Kingdom Disciples

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced . The Apostle Paul calls the Gift of the Spirit the “ Promise of the Father ,” and he links the promised Gift to the Abrahamic covenant . The promises to Abraham and “ his Seed ” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.

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 .”

Jésus est la Semence d'Abraham, l'héritier des promesses de l'alliance, et la réception de l'héritage est basée sur la foi en Lui . Comme le déclare l'Évangile de Matthieu , Jésus est le “ fils d'Abraham .” L'humble homme de Nazareth est le Messie et le Roi d'Israël, la “ Semence ” promise du Patriarche. Il accomplit les promesses de l'alliance. Il est l'héritier de l'alliance, et notre réception de l'héritage est basée sur sa fidèle “ obéissance jusqu'à la mort ” et notre foi en lui. Ni l'ethnicité ni la nationalité n'ont rien à voir avec cela .

Jesus is the Seed of Abraham, the heir of the covenant promises, and receipt of the inheritance is based on faith in Him . As the Gospel of Matthew declares, Jesus is the “ son of Abraham .” The lowly man from Nazareth is the Messiah and King of Israel, the promised “ Seed ” of the Patriarch. He brings the covenant promises to fulfillment. He is the covenant heir, and our receipt of the inheritance is based on his faithful “ obedience unto death ” and our faith in him. Neither ethnicity nor nationality has anything to do with it.

Les chrétiens sont les héritiers d'Abraham. La possession future de cet héritage est garantie par le Don de l'Esprit . La possession de Canaan par Israël était une étape antérieure du plan rédempteur de Dieu, qui envisageait toujours quelque chose de plus grand qu'Israël ou une petite parcelle de terre au Moyen-Orient. Avec l'arrivée du Messie et l'effusion de l'Esprit, les promesses de l'alliance ont commencé à trouver leur accomplissement dans la véritable “ Postérité d'Abraham ” et, par conséquent, dans ses “ frères ” et “ cohéritiers .”

The disciples of Jesus are the heirs of Abraham. The future possession of that inheritance is secured by the Gift of the Spirit . Israel’s possession of Canaan was an earlier stage in God’s redemptive plan, which always envisioned something larger than Israel or a small plot of land in the Middle East. With the arrival of the Messiah and the outpouring of the Spirit, the covenant promises began to find their fulfillment in the true “ Seed of Abraham ,” and consequently, in his “ brethren ” and “ coheirs .”

Returning to the custodianship of the Law would mean rebuilding the wall between Jews and Gentiles, but “you are all one in Christ.” The Apostle Paul compared the Mosaic Law to a “ pedagogue ” in its supervision of Israel “ until the seed came .” That “ Seed ” was Jesus. In Greco-Roman society, the “pedagogue” was a slave with custodial and disciplinary authority over an underage child until he reached maturity. The minority status of the child and the authority of the custodian over him were both temporary.

With the outpouring of the Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, the blessings for all nations promised to Abraham commenced . The Apostle Paul calls the Gift of the Spirit the “ Promise of the Father ” which he links to the Abrahamic covenant. The promises to Abraham and “ his Seed ” find their fulfillment in the New Covenant inaugurated by the Death and Resurrection of Jesus. No longer are Gentile believers “ alienated from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of the promise .” By his shed blood, Christ has dismantled the “ middle wall of partition ” that once separated Jews and Gentiles.

La juridiction des règlements Mosaïques sur la communauté de l'alliance a atteint sa limite avec l'arrivée de Jésus, la Postérité d'Abraham . En répondant aux affirmations selon lesquelles les Gentils doivent être circoncis, Paul a fait appel à l'expérience commune de l'Esprit reçue par les Galates.  Ont-ils reçu le Don par une “ audition de la foi ” ou “ par les œuvres de la Loi? ” Ayant commencé dans l'Esprit, pourquoi cherchaient - ils “ l'achèvement ” de leur foi basée sur la “ chair ” en se soumettant à la circoncision?

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.

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.