Paul’s letter to the Galatians is addressing the problem that was going on at that time in Galatia, where the believers in Jesus were being compelled to start following the law in addition to their faith in Jesus. Paul is showing clearly how the two can not come together, and he outlines and explains why. The Law was given, and it exposed sinful behavior… the behavior was already there, but once God made a law against it, it was now exposed for the sin it was. Sin under the law called for a blood sacrifice in accordance to what the Law stated…for example, a spotless lamb was sacrificed. The reason for these things in the Law was to look towards the day when Jesus would come here and die for the sins of the world… he was the Spotless Lamb Of God….and once he died, all sins were covered and there was no need to sacrifice another animal to cover sin…. Jesus’s redemption was complete. After this, we no longer needed to follow the Law in order to have a relationship with God, because we were under grace through faith is the blood of Jesus. Paul explains this to the Galatians who were seduced to start practicing the law again in addition to believing in Jesus, but this isn’t possible because keeping the law and believing in Jesus to redeem you contradicts. You can’t work for salvation by keeping the law and at the same time completely trust Jesus to save you without the need for you to work for salvation. The Law was based on works, and Jesus’s salvation is based on grace by faith. You either work the law or you believe in Jesus because belief in Jesus means you understand he is the only sacrifice that can wash away your sins…. so the sacrifices of the law are no longer necessary for redemption.
Paul explains this in his letter to them in great detail.

Galatians 5:1-26

5 ¹Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.

He is telling them not to go back to the bondage of keeping the law, but to stay strong in the freedom of Christ. These were people who had gotten saved who were being compelled to go back to the Law. The Hebrew Roots movement also has its followers keeping the feasts.

² Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.

³ For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.

The Law is a whole belief… you can’t say you are going to keep the feast and traditions, but not sacrifice animals for sin…. this isn’t how it works… the law is a complete set of rules that all have to be followed… every part of it or no part of it… it’s all or nothing. You can’t pick and chose. You can’t follow most of the Law while walking in faith….by virtue of following the law, you exit faith and begin works.

⁴ Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.

If you are saved by keeping the Law, then Christ is of no effect…. if man could save himself by works, then why did Jesus need to come here and die for our sins? Answer: Because men can’t even keep the law, we are constantly sinning….. so, the Law could not give us grace, only Jesus can. Jesus is the only way.

⁵ For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith.

⁶ For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.

Jesus is the only way. FULL STOP. There are no other things we need to do than to have faith in his blood to save us.

⁷ Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?

They were doing so good walking in faith and Paul asked who hindered this walk that they would stop obeying the truth.

⁸ This persuasion cometh not of him that calleth you.

Paul was saying that the argument that they heard that caused them to go back to following the Law was not from God.

⁹ A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.

Even a tiny bit of following the law to obtain salvation subverts the walk of Faith in Jesus. Think about it, if you believe that Jesus is enough to save you, but you follow the Law JUST IN CASE… then you don’t really believe Jesus is enough.

¹⁰ I have confidence in you through the Lord, that ye will be none otherwise minded: but he that troubleth you shall bear his judgment, whosoever he be.

A warning against false teachers who lead Christians astray or even try to.

¹¹ And I, brethren, if I yet preach circumcision, why do I yet suffer persecution? then is the offence of the cross ceased.

¹² I would they were even cut off which trouble you.

¹³ For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.

The other side of the road is another ditch where people can end up… this one is where a person believes in the blood of Jesus to wash away their sins, but makes no effort at all to stop sinning and will say things like, “I have Jesus, so my sins don’t matter.” One of the things that happened when you receive Jesus is you are born again and as a new creature, you desire to walk in a Godly way, loving others and serving others…. you don’t use this as a license to freely sin without consequences. The bible says, be not deceived, God is not mocked, whatsoever you sow, that will ye also reap. (Galatians 6:7-8 paraphrased.)

¹⁴ For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this; Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.

The 10 Commandments are all covered in 2 new commandments… Matthew 22:37-39 Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. If you keep both of these commandments, you won’t break any of the 10 commandments. Keeping the Law, the 10 Commandments… was about works, but keeping the 2 commandments that Jesus gave is about walking in Love toward God and others.

¹⁵ But if ye bite and devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of another.

¹⁶ This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.

Again, walking in Love makes biting and devouring impossible.

¹⁷ For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.

The Law was about controlling your flesh and making it comply to God Law. Grace through faith is about believing in the redemption by the Lord Jesus by his blood…. this is in the spirit and does what following the Law couldn’t do because mankind is weak and sinful from birth. Our flesh is sinful by nature, but when we receive Jesus, his blood washes away our sins and restores us to God.

¹⁸ But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law.

¹⁹ Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,

²⁰ Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,

²¹ Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

All of these sins listed are done in the flesh and separate us from God.

²² But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

²³ Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.

This is the nature of Jesus that flows through us when we are born again…when we walk in the spirit and crucify the fleshy sinful nature.

²⁴ And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

When we receive Jesus, we put down the works of the flesh and crucify them…which means, we stop serving the sinful nature and chose to serve the Lord in the spirit.

²⁵ If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.

If we live in the spirit, we also need to walk in the spirit. This means we actively crucify the sinful behaviors and instead walk in the spirit of Christ.

²⁶ Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

We need to put these behaviors down… crucify them because they are not about walking in Love, they are about serving the flesh.

My notes: I think there are people in this world who feel like they need to be actively saving themselves through works because receiving Jesus to save your soul seems too simple….it seems too simple to believe. These same people will strive to be good people, they go to Church they give to the needy, and they try to keep from sinning…all so they can be saved… they do all of this while professing Jesus as their savior, but a deeper look would show that their faith isn’t in the Blood…. it’s in their actions…it’s because they attend church…. they don’t curse…. they do good… they give to the poor etc, this is what they believe will save their soul. So, the problem that Paul is addressing with the Christians in Galatia is a problem today in some religions, like the Catholic religion. I know some very devout Catholics who do their very best to live a Godly life… except for the one thing that saves the soul…that being to go all in with Jesus and count the works of the flesh a loss. Redemption does not ever come from your flesh… or the works of the flesh. It comes from faith in Jesus and the Blood that he shed on Calvary. FULL STOP

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