Galatians 3

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Galatians 3

• The power of faith contrasted with the weakness
  of the Law

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Verses 1-5Their Personal Experience
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O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you that
you should not obey the truth, before whose eyes
Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed among you as
crucified? (Gal 31)

• Bewitched they were acting like someone else
  was controlling them
• Paul had clearly taught the Galatians about the
  crucifixion of Jesus
• Paul had lived the crucifixion of
  Jesus among them he was
  persecuted and stoned

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Pauls challenge to their experience!

• Dont you remember how Paul lived before you as
  Jesus Christ crucified? (v.1)
• Did you receive the Spirit by earning it through
  works, or by faith? (v.2)
• You started out by faith, but will works of law
  now make you perfect? (v.3)

• You suffered so much persecution from Judaisers
  was it in vain? (v.4)
• Does God give you the Spirit and work miracles
  among you because you earn them, or by faith?
  (v.5)

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Verses 6-9The Example of Abraham
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Abraham believed God (v.6) Genesis 156

• Paul quotes this 3 times (Rom 43, 22
  Gal 36)
• Abraham believed that God would do what
  was humanly impossible to accomplish
  (thats faith!)
• God would make him a father and he
  would have as many descendants as
  the stars in the sky (hes about 85 and Sarah
  about 75 now)
• Abrahams belief (faith in God) was counted to
  him as righteousness and he wasnt even
  circumcised yet! (Rom 49-12)

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Works should flow from faith
Faith

• James 218
• But someone will say, "You have faith, and I have
  works. Show me your faith without your works, and
  I will show you my faith by my works.

Works
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Real Jews live as Abrahams children

• Rom 228-29
• 28 For he is not a real Jew who is one outwardly,
  nor is true circumcision something external and
  physical.
• 29 He is a Jew who is one inwardly, and real
  circumcision is a matter of the heart, spiritual
  and not literal. His praise is not from men but
  from God.

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Faith of Abraham

• Heard God
• Believed
• Counted Righteous
• Later was circumcised
• Later offered up Isaac

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Law keepers cannot afford to ever fail!

• James 28-13
• 8 If you really fulfill the royal law
  according to the
  Scripture, "You shall love your
  neighbor as yourself," you do
  well
• 9 but if you show partiality, you commit sin,
  and are convicted by the law as transgressors.
• 10 For whoever shall keep the whole law, and
  yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.
• 11 For He who said, "Do not commit adultery,"
  also said, "Do not murder." Now if you do not
  commit adultery, but you do murder, you have
  become a transgressor of the law.
• 12 So speak and so do as those who will be
  judged by the law of liberty.
• 13 For judgment is without mercy to the one
  who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over
  judgment.

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Abrahams Sons
Abraham
Sarah
Hagar
Ishmael (of the flesh)
Isaac (of Faith)
Abrahams children were counted through Isaac
these are the children of faith
Descendents of Abraham, but not his children (Jn
837-39)
For they are not all Israel who are of Israel,
nor are they all children because they are the
seed of Abraham but, "In Isaac your seed shall
be called." (Rom 96-7)
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Pauls gospel is the one preached to Abraham
In you all the nations shall be blessed (Gen
123)

• Pauls Bible proof Gen 123
• God is doing it! Its His plan to justify all
  nations by faith
• Faith is the key it opens the door of blessing
  to everyone who has the faith of Abraham.

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Why did Galatians go back to Law?

• Comfortable to human nature
• Makes people feel better about themselves because
  they compare themselves to others

• A religion that allows you to do what you want to
  on your own time

Man wearing phylacteries
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Verses 10-14 Paul goes on the
offensive against the LawThe Law cursed
everyone!
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The Law cursed everyone!

• Deut 2726 cursed everyone who failed in one
  point of the law
• The just shall live by faith (Hab 24)
• Implies no one could be justified by law (cp
  216)
• The law is not of faith didnt need faith to
  follow works of law (became a checklist)
• man who does them shall live by them (Lev 185)
• The Law even cursed Christ a righteous man
  and did not justify him!
• cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree (Dt
  2123)

Although Christ never sinned, he was saved by his
faith in God completely convinced that his
Father would do in him what was impossible for
himself to do perfect obedience
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Christ was saved by Faith too!

• Christs perfect life cursed by the law in his
  death removed the curse of the law
• Christ was saved by faith the same motivating
  power that must operate in our lives to battle
  the power of the devil

Rom 319-20 Now we know that whatever the law
says, it says to those who are under the law,
that every mouth may be stopped, and all the
world may become guilty before God. Therefore by
the deeds of the law no flesh will be justified
in His sight, for by the law is the knowledge of
sin. Rom 327-28 Where is boasting then? It is
excluded. By what law? Of works? No, but by the
law of faith. Therefore we conclude that a man
is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the
law.
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Christ redeemed us from the curse

• By being cursed by the law in his death
• The Law cursed a righteous man who never sinned!
• Removed the law and its curse
• Blessing of Abraham (v.8) can now come on the
  Gentiles in Christ (v.14)
• Forgiveness of sins (Rom 45-8)
• Turning away from our iniquities (Acts 326)
• We (all children of Abraham by faith) receive the
  promise inheritance as members of Gods family
  by faith (also in Rom 812-17)

Law does not belong to the same category as
faith, for law concerns doing, while faith
expresses trusting. (John Carter)
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Verses 15-18The Law cannot annul the Promise to
Abraham
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Cant change a covenant after it is confirmed

• Cant add to it or annul it (v. 15)
• God made His promise (covenant) about
  Abrahams inheritance back in Gen 12 (v.16)
• The Law of Moses came 430 years later so
  it cannot annul the promise (v.17)
• God gave Abraham His promise the law is based
  on earning by works (v.18)

Thus God, determining to show more abundantly to
the heirs of promise the immutability of His
counsel, confirmed it by an oath, that by two
immutable things, in which it is impossible for
God to lie, we might have strong consolation, who
have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set
before us. (Heb 617-18)
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The 430 and 400 years
430 years from the Promise to the Law (Gal 317)
400 years Abrahams descendants to be sojourners
(Gen 1513)
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The Law cannot annul the covenant that was
confirmed before by God
The Law was only a temporary tutor (shadow) until
the reality of Christ had come
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Promises made to Abraham and his seed

• Gen 123 in you
• Gen 2218 in your seed (Jesus Christ)
• Used this way in Acts 325-26

The Law was not like the Promise

• Law involved terms of mutual agreement
• Law ends in condemnation
• Promise is spontaneous, free and from only one
  side
• Promise leads to justification

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Verses 19-25The Purpose of the Law was to bring
us to faith in Christ
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Gods Purpose with the Law
seed

• Added because of transgressions (so that sin
  through the commandment might become exceedingly
  sinful Rom 713)
• Only supposed to last until the seed comes to
  whom the promise was made (19)
• Law was appointed through angels by a mediator

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Law added because of transgressions

• Most Jews who left Egypt were
  unGodly and needed restrictions
  and guidelines
• When they made mistakes, more laws were added
• Nadab Abihu laws about clean/unclean
• Man collects sticks on sabbath tassels of blue
• 1000s die in Korahs rebellion Red heifer

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Mediator does not mediate for one only, but God
is one (NKJV)

• Now an intermediary implies more than one but
  God is one. (RSV)
• Now a mediator is not for one party only whereas
  God is only one. (NASB)
• A mediator, however, does not represent just one
  party but God is one. (NIV)

That in the dispensation of the fullness of the
times He might gather together in one all things
in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are
on earth-- in Him. (Eph 110)
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Is the Law against the Promises? (21)

• No! It was not supposed to be used to
  earn eternal life! (21)
• Scripture confined all under sin so that
  the promise may be given to
  those who have faith in
  Jesus Christ (22)
• Before we matured and developed faith, the Law
  kept us under guard (gave us guidelines about
  resisting sin)

• The Law was a tutor (teacher) to bring us to
  Christ so we could be justified by faith the
  Law did its job (24)
• Once the reality of faith has come, we dont need
  the tutor any more (25)

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So how were OT believers saved?

• The Law showed them how sinful
  they were and how much they
  needed Gods grace
• The Law taught them about faith
  in Messiah to come, so they could be
  forgiven of their sins through faith

Theres only one method of salvation through
faith in Christ Jesus. All Gods family will be
saved the same way!
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Verses 26-29All sons of God through faith are
heirs to the promise
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Gods Family
God saved his son. Everyone who has the faith of
Jesus will be saved in him
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Baptism into Christ

• Put on Christ like taking off our old way of
  life and putting on Christs way (like Greek
  toga)
• No nationality, no social status, no gender all
  one in Christ
• If Christs then Abrahams seed heirs
  according to the promise

That in the dispensation of the fullness of the
times He might gather together in one all things
in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are
on earth-- in Him. (Eph 110)
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In Galatians 4 we will uncover how to become
heirs of God through faith
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