Kingdom Disciples

The Gift of the Spirit demonstrates beyond question who belongs to the Holy Covenant Community of Jesus, and who does not . In the assemblies of Galatia, “ false brethren ” were preaching “ another gospel ,” pressuring Gentile believers to adopt circumcision and conform to other regulations of the Mosaic Law.   Paul repudiated the very idea and sent the Galatians a series of arguments demonstrating why Gentiles need not be circumcised.

The Gift of the Spirit is essential to the New Covenant promised by God in the Hebrew Bible for His people . The New Testament connects the “ Promise of the Spirit ” to the “ Blessings of Abraham .” God would bless the nations through the Patriarch. The Gift of the Spirit is an integral part of the covenant promises given to Abraham, and this promise is fulfilled in the “ New Covenant ” inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. His sacrifice made the ancient promises of renewal and circumcised hearts a present reality.

The issue in Galatia was whether Gentiles must be circumcised and keep some, at least, of the deeds required by the Torah . The Letter to the Galatians is Paul’s response to a controversy that had developed among the congregations of Galatia. At issue was the status of Gentile believers. Must they conform to Jewish practices and submit to the regulations of the Mosaic Law to become members of the covenant community, especially the rite of circumcision ?

The Judaizing faction in Galatia proclaimed a message that deviated from the Apostolic Tradition and twisted the true Gospel – Galatians 1:6-12. The Letter to the Galatians  opens with a stern warning. What some believers contemplated doing would replace the Gospel of Jesus with something alien. To turn from the “ faith of Jesus Christ ” to the “ works of the law ” for justification meant abandoning the grace of God and rejecting the message preached by Paul. This is why he summoned God to “ curse ” any man, “ even an angel from Heaven ,” who preached “ another gospel .”

The jurisdiction of the Mosaic regulations over the covenant community reached its limit with the arrival of Jesus, the Seed of Abraham . In responding to claims that Gentiles must be circumcised, Paul appealed to the common experience of the Spirit received by the Galatians.  Did they receive the Gift through a “ hearing of faith ” or “ from the works of the Law ?”  Having begun in the Spirit, why did they seek the “ completion ” of their faith based on “ flesh ” by submitting to circumcision?

With the new era inaugurated by Jesus, circumcision is no longer the required sign of membership in the covenant community . Circumcision is an obstacle to any claim that believers must keep the regulations of the Mosaic Law to be saved. Circumcision was the entrance rite of the covenant with Abraham. Moreover, it was mandatory under the Law given through Moses at Mount Sinai; it was never optional . Therefore, if circumcision is no longer required for membership in the People of God, the jurisdiction or content of the Mosaic Law has changed, if not ended.

What identifies the people of God and determines membership in His Assembly is Jesus, especially the Messiah revealed on the cross,  and nothing else ! This does not mean that the Law of Moses served no purpose, but it is not the basis for determining who is acquitted of sin by God. Right standing before Him is obtained “ through the faith OF Jesus Christ ,” and not “ from the deeds of the Law .”

Paul’s Letter to the Galatians is his response to a controversy in the churches of that region. The issue was the status of Gentile believers. Must they conform to Jewish practices and submit to the regulation of the Mosaic Law, especially circumcision? At the heart of his response was his contention that “ in Christ ” the old distinctions between “ Jew ” and “ Gentile ” no longer apply, the covenant promises have found their fulfillment in Jesus, the “ seed of Abraham .”

In Galatians , Paul addresses a growing danger. Certain “ men from Jerusalem ” claimed that Gentiles must keep the deeds of the Mosaic Law to “ complete ” their faith, or at least, some of its statutes and rites. They were “ compelling Gentiles to Judaize ” by adopting circumcision, calendrical observances, and perhaps the Levitical dietary restrictions.