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Posts Tagged ‘Galatians 3’

Understanding Rocked!

Posted in Commandments, tagged , , on April 2, 2011| 1 Comment »

Moses because of the hardness of your hearts suffered you to put away your wives: but from the beginning it was not so. – Jesus (Matthew 19:8)

Jesus’ answer to the Pharisees when goaded about God’s law for divorce rocks our understanding of the Bible, if we will only think about it a minute.

If God made the divorce laws in the Old Testament as a concession like Jesus said, limiting it as much as our fallen hardened hearts could allow, what other laws are, likewise, concessions?

Could it be the Old Testament law of “Eye-For-An-Eye” was also a concession, limiting the amount of damage a person could do to no more than what was done to them, though God’s desire has always been to turn the other cheek?1

Could it be that Old Testament laws of slavery were concessions, limiting the length and severity of servitude, though God’s desire has always been for all to be equal in Christ?2

How about male dominance and gender submission?3 What a world of difference this concept makes when we see Jesus establishing a kingdom of those with tender hearts, committed to God’s desires instead of his concessions.

Think about this a moment and tell me what you think.

Related Post: Concession vs. Intent – March 31, 2011
Related Post: Same God, Different People – March 19, 2011

– fritz
1 – Matthew 5:38-39
2 – Ephesians 6:9
3 – Galatians 3:28

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>Real Authority

Posted in Submission, Unity, tagged , on January 20, 2011| Leave a Comment »

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“when Peter came to Antioch, I had a face-to-face confrontation with him because he was clearly out of line.” – Galatians 2:11(MESSAGE)

Valid authority in the Church derives from following the truth.

Those aligned with God’s word are to be honored and followed,1 those who don’t are to be resisted, sometimes even publicly, regardless of their name, rank, or history.

The apostle, Paul, wrote

“Let me be blunt: … If anyone, regardless of reputation or credentials, preaches something other than what you received originally, let him be cursed … If my goal was popularity, I wouldn’t bother being Christ’s” – Galatians 1:9-10a (MESSAGE)

This doesn’t mean arguing every little point. The Brethren church has a wonderful saying,

In essentials, Unity;
In non essentials, Liberty;
In all things, Charity.”

All valid authority comes from adherence to God’s word, not an ecclesiastical or educational title.

– fritz

1 – 1st Timothy 5:17

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Righteousness like a Breastplate

Posted in Righteousness, tagged , , on December 7, 2010| Leave a Comment »

[T]ake … the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, … having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness;” – Ephesians 6:13-14a

The Bible lists eight essentials for withstanding evil days, warning us to take time now to prepare.

It takes boldness and confidence to withstand any adversity; any display of weakness or fear is an invitation for disaster. Spiritual adversity requires the boldness of being right with God – the Bible says “the righteous are bold as a lion.”1

We can’t be bold by our own rightness for our best efforts are woefully inadequate but, thankfully, Jesus did the heavy lifting. He lived a righteous, sinless, life and offers himself to be our covering.

“For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” – Galatians 3:37

It is the breastplate, strong, fit, and unwavering, that the enemy sees not how well or inadequately we are behind it.

– fritz

1 – Proverbs 28:1b

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