"The Promise By Faith"

Galatians 3:17-22

17) And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.

18) For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.

19) Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.

20) Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.

21) Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law.

22) But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.

Introduction

T

he overall purpose of the ministry (or, its “motive”) is to bring Man to a state of spirituality. Even from the beginning, God, in His omniscience, began to set man up to both realize and accept his need for spirituality.

The promise made to Abraham was a promise requiring his faith. Indeed, without the manifestation of his faith, Abraham would never have been able to inherit it. The “manifestation” of his faith was shown by his willingness to receive the words of God as truth—for him in his situation. By doing this, Abraham established the foundation of belief in God. It is this that established righteousness.

Message

Though the foundation of what is acceptable to God was so painstakingly established, we have become so educated that we have been “educated” out of faith! You see, education is equated with “understanding” and as natural beings, this is what we always attempt to do—understand! In the classroom, this is acceptable, but when it comes to spiritual concepts and principles, their significance will never be grasped this way.

The “handicap” that Man is always fighting is that of having been born into the world a sinner. You see, a sinner is a sinner because he does not trust God and he does not trust God because he deals with the components of his life according to what he can understand as a natural man. But, you see, the things that God does are not done in the physical realm, but rather, the spiritual. This is because He is a Spirit. Now, when we join His “community,” we, too can afford to operate only in the spiritual realm. Why? Because we will “receive” in salvation only by faith.

Specifically, “faith” is taking God at His word.” To really be doing this, we must accept whatever He says as true. Too often, we will take steps to do this, but then attempt to return to operating according to our feelings.

We are asked by God to “extend ourselves” by operating in faith (a very “un-natural” state for Man) that we might be shown that we are greater than the natural. Taking this “leap” will be much easier if we are in agreement with God. After all, how else can “two walk together except they be agreed?”

In verse 17 of our text, we are told that the promise had already been confirmed by a covenant made with Abraham. 430 years later, Israel was allowed to escape bondage to Egypt.

We know, of course, that bondage to Egypt represents bondage to flesh. The importance of being free of this cannot be overemphasized, for Man makes unwise, irrational choices in attempting to hang onto that which is fleshly.

Generally, we do not see the issue of flesh versus Spirit for what it is: the choice between life and death. You see, we can do only one of two things. We will either serve the Spirit or the flesh, period. The “choice” that we have is either to let the flesh “go”—or the Spirit.

Having faith will automatically confer “rest” upon its holder. In Creation, God created all in the first six days. Contrary to what many believe, the concept of “rest” does not refer to any particular day of the week, but rather, a “state of being.”

Because of our refusal to accept what the Lord has already provided, after salvation, we persist in trying to “fend for ourselves.” Not only does this mean that we look for physical provisions, but it also means that we take ourselves through much unnecessary mental and emotional turmoil trying to “handle” what can only be handled by Him!

So, what will “turn us around” from all of our bad habits? Nothing but accepting what God says the way that He says it! We say that we want peace and happiness but then, persist in attempting to find it in all the wrong places and things.

The only “real” joy to be had is in turning one’s life over to the Lord. Once we make up our minds to serve Him, nothing can stand in our way. Nothing can make us unhappy and nothing can dissuade us from our goal. Why? Because it will make us happy for things to go God’s way.

We might as well stop trying to excuse ourselves for our lack of productivity in the Lord by accusing others (including God) of “favoritism.” You see, no one is blessed because of who he is. If one is blessed or would be blessed, it will be because of his faith in the promises of God. One either receives “the promise by faith”— or, not at all.