Scripture Reading: Gal. 5:1-6
The first four chapters of Galatians present a revelation of the gospel preached by the Apostle Paul. If you compare the revelation in these chapters with that conveyed in the four Gospels, you will see that, in a certain sense, the revelation in these chapters is richer, deeper, and more profound than that in the Gospels. For example, in the four Gospels we do not have a clear view of the desire of God’s heart. But the first four chapters of Galatians do present such a clear view of this. As we have pointed out, God’s promise to Abraham was the unveiling of the desire of God’s heart. Because many Christians concentrate on the Gospels alone, they do not know the desire of God’s heart. Furthermore, although John 1 speaks of grace, in Galatians we see that grace is the fulfillment of God’s promise according to the desire of His heart. The Gospels also present the living Person of Christ as viewed from four angles. But without the first four chapters of Galatians, we would not understand Christ in such a deep way. The same is true concerning the Spirit. Chapters fourteen through sixteen of the Gospel of John reveal much concerning the Spirit. But if we did not have the book of Galatians, we would not know that the Spirit is Christ as the seed of Abraham to fulfill the promise. In fulfilling the promise, Christ is the seed; but for our enjoyment, He is the land, which typifies the all-inclusive Spirit. Hence, the seed is for fulfillment, whereas the land is for enjoyment.
In this message we come to 5:1-6, which begins another major section of Galatians, concerned with the walk of God’s children (5:1—6:17). After presenting the profound revelation found in chapters one through four, Paul turns to the walk of God’s children according to the Spirit.
In 5:1 Paul says, “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand fast therefore and do not be again entangled with a yoke of slavery.” The first charge Paul gives us concerning our walk is not to be entangled with a yoke of slavery. This charge is based upon the revelation presented in chapters one through four, where he spoke of slavery under the law and of how Christ has delivered us from that slavery. The freedom in 5:1 denotes freedom from the slavery of law. Christ has set us free through His redeeming death and life-imparting resurrection that we may enjoy this freedom and grace. To stand fast is to stand fast in the freedom from the slavery of law, not deviating from Christ, not falling from grace.
The Greek word rendered entangled may also be translated held ensnared. To deviate from Christ to law is to be entangled or held ensnared. The yoke of slavery is the bondage of law, which makes the law-keepers slaves under a binding yoke.
In 5:1 Paul uses an unusual expression, “For freedom Christ has set us free.” Paul’s composition here is somewhat awkward, even redundant. He could have said simply, “Christ has set us free.” The Bible is often redundant and repetitious. Consider how often Paul speaks of faith in the book of Galatians, or how many times the New Testament refers to justification by faith. In 5:1 Paul writes in a redundant manner in order to impress us with the preciousness of our freedom in Christ. It seems Paul was saying to the Galatians, “I want you to remember that it was for freedom that Christ has set us free. Since Christ has set us free for freedom, we should stand fast and not be entangled again with the yoke of slavery.” Paul used strong terms in order to impress the distracted Galatians that they must set aside the yoke of slavery and come back to their freedom in Christ.
In 5:4 Paul goes on to use an unusual expression, saying, “You have been brought to nought from Christ, you who are justified by law; you have fallen from grace.” Different translations render the first part of 5:4 in different ways: “Christ is become of no effect unto you” (KJV); “Ye are severed from Christ” (ASV); “Ye are deprived of all profit from the Christ” (Darby’s New Translation). To be brought to nought from Christ is to be reduced to nothing from Christ, deprived of all profit from Christ and so separated from Him (Darby), so that He is made void of effect. To go back to law is to become severed from Christ, to be brought to nought from Christ.
The different renderings of 5:4 are all implied in the one Greek expression. Literally, this expression means to be brought to nothing from Christ. Dean Alford says that an exact, accurate, and literal translation of the Greek term would be annihilated, which in its original meaning means to bring something to nothing. Hence, in this verse Paul is talking about being brought to nothing, to nought, from Christ. He was telling the Galatians, “Dear saints, you who seek to be justified by law have been brought to nothing from Christ. You were grafted into Christ, and you were enjoying the riches of Christ. But by going back to the law and to circumcision, you are brought to nought, you are annihilated, from Christ.”
If a branch from an inferior tree is grafted into a superior tree, it will enjoy all the benefits of being part of that superior tree. But suppose the grafted branch is later detached from the superior tree. In such a case we may say that it is brought to nothing from the superior tree, for by being separated from that tree, it relinquishes all the benefits of being joined to it. Thus, it reduces itself to nothing from the superior tree, in particular from the enjoyment of the riches of that tree. This illustrates Paul’s meaning in 5:4. By believing into Christ and being baptized into Him, we have been grafted into Him as the rich tree. As branches grafted into Him, we may enjoy His unsearchable riches. As long as we remain grafted into Him, we may enjoy all His riches. But if we relinquish Christ, let Him go in a practical way in our experience, we shall be brought to nothing from the unsearchably rich Christ.
The Galatians had been distracted to the law and to circumcision. In turning to the law in this way, they were brought to nothing from Christ. Darby says that they were deprived of all profit from Christ and so separated from Him.
It is difficult to find Christians today who, in some way or other, have not been brought to nought from Christ. What Christians remain grafted to Christ in a practical way to enjoy all His riches? We admit that there are a good number of Christians in Catholicism. But Catholicism has brought them to nothing from Christ. The same is true of the vast majority of Christians in the denominations. The rituals, forms, and practices have caused them to be brought to nothing from Christ. All these things deprive believers of their profit in Christ. This is even true among those in the Brethren assemblies, where strong emphasis is placed on right doctrine. Many of the Brethren care more for doctrine than for the abiding in Christ and the enjoyment of Christ. In fact, it is not likely that they would even use the expression “the enjoyment of Christ.” They are preoccupied with doctrine; they do not care for how to contact the Lord, to remain in the spirit, to abide in the Lord, and to enjoy the riches of Christ. This may be like a foreign language to them. Although they regard themselves as the most biblical of Christians, to some extent they also have been brought to nought from Christ. Those in today’s Pentecostalism and charismatic movement have also been brought to nothing from Christ in certain ways. Some care for such things as the lengthening of legs and for speaking in tongues, but not for remaining grafted into Christ to enjoy His riches.
All kinds of Christians have been brought to nought from Christ in one way or other. Again I ask, where are the Christians who abide in Christ all the time to enjoy His riches? Where are the believers who have not been brought to nothing from Christ, who have not been deprived of their profit in Christ? The deplorable fact is that believers everywhere have been brought to nought from Christ. We need to pray, “Lord, have mercy on us and grant us grace that we would not be brought to nothing from You. We want to abide in You as the all-inclusive One to enjoy Your riches.” We thank the Lord that by His mercy and grace He has preserved us in Himself to enjoy His riches.
How pitiful is the situation among Christians today! Many care for practices and doctrines, for a certain mode of baptism, or for spiritual gifts. But hardly any believers care for the enjoyment of Christ as the all-inclusive Spirit in our spirit. What a blessing it is to be able to testify that we daily enjoy the riches of the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit! By the Lord’s mercy I can testify that I enjoy Him day by day.
In the same verse where Paul speaks of being brought to nought from Christ, he also speaks of having “fallen from grace.” To be brought to nought from Christ is to fall from grace. This implies that Christ Himself is the grace in which we the believers are.
In 5:2 Paul says, “Behold, I Paul say to you that if you are circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing.” The Judaizers made circumcision a condition of salvation (2:3-5; Acts 15:1). If the Galatian believers had received circumcision, making it a condition of salvation, Christ would have profited them nothing. By going back to the law, they automatically would have had to relinquish Christ. In order to understand Paul’s thought in 5:2-4, we need to know the background against which these verses were written. The background concerns God’s promise made to Abraham about blessing all the nations. About two thousand years after this promise was given, Christ came as the fulfillment. As the seed, He fulfilled the promise that it might become grace for our enjoyment. After fulfilling the promise, Christ became the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit, who is the very blessing of the promise. As 3:14 indicates, we received the promise of the Spirit as the blessing of the gospel. By enjoying this life-giving Spirit, we become children according to the Spirit, heirs of the promised blessing. This is our status, our standing, and our enjoyment. For this reason, in 5:1 Paul exhorts us to stand fast in the freedom and enjoyment we have in Christ. But if we go back to the law and circumcision, we shall be brought to nought from Christ, reduced to nothing from Christ. Then Christ will not be of any profit to us in our experience. To be brought to nothing from Christ in this way is to fall from grace.
The experience Paul presents in chapters three and four is actually related to our being grafted into Christ. We have been grafted into the One who, on the one hand, is the seed to fulfill the promise and, on the other hand, is the life-giving Spirit as the blessing of the good land. Since our position is that of branches grafted into Christ, we may enjoy all His riches. But if we go back to the law, we shall detach ourselves from Christ as the superior tree and be brought to nothing from Him. We shall be reduced to nothing from the enjoyment of Christ. Then Christ will not profit us anything, for we shall have fallen from grace. As we consider today’s situation, we see that few Christians stand in freedom and remain in their status as grafted branches to enjoy the riches of Christ. On the contrary, almost all Christians have been detached from Christ. Have you been detached from Christ? Have you been brought to nought from Him, deprived of all the profit there is for you in Christ? I hope that all of us in the Lord’s recovery can strongly declare, “No, we have not been brought to nothing from Christ! We abide in Him to enjoy all He is to us.”
In 5:5 Paul says, “For we by the Spirit by faith eagerly expect the hope of righteousness.” By the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, here is in contrast with by the flesh (3:3). Furthermore, by faith is in contrast with by works of law (3:2). The hope of righteousness means the righteousness we hope for, which is Christ Himself (1 Cor. 1:30). It is not by works of law in the flesh but by faith in the Spirit. Christ is our hope of righteousness. He is our righteousness today, and He is our hope to come. We are not looking for earthly success. By the Spirit and by faith we expect Christ as the hope of righteousness.
In 5:5 Paul puts the Spirit together with faith. We have pointed out that the Spirit is typified by the land. We have also seen that faith is the camera which photographs the scenery of grace. In order to have the proper enjoyment, we need to have the Spirit as the all-inclusive land and faith as the means to enjoy this land. As we enjoy the Spirit by faith, we eagerly expect the coming hope of righteousness.
In 5:6 Paul goes on to say, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails anything nor uncircumcision, but faith operating through love.” Apart from the Spirit and faith, nothing else avails. In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything. What avails is the Spirit on God’s side and faith on our side. The Spirit is the all-inclusive land for our enjoyment, and faith is the organ by which we participate in this rich land and enjoy it. Because the Spirit and faith avail, we should treasure them.
In 5:6 Paul also says that faith operates through love. Living faith is active. It operates to work out the fulfillment of the law through love (5:14). Circumcision is simply an outward ordinance having no power of life. Hence, it avails nothing. It has no force or practical power. Faith receives the Spirit of life (3:2), which is full of power. It operates through love to fulfill not only the law, but also God’s purpose, that is, to complete the sonship of God for His corporate expression.
Love is related to our appreciation of Christ. Without such an appreciation, faith cannot operate. When we have the hearing of faith, this hearing awakens our loving appreciation, and this appreciation causes faith to operate. Faith operates because it participates in the riches of the life-giving Spirit. The more we have the hearing of faith, the more appreciation and love we have. The more love we have for the Lord, the more faith operates. The more faith operates, the more it brings us into the riches, the profit, of the all-inclusive Spirit. Instead of being deprived of profit in Christ, we are thus abundantly enriched. Instead of being brought to nought from Christ, we are strengthened with the bountiful supply of the all-inclusive Spirit.
Faith receives the Spirit of life (3:2) and operates through love to fulfill the law (5:13). Faith operating through love thus completes the sonship of God for His corporate expression. This faith is the camera which photographs the scenery of grace, the very grace that is the all-inclusive Christ as the life-giving Spirit for our enjoyment.
