Stop earning what you’ve already been given

Galatians 4:8–12a

⁸ Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist. ⁹ So now that you know God (or should I say, now that God knows you), why do you want to go back again and become slaves once more to the weak and useless spiritual principles of this world? ¹⁰ You are trying to earn favor with God by observing certain days or months or seasons or years. ¹¹ I fear for you. Perhaps all my hard work with you was for nothing. ¹² Dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to live as I do in freedom from these things, for I have become like you Gentiles—free from those laws.

Non-Jewish members of churches in Galatia used to be stuck in an endless cycle to doing all sorts of things to earn the favour of their chaotic collection of “gods” who aren’t real and, worse, evil spiritual powers who were intent on possessing and abusing them. They’ve been rescued from slavery to those things, and now they are earning God’s favour. That’s got to be good, isn’t it.

Well, actually, no. It’s pretty much the same. They’re back being slaves to earning favour.

They’ve been rescued from that slavery for a personal, loving relationship with God. He knows them intimately. If they knew him better, they would know that they are trying to earn what he’s already given them. Because they are “in Christ” they are God’s children – not slaves (3:26). They are adopting the identity markers of being Jewish (circumcision, Torah, festivals and sabbath, and kosher food) even though God has already made them Abraham’s “heirs according to the promise” (3:29). God has already marked them as his children by giving his Spirit who confirms it with the most intimate word for a father, “Abba” (4:6).

It’s easy to join Paul in calling them “foolish Galatians” (3:1), but it’s all too easy to fall into trying to earn what God has already given me. Surely, he’ll hear me if I pray more. If I give more money away, won’t he give me much more? Maybe he’ll love me more if I’m a better person.

Foolish me! It’s the other way around. We come to “Abba” (“daddy”) God in prayer because we know he always hears us. We can partner with God in being generous because God has already been incredibly generous to us in so many ways. He’s increasingly transforming us to be more like Jesus because he already loves us. Our identity is in Christ, as God’s precious children, heirs of his promises to Abraham because of what Jesus did for us.

Abba, I love you as my precious, loving father. Jesus, thank you for buying me out of slavery to earning favour. Holy Spirit, keep reminding me to come to Abba God as a precious, loved child. Keep transforming me to be more like Jesus because you love me.

Written by David Cornell