“Christ has set us free! This means we are really free. Now hold on to your freedom and don't ever become slaves of the Law again. I, Paul, promise you that Christ won't do you any good if you get circumcised. If you do, you must obey the whole Law. And if you try to please God by obeying the Law, you have cut yourself off from Christ and his gift of undeserved grace. But the Spirit makes us sure God will accept us because of our faith in Christ. If you are a follower of Christ Jesus, it makes no difference whether you are circumcised or not. All that matters is your faith that makes you love others.” -(Galatians 5:1-6 CEV)
Observation & Application
I find the concepts in Galatians chapters 4 & 5 simple and eye opening.
Galatians 4:1-19 reviles once again to me how I was granted son ship or adopted as a son of God. By saying, "when the time was right, God sent his Son, and a woman gave birth to him. His Son obeyed the Law, so he could set us free from the Law, and we could become God's children. Now that we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts. And his Spirit tells us that God is our Father. You are no longer slaves. You are God's children, and you will be given what he has promised."
- (Galatians 4:4-7 CEV)
Simple put we...I am no longer a slave to the old testimony laws & regulations, but set free from those rules & regulations since I have come to know God through developing a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
Why has a relationship with Jesus set me free from the Old Testament laws & regulations? For what purpose? According to Galatians 4:21-31 & 5:1-6. So that, I am can live in true freedom.... to truly be free.... to follow Him and develop a genuine relationship with Him free from burdensome laws & regulations.
So then how do I define freedom and how does the New Testament define freedom? Why, I am asking?
Because if Christ came with the intention of setting people free from institutionalization, from an empire of rules & regulations, and from personal captivity to the Old Testament law - then how does Jesus define freedom and how does He guide me to live in that freedom?
Along those lines, can I correctly concluded that entire bible now rests on two commandments (Matthew 22:37-40), one Commission (Matthew 28:18:21), and then remainder of the New Testament which is guidelines for developing a personal relationship with Jesus and daily living. What about the Old Testament and the Bible as a whole? Today I see once again that the Old Testament as promises made, the New Testament as promises fulfilled, and the Bible as a whole as complete. It’s here I must allow the bible to interpret itself when I don’t understand it and continually yield to God’s word - allowing it to daily scrub my heart, my mind and correct me back to freedom and a genuine relationship with Jesus as my foundation.
....read Galatians 5 & 6 for more....
Prayer
God if this is true help me learn to walk in the freedom you desire - a freedom with out the law and regulations. God I need You to transform and renew my wrong concepts. I as a man with the modern day church need help to understand and tell others about the freedom you offer. Why? The church today places rules and regulations over people but is that the churches place. Again, I need your saving wisdom on this! God if I’m not to have these rules and regulations placed on me - please show me and the modern day church how to daily walk and live in the freedom you give. -Trevor
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