“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ” (Eph 1:2). The epistle to the Ephesians is a gospel masterpiece, brimming with rich doctrine and radical application for the believer. It’s first half is almost entirely dedicated to “theology stated,” while the second half is devoted to “theology applied.” As we walk […]
Psalm 1 is one of the most well-known and cherished in the psalter. The idea of being blessed by God, being “like a tree planted by streams of water” (Ps 1:2), and prospering in all we do is surely wonderful. However, we often misinterpret this Psalm and understand it to be a list of legalistic requirements, instructing the reader to […]
In Paul’s final warning to the Galatians, he reminds them again of the law-relying Judaizers – those who were clinging to a works-based righteousness in order to gain favor before God. Though they were rigorous and zealous law keepers, Paul points out that in reality they were seeking to avoid persecution for the cross of Christ, looking for more […]
It is often the case that believers, though justified and made new creations by God’s grace, find themselves struggling with sin. Yet, instead of receiving help and encouragement from their fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, they instead encounter haughty judgment and condemnation. Here Paul teaches that one of the most practical ways for the church to demonstrate the reality […]
Arguably the most familiar passage in the entire letter to the Galatians is the description of the works of the flesh and the fruit of the Spirit. Here, Paul sets forth a non-exhaustive list of the many characteristics of those who continue to live according sinful flesh with its passions and desires. For the Christian however, for those who have […]
Having preached and defended the gospel of grace – “the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe” (Rom. 3:22-26) – Paul has been laboring to articulate the life of freedom that God’s children may now experience. This new life that we have been called to is one characterized by, submitted to, and controlled by the Spirit. […]
Paul boldly and unapologetically preached “Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles” (1 Cor. 1:23; 2:2). Yet the Galatian false teachers had been bringing all sorts of accusation against Paul and his ministry, in addition to preaching a subtly different gospel that in fact was no gospel at all (Gal. 1:6-7). As […]
Galatians 4:13 is crucial in our understanding of suffering in the life of believers: “You know it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first.” For the Apostle Paul, suffering is most definitely to be included in the “all things”, of Romans 8:28-29, that work together to bring […]
Having proclaimed the beautiful gospel truths of justification by faith and explained the adoption and sonship of the believer, Paul once again passionately voices his concerns for the Galatian church. These brothers and sisters in Christ, who truly had “come to know God, or rather to be known by God” (Gal. 4:9), were turning back to former rituals and law-observances, thinking […]
