Love Express – Key Verses – Galatians (NIV)
Love Express – Key Verses – Galatians (NIV)
5:1 It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.
5:3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by the law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5 For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
I love these verses all around. They’re both "feel good" and logical.
He’s saying "You’re free so certainly don’t agree to be enslaved again!" That’s the idea of being free. You don’t have to be enslaved… but you can be if you choose to be.
But we do have the tendency of wanting to "be good" and do it ourselves and perform for others. It’s so hard to avoid. Especially when we really do have reason to protect our reputation and guard the integrity of the gospel.
It’s tough because those are good things but we need to be on guard not to be doing it for our own righteousness. Which is why the last part there is so amazing: the only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
He feels like it hits what I’m thinking when it comes to being free and drawn to performing (law): what counts. It’s not the law, it’s faith. And it’s not doing things for righteousness, it’s expressing love. That can be love for God or others.
He doesn’t say how to express it but that may not matter. It’s just the expression of it.