Monday, 13 September 2021

O Foolish Galatians - 4

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We are continuing our analysis and commentary on Galatians 3. Consider these verses ...

Galatians 3:17 Brothers and sisters, I speak in human terms: even with a man's covenant, once it has been confirmed, no one cancels it or adds to it. Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. It doesn't say, "and to seeds," as of many, but as of one, "and to your seed," who is the Messiah. What I am saying is this: Torah, which came 430 years later, does not cancel the covenant previously confirmed by God, so as to make the promise ineffective.

In verse 15, Paul is saying that even with earthly covenants, covenants cannot be cancelled. What is unspoken here is, how much more with heavenly covenants made by God Who keeps His promises and only tells the truth (cannot lie). God made a covenant with Father Abraham, a covenant by grace, that covenant cannot be cancelled.

Then Paul elaborates on the confirmation of that covenant. Yeshua came to confirm the Abrahamic Covenant. Following the binding of Isaac, the angel (messenger) spoke from heaven on behalf of God ... Genesis 22:18 In your seed all the nations of the earth will be blessed "because you obeyed My voice." And Paul affirms in Galatians 3:16 that seed is Messiah Yeshua.

The "punch line" comes in the next verse ... The Torah does not cancel the previous grace covenant. The promised blessing is not the Torah, but the person of Yeshua HaMashiach. We can and should obey God in every way, but we can never obey our way to salvation. We will always fall short of the mark. Yeshua said of Himself ... John 14:6 Yeshua said to him (Thomas), "I am the way, the truth, and the life! No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Don't be surprised if we pick this up again tomorrow.