Bewitched

Introduction

What makes a person a Christian? This is essentially the question Paul is answering in this small letter. A group of Jewish teachers have come and proclaimed another gospel. Believing in Jesus is only the beginning. What must be done is submission to God through the law of Moses. It is necessary that those who want to belong to God must give themselves over to keeping the law of Moses. This effort will result in one’s staying in covenant with God.

In the first two chapters, Paul has defended himself and his apostleship. He has shown that the message he preached came directly from God and was after a period of years finally shared with the Jewish Christian leaders in Jerusalem. They agreed with his message and encouraged him to continue preaching it. One of those Jerusalem leaders had to be publicly corrected concerning his understanding of the gospel. Paul was the one who did the correcting. This further demonstrated that he was indeed called of God to be a missionary. At the end of chapter two, Paul gets into the heart of his message. Salvation or justification—that is, right standing before God—comes by faith not by keeping the law. God’s pronouncement that we belong to him is given to us because we accept the gospel and the sufficiency of Christ to deal with our sin problem.

Beginning in chapter three Paul will make a series of comparisons to reinforce his main point. Salvation is by faith in the work of Jesus upon the cross. The Galatians are going down a path which will result in their denial of the sufficiency of Christ. Such a path will result in their falling from grace (5:4). Paul is trying to get them to return to the gospel and the freedom which it brings rather than being bound up by a bunch of rules. In our text, Paul will compare the law with faith. There is a great deal of passion in this text. Paul is fighting for the spiritual lives of his readers. What Paul wants them to understand is that salvation by law and salvation by faith are mutually exclusive. They cannot exist together. The choice is monumental. Let’s begin with a period of praise celebrating the salvation we have in Jesus.

Law and Faith

The passion of Paul is seen in the first few words of 3:1. “You foolish Galatians.” The New English Bible translates it this way: “You stupid Galatians!” Paul is not criticizing their intelligence. He is questioning their thinking. They have acted in an unreasonable way. It is obvious that they are not thinking clearly. In fact, Paul wants to know who “bewitched” them. The word can also mean “who has cast a spell over you” or “who is holding you under their power.” The point is Paul cannot believe that the Galatians would give up on the gospel. Someone must have cast a spell over them (1:6).

Paul spent his ministry among the Galatians persuading them about Jesus. He preached in such a way that it was like they were at the crucifixion themselves. There was a realness about Paul’s preaching which allowed the Galatians to share in the experience of Christ’s death. This doesn’t mean that Paul went to great lengths to explain the process of death. Everyone living in the first century was familiar with the mode of crucifixion. Rather, Paul is saying that he carefully taught them so that they would clearly understand what Jesus’s death was all about. He explained the nature of the sacrifice and its consequences. They were able to have a great appreciation for what Jesus did on the cross.

Paul follows this opening statement of disbelief with five rapid fire questions. Each question is rhetorical in nature. The answer is obvious. And with each question, Paul is calling them back to the truth—Jesus as the Christ is sufficient to take care of sins. Nothing else is needed. Nothing more is to be added. To give up that truth is to deny the sufficiency of Christ and to make his death null and void. Each question is to remind them that at one time they believed that salvation was by faith. In fact, he reminds them that they received the Holy Spirit before they even knew about the law. It was not until these Jewish false teachers arrive on the scene that they begin to think unreasonably about their spiritual journey.

Verse 3 allows us insight into the problem occurring in Galatia. They are now trying to reach their goal by human effort. What is their goal? Salvation which ultimately will result in being with God forever. They are trying to reach their goal by their own might and power. They are trying to pull themselves up by their own bootstraps. They are living so that they believe they do not need God’s help. They are sufficient to accomplish the task on their own. This is the crux of the problem. And Paul wants them to get back on track. They have to start thinking correctly and discerning what is true.

Application

There are several lessons that we need to get from this brief text. You may be thinking that this text doesn’t apply to us now. I disagree. Paul is trying to answer the question “what makes a person a Christian?” How would you answer that question? I have heard numerous answers to that question. I was at a funeral. It could have been anyone’s funeral. The statement was made that God would be pleased with the deceased because he was a good person. Think about that statement. Trying to comment on the goodness of a person is appropriate at a funeral. This statement says the basis of salvation is found in the person’s goodness. Our goodness will not allow us to attain our goal.

I have stood at the death bed of individuals who hope they have been good enough to make it to heaven. Let me assure you they haven’t been. This is not to discount the good deeds they have done, but none of us will make our goal by our own effort. Some would define a Christian as one who reads their Bible, prays, and goes to church. What a poor definition. I know people who read their Bibles, pray, and from time to time attend a church service, but they aren’t Christians. Some say that the Lord’s Supper makes a person a Christian. When we take the supper we solidify our walk with God. That is the reason people get up and leave before the assembly is over. Take the supper and leave. Punch the right buttons and God will have to check your name off. None of these definitions are satisfactory.

Paul is very explicit. What defines a Christian is faith in the work of Jesus. Nothing more and absolutely nothing less. In verse 2, Paul is explicit. Was it by keeping the law that God’s Spirit was given or while hearing and believing the gospel? For Paul there is direct correlation between the presence of the Holy Spirit and being a Christian. This is the first time in this letter that he mentions the Holy Spirit but it will not be the last. In 5:22-23, Paul will say that the marks of being led by the Spirit have to do with proper attitudes. Paul will say in 5:16 that being led by the Spirit is how a Christian will live.

This connection between the Spirit and faith must not be missed or placed to the side. We want to define our Christianity by what we do. Paul defines it by what God gives to you—his Spirit. The word “receive” in verse 2 clearly indicates that the Spirit is a gift. He is not given to all. He is given to those who place their faith in Jesus. With this gift, one is clearly a Christian. We could say it this way: without the Spirit you are not spiritual. Only with the Spirit can one be called a spiritual person. When we decide our spiritual condition based upon our deeds, then we are like the Galatians—placing our trust in our own effort rather than in Jesus and his work. We do not receive the Spirit through praying, Bible Study, Lord’s Supper eating, or church attendance. We receive the Spirit as God’s gift to us when we come to him confidently because of what Jesus has done.

What makes a person a Christian? Faith in the work of Jesus. The good things that we do come as a result of our faith. But we do not add anything to the gospel. We do not insist on additional hoops for people to jump through in order to become a Christian. It is not uncommon for a person who wants to be a part of this congregation to ask me “what do I have to do to be a member here?” The intent of the question seems to come from knowing that each congregation has its own method for allowing people to be a part of them. There are certain hoops that one has to go through in order to belong. Not so in the body of Christ. Faith in Christ expressed in a desire to lead a changed life and exemplifying that faith in being like Jesus in his death, burial, and resurrection through baptism is what God requires. And that is enough. God’s promise is that with that faith he will give you forgiveness of your sins and his Spirit. With the coming of the Spirit into your life you become a spiritual person. The Galatians were willing to exchange their spirituality for their own effort. This was a denial of the gospel.

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