Galatians 3 - DIY Salvation
The one thing you need more than anything is perfect righteousness, but you can't produce it yourself.
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Galatians 3 (ESV)
1 O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?
It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified.
2 Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit
by works of the law
or by hearing with faith?
3 Are you so foolish?
Having begun by the Spirit,
are you now being perfected by the flesh?
4 Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain?
5 Does he who
supplies the Spirit to you
and works miracles among you
do so
by works of the law,
or by hearing with faith—
6 just as Abraham “believed God,
and it was counted to him as righteousness”?
7 Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham.
8 And the Scripture,
foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith,
preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying,
“In you shall all the nations be blessed.”
9 So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.
10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written,
“Cursed be everyone who
does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law,
and do them.”
11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law,
for “The righteous shall live by faith.”
12 But the law
is not of faith,
rather “The one
who does them
shall live by them.”
13 Christ
redeemed us from the curse of the law
by becoming a curse for us—for it is written,
“Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”—
14 so that
in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles,
so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.
15 To give a human example, brothers:
even with a man-made covenant,
no one annuls it
or adds to it
once it has been ratified.
16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring.
It does not say, “And to offsprings,”
referring to many,
but referring to one,
“And to your offspring,” who is Christ.
17 This is what I mean:
the law,
which came 430 years afterward,
does not annul a covenant
previously ratified by God,
so as to make the promise void.
18 For if the inheritance comes by the law,
it no longer comes by promise;
but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19 Why then the law?
It was added
because of transgressions,
until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made,
and it was put in place
through angels by an intermediary.
20 Now an intermediary implies
more than one,
but God is one.
21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God?
Certainly not!
For if a law had been given that could give life,
then righteousness would indeed be by the law.
22 But the Scripture
imprisoned everything under sin,
so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came,
we were held captive under the law,
imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.
24 So then, the law was our guardian
until Christ came,
in order that we might be justified by faith.
25 But now that faith has come,
we are no longer under a guardian,
26 for in Christ Jesus
you are all sons of God,
through faith.
27 For as many of you
as were baptized into Christ
have put on Christ.
28 There is neither Jew nor Greek,
there is neither slave nor free,
there is no male and female,
for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
29 And if you are Christ’s,
then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
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Galatians 3 Summary
The Galatian Christians were under immense pressure that Christians must follow Jewish laws and customs, since they signified righteousness.
These early Christians were right to understand that the most important attribute a person can have is righteousness, since that is what God requires of His people. Only those with perfect righteousness will enter into His Kingdom.
Paul had to be so forceful with the Galatians (he opens this chapter by calling them 'bewitched fools!') because they had fallen into a trap that we often fall into as well: they thought that they could earn the righteousness they needed by following these laws, rather than by simply believing in the gospel they had heard.
Dig Deeper
This is one of the most important chapters in the Bible for understanding soteriology: that is, the study of salvation. That's a big word you won't need to use very often, but even if you don't remember the word, you need to understand the concept.
The way in which Christ's perfect righteousness is transmitted to you is communicated in three key verses:
The first step in becoming right with God is having sin removed, which Christ did for you on the cross:
v13 - Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us.
Paul uses a quotation from Genesis 15:6 teaches that the righteousness you need comes by faith.
v6 - Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”
Finally, understand that as a Christian, your primary identity is in Christ, not in the various boxes the world wants to stuff you in:
v27-28 - For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.
AAA Prayer:
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: God is the God of Abraham, the God of the promise (v18), and your God (v26). God is one (v20);
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray that you will depend on Christ alone.
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED: