Hello people of God. Hope you have enjoyed your holiday. I have been richly blessed posting these pieces and I trust God you are also deriving some benefit from reading them.
In this post we will proceed to the next verses in Galatians 3:
‘So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Understand, then, that those who have faith are children of Abraham. The Scripture foresaw that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, and announced the gospel in advance to Abraham: “All nations will be blessed through you.” So those who have faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.’ Galatians 3:6-9 NIV.
After referring to the experience of the Galatians as a proof that God only deals with us by faith (as we briefly looked at previously), Paul now points to the life of Abraham as another proof that justification comes by faith.
Verse 7 reminds me of one of the many encounters Jesus had with the Jews (John 8:31-41). The Jews were very proud of their heritage. One of the things they were so proud of was that they were descendants of Abraham. They assumed that they were automatically heirs of God’s promise simply because they were Jews.
How wrong they were! Just as Jesus pointed out to them in John 8, such a position (becoming an heir of God’s promises) cannot be attained simply by nation of birth or earthly parentage. The Spirit of God through Paul now affirms the same truth-only those who believe (who have faith in the gospel of grace) are the true spiritual children of Abraham.
Under the dispensation of the Law of Moses, we (every single non-Jew) were nothing. Hopeless, helpless, Christless, Godless! Far separated from the covenants of promise and we had no claim to any rights in God’s domain (Ephesians 2:11 &12). However, God has chosen to grant us access to Himself through a different means. Not earthly parentage, not nationality and not any other human parameter like observance of the law. It is by faith through grace. Read Romans 4 and Romans 11 for more on this.
Therefore, [inheriting] the promise is the outcome of faith and depends [entirely] on faith, in order that it might be given as an act of grace (unmerited favor), to make it stable and valid and guaranteed to all his descendants--not only to the devotees and adherents of the Law, but also to those who share the faith of Abraham, who is [thus] the father of us all. Romans 4:16 Amplified Version
You are a child of Abraham by faith and that means a lot. You are now part of God’s household. No longer pushed aside, now you belong. You’re blessed, that’s what verse 9 of Galatians 3 says. You are a true heir, a partaker in God’s promises. And all these came through faith because of God’s grace!
This week, roll this thought over and over in your mind. Let it take a hold of your heart. Remember this again has only been a snapshot of God’s amazing grace.
My song for the week is “Loyal” by Lauren Daigle. Have a great week.
Couldn't say anything when I read this cos I felt like there was a lot to Abraham's blessing that I hadn't realised. The extent to which I could be blessed struck me dumb, as I asked myself "how much is there?!". And all this for nothing on my part, all I'v done to inherit it is to believe God's promise in Christ. I guess that's why the Gospel sounds incredulous and a some people find it hard to accept.
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