Galatians 3: Points to Ponder

The term “Spirit” is used in chapter 3 for the first time in this letter. It is God’s vital presence, His power of life which operates in the world and in His church.

The Spirit comes in and with the preaching of the crucified Christ, with faith coming by hearing, implemented by the drawing of God and none may come unless first drawn.

The Spirit is set in radical opposition to the flesh.

The Spirit is the power of the new age and is the source of the mighty change.

The Spirit comes into the whole community, not just to those who were spiritual leaders by birth, such as the Pharisees.

The law came long after Abraham and Gentiles are to be accepted into the church through faith because the promises made to Abraham are not affected or conditioned in any way by what happened at Sinai.

God is faithful to His promise.

Christ took on Himself the curse of the law, liberating humanity from what it rightly deserved, being filled with sin, and by Himself brought the new age.

The theme here is that a change in control has happened so that no longer do the people of God look to the law as their symbol of identity but to Christ only.

Since Christ is the seed of Abraham (3:16), it is identification with Him rather than with the law that assures one is included in the promise.