Galatians 3:1-5 You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning with the Spirit, are you now trying to attain your goal by human effort? Have you suffered so much for nothing — if it really was for nothing? Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard?
The interesting aspect of the above scripture is Paul's focus on the reality of the Spirit in these new Christians. Paul assures the Galatians that the gift they have received from God is not a product of following the law but of believing on Jesus Christ and his works, especially Jesus' death on the cross for their sins. His statements assume the Galatians recognize they had been given a gift that is easily discernible in their lives, a gift separating them from those who merely try to please God through their own efforts. How many of us can discern the Spirit in our lives as surely as if we were given a tangible gift from a friend. Certainly, if a friend gives us a gift, we would be able to describe it and tell anyone what the gift is like. If the gift was food, we could tell how it tasted. If the gift was a decorative item we could tell where we put it in our house and how it added to the decor. If we received a gift of clothes, we could wear the item for them to receive their opinion of the new addition to our wardrobe. But whatever we received, we would have a clear enough concept of the gift to share with others. In today's focus, Paul assumes that the Galatians fully understand what they have received from God. He asks them: Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? He goes on to ask: Does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you because you observe the law, or because you believe what you heard? Paul does not have to explain what the Spirit is or how they can detect the Spirit in their lives: He knows they understand they have received something special and different in their lives through a supernatural gift from God. As surely as if a friend came to their door with a gift for them, they understood that God came to their doors and gave them a special gift that impacted their lives dramatically, to the point of transforming their lives miraculously. He is reminding them of what they should already know; consequently, the harsh words, You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?
Do Christians today have this visceral understanding of the Holy Spirit in their lives? Or do we need someone else to tell us how we can detect the Spirit of God within us. At times some Christians are almost as silly as the Ghostbuster characters with their P.K.E meter to measure psychokinetic energy. We need some visible or touchable experience with the Holy Spirit before we can accept his reality within us. Is He real to us or is He a conjured up feeling? Is his voice in us or is He a figment of our imagination? In Paul's letter to the Galatians, He assumes his readers know the Spirit is real and active in their lives. He knows they understand God has touched their lives significantly through the Spirit's work in their community of believers, but what they are not clear about is whether God's activity in their midst is partly because of their obedience to the law. Paul addresses this confusion by asserting that belief in Christ alone has brought this wonderful gift of the Holy Spirit into their lives. Did you receive the Spirit by observing the law, or by believing what you heard? If they believe the former, he calls them foolish for such a wonderful gift could not, and never has, come from man's efforts of following the law. And he knew they should have faith to believe the latter. As Paul wrote to the church in Rome: So then faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God. (Romans 10:17) These Christians had heard the Good News; they had received the wonderful Counselor, promised by Jesus before He went to the cross. Yet they were accepting false teaching that took them back to keeping the law that Jesus said He came to fulfill (See Matthew 5:17) Paul is saying clearly, you have the Holy Spirit of God within you, doing miracles in your midst, and you did not receive him through human efforts. It is God who gives us the Holy Spirit to dwell within us.
When Paul speaks to the Ephesians about the body of Christ and the gifts of the Spirit, he writes, "But to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it. This is why it says: “When he (Jesus) ascended on high, he led captives in his train and gave gifts to men.” (Ephesians 4:7-8) He emphasizes Christ's work: He rose from the dead, set the captives free, gave gifts to men! We did nothing to earn our place in God's family. So we see Paul's concern for the church. Today, in this twenty-first century, God has this same passion for us. He wants us to be sure of the Holy Spirit's presence and his holy work in us. As believers, do we talk about the presence of the Holy Spirit in the same way as Christians in the first century. Or because of our knowledge and sophistication, do we think of the reality of the Holy Spirit as a somewhat nebulous idea, hardly important in the scheme of our everyday lives? Is He really our Comforter, Advocate, and Guide or just a comforting idea? We need to answer those questions or He becomes just another talking point in Christianity. We must understand the Holy Spirit is not a take it or leave it aspect of Christianity: He is the essential core of Christianity. His reality in us and through our community separates us from the rest of the world. Before He went away, Jesus said He would ask the Father to send another Counselor to be with you forever — the Spirit of truth. This was important because the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. Jesus went on the say, But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. (John 14:16-17, 26 & 16:7-11) Jesus wanted them to understand the vital roles of the Holy Spirit. If you are not hearing his voice today and seeking his guidance, pray that his voice will become a reality to you. For your life depends on his presence and his direction. Anything other than that is merely religion. Bless you dear brothers and sisters.
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