Click here to watch my video reflection on our text for today, or keep reading for my written reflections: 

Today’s reading is from Galatians 3: 19-29: 

19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring would come to whom the promise had been made; and it was ordained through angels by a mediator. 20 Now a mediator involves more than one party; but God is one.

21 Is the law then opposed to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could make alive, then righteousness would indeed come through the law. 22 But the scripture has imprisoned all things under the power of sin, so that what was promised through faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. 27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to the promise.

Today we see two major things happening.  First, we see Paul’s continued teaching about why we have the law. Paul reminds us that the law and the promise do not work against each other. It is that the promise accomplishes what the law cannot do.  The law shows us morality and how to live, but it is not salvation. The promise of Jesus, that is salvation.  

Paul tells us that the law teaches us discipline, and that is a good thing.  Just a child, when they are young, will obey the parent, not because they want to, they will do out of fear of correction, so we, when young in our faith, will obey God out of that sense of fear of discipline. 

Now I don’t obey God because I am afraid of Him, I obey God because I love Him, because I desire to know him and please Him.  Much like I respect my parents and ask their advice, not out of fear, but out of respect.  I am not afraid of their discipline, I desire their love. That is where God desires for us to be.  

Then we see one of the great verses in the bible, verse 28.  In Christ, there is neither male nor female slave nor free, Greek nor Jew. We are all one in Christ. The church is a body that is open all persons, regardless of any label that the world puts on us. That is what the word “catholic” means.  It means universal. It means it is made up of all persons.  

Jesus Christ died for the sins of the world. He rose to save all the world.  He desires for all the world to be in a relationship with Him.  That is the body that is the church. That is how the church should carry itself. And that is how you and I should carry ourselves today. 

There is no room for any of these things that the world places that divides us.  We should live out this radical love of Jesus so that all the world can know Him.  

Neither male nor female, slave nor free, Greek nor Jew. We are one in Christ.  

Tomorrow we’ll look at Galatians 4: 1-6.  

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