Heralds Digest

  “For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another!” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭ 5:14-15 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.5.14-15.nkjv The summary import of the law is its promotion of love based on the fortune of self and good intentions. Its provisions are satisfactory as long as the social, economical, and emotional welfare of self is not threatened. Unfortunately, relationships built and managed by this type of loose love are not secured, because self is consistently threatened even in the atmosphere of good intentions. Therefore, instead of the provisions of   “ You shall love your neighbor as yourself ” under the law, the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ teaches “ You shall love your neighbor as He (Christ) has loved us ”. It is this type of love (lively love) that remains stable, even when self is threatened, abused, disrespected, and maltr...

  “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision avails anything, but faith working through love.” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭5:6‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.5.6.nkjv Without absolute faith in the finished work of grace, the message and memorial of the Easter celebrations are simply fun and festivities. When the Son of Man said ‘ It is finished ’ on the Cross, He completely paid the price for the total redemption of humanity from the depravity of sin. Absolute faith in this finished work of grace draws any sinner into God’s presence without any count of legality. But like the numerous counts of today’s celebrations and commitment to religious practices, the Galatians have struggled with the necessity of circumcision before earning the rights of loyalty to God. Whereas, absolute faith in ‘ It is finished ’ on the Cross means nothing else is absolutely necessary in order to access the grace of God. Therefore, a true believer is loyal to the entire commandments of the Lord...

  “My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you,” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭ 4:19 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.4.19.nkjv In whichever contexts between physical and spiritual, the desire for upgrade does not come cheap. It requires certain amount of price and preparation. Likewise, growing up in the things of the spiritual demands consistent fight against carnality; and a subtle relapse from a pride in Christlike character into childish dispositions. Towards modelling Christlike character in the brethren in Galatia, Paul had to follow the example of Christ. Even after the death, burial and resurrection of Christ, He had to pursue Peter and the other disciples under his sphere of influence for a dispense of the final dose against carnality. It was a demonstration of ceaseless love and labour for the spirit of discipleship, and against the love of the things of this world. Unfortunately, childish characteristics pervade today’s memorial of Easter th...

  “Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭ 3:21-22 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.3.21-22.nkjv While the Good Friday truly reveals the goodness of God, it also underscores the low status of the law - the confinement of the Son of God into the blackness of darkness in order to save the world from the judgement of sin. Truthfully, law embraces morality and sets the standard for good relationships in life. Obviously, those who are religiously committed to the keeping of its tenets are bound to reflect the traces of godliness in their lifestyle. The only problem is that the best of the goodness of man is unacceptable to God, simply because it is incapable of restoring the deadness of sin with the life of right...

  “Therefore He who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you, does He do it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?—” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭3:5‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.3.5.nkjv Although the supplies of good manners, great pleasantries, and gracious manifestation in fellowship can be defined by certain rules and regulations, it is clear that fellowship with God operates on a different standard than these rules and regulations. For example, when the Galatians were caught pushing circumcision and the works of the law as the basis for righteousness, they were found classified as pursuing foolish fellowship instead of fruitful fellowship. Those whose entire life’s existence is ruled by legality know how the same standard can be manipulated by divers interpretation, depending on conflicting interests and corrupt influences. But above the faithful allegiance to the rules and regulations for human relationship, believers are invited into a fruitful fellow...

  “They desired only that we should remember the poor, the very thing which I also was eager to do.” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭ 2:10 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.2.10.nkjv Without prejudice to the painful experiences of poverty, problems and the challenges of life, only those who have suffered affliction in life can truly know how to remember the poor. Unless through an experience of lack, loss, or limitations, it is difficult for the mind to focus on the prospects of developing the concept of solutions. Unfortunately, some are tempted to always ask the wrong questions, like ‘why?’ instead of ‘what?’, in their moments of pain. When the mind is focused on remembering the poor, instead of rejecting its poverty, it will always be opened to what can be done to make things better, through the opportunity that poverty creates. Unlike the pursuit of careers that are driven by self-centred system, Apostle Paul took serious the legacy built on social system at the start of his ministerial ca...

  “But when it pleased God, who separated me from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood,” ‭‭Galatians‬ ‭ 1:15-16 ‬ ‭NKJV‬‬ https://www.bible.com/114/gal.1.15-16.nkjv The conflicts arising from an increase in knowledge have always confronted the household of faith. Even Abraham, the world-acclaimed father of faith, was confronted with this crisis in relationship with the affairs and matters in his life. The more life is exposed to facts and figures about any issue of interest, like health, social welfare, rate of employment, etc, the less it becomes for anyone to act by faith. Having acted and ruled by strong conviction about social and religious lifestyles of his days, Paul had little or no basis to shift ground until his encounter with Jesus. Unfortunately, many people are being called by the Lord out of an established convictions based on facts and fi...