David Bahn – Reflections

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.

I have never been much of a clothes horse. I’m not a dapper dresser. My friend Paul, on the other hand, is always dresses to the nines. Impeccable suit and tie, crisply ironed shirt. None of it K-Mart specials for him. Then there’s Tim and Doug, two other dapper dressers. The coolest shirts ever. Collars and cuffs lined with contrasting materials.

In my defense I can point to Lyle Schaller. When I first met this dean of American Christian church growth and leadership he was dressed in a one piece overall. And not the kind of chic overall I just saw reviewed in the New York Times recently: they’re taking the world by storm, or something like that. Well, Lyle, was about as understated in his dress as he was insightful and inspiring in his 50+ books and leadership training. He didn’t depend on his togs to impress. He brought the goods – his unimpressive couture notwithstanding.

There is a far better suit of clothing than custom tailored suits, or designer shirts of which Paul speaks here. “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ,” he says. We have assumed a new identity when we are baptized. God puts his name on us. We belong to him. But what’s more, we are new people. We have a new identity.

To some extent this is a call to live into our new identity as sons and daughters of God. This is a two-edged sword. It is a call to a different way of life – one of godliness, and faithfulness. It is also a reminder of our true identity, and by that a call to remember how God thinks of us. We are his children. To make matters more clear Paul also says that our identity in Christ supersedes race, ethnicity, social standing, and even sex.

When I was baptized I wore a white robe which I thought was just a matter of wearing something rather than my clothes – or even a swim suit. But the symbolism there is worth noting. Through baptism our sins are washed away. We are clothed in the righteousness of Christ. God calls us his own.

I may not be a clothes horse. But O, my Lord, [Jesus has] dressed me. And I am a wonder dressed in his robes of righteousness! (cf. Walter Wangerin, The Ragman)

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.

He just walked in the door – casually, as if this was the most normal day ever. It was a normal day. A school day. But it was nowhere near time for school to be out.

“Are you OK?”

“What? Huh? Yeah I’m fine.”

“Why are you home from school?”

“I just thought it was time to come home.”

She took our third child back to his second grade classroom. There was actually a bit of concern on her part. Why had he been able to just walk home? Why had the teacher not missed him? In these days of school shootings and heightened security concerns it’s hard to imagine how that had happened. But it did. And we told him he must never do that again.

I see them almost every morning. Parents walking their children to school. Some of the children’s backpacks are bigger than the child! But there they go, safely escorted to school. When the school day is over parents will return to the school and bring their children home with them – unless they are older and able to make their own way to and from school.

In Paul’s day special duty slaves called child conductors were assigned to young boys. These trustworthy slaves were charged with the duty of supervising the life and morals of boys belonging to the better class. The boys were not allowed so much as to step out of the house without them before arriving at the age of manhood. The boys probably didn’t like that much, and may have tried to find ways of getting around these super-strict child-conductors.

I wonder whether we do the same thing. Trying to find loopholes in God’s laws. Seeking end-runs around God’s limits. Searching for how far we can go before we’re called on the carpet. But just as boys grow up to learn self-discipline we must grow up to find grace a much better relationship than trying to see how far we may wander before we get into trouble.

At times, we may need to be re-directed by a word from God’s law. But this is not a word of condemnation; it is a call to return to grace and faith. Life under God’s grace is far better than living in fear of the law’s demands. When our faith is rooted in God’s promises in Jesus, we find peace, hope, and life in His grace. That certainly doesn’t mean we wander away or abandon God’s ways. But it does mean that when we do wander we remember that God’s love and grace in Jesus is ready to receive us back into a life of grace and faith.

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.

Dr. Dale Meyer pulled a trick on us at a Lutheran church convention. He asked, “How many of you are lifelong Lutherans?” At least 50% of the people there raised their hands. “No you’re not,” he said. “We’re all converts.” A communal ugh arose from the crowd. We were all so busted – although I wasn’t, for I did not grow up attending a Lutheran church. I just didn’t take the bait.

I cannot remember a time when I did not believe in Jesus. My earliest memories are of standing on my parents’ bed singing Jesus Loves Me as we got ready to go to church and Sunday school. So I cannot really speak of life before faith. I realize there was a time when I did not believe in Jesus. For no one is born a believer. We are all converts.

So the idea that we were once captive under the law is difficult for us to believe – especially for those who were raised in a Christian home. Yet it is more true than we might imagine. And that’s part of the reason we are unaware of it. Time in erodes awareness of, the saying goes. So as believers who have been delivered from the tyranny and captivity of the law we can easily become unaware of how captive we are to it.

If we ever worry about our reputation, posture ourselves to be seen in the best light, or make excuses for bad decisions or behavior we are showing just how captive we are to the law. If we believe we need to prove that a request of another is justified or that our prayers are reasonable we give the lie to the claim that we are free.

What if we could simply ask God for anything and leave that request at the foot of the cross for him to do as he sees fit with it? What if we could apologize to our friend or family and make no excuse but ask for forgiveness? What if we could be certain of God’s love pure and without strings attached? What if we never had to make an excuse for a failure but could simply ask for forgiveness? We can do that because we are no longer under law, we are under grace. That is a freedom we must never take for granted nor abuse.

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.

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.

Sometimes a carefully constructed case needs to be made for a particular truth. Think about the deity of Christ, the triune nature of God, justification by grace through faith, Baptism as a Means of Grace, or the Real Presence of Christ in the Lord’s Supper. These are issues worthy of careful study and testing.

The Apostle John warns us not to believe every teaching or teacher that comes along. He writes, “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, for many false prophets have gone out” (1 John 4:1). Paul shared a similar concern in his letter to the Galatians, addressing the influence of the Judaizers. His message is clear: our freedom in Christ and place in God’s kingdom are not dependent on following Old Testament rules and laws. Paul’s letter, particularly here in this passage, is a defense of the gospel and a rejection of anything that would add to the finished work of Christ.

Yet, it seems there is little patience these days for such discussions. Conversations about doctrinal or church issues often devolve into a dismissive “Well, that’s your truth,” reflecting a broader cultural loss of biblical authority and objective truth. Many have abandoned the pursuit of unity in belief, favoring a “live and let live” mindset. Truth is often surrendered to whoever has the smoothest or most compelling story. In this climate, truth is reduced to anecdote.

Paul’s approach, however, is rooted in scriptural truth. His concern is not academic but pastoral and salvific. He emphasizes that the Galatians are heirs of God’s gifts according to His promises, a truth with profound implications for their faith and lives.

Years ago, my vicarage supervisor shared a key insight that has stuck with me for decades: the focus of our quest for truth should not be truth for its own sake, but truth for the sake of the gospel. Whatever issues we may need to clarify, prove, or agree upon, let them serve the gospel message! Let the message of Christ crucified and risen carry the weight of eternal truth. This is the truth that matters most and the truth that sets us free.

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. ² Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? ⁴ Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? ⁵ Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— ⁶ just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

⁷ Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. ⁸ And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” ⁹ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

¹⁰ For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” ¹¹ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” ¹² But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” ¹³ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— ¹⁴ so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

I don’t often think of “receiving the promised Spirit,” as opposed to receiving the forgiveness of sins, receiving the Word who “was coming into the world,” or receiving the gifts of God (of whom the Holy Spirit is certainly one). But this is a good phrase to consider this morning. What does it mean to receive the promised Spirit?

When Paul began sharing the Gospel of Jesus with Gentiles – and especially when the message crossed over into new territory – the outpouring of the Holy Spirit accompanied the new converts. In Acts 10:44-48, the Holy Spirit comes upon Cornelius and his household while Peter is speaking, and they begin speaking in tongues and praising God. This miraculous event convinces Peter and the Jewish believers that Gentiles are also included in God’s plan of salvation. Another confirmation is noted in Acts 11:15-18, where Peter recounts this event, emphasizing that the Gentiles received the Holy Spirit just as the Jewish believers did. 

When he writes his letter to the Romans, Paul asserts that whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. In 1 Corinthians 12:3, Paul says, no one can say, “Jesus is Lord,” except by the power of the Holy Spirit. So whenever one confesses faith in Jesus, it is a work of the Holy Spirit. Peter also promises that when people are baptized they will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit in Acts 2:38.

To receive the gift of the Holy Spirit is to be brought to faith in Jesus. But there is more to this than a minimalistic parroting of words. For the Holy Spirit does so much more. The Holy Spirit calls the church in Antioch to set aside Barnabas and Saul for their first missionary journey. The Holy Spirit moves people to be generous when people are in need. We are given the words to say by the Holy Spirit when it comes time to give witness to Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit reminded the Apostles of Jesus’ teachings (cf. John 14-16), convinces the world of the truth of their claims, inspires them to love each other. He certainly does all these things for us as well.

The Church in Corinth had gotten far afield in their understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit and some claimed superiority because of the various gifts they possessed by the power of the Holy Spirit: tongues, miracles, knowledge, wisdom, (extraordinary) faith, prophecy, and service.

We can easily misunderstand how this works in the church. We may think, for example that because we are able to evangelize everyone ought to be able to exercise that gift equally. Some will say that their gifts are not as important as others’ are.

Whatever gift of the Spirit we may have is a gift from God. And I like to say that a gift isn’t a gift until it’s given – that is if we have the gift of helps or service, teaching, prophecy, or miracles we cannot really claim to have that gift and fail to give (use) it.

Some like to think of the Holy Spirit in human terms as the bashful person of the Holy Trinity. He’s happy when Jesus gets the attention. In fact Jesus said of the Spirit, “He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you” (John 16:14). 

We are blessed to have received the gift of the Holy Spirit together with all his gifts and workings in the the world, in the church, and in our lives.

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. ² Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? ⁴ Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? ⁵ Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— ⁶ just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

⁷ Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. ⁸ And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” ⁹ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

¹⁰ For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” ¹¹ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” ¹² But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” ¹³ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— ¹⁴ so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

Mr. Gow (not his real name) was my high school chemistry teacher. He would present something to us in class and make the comment, “Seems pretty clear to me, huh!” Well it was clear as mud to me. I just couldn’t get it. I never understood what it was all about. My parents even hired a high school boy to tutor me in chemistry. I’m thinking it wasn’t Mr. Gow’s fault. My high school tutor couldn’t get it through my head either. It was “a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma” to quote Winston Churchill. It was “about as transparent as a brick wall” to quote my chat gpt friend. I just didn’t get it.

This seems to be the case with the Galatians and the Judaizers, and those of the circumcision party. They didn’t get the idea that “the just shall live by faith.” While it may not immediately clear what that phrase means, it seems likely that the difficulty on the part of the Galatians and others was a bit more than their ability to comprehend. They had too much at stake personally for that phrase from the Bible to make sense and shape their faith and religious practices.

Some of the religious leaders of Paul’s day were convinced that he was wrong. He had sold out in their minds to this new upstart religious movement. They were convinced that Paul was leading people away from God. Afterall, their Jewish rituals, laws, and sacrifices had been part of their religious practices for centuries. They had been taught that this is the way we do things. They couldn’t believe that all they had been doing was now supplanted by a new way – the way of faith.

This reminds me of a scene in the movie Martin Luther Heretic. Luther is teaching his students about salvation by grace through faith. “Faith!” one German student exclaims. “Every German peasant has faith.” “Yes?” says Luther. “Is heaven going to be filled with German peasants?!? The student wasn’t happy about that potentiality. “It can’t be that easy,” he mutters. Luther hears him and says, “You think faith is easy…”

There are those who think little of God’s love for all people. There are those who are not pleased to think of sinners, prostitutes, tax collectors and others of that ilk will be in heaven with them. This would be the challenge of the Judaizers. They were not so such that everyone who believed should be accepted into God’s kingdom. They had little awareness of their own brokenness. They thought they were superior.

The just shall live by faith may have been confusing to them. But it doesn’t have to be. It means that we who believe the promises of God, believe that he is good, believe that his grace is fully given in Jesus of Nazareth, God’s Son, are right with God. It’s a matter of what we think of God. And the enlightenment  of those things comes from God’s Holy Spirit, working in our hearts.

It is totally confusing, confounding, silly, despisable, and worthless to those without the Holy Spirit. Our natural condition thinks little of God and his goodness. But we live with childlike faith, trust, belief in God’s word and promise. That doesn’t have to be confusing if we are willing simply to believe.

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. ² Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? ⁴ Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? ⁵ Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith— ⁶ just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”?

⁷ Know then that it is those of faith who are the sons of Abraham. ⁸ And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “In you shall all the nations be blessed.” ⁹ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.

¹⁰ For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” ¹¹ Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” ¹² But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” ¹³ Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— ¹⁴ so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.

One of my favorite movies is Hunt for Red October. It’s based on a Tom Clancy novel by the same name, and features Sean Connery as a Russian submarine captain and Alec Baldwin as Jack Ryan a US spy. Ryan figures out what Connery’s character is up to. But he has a problem. How will he convince the captain of a US submarine that he knows what the Russian is trying to do? He has a sudden idea while shaving: “Russians don’t … without a plan,” he recalls a senior officer saying. He convinces the captain that he knows the plan and of course he’s right and…well, if you haven’t seen the movie go watch it and you’ll see how it works out.

Speaking of plans, imagine the Creator of the Universe going to work and speaking worlds into existence and doing so without a grand plan. Imagine God creating man and woman and placing them in the Garden of Eden without a plan. Imagine the Almighty King of Creation not having a plan to redeem sinners and renew a broken creation – knowing that Adam and Eve would sin and the paradise would be subjected to sin and brokenness.

God had a plan from the beginning. It started with Adam and Eve. It continued through the call of Abraham. It was fully revealed in Jesus’ death and resurrection. It will be consummated at the Great Last Day when Christ returns.

God is working out his plan throughout all of history. It is tied to the original “it was very good” of Genesis 1:31. It is made more clear in God’s commendation of Abraham’s faith. “Abraham believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness.” (Genesis 15:6). Now, Paul says, God’s plan to include the Gentiles was working itself out.

God’s word to Abraham, “In you all the nations of the earth shall be blessed,” is coming true even today. God is working out his plan in we who believe in Jesus. Through faith like that of Abraham we are counted righteous. God is working out his plan to bless all nations as he calls them to faith. 

Faith is realizing that God is good, faithful, just, holy, and gracious. Faith is believing that Jesus is God’s Son and our Savior. Faith is trusting in God’s promises. Faith is simple and profound all at once. The smallest child can have faith, and the wisest believer can fathom faith’s depths and never reach it’s ending.

Wherever you or I may be on that continuum we can be sure that God honors faith, and that we are part of God’s plan for the redemption of lost people and a broken creation.