By Sam Nobles
At the end of chapter 3, we saw
the Law was given to show that all people are sinners in need of a Savior. The
Apostle Paul called the Law a tutor or a schoolmaster, whose job it was to
bring people to the knowledge of sin. When faith has come, however, and there
is no longer a need for the schoolmaster, the exchange is a relationship based
on the Law for a relationship based on love. To make this clear, the Apostle
Paul uses an allegory from the Old Testament story of Abraham, Sarah, and
Hagar.
The practical argument in the
first part of this chapter describes the condition of those under the Law prior
to the arrival Christ. They were considered "children", and practically
no different than slaves. When Christ came on the scene, he redeemed those
under the Law and made it possible for them to receive the adoption as
"sons", and become the heirs of God through Christ (v.1-7).
After
his practical argument, the Apostle Paul then gets sentimental. Paul points out
that having faith in Christ Jesus meant that the observance of holy days was
not a prescription for holiness. In fact, observing the holy days for that
purpose was a telling sign of the bondage of the Law. That greatly concerned Paul, who wanted the
Galatians to become like him, spiritually speaking. The Apostle hopes that by
telling them the truth he has not offended them or become their enemy (8-20).
The
final argument of this chapter is Paul’s appeal to the Law itself, specifically
how grace and the Law cannot exist together. Paul uses Genesis 16, the story of
Abraham, Sara, and Hagar, as an illustration to explain (read the story in Genesis 16 for a fuller understanding).
Hagar
is the Law, while Sarah stands for grace. Ishmael, Hagar’s son by Abraham, was
born after the flesh, representing one’s physical birth; while Isaac, Sarah’s
son by Abraham, was born by the power of God, representing one’s new birth.
Abraham represents faith; therefore, Isaac was born by grace (Sarah) through
faith (Abraham). The false teaching, Judaizers wanted to bring Hagar (the Law)
back again, but she was sent away by Sarah because Law and grace cannot
coexist. Like Hagar, the Law had a temporary ministry, but once the promised
seed arrived, it was no longer needed – the job was fulfilled[i] (v.21-31).
Scripture to Claim:
“But when the fullness of time
had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem
those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5
ESV)
[1] Warren W. Wiersbe, The Wiersbe Bible
Study Series: Galatians: Exchange Legalism for True Spirituality, New
edition (David C. Cook, 2010).
