Results 1 - 6 of 6
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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Moral, Ceremonial, and Civil law | James 2:10 | Bill Mc | 19299 | ||
Dear Risen, Thanks for the encouragement, brother! I will indeed stand firm. I wore that old yoke of slavery for 30 years and it never sanctified me or satisfied my need for life. But, for some, it is all they know so they become comfortable with the burden. It is for freedom that Christ set us free. Unfortunately, many Christians think that we are advocating sin and lawlessness. The only tree that some of them eat from is the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Thanks be to God that He has provided a Tree of Life! Risen, too! Bill Mc |
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2 | Moral, Ceremonial, and Civil law | James 2:10 | Reformer Joe | 19309 | ||
"It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." Galatians 5:1 What yoke is he talking about? "Behold I, Paul, say to you that if you receive circumcision, Christ will be of no benefit to you." --Galatians 5:2 Ohhhh..he is talking about CIRCUMCISION. "And I testify again to every man who receives circumcision, that he is under obligation to keep the whole Law." --Galatians 5:3 Roger that. I won't be circumcized, and I won't be under the Law. Got it. "You have been severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace." --Galatians 5:4 Good thing I am justified by God's grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone, then. "For we through the Spirit, by faith, are waiting for the hope of righteousness." Galatians 5:5 Waiting for the HOPE of righteousness? I thought according to Bill we already WERE righteous... "For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything, but faith working through love." --Galatians 5:6 Faith WORKING....hmmmm.... "You were running well; who hindered you from obeying the truth?" The truth is something that they were OBEYING in faith, but now are being hindered. "For you were called to freedom, brethren; only do not turn your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." --Galatians 5:13 Serving one another. Sounds like works. Using our freedom to SERVE is what Paul's writing about. "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, 'YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.'" --Galatians 5:14 Note: See Leviticus 19:18. That is in the LAW, for those allergic to the Old Testament. If Christ fulfilled the Law in every possible sens of the term, how are we still fulfilling it here by loving our neighbor? "Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires." --Galatians 5:24 Now what could this mean? Is the flesh dead now in our day-to-day lives? "But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh." --Galatians 5:16 So if we have crucified the flesh and it is completely a thing of the past, how could we possibly be able to live by its desires? "Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God." --Galatians 5:19-21 Wow...quite a list! So if we practice these things, we will not share in God's inheritance. Works again? Paul emphatically states here (as elsewhere) that those who are truly possessing saving faith will NOT practice these things. "If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit." --Galatians 5:25 Walking in the Spirit, the term Paul utilizes time and again for living what we say we believe. So there we have Galatians 5. Saved by a faith which produces works which are in obedience to and conformity with God's law. I am not running to be circumsized, since I have no desire to put myself under the Law to earn or maintain my salvation. Christ earned it for me, and the proof is in my walking in the Spirit and not fulfilling the desires of the flesh, which is a continuing work of the Holy Spirit in me (read: NOT my own power, as some have suggested). When I am in Heaven, I will be completely righteous, and I hope for that day just as Paul did. The problem isn't that I am desiring to be justified by the Law -- I see that I have to emphasize yet again that I am not. The problem is that you deny that law is good, even in the life of the believer. Every New Testament epistle writer disagrees, and I will continue to point it out every time you put forward antinomianism ("against Law"). There is a distinction between not being under the Law and being AGAINST the Law. You err by adhering to the latter view in your insistence that the Law is useless for the saints of God. --Joe! |
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3 | Where will you get your righteousness? | James 2:10 | Bill Mc | 19316 | ||
Joe, To see what the yoke of slavery is, you need to look back to chapter 4. Paul says in 5:1 'therefore', this means that he is drawing a conclusion from what he has already stated, not from what he is about to state. So what is this yoke of slavery from chapter 4? Gal 4:21 - under law, the law Gal 4:24 - (One covenant) proceeding from Mount Sinai - the Law "It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery." Circumcision is not a yoke of slavery. (Talk about poor exegesis :)) Circumcision is merely a sign that you are under the Old Covenant - the Law. Also, what is it about the death of your body, merely dust, a temple, which will not EVER stand before God, that makes you righteous before God? I agree that we will have a new resurrected, redeemed body when the rapture happens. But what is it about your 'shell', your house, that determines your right-standing before God? Can you cite any scriptures that speak of your body being your source of righteousness? I thought you said the Christ was your source of righteousness? Isn't He in you now? You said in another post that one day you will stand before Him with your own righteousness. How did you attain this? How does the death of your body cause you to be spiritually righteous? If, as you say, your spirit is not righteous now, how does the death of your body make it so? Always curious, Bill Mc |
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4 | Where will you get your righteousness? | James 2:10 | Reformer Joe | 19333 | ||
Circumcision and the Law as a means to justification is precisely "the yoke of slavery" being discussed, as we see in the first four verses of Galatians 5. If you take my whole commentary into account, you see idea that clearly developed. The problem Paul was dealing with in Galatia was not merely fondness for the Law. The Judaizers were telling them that in addition to Christ's atonement, justification must still be sought in keeping the Law, which begins with circumscision. We see Paul soundly refuting justification of any sort via the works of the Law (Galatians 2:16, 3:3, 3:11, 3:24,and 5:4 in this book alone) and I stand with you and Paul in condemning this idea. No one was EVER justified by Law-keeping: "Is the Law then contrary to the promises of God? May it never be! For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then righteousness would indeed have been based on law." --Galatians 3:21 We see Abraham is justified by faith 430 years before the Law is given. However, James also points out the argument I have been making: that Abraham's faith was demonstrated by OBEDIENCE to God. The faith in God's covenant of grace is what saved Abraham, but it was a faith that resulted in works. The moral commandments found in the Law correspond to the obedience that God seeks for us, and Leviticus 19:18 and Deuteronomy 6:5 sum up the Law, which are still commandments for believers. Why do you ignore Paul's clear profession that our own righteousness is something we HOPE for, and therefore do not currently possess? I will stand righteous on my own before God when He completes my sanctification, which will not occur until the end of this existence. Until that point, it is Christ who is my advocate before the Father, the great High Priest who always lives to make intercession for me (Hebrews 7:25). But back to Galatians 5...other than your misunderstanding of my point about circumcision (which indeed is the seal of our entrance into the Mosaic Covenant), where else was I "wrong" in my exegesis? I would especially like your take on Paul's exhortation for us to use our freedom for servanthood, how the truth is something not simply to be believed but also obeyed, and how practicing Leviticus 19:18 is fulfillment of the Law. This is a Bible study forum, so let's study Galatians 5 in-depth. --Joe! |
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5 | Are Galatians seeking sanctification? | James 2:10 | srbaegon | 19335 | ||
Don't we also see the Galatians attempting to use the Law for sanctification as well? Gal 3:3 would seem to point this way. Steve |
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6 | Are Galatians seeking sanctification? | James 2:10 | srbaegon | 19339 | ||
Never mind. I'm starting a new thread. Steve |
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