Mary Poppins sang about “a spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, the medicine go down….”, however, a little leaven can puff up, puff up... Galatians 5:9 “A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump.” Leaven is comparable to sin and always puffs up. And what is a better picture of puffing up then as described in the Bible by Jesus concerning the Pharisees and the Sadducees and their legalese. Matthew 16:11 “How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?”
The Galatians had been doing so well and then begin to stray from the simple truth of the Gospel. Paul wrote in Galatians 5:7 “Ye did run well; who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth?” While the Judaizers provided a stumbling block for the new believers, perhaps the faith of the new believers wasn't strong enough to convict them. In my opinion, law vs. grace much the same today. Whether it’s today’s Catholic who combines works with the gift of salvation given us by Jesus or it’s the person who falsely believes that salvation comes through works; both are practicing a false belief.
At my age I’m allowed to repeat myself so that I will once more add how very simple Paul explained it. “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures:” 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 Jesus was all about love; John 15:13, “Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.”
Paul hammered home again and again grace versus law; “For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.” Galatians 5:6 and of course Paul was talking about an adherence to the law rather than the cutting away a little piece of skin.
Love vs. law: with thanks to Dr. Missler:
- Man who loves his country vs. one who is simply "law abiding" ...
- Servant vs. lover;
- Maid vs. wife ...
-Sabbath day: vs. every day is a "sabbath"!
Through love someone does something because he or she wants to; often has a deep and instinctive need to. As for the Sabbath: “And he said unto them, The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath:” Mark 2:27 Jesus confirm this several times by twisting the tail of the Pharisee by healing on the Sabbath.
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