son, and Spirit are one in their shared essence. The reason why words such as Triune Godhead, Omnipotence, Omnipresence, and Omniscient are not used in Scripture is that it’s impossible to explain the unexplainable. They are of the same importance and significance, and none of them, include anything of imperfection, are properly used in the declaration of the unity of the Godhead.

[1] Marius Victorinus, Commentary on Galatians, loc. cit.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Revelation 1:18

[4] Psalm 82:6

[5] Thomas Aquinas: Summa Theologica, Vol. 1, The First Part, Whether this name “God” is a name of nature?” Part 1, Question 13, Answer 9, p. 168

[6] Exodus 3:13-14

[7] Martin Luther: Commentary on Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit.

[8] I Corinthians 2:14

[9] Romans 3:11

[10] Martin Luther, ibid

[11] Ibid.

[12] Matthew 4:10

[13] Ibid. 4:19

[14] Revelation 19:10; see 22:8-9

[15] John Calvin: Institutes, op. cit. loc. cit., Ch, 12, p. 136

[16] Cf. Acts of the Apostles 7:55-56; Romans 8:24; Ephesians 1:20; Colossians 3:1

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XVIII)

Now the Apostle Paul gives the same message he gave the Ephesians to the Galatians. He tells them here in verse eight that back when they didn’t know God, they slavishly served idols that were not real gods. But this should not come as a shock to them or to Paul. After all, Joshua told the Israelites that long ago their forefathers lived on the other side of the Jordan River. That included Terah, the father of Abraham and Nahor. And they worshiped other gods. So, that’s why Joshua gave their descendants a choice, to go back to worshiping the false gods of their ancestors in Ur of the Chaldees (Babylon), or the false gods of the Amorites^[1] in whose land there were living. But as for him and his family, they were going to serve ADONAI.^[2]

One Psalmist described these false gods by telling us that they were made of silver and gold, the work of human hands. They were given mouths but could not speak. They had carved eyes but could not see. They wore ears but could not hear. They exhibited noses but could not smell. Hands were attached to their arms, but they could not touch. They retained legs and feet but could not walk. They could not make any sound come out of their mouths. Those who made them and trusted in them were bound to end just like them – lifeless.^[3] Then the prophet Isaiah gives us an even more extensive description of the false gods and how they were carved.^[4] The prophet Jeremiah also acquired excellent knowledge about these idols and about the tools used to make them.^[5]

By the time Paul arrived on the scene, the Greeks and the Romans already turned their gods into forms representing humans and animals, or a combination of both. In fact, when Paul and Barnabas healed a man who had never walked from birth through Jesus’ name when the people saw this miracle, they began to say that the gods became like men and came down to them. They said that Barnabas was Jupiter, Paul was called Mercury because he spoke more than Barnabas. An idol of the god representing Jupiter was in a temple near the gate leading into the city. The religious leaders of that place brought cattle and flowers to the gate. They and many others wanted to burn these as gifts in an act of worship to Paul and Barnabas.^[6]

When Paul wrote his letter to the Roman believers, he told them that while there were many among the Gentiles who were aware that there was a higher power who created the heavens and all things in nature, but they did not know Him. So, they gave all the honor to false gods that looked like people who can die and to birds and animals and snakes.^[7] He also told the Corinthians about the danger of worshiping false gods. But even more sinister were those who came to God’s table to receive His blessings, then going over to the temple of a false god to receive its favor.^[8]

It might be said that this would be like getting spiritually drunk on the new wine of the Spirit, and then visiting the nearest liquor store and buying cheap wine to get physically drunk. But the Jewish believers in Roman did not need such detailed instructions on idolatry. It was already being taught by the Rabbis. In fact, after all, their teachings were written down in the Mishnah then the compilers of the Talmud dedicated a whole section to the subject.^[9]

Early church writer Victorinus weighs in with his comment by saying that not knowing God is caused by not knowing the Anointed One because that was the only way to get to know Him. But now, since the Anointed One appeared to Paul, He revealed God to Paul through. So, that is the only way to know God now.^[10] Another early Christian writer, Ambrosiaster (366-384), sees a particular inference here in Paul’s statement concerning the fact that those who worshiped idols in the past did so out of ignorance. Says the scholar: “Paul shows that this came naturally to them,”^[11] as it did back in First Covenant times. Perhaps the apostle remembered what King Abimelech of Gerar once asked God after he almost committed adultery with Sarah, Abraham’s wife, because Abraham told a lie about her being his sister. Said King Abimelech: “Lord, will You slay an ignorant people?” In other words, these converted non-Jews were idol worshipers and did so ignorantly, not knowingly these idols had nothing to do with God.

It appears that Paul said all he felt led to speak to the Jewish believers and Judaizers and how their religious calendar of rituals fell short of the observances that lifted up the Anointed One to the glory of God. He reminds them of their heathen worship to gods made of wood, stone, and other materials; how they ignorantly venerated the power behind creation such as the sun, moon, and stars without knowing who the Creator was or His real name. So, out of respect, they also made images they believed represented this unknown God. These idols were not divine, nor did they possess any powers other than the ones the worshipers gave them credit for having, such as those that affected the days, months, years, and seasons.  All of this habitually enslaved them to religious rites, rituals, and regulations that often-required human sacrifice.

The great preacher of the early church, Chrysostom, makes a note of what he sees as Paul’s intentions here. In turning to the Gentile believers, he says that this rigid observance of days is idolatry, and deserves severe punishment. To enforce this and make them even more concerned, he tells them that the elements of the world are not the invention of the gods of nature. What he means is that at one time, they were confused and like a demon-possessed individual lay groveling on the ground. But now, since they know and worship the true God, who knows who they are, what a bitter and painful lesson they are forcing upon themselves if, after such good treatment, they jump back again into the same pit of despair. It was not by their own efforts that they encountered God while they were still going the wrong way. When they met, God drew them into His arms. Paul tells them it’s like an educated adult going back to learning the letters of the alphabet again. That makes it appear as though after receiving their diploma for being spiritually mature and ready to be teachers and counselors, they now showed no interest in serving God in any fashion.^[12]

Paul was obviously talking to the Gentiles who worshiped various idols before they were converted.  What we might ask here is this, “What makes a god?” The first answer usually given is “That which one worships, esteems, honors and considers to be divine.” This answer is only partially true. Those are the things commonly attributed to a god, but the gods themselves possess visible or invisible power. Any person can make an image of his or her god, but that will not transform a piece of wood or plaster into an omniscient, omnipresent, omnipotent being. In other words, a person may call it a god, and try and make it look like a god, and may even worship it as a god, but it is still a piece of wood or silver or gold.

Even though a person does everything they can to make them such, they remain inanimate objects. If then we take this indictment of Paul of the Gentile believers in Galatia and bring it forward to our day where idol worship, as practiced back then, is only found in places like India and Africa, what would our gods look like before we were converted. I’m sure each one of us could offer a few drawings or make up a rather long list. We wouldn’t mind serving a god if it was alive and real, but I’ll never worship anything else. And so far, I’ve only found one God, the living God, whose I am and whom I serve.

Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) gives us a curious interpretation of these gods that, by nature, were not divine in any sense of the word. He feels that when Paul earlier referred to custodians and trustees, he included these gods. Augustine’s reasoning is that there is no person, whether knowing that they were somehow really giving God the glory or they did so for their own glory, still, in Augustine’s mind, they both give glory to God whether knowingly or unknowingly. The person who does it knowingly with God’s help is doing a good thing. On the other hand, the person who gives God glory unknowingly still accomplishes something good because, in the end, it will work out for God’s glory.

 This is where many Bible scholars, even in the early Church, feel that Augustine was influenced by the humanism of Greek philosophers, which he read and admired. Therefore, he wants to know if it was not then permissible to call even the fallen angels, together with their prince, the Devil, as guardians or trustees with divine responsibilities. For instance, Paul says elsewhere: I handed them over to Satan so that they may learn not to blaspheme.^[13] And in another place, Paul uses the devil for the sake of salvation.^{[14] [15]}

But Augustine is not finished. He argues using deductive reasoning that just as a government official acts only to the extent permitted by the chief administrator, so the seen and unseen powers in and above the earth act only to the extent allowed by the Lord. Furthermore, since nothing is hidden from Him and He is all-powerful, then these powers under His authority are subject to His oversight even without knowing it. Yet they are rewarded, not based on the volume of work they accomplished, but because of the spirit in which their duties were performed. And even though God never denied freewill to His rational creatures, yet He retained for Himself the power by which He governs through the unreasonable in a reasonable way. So, whether it was the sun, the moon, the stars, heaven and earth, and even demons that the Gentiles worshiped, it is right to understand they did so with these seen and unseen powers in charge.^[16]

To express this in a less philosophical way, in Augustine’s mind, if God used Satan to show Job’s deep conviction of faith and trust in his redeemer, and if Pharaoh was used to play a major role in the deliverance of God’s people from Egyptian bondage, and if Goliath was used to show David’s courage and faith, and king Nebuchadnezzar used to portray the faith and trust of Daniel and the three Hebrew young men, or Judas Iscariot to betray Jesus so that He could complete the mission He came to earth to carry out, that means all things in God’s creation are subject to Him, and serve Him either willingly or unwillingly, knowingly or unknowingly to carry out His plan for mankind.

[1] The Amorites who occupied the land of Canaan when the Israelites arrived from the wilderness, were the children of Canaan, the grandson of Abraham through their father, Ham. See Exodus e:8, 17, 23:23; Joshua, 3:10, 24:11; I Kings, 9:20; Ezekiel 16:3, 45; Isaiah 17:9

[2] Ibid. 24:2, 15

[3] Psalm 115:4-8; See Psalm 135:15-18

[4] Isaiah 44:9-20

[5] Jeremiah 10:3-16

[6] Acts of the Apostles 14:11-13

[7] Romans 1:23

[8] 1 Corinthians 10:7-10, 18-22

[9] Babylonian Talmud: Seder Nezikin, Masekhet Abodah Zarah

[10] Edwards, M. J. (Ed.). On Galatians, op. cit. loc. cit., p. 58

[11] Ambrosiaster: Commentary on Galatians, loc, cit., p.22

[12] Chrysostom: Homilies on Galatians, loc. cit.

[13] I Timothy 1:20

[14] 1 Corinthians 5:3-5

[15] Augustine of Hippo: Commentary on Galatians, loc. cit.

[16] Ibid.

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XVII)

While Lancaster’s point of using the rendition of the Greek taken from Robert Young’s Literal Translation is correct, he fails to provide the rest of the text: “that the adoption of sons we may receive, and because you are sons, God did send forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying, ‘Abba, Father!’”^[1] It is clear that Paul is pointing back to his discussion about minors living under the Law who cannot inherit until they reach adulthood, which is a direct reference to the Law being the guardian under whom they were kept. So, it does not refer to redemption from sin or exile, because no sin existed without the Law, they go hand in hand. Therefore, when Jesus came, He did not die on the cross to free one hand of those who were under Law from sin and leave the other hand, still gripping onto the Law. Both hands must be released, or they are not free at all. And as Jesus said, “Whom the Son sets free is free indeed!”[2]

Let me illustrate: “Okay,” says the father of a large successful billion-dollar company to his youngest son, “Your older brother died in combat, but he left word that he wants you to take his place as the next owner and President of our company.”  “But Dad,” says the younger son, “I want to start at the bottom and work my way to the top as he did.”  “Your brother did all that for you, and everything he learned he wrote down for you to read and study, so you’ll know what he knew in a much shorter time,” says the father.  “But Dad, I want to do it on my own; I want to get credit for climbing to the top,” replies the boy. “Well, son, anyone can try that. But I must tell you, even if they went as high as possible, they still wouldn’t be allowed into this office or sit in this chair or inherit this company as owner and CEO when I retire unless they were there under the conditions offered by my first son.” I can hear Paul hollering now: You foolish Galatians, can’t you understand this? You can’t merit this position; you can’t compete for this; you can’t buy this! It’s a gift! If you don’t accept it on God’s terms, you can’t receive it any other way!

So, now all of God’s children can say to their former guardian, the Mosaic Law: I’m through with you!  Your position and power have been transferred to the Messiah. He’s on the throne of my heart as LORD and Savior. I’m free now, a child of God. You can’t restrict my movements anymore; I don’t need you to approve everything. I now serve God as He wills, and don’t need your permission. Yes, I submit myself to those over me in the LORD for guidance, instruction, and discipline. But they do not possess any power, nor did God give them any latitude to deny me my inheritance just because I failed one or two of their tests or do not measure up to one of their standards. Let them rebuke me if they want, I want my words and actions to correspond with God’s Word, not one of their pet peeves. We are all on the same level and same footing as children of God. Therefore, let us respect each other, love each other, prefer one another, and rejoice over each other’s gifts and talents, all meant to glorify and praise our Father in heaven.

Grant Osborne notes what Paul says about God sending the Spirit of His Son into the believer’s heart. He says that the sending of the Spirit builds on several First Covenant passages, such as “I will give you a new heart … and put my Spirit in you;”^[3] “And now the Sovereign Lord has sent me, endowed with His Spirit;”^[4] and, of course, “I will pour out my Spirit on all people.”^[5] Here, as often in Paul’s other writings;^[6] as well as the Acts of the Apostles and the Apostle Peter’s first letter,^[7] the Spirit is described as the “Spirit of His Son” to emphasize his connection with the Messiah, as well as with God the Father. Each member of the Trinity is involved in our salvation. When we speak of the Spirit as “Jesus in our heart,” it is actually the Spirit of Jesus who enters believers. He represents the Messiah in this world. He empowers and guides us as we engage in the Christian way of behaving, enabling us to live according to the will of the Triune God.^[8] So the Apostle Paul was not making up some new doctrine that just came to him in the dark of night. It is from the established, infallible, Word of God.

Bible Chinese scholar and writer Vincent Cheung points out that the Apostle Paul introduced the idea of sonship to Abraham back in chapter three, verse seven. No doubt, this was because the Judaizers who came over from Jerusalem were teaching that before anyone could become children of God to inherit God’s promises to Abraham, they first needed to become children of Abraham. If you were a Gentile, that meant you must submit yourself to the Law, if a male, be circumcised, and practice all the Jewish rites, rituals, customs, and ceremonial laws. But Paul destroyed this argument by showing the Abraham was considered right with God before any of these things were put into practice.

Cheung goes on to note that one becomes a child of God through grace and faith, this is what Abraham did, so it would qualify them as heirs of the promises God made to Abraham. As far as circumcision is concerned, some say that this is done through water baptism. But since Paul was stressing that a person is justified by faith alone, he certainly wouldn’t contradict himself by making water baptism a requirement for justification. Think of the thief on the cross next to Jesus. He was crucified along with the Messiah before he was given a chance to do good works or be baptized in water. And yet, Jesus said to him: “I tell you the truth, today you will be with Me in paradise.”^[9]

The point Cheung is making is that it is normal for any person who professes Jesus as their Lord and Savior to then be baptized in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. In fact, there is no reason to refuse it. But we must keep this in mind, one can profess faith in the Messiah without baptism and still be justified as right before God. But no one can be baptized without faith in the Messiah and be justified.^[10] Remember, it’s all about becoming an adopted child of God, having their names written in the Lamb’s Book of Life, with the promise of full salvation, and everlasting joy.

Writer Duncan Heaster comments on what Paul says here in verse seven about the children of God being heirs to His promises through the Messiah. First of all, God, as our Father, did not die in order to leave His estate to His children. Rather, He passed that on to His Son, Yeshua,^[11] who did die so that those who believed in Him would not perish but have everlasting life. But God in His love, grace, and mercy fulfilled the prophecies He gave to the First Covenant prophets that the Messiah would live again, and raised Him from the tomb to live forever. But that inheritance will not be given to us as long as we are in the development stage of preparing for His return. The key to understanding this is what Paul told Timothy that if we suffer with Him, we will also reign with Him.^[12] The Greek verb hypomenō (“suffer” KJV) that Paul uses in his letter to Timothy can be used in two ways: It can either be taken as “to remain faithful,” or “to persevere under misfortunes and trials and hold fast to one’s faith in the Messiah.” Thayer, in his Greek Lexicon, says that Paul uses this verb in Timothy 2:12, meaning “to persevere and endure through trials and tribulations as we wait for His return.” One of the first guarantees that the Father gave us as heirs of this inheritance is that He sent the Spirit of His Son to dwell in us. This identifies us as children of God who came to Him through the Messiah and, therefore, are joint-heirs with Him.^[13]

4:8 Remember, in the past, you did not know anything about God. You were slaves to false gods with nothing of the one true God in them.

 When Moses was sent by God back down into Egypt to free His children enslaved there, and he went to see Pharaoh and told him that ADONAI sent him, Pharaoh said, who is Adonai, that I should obey when He says to let Israel go? I don’t know Adonai, and I also won’t let Israel go.”^[14] And the Prophet Jeremiah once prayed, “Pour out your anger on the nations that do not acknowledge You, also on the families that do not call out to you in prayer.”^[15]

But things didn’t change much by the time Paul’s day came around. On his visit to Corinth, he told some of the religious leaders and members of the Areopagus on Mar’s hill, as I was walking around and looking at the things you worship, I found an altar, where you worship, with the words: TO THE GOD WHO IS NOT KNOWN etched on it. You are worshiping Him without knowing Him. He is the One I will tell you about.^[16] And Paul told the Corinthians that the main reason so many heathens who think they know God indirectly aren’t the way He wants to be known. He did not allow people to come to know Him through the philosophical teachings of this world. God wanted to save people from the punishment of their sins through the preaching of the Gospel. But they found such sermons as foolish talk.^[17] That would be like throwing a lifesaver to a drowning person, but they refused to grab hold of it because it didn’t look like any lifesaver they’d ever seen.

The believers in Ephesus knew what Paul was talking about because he once told them that at one time, they did not understand who God was either. The Jews, who went through the religious act of becoming a Jew by being circumcised, concluded that if you were not circumcised that you didn’t know God.^[18] But then Paul told the Ephesians he was so glad they were not like the people of the world living around them who are still existing in ignorance, and they know nothing about a living Yahweh. This is because such ignorance keeps them from opening their minds, and so they resist knowing His will for their lives.^[19] So they end up only doing the things that please them because they don’t know there is a God higher than their gods.^[20] But they must be warned that when the ADONAI Yeshua is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels in a fiery flame. Then He will punish those who don’t know the Father in heaven,^[21] that is, those who didn’t listen to the Gospel of our Lord Yeshua and obey it.^[22]

[1] Young’s Literal Translation of the Holy Bible by Robert Young, Author of the Analytical Concordance to the Bible, Revised Edition, Edinburgh, 1898, loc. cit.

[2] John 8:36

[3] Ezekiel 36:26-27

[4] Isaiah 48:16

[5] Joel 2:28-29

[6] Romans 8:9; Philippians 1:19

[7] Acts of the Apostles 16:7; 1 Peter 1:11

[8] Osborne, G. R. On Galatians: Verse by Verse, op. cit., p. 129

[9] Luke 23:43

[10] Cheung, Vincent. On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit. Location 2282-2295, Kindle Edition.

[11] See Romans 4:13-14, Hebrews 1:2

[12] 2 Timothy 2:12

[13] Heaster, Duncan. On Galatians, op cit., Location 1047-1071, Kindle Edition.

[14] Exodus 5:2 – Complete Jewish Bible

[15] Jeremiah 10:25

[16] Acts of the Apostles 17:23

[17] 1 Corinthians 1:21

[18] Ephesians 2:11; See 1 John 3:1

[19] Ibid. 4:18

[20] 1 Thessalonians 4:5

[21] See Isaiah 66:15; Jeremiah 10:25; Psalm 79:6

[22] 2 Thessalonians 1:7b-8 – Complete Jewish Bible

NEW TESTAMENT CONTEXTUAL COMMENTARY

by Dr. Robert R. Seyda

PAUL’S LETTER TO THE GALATIAN CHURCHES

CHAPTER FOUR (Lesson XVI)

David Worthington Simon (1830-1909), states that it’s one thing to just be called “father,” but it is quite another to discharge all the expected fatherly functions. Human fathers sometimes fail to behave like fathers for reasons lying solely in themselves or sometimes because of hindrances in the conduct or character of their children. No father can regularly discharge his fatherly functions toward children who are unchildlike. Yet, a rebellious son or daughter are still his children, even though they don’t act like it.”^[1] Simon is telling us that even those who do become children of God do not receive all the benefits of being God’s child because of their erratic and irreverent behavior. Therefore, they miss out on many blessings God holds in reserve for them. But worst of all, they miss out on the blessings meant to make their life as God’s children more exciting and joyful here on earth.

Methodist minister, evangelist, and writer of holiness material Aaron Merritt Hills (1847-1935) discusses the importance of not confounding “consecration” with “sanctification” since one occurs before the other. After their soul is “convicted of their spiritual need,” and knows the importance of having had the “old sinful self” crucified, and accepted the fact that the promise of the Holy Spirit is to them, and to obey and surrender and consecrate everything to Him, it becomes both their privilege and duty to believe that God hears their cry and accepts their consecrated heart.^[2] Hills is saying that although a person is a sanctified new believer of God’s own choosing, they still must do their part in consecrating themselves to the service of the Lord.

Dr. A. J. Gordon (1836-1895) states the same truth. It seems clear from the Scriptures that it is still the duty and privilege of believers to receive the Holy Spirit by a conscious, definite act of appropriating faith, just as they received Jesus the Anointed One. This conclusion is based on several grounds. Presumably, if the Paraclete is a person,[3] coming down at a certain definite time to make His abode in the believer for guiding, teaching, and sanctifying the body of the Anointed One, there is the same reason for accepting Paul for his special ministry in the same way we accept the Lord Jesus for His special ministry. To say that in receiving the Anointed One we necessarily received in the same act the gift of the Spirit seems to confound what the Scriptures make distinct. For it is as SINNERS that we accept the Anointed One for our justification, but then as SAINTS, we accept the Spirit for our sanctification. And as Paul says here in verse six, because we are His children, God sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts.

So, says Gordon, the gift of the Holy Spirit is grounded on the fact that we are children by faith in union with the Anointed One. The Scriptures show that we are required to appropriate the Spirit as His children, in the same way, that we appropriated the Anointed One as sinners. Let the believer receive the Holy Spirit by a definite act of faith for their consecration, as they received the Anointed One by faith for their justification. So, can they not then be sure that they are in a safe and Scriptural way of acting? We know, says Gordon, of no plainer form of stating the matter than to speak of it as a simple acceptance by faith, which is an affirmation and an act which bids eternal truth to be a fact.^[4] It is important to understand that sanctification comes before consecration. Otherwise, by putting consecration first, we are saying that sanctification can be earned through works. Rather, we are sanctified in order to qualify for consecration so that we are ready to do the work the Holy Spirit has planned for us. But we will still need the power of the Spirit to use the Gifts that He brings, and for that, we are baptized in the Spirit just as the disciples were on the Day of Pentecost.

R. A. Torrey (1856-1928), commenting on the Holy Spirit praying on our behalf, mentions that Paul told the Corinthians that the Spirit of God searches the deep things of God,^[5] by which He then reveals to us the things which He discovers. Then John in his Revelation^[6] and many other passages, says the Holy Spirit is represented as speaking. Paul made this clear to the Romans by pointing out that the Spirit helps us because when we are weak, He helps us with our weakness. We don’t know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit Himself speaks to God on our behalf. He petitions God on our behalf, speaking to Him with feelings too deep for human expression.^[7]

And now in verse six, by the Holy Spirit dwelling in us we can say with certainty that we are His children. As a result, we may not only address Him as our Father in heaven, but we can also run to Him when we need His help and like a child we can say, Daddy, Daddy I need Your help! As Torrey sees it, here the Holy Spirit is represented to us as praying, not merely as an influence that leads us to pray, or an illumination that teaches us how to pray, but as a Person who Himself prays in and through us. There is immeasurable comfort in the thought that for every regenerate man or woman, two Divine Persons are praying for them, Jesus the Anointed One the Son of God up there at the right hand of the Father, praying for them;^[8] and the Holy Spirit praying through us down here. How secure and how blessed is the position of the believer with these two Divine Persons, whom the Father always hears, praying for them.^[9]

Ernest DeWitt Burton (1856-1925) makes it clear that here in verse seven that Paul’s statement that the believer is no longer a slave but a son, is not to be taken simply as someone having confessed their sins and asked forgiveness. Paul is assuming the possession of the Spirit of God’s Son is already a known fact to them,^[10] and the Apostle finds confirmation of this as expressed in verses five and six. Not only that but being God’s child is also contingent on being set free from the bondage of the Law since those still under the Law are servants, not sons or daughters.^[11] So having the indwelling Spirit of the Son (not to be confused with the baptism of the Holy Spirit) is necessary before we can call ourselves children of God. Many stand or go to the altar to repeat the sinner’s prayer but leave with only the preacher’s promise that they are now a child of God. That’s like calling a fetus a living being before its brain begins to function and its heart begins to beat.

Rather than this being seen as a fracturing of the Trinity, it only proves its unity – three-in-one. It’s what binds them inseparably together. God is Spirit,^[12] so without the Spirit, there is no God. He is the Spirit that came upon Jesus at His baptism, led Him into the wilderness to be tempted, so without the Spirit there would be no Messiah. To human logic, this seems impossible and contradictory. Think of it this way, there is air all around us and in us. Without air, we cease to be alive. If you go beyond the boundary of the earth’s atmosphere, there is no air to breathe. We also fill our automobile tires with air; scuba divers must take air in tanks with them to survive, even the whales must come up for air. So it is with God’s Holy Spirit. Without Him dwelling in us, we are spiritually dead. He is the one who gives us His fruit and gifts. He is just as indispensable to believers as He is to the Godhead. That’s what ties us so closely together as believers and as children of God. And when the trumpet sounds, the same Spirit that raised the Messiah from the grave will be the same one to resurrect us to meet Him in the air.^[13]

Cyril W. Emmet (1875-1924), says it is very instructive how the Apostle Paul passes nimbly from this metaphor of the coming age of the young heir to having been adopted as children, and the emancipation of a slave here in verses five through seven. One reason may be that he is dealing with the position of both Jews and Gentiles in the congregation. The Jews were known as God’s children from the time of Jacob, and the Gentiles were redeemed and then adopted from slavery through Jesus the Anointed One. However, Paul does not mention this at all as part of his narrative.

As Emmet sees it, the real fact is that all metaphors are inadequate to define or describe the facts of the spiritual life in the Messiah. Paul cannot be accused of constructing his word pictures in such a way that they fit nicely into his theological system. Rather, he uses each one to suit his purpose illustrating his point as being some aspect of the truth. From the time of Adam, we are all children of our Creator, waiting for our complete emancipation from the slavery of our sinful tendencies. On the other hand, we are also strangers that He adopted into His family by setting us free as slaves and then adopting us as sons and daughters. You will only know that your liberation is complete once you finally realize that you are now a child of God.

Emmet believes that many of the mistakes of theologians and Bible scholars in their theology are that they show a tendency to take a single metaphor and then disassemble it into pieces which they then interpret literally to reach what they call a logical conclusion. Spiritual things are not meant to be logical but understood by faith. When they try to put the metaphor back together with each piece marked as literal and logical they see that the whole word picture becomes distorted.^[14] When someone tries to understand a parable with human logic, they become like the disciples of Jesus who needed a full explanation in order to comprehend the spiritual truths being illustrated.^[15]

Messianic Jewish writer Thomas Lancaster spots several difficulties with the traditional Christian scholarly view of what Paul is saying here in verse seven about being freed from the Law, especially the understanding that the Anointed One came to fulfill the Law and thereby redeem Jews under the iron fist of Law, and for that to mean they no longer are required to respect the Torah, the Sabbath, or any of the Jewish festivals and feasts. He points out that a literal translation of Galatians 4:5 does not use the Greek verb exagorazō in the past-tense. It literally says “that those under the Law He may redeem.” They are still under the Law. To be under the Law is just Paul’s way of saying “legally Jewish” and obligated to observe the Torah as part of their salvation process. The Messiah did not redeem the Jewish people from observing the Torah. He rescued them from the sentence of condemnation for not being able to perfectly fulfill the Law to acquire salvation, not from the obligation to obey the commandments

[1] David Worthington Simon: Reconciliation by Incarnation, Published by T. & T. Clark, Edinburgh, 1898, p. 81

[2] Aaron Merritt Hills: Holiness and Power, Part III, Ch. 15, pp. 196-197

[3] Paraclete is the Greek word translated as “Comforter,” referring to the Holy Spirit

[4] A. J. Gordon: The Ministry of the Spirit, American Baptist Publication Society, Philadelphia, 1894, pp. 68-69

[5] 1 Corinthians 2:10

[6] Revelation 2:7

[7] Romans 8:26

[8] Hebrews 7:25; 1 John 2:1

[9] The Fundamentals – A Testimony to the Truth, Ch. 15, The Personality and Deity of the Holy Spirit by R. A. Torrey, pp. 278-279

[10] Cf. Galatians 3:2

[11] Ernest DeWitt Burton: On Galatians, op. cit., loc. cit., p. 224

[12] John 4:24

[13] Romans 8:11

[14] Cyril W Emmet: On Galatians, op. cit., p. 39

[15] Matthew 13:36ff