Children of the Free Woman

S-Slave-Wife vs the Freeborn Wife

S-"So Christ has really set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law." Galatians 5:1

A-Freedom through Faith in Christ

L-Children of the Free Woman

The only way to grasp all these next several passages, is for them to be taken as a whole. There is just no other way. Its good, long, but Paul makes a really strong point here.

"Listen to me, you who want to live under the law. Do you know what the law really says? The Scriptures say that Abraham had two sons, one from his slave-wife and one from his freeborn wife. The son of the slave-wife was born in a human attempt to bring about the fulfillment of God's promise. But the son of the freeborn wife was born as God's own fulfillment of his promise. 

Now these two women serve as an illustration of God's two covenants. Hagar, the slave-wife, represents Mount Sinai where people first became enslaved to the law. And now Jerusalem is just like Mount Sinai in Arabia, because she and her children live in slavery. But Sarah, the free woman, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. And she is our mother. That is what Isaiah meant when he prophesied, 

Rejoice, O childless woman! Break forth into loud and joyful song, even though you never gave birth to a child. For the woman who could bear no children now has more than all the other woman! 

And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise, just like Isaac. And we who are born of the Holy Spirit are persecuted by those who want us to keep the law, just as Isaac, the child of promise, was persecuted by Ishmael, the son of the slave-wife. But what do the Scriptures say about that? Get rid of the slave and her son, for the son of the slave woman will not share the family inheritance with the free woman's son. So, dear brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, obligated to the law. We are children of the free woman, acceptable to God because of our faith." Galatians 4:21-31

In a nutshell Paul is saying, brethren listen to me, these false teachers are trying to pull you back into slavery by telling you, you have to follow the law in order to be saved.  I am telling you, that is a bunch of bologna. (My paraphrase!)

We, you and me, are children of the free woman, and we are acceptable to God because of our faith in Jesus Christ.

So don't believe anything other than that.

This is what it boils down to. Keep your faith in Christ. Don't believe or think you can get by, by doing good works alone, or by keeping the law.

Also, realize that you are not perfect, therefore you will never be able to obey the entire law perfectly. So don't set yourself up for failure that will only lead to death and hell.

Brethren, I know all this can seem either overwhelming or not interesting to you, but please know that every single word spoken in God's Word, applies to each of us. God placed each story in here for a very specific reason.

If we will seek the Lord and ask Him to help us understand His Word, He will do just that.

The purpose of all of this is to draw us closer to Him, to deepen our relationship with Him, and to protect us, guide us, and purify us.

I pray you will hang in there, keep reading His Word, keep spending time with Him, keep listening, and keep allowing the Lord to speak to You.

S-Spend time in prayer today and ask the Lord to bring His Word alive within you.