Galatians 3:14
14 That [hina] the blessing [eulogia] of Abraham [Abraam] might
come [ginomai] on [eis] the Gentiles [ethnos]
through [en] Jesus [Iesous] Christ; [Christos] that [hina] we might receive [lambano]
the promise [epaggelia] of the Spirit [pneuma] through [dia] faith. [pistis] KJV-Interlinear
14 in order that in Christ Jesus
the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive
the promise of the Spirit through faith. NASB
The blessing of Abraham refers to his
justification, or as we call it, his salvation by means of faith, and not by
means of works.
There are two systems of justification. The first is by works, which man takes upon
himself to do in an effort to gain the attention and approval of God. Cain is the first instance of this
effort. The Tower of Babel is another
attempt to rise up to heaven and be with God.
The Law of Moses is the first instance of recording
the law of works and demonstrating that it is a futile attempt on mans part to
justify himself.
In ancient times, God chose a people through
Abraham’s faith. The genetic descendants
of Abraham were the genetic choice, but faith is the key to that choice.
The gentiles were not of Abrahams descendants and
therefore by symbolism were not the chosen people of God.
So, not only was there a conflict in becoming a
part of Gods chosen people, there was also a conflict in the method of
justification.
God made a promise, Isa. 44:3, also noted in Luke
24:49 and Heb. 11:39, of the pouring out of His spirit, but the Holy Spirit
which also is the operational process and procedure of faith, cannot coexist
with works.
You can have one or the other, but not both
simultaneously. You cannot comingle both
efforts and expect better results.
You can live by faith or by works, but to try using
both will only set you back in your spiritual life.
Therefore, due to these conflicts, someone had to
live the Law perfectly in order to abrogate it and that means to remove it as a
method of salvation and the spiritual life.
Jesus Christ did that. He lived it, then discarded it. And one of the results of the Cross, was the
abrogation of the Law, as it was not by works, but by faith that Christ went to
and through the process of the Cross.
This now legitimately opens the door of salvation to
all peoples, and paves the way for the issuance of that promise that was made
so long ago. The Spirit is now available
to indwelling into all people who believe in Christ. And in doing so, the Holy Spirit creates the
mechanism for your functional spiritual life.
Without that initial faith for salvation, there is
no Spirit to install and maintain an operational spiritual life.
Did people have salvation available to them and the
spiritual life available to them in the Old Testament? Yes of course.
From Adam to Jesus, well over four-thousand years
of history, there were people who believed in the promised savior and as such
they were saved. But salvation had not
been formally acquired. That acquisition
did or occur until the Cross.
But God made a promise of salvation and even though
the crucifixion of Christ had not yet occurred, God kept up His end of the bargain,
and kept that promise.
We know from our study of Job, that Satan challenged
everything, and so that is why believers in the Old Testament, when they died,
went to Paradise, and not straight into heaven.
There they waited, as it were, in a holding prison of sorts, until the
Cross. That when Christ defeated Satan and
won the victory of the Cross, then they were all released and are now in
heaven.
Today when believers die, they go straight to
heaven with no temporary stop over anywhere else. The promise of salvation has been fulfilled.
And this is the promise of the Spirit. Both of salvation, and His indwelling
residence, and support of the spiritual life, such that ones spiritual life may
be obtained and maintained by faith.
Gods chosen people are all who believe in
Christ. Gods support mechanism for all believers
is by means of the Holy Spirit. Works is
abrogated and of no use.
