To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified. 16 Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. 17 This is what I mean: the law, which came 430 years afterward, does not annul a covenant previously ratified by God, so as to make the promise void. 18 For if the inheritance comes by the law, it no longer comes by promise; but God gave it to Abraham by a promise.
19 Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. 20 Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.
21 Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law. 22 But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.
“You will need to display solicitous fortitude in your ministry here.” Those were the words to me of my sister’s father-in-law when I began my new ministry in Arkansas. The church there had been troubled over the past years by a string of poor behavior by their various pastors. He had served as the vacancy pastor prior to my arrival, and offered me a thumbnail sketch of the congregation’s troubles. He had discovered how important it was to be both gracious and strong in his leadership.
I had a hard time learning that lesson. I suppose it was a matter of wanting to be liked by everyone; to be seen as a really good pastor, and not disappointing people. Those drivers are dangerous guardrails for serving effectively as a pastor. Over time, I did manage to learn a bit more about that as time went on. But more than once I got hooked.
I recall listening to my seminary classmate and then seminary professor deal with some challenging questions when he presented at a pastors conference. He was solicitous – almost to a fault. Almost to a fault. He was patient and firm and dealt with a young pastor’s persistent challenges clearly and patiently. I was, frankly, amazed. I thought the young guy should have been told to sit down and be quiet!
Paul will get wound around the stem as he deals with the Judaizers. But here he patiently lays out the reasoning for his insistence that the Law has no place in gaining salvation before God – except to the extent that Christ fulfilled the Law in our behalf by his life, death, and resurrection. He wants the Galatians to embrace their true identity as sons of God through faith in Christ.
He does this in a very gracious yet firm manner: a solicitous fortitude. I’m reminded of Edwin Friedmann’s mantra. Friedmann was the father of systems theory in dealing both with family relationships as well as congregational behavior. His book, Failure of Nerve, Leadership in the Age of the Quick Fix, is extremely insightful. I love to quote what I gained from the book: define yourself and stay connected.
I think that’s the same thing as solicitous fortitude (in reverse order). I greatly appreciate Paul’s example here. He is firm in his conviction and patient in his teaching. That’s a powerful combination. Perhaps that is why this letter is so powerful and popular. There is much to learn, believe, and assimilate here. Most of all it has to do with our place in the kingdom of God, by grace through faith. It is also about not being swayed by pious sounding ideas that call into question our place in the heart of God. That place has been secured by Jesus, who is the perfect combination and balance of solicitous fortitude.
David Bahn - Reflections 
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