Redeemed From The Curse (Galatians 3:11-14)
What are you relying on? When I was younger, my brother would pick on me. If I put all my weight on a straight arm, he would push the bend in my elbow and cause it to collapse. Then, he'd say, "Props are dangerous." My brother taught me a lesson in that. I would do the same thing to people and teach them that same lesson. When we put all our weight on something, we need to ensure that it can support us without collapsing. That principle is essential to salvation, and our study tonight affirms that.
In our study of the Galatian letter, we have noticed how Jewish Christians distort Christ's gospel. They teach Gentiles to seek justification by doing specific works of the Law. If Gentiles are unwilling to submit to commands found in the Old Testament, they cannot be accepted as God's people. Paul has argued against this repeatedly. At the end of Chapter 2, he said,
Galatians 2:20--21 (ESV) --- 20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21 I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.
Do you see what Paul is saying in that text? He's saying, "I do not prop myself up on my ability." I prop myself up on Christ. A relationship with God must rely on the grace of God offered through Jesus. This is critical to understanding all of Chapter 3. In the first verse, he called the Galatians foolish, asking, "Who has bewitched you?" Last time we saw how they had forgotten their original salvation. They were not saved because they kept the Law. They were saved because they put their faith in Christ, who was crucified for them. Then he points to the faith of Abraham and the promise God made to bring all nations into the blessing. He said, "Those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith."
Cursed Under The Law
Paul has clarified that we have relied on faith, not works, to save us. Like the locked elbow or locked knee, works will easily cause us to collapse and cause us to fall.
Galatians 3:10 (ESV) --- 10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.”
Those who rely on works of the Law are under a curse. How is it that they are under a curse? If you were a Jew trying to keep the Law, would you feel like you were cursed? The Law was precious to them because it distinguished them from the Gentiles, but Paul says it brings a curse. He quotes Deuteronomy 27:26. Everyone who agreed to serve God under the Law and failed to keep everything in that Law was cursed. The whole Old Testament teaches us this. God gave some a famine, God gave some an enemy, but all were cursed because their works failed them. Why? No one was able to keep the Law. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23)
Galatians 3:11 (ESV) --- 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”
If that wasn't enough, Paul goes on to say that this is evident. No person on earth has been able to stand justified before God. There have been many who have tried, but all have failed. Why did God give us the Law if we couldn't keep it? The Law was supposed to teach us something fundamental. He tells us in the second part of this verse. He says, "The righteous live by faith."
Let's talk about this for a second. When the Law was given, God was giving men a chance to justify themselves. This completely removed all excuses they may have had. A child who has been told not to do something is 100% guilty when they do it. If they were never told not to, maybe they could justify what they did. But if the parent told them, they are guilty, not justified. That feeling of guilt is something that men tend to run from because it leads to punishment. In the case of the Law, it led to a curse. Those trying to be in a relationship with God are cursed as soon as they break the Law.
However, the Jews taught that those who did 51% of the Law were justified. To them, a relationship with God was more about weighing out how bad our sins are compared to others. That's how they ran from their guilt. But when we come to significant sin events in the Old Testament, we see men and women 100% guilty and worthy of the curse. They were forgiven only if they put their faith in God's grace. Moses, Joshua, Samuel, David, Daniel, Ezra, Nehemiah, and multiple prophets make this very clear. God even tells Habakkuk this very plainly. In a time when men make it impossible to keep the Law because they have perverted it, understand that the righteous will live by faith.
God was never trying to create a people who are 51% law keepers. He wanted people to seek to please God with all their hearts while confessing their sins, trying to change, and trusting in God's forgiveness.
Galatians 3:12 (ESV) --- 12 But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.”
The Law is opposed to a life of faith. Instead of relying on God's grace, men foolishly try to self-medicate. They try to stay alive and stay in a relationship with God through their works which are never close to God's perfection. The Jews misunderstood the Law's purpose. It's not given to save. It's given to diagnose what is wrong with us. I heard a lesson where the preacher said that no one would get an MRI and leave the hospital thinking the MRI cured them. MRIs tell you what's wrong. They won't cure you. The Law is just painting a picture of how sinful we are. It's not helping us justify our sin. The Law is not about faith in God. It's about faith in self.
Redeemed By Christ
Galatians 3:13 (ESV) --- 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us---for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”---
The issue of being cursed is an important one. Since the Garden of Eden, man has been dealing with the consequences of a curse of some kind. It seems that the more we know the difference between good and evil, the more guilty we become. Knowing the truth doesn't help us do what's right. Paul said in Romans that I wouldn't know what covetousness is if God had not commanded me not to covet. So the question for us is, "How do we get out of a cursed state?" How do we become alive if we die spiritually once we sin?
Verse 13 says Christ redeemed us from the curse. Redemption is most easily understood by thinking about glass bottles. They have a number like 5 cents on the bottom, which is their redemption price. They will give you five cents if you give them back to the company. They are redeeming the bottle. So redemption is an illustration. In the first century, redemption would bring the slave's debt paid for to mind. A rich man could redeem the slave in this way. Before the first century, we get the image of redemption in Boaz, Naomi, and Ruth. Boaz pays the redemption price to marry Ruth and provide what Naomi needs.
Some people claim that Jesus received the punishment we deserved or something like that. We were indeed cursed, and Jesus became a curse. But we were guilty, and he was not. Jesus has paid the price we could not pay by allowing men to hang him on a tree. The picture here is that he paid the ransom price by letting us punish him as though God cursed him. Evil men hung Jesus on a tree to let him be cursed because, according to Isaiah 53:4, they "esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted." NET says, "We thought he was being punished, attacked by God and afflicted for something he had done." Jesus was willing to be treated as though God cursed him, but God had no reason to curse Jesus. He was not cursed because he was guilty of sin. Our sins were not imputed to him. He was cursed because men hung him on a tree.
What a price! Jesus was a sinless man. His blood was shed through a despicable act of man. They wanted God to curse Jesus, but instead, he rose him from the dead and exalted him above all. Then, he would use that very blood to pay for all of man's sins. Paul wants this to sink into the hearts of the Galatians. The Law brought a curse and even greater wickedness. Jesus suffered at the hands of law keepers so that he could provide salvation apart from the Law.
Blessed
Galatians 3:14 (ESV) --- 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.
Jesus wanted to bring the promised blessing of Abraham to the Gentiles. He wanted all to receive the promised Spirit. If we make up laws restricting the spread of the Spirit, we are working against Jesus. The promised Spirit is given through faith, not works. Do you understand what I mean when I say the promised Spirit? We have been studying this a little in the book of Acts, but let's consider what Paul is saying here. The Spirit was promised first in the Old Testament.
Isaiah 44:3--5 (ESV) --- 3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants. 4 They shall spring up among the grass like willows by flowing streams. 5 This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s,’ another will call on the name of Jacob, and another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and name himself by the name of Israel.”
The Jews would be well aware of this promise and many others like it. God wants to pour out his Spirit on the offspring of Abraham. In this text, that means what is parallel to it. He will pour out his blessing on his descendants. Then, they will belong to God, and God will belong to them. That's the goal. It's not just limited to the transmission of the Holy Spirit, but it does refer to a relationship being created. In the New Testament, God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all spoken about as being one with the believer. The relationship is created and enjoyed.
What Are You Relying On?
As we study all of this about works of the Law, it might be easy to gloss over it. I have tried very hard not to do that. I want everyone here to recognize that this has application to us all. Just like Jews can't rely on their works of the Law, we cannot rely on our ability to keep a law. We are holding ourselves up by an elbow, and Satan will come in and cause us to collapse. We must stop creating laws and assuming we can rely on our law-keeping ability. We need to stop focusing on the 51% we do right.
Do we trust ourselves and our ability to be good enough for God? I have seen this on multiple occasions in the church. Someone claimed that the church they were a part of had fallen from grace. That's a bold claim. What has the church done to fall? Had they stopped trusting in Jesus and refused to submit to him? No. He said, "We've fallen... (because) The last few years we never hear about someone coming to Christ..."
Did you sense what is wrong with this statement? There is a lot wrong with it. Does God only love us if we can evangelize effectively? We read that our responsibility is to plant seeds and water them, but God is the one who provides the increase. If you put the increase on your shoulders and believe that God will only love you if you provide the increase, you are the one who has fallen because you are relying on your ability to save yourself. God expects us to love him and love others. He expects us to use our gifts to plant and water the gospel, but are we fallen if we don't make the seed grow? He expects us to repent and bear fruit in keeping with repentance, but our conversion rate has nothing to do with anything!
Success in evangelism is about spreading seed and watering it. We want to do that in as many ways as we can. But those comments destroy faith by relying on our works. He has created a law system in that short statement. Works of Law are not of faith. I'm not sure there is anything more discouraging or disheartening. These words are man's wisdom. They have nothing to do with the scriptures. They indicate that this person relies on man's wisdom and ability to stand justified before Christ, which is dangerous. Paul says it results in a curse.
I've heard similar statements or beliefs for years from Christians, and I've said them myself. We have to stop thinking this way.
How Do We Rely On Faith
Having faith means that we rely on the redemption that is found in Christ. We are not focused on our ability to save ourselves. Faith recognizes our failure to be righteous and that our best works are filthy rags. But faith turns to Jesus to find righteousness. There we will find a prop that is not dangerous. God doesn't give us laws to stand justified before him. He doesn't give us laws so we can judge our brother without mercy, nor does he expect us to make up laws for those reasons. He gives us laws to help us see our faults. The result should be a greater reliance on God's grace and devotion to Jesus. Jesus' blood covers all our sins.