Lots of Liberty, Lack of Law

I remember that first time I prayed with an eight year old girl to receive Christ. We were sitting on the edge of a playground, me with a wordless book in my hand, and she with her hands folded as she prayed. When she looked up, she had tears in her eyes and a smile on her face. It is something I won’t forget, and I think of her often to pray for her. I would love to see her again, to know how she’s doing. I think my situation is very similar to Paul’s. He went to Galatia and stayed with the people for awhile, preaching to them, and showing them the gospel. After a while, many were saved and a church was established. I can only imagine the joy Paul felt over that. I’m sure he could think back to those days and see the changes in their life. Well, later, after he had been away for quite a long time, he did hear how they were doing, and it just saddened him immensely, because he found that there were some people coming into the Galatian church, telling them to follow the law, and encouraging them to exchange their faith in God’s grace for a life in the law.

So what did Paul do? He sent them a letter. In that letter, he told them how absolutely unacceptable it is to put our faith in the keeping of the law (some would call it good works), and that when we do so, we are “frustrating grace” (Galatians 2:21). They simply must trust in Christ for their salvation. Of course, we know that God gave Paul the words to say, and that they are for us to read and practice. Most of us know that we aren’t saved by works/the law; instead by faith in God, but this can also be a valid lesson to learn even after we are saved. It is sometimes thought that if a Christian does not follow every rule that God has set, it is impossible to please Him, and they are not living a fruitful and godly life. This isn’t true! God gives grace, so that when we do mess up Jesus’ blood covers that, and God still sees us as righteous!

The fact of the matter is, although God wants us not to live in the law, there certainly are some things He tells us are absolutely imperative that we do. I have been very confused many times because of this, trying to figure what it means to live trusting in God’s grace, but at the same time doing the things that please Him. So here’s the test: “For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another” (Galatians 5:13). This verse binds both concepts together by saying that we are indeed called to live in freedom, not in a strict keeping of the rules. Instead, we focus wholly on the most important command, which is to love God with everything that you have, and to love other people more than yourself. If we love God and other people with everything inside of us, we will fulfill the law. Every other command that God gave is fulfilled if we do this.

I think that it would benefit each Christian to think about the things they do and the rules they have, and to be sure that they are not done to keep the law, but to please God and to love others. If we notice an excess of strife, anger, or disagreements, perhaps we are not truly seeking to serve one another and please God. And if that’s the case, it needs to change!