Skip to main content

Daily Devotion: Galatians 3:18-19

Galatians 3:18-19    "For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise.  (19)  Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator."

 The entire book of Galatians is Paul's addressing the contrast between law and grace. I realize there is a vast difference in people's approach to both. There are those who believe that you have to do good works in order to get to heaven. On the other end of the spectrum, you find people who believe they can live any way they want to because they are saved by grace. Paul's teachings take us down the path of balancing the two.  

 In Ephesians 2:10, we read that "we are God's workmanship created unto good works."  In Titus 3:5, we read "not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy, He saved us..."  There must be a balance, and I believe Paul, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, achieves that balance when he said, "the life I NOW live, I live by the faith of the Son of God "

 God has given us an inheritance by His promise. We cannot do enough good works to be a possessor of that inheritance, but we must strive to be good stewards of that inheritance.  How can we do that? It seems to me that the best stewards are those who seek to serve and please the Lord in our lives. Lord, please help me to be a better steward.  

Popular posts from this blog

Daily Devotion: Enter With Thanksgiving - Psalm 100:1-5

One of the most beautiful Psalms of Thanksgiving is the 100th Psalm. Please turn to it and read verses one through five. With all my heart I believe we are a people and a nation that has truly been blessed by God. Of all those who “give thanks to Him and praise His name” we should be at the top!  It is not uncommon to compile wish lists at Christmas, and draw up a list of resolutions for the new year. But there is another list we often overlook - a Thanksgiving Day list of all for which we are thankful. What would your list contain? Most likely, a good part would be material possessions. I’m convinced that we would find that we have much more for which to be thankful than just our material possessions.  Like you, I’m sure my list would include the major things - life, health, family, friends, and the nation we live in, despite all its flaws. But even more than that, I’m thankful for my salvation, my Church family, and the mercy that God showers upon us each d...

Daily Devotion: An Important Question

In one of the great Psalms of thanksgiving, the writer asked a most pertinent question. “What shall I render unto the Lord for all of His benefits toward me” (Psalm 116:12) ? We may observe two elements in this question. The psalmist acknowledges having received many benefits, or blessings, at the hand of the Lord. For the believer, to be the receiver of blessings from the Lord is a fact beyond question. That is one facet of a proper perception of reality. However, for the unbeliever, or even for the nominal believer, such things come in the course of nature, or as a matter of deserving them. But to fail to see that such benefits and blessings come from the Lord is to lose touch with reality. The other element of the question is that the writer expresses a sense of obligation to the Lord and reveals a desire to do something in response to the amazing goodness of God to him. It is the reflex of the godly heart to desire to do something in response to the perceived go...