Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything; what counts is a new creation.

The message of Galatians, the message of the cross – unbound from the law of sin and death, we are born again into a new life, a spiritual one. No longer governed by rules and regulations, we are new creations. We are ruled by the love of Christ, and we are channels of his love to those around us.

You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope.

This verse says clearly, if you are trying to be justified by the law, you have fallen away from grace. if we fall away from grace, which is the free gift of God’s love and friendship, unearned by us, how then an we share it with others? Instead of serving them in love, we will expect then to “measure up” as we are doing. So, living in the freedom Christ provides through grace, means walking free in the friendship of God, making it possible to love others by serving them.

But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba”, Father. So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir. See also John 1: 12 and 13

Not only are we no longer slaves, now we are sons (children) of God. We will receive the inheritance of sons. The difference here is, that the inheritance will not be divided up among the children, each getting a small portion. No, each of us who is a child of God will receive the full inheritance. Amazing!

Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ that we might be justified by faith. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law.

,What a great picture: prisoners of the law. Knowing we are sinners, but unable to be “good enough”, the Law shows us our sin, but does not show us how to change from within. Then, Christ died for us, and the Law was rendered powerless, the doors were flung open, and we are no longer slaves to sin. Not that we will never sin again, but we now have the freedom not to sin, and we have faith to believe the sin is paid for in Christ. Oh, the glorious knowledge that if we confess our sin, and repent, it is remembered no longer!

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

This is an unarguable fact: with Jesus, lives are changed, hearts are changed, motives, motivations and mindsets are entirely different. WE no longer live, but Christ lives in us. We are God’s hands, His feet, His voice to the world. The love of Jesus flows out of us to touch others.

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from the present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father, to whom be glory or ever and ever. Amen.

God’s plan: to rescue us rom the evil of the present age. He provided an ark of safety – Jesus Christ. God gave us to Jesus, and He redeemed us . Just as the ark rescued the animals and Noah’s family from the flood, we are rescued from this evil world. What does this mean in our everyday lives? We have the freedom to make choices to walk in the ways of God, to use the wisdom of God, to love and not to hate, even as we live in a world that rejects this God we love.

This is what the LORD says, “Heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool. Where is the house you will build for me? Where will my resting place be?

If we are anxious in tough times, whether in our personal lives or in the events of the world, this truth should put them to rest. He is LORD. He is over all. There is none like Him.

Behold I will create new heavens and a new earth. The former things will not be remembered, nor will they come to mind. But be glad and rejoice forever in what I will create, for I will create Jerusalem to be a delight and its people a joy.

(Read also, Rev. 21:1-4) Currently, we live in a fallen creation, with a generation of sinners. Righteousness is only found in Christ, and when we embrace Him, we are able to live a righteous life by His grace and power, though still living in an unrighteous land. When we come to dwell in the new heavens and the new earth, which are the home of righteousness, the original Greek says, “that will be a place of whatever conforms to the revealed Word of God, a place where the sum total of the requirements of God are lived out continuously”. Won’t it be amazing : no struggle against sin, only righteousness and the light of God surrounding us.

Our holy and glorious temple, where our fathers praised you, has been burned with fire, and all that we treasured lies in ruins.

For the Israelites their treasures were in the temple – not just gold and silver, but the places of worship, the tools, the rituals of sacrifice for sin and the history of praise within. The Temple was the gift of God where His Name dwelt among them. It was a reminder of His Holiness and His Presence among them. When it burned, they truly felt their treasure was in ruins. For us, the treasure is in our hearts – the Spirit of God, the gift of salvation, the Holy Presence of the love of Christ. The destruction of our bodies in death does not leave our treasure in ruins. Death is the door that opens our treasure to its promise and fulfillment.

He said, “Surely they are my people, sons who will not be false to me”; and so he became their Savior. In all their distress he too was distressed and the angel of his presence saved them. In his love and mercy he redeemed them; he lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.

Whether applying the truth of these verses to the children of God – Christians – or to the nation of Israel, the truth remains: we are His people. He is our Saviour. He redeemed us, not because we earned it, but because of His great love and mercy. Don’t miss the fact, that when we are in distress, He, too, is distressed. In all of this, the truth for us as Christians is that God saw our distress and affliction. He reached out from Perfect Love and HE redeemed us.