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Heirs According to the Promise
One of the great struggles of the Christian church from the earliest days, a struggle that was at the heart of the Protestant Reformation (and one that in various ways continues today, even in our church), deals with the question of the gospel, of salvation, of how we are saved. Paul, with the church in Galatia, had to deal squarely and directly with the issue, where false theology had crept in and threatened the integrity of the gospel itself.
Read Galatians 3:26–29. What is the main point that Paul is making? (As you read, note that the Greek word translated “put on” comes from the word meaning “to be clothed.”)
In verse 27, Paul says that all those who were baptized “have clothed yourselves with Christ” (NIV). Though all were sinners, their sins had been washed away, their old filthy garments were gone, and they were now “clothed,” covered in the righteousness of Jesus. His life, His perfection, His character they can now claim as their own. All the covenant promises have been fulfilled in Jesus, and now, clothed in Christ, they can claim those promises for themselves. They are heirs of the promise first made to Abraham (Gen. 12:2, 3), not because of status, gender, or nationality, but only through faith in Christ.
Read Romans 6:1–6. What is Paul saying there that should help us understand what it means to be “clothed” in Christ?
Being clothed in Christ is more than just a legal standing with God. Christians are united with Christ; they are surrendered to Him; and through Him they are being renewed, rejuvenated, and restored. Christians who refuse to change their old ways, their old habits, and their old lifestyle need to look in the mirror at what they are really clothed in.
What are you wearing? Is what you wear in public different from what you wear when no one (you think) is watching? What does your answer tell you about yourself?
| SUNDAY | June 19 |
One of the great struggles of the Christian church from the earliest days, a struggle that was at the heart of the Protestant Reformation (and one that in various ways continues today, even in our church), deals with the question of the gospel, of salvation, of how we are saved. Paul, with the church in Galatia, had to deal squarely and directly with the issue, where false theology had crept in and threatened the integrity of the gospel itself.
Read Galatians 3:26–29. What is the main point that Paul is making? (As you read, note that the Greek word translated “put on” comes from the word meaning “to be clothed.”)
In verse 27, Paul says that all those who were baptized “have clothed yourselves with Christ” (NIV). Though all were sinners, their sins had been washed away, their old filthy garments were gone, and they were now “clothed,” covered in the righteousness of Jesus. His life, His perfection, His character they can now claim as their own. All the covenant promises have been fulfilled in Jesus, and now, clothed in Christ, they can claim those promises for themselves. They are heirs of the promise first made to Abraham (Gen. 12:2, 3), not because of status, gender, or nationality, but only through faith in Christ.
Read Romans 6:1–6. What is Paul saying there that should help us understand what it means to be “clothed” in Christ?
Being clothed in Christ is more than just a legal standing with God. Christians are united with Christ; they are surrendered to Him; and through Him they are being renewed, rejuvenated, and restored. Christians who refuse to change their old ways, their old habits, and their old lifestyle need to look in the mirror at what they are really clothed in.
What are you wearing? Is what you wear in public different from what you wear when no one (you think) is watching? What does your answer tell you about yourself?
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