Confusion and clarity in the Bible


I'm nearly halfway through memorizing Paul's letter to the Galatians. In reading, reciting, and rehearsing his words, I'm discovering that some of my habitual practices and beliefs may need some adjustment, while others remain certain.

One of the passages that recently caused me a great deal of confusion is in chapter 3, where Paul says, "Let me ask you only this: did you receive the Spirit by works of the law, or by hearing with faith?" Later in the same passage he again says, "Does he who supplies you with the Spirit and who works miracles among you do so by works of the law or by hearing with faith?" He answers the question, which I'll get to in a moment, but those two passages struck me with a thought that still gives me pause:

Paul asks the question because he knows that they have an answer, based in their experience as believers, and that their answer will incontrovertibly support his conclusion.

In other words, they knew both that they had received the Spirit, and they knew how they had received the Spirit. Ask most followers of Christ how they know the Holy Spirit lives in them, and they'll say, "Because the Bible says so," or "because I speak in tongues," depending on their background. There's an undercurrent in this passage that tells me that both groups are missing something important. That God "supplies the Spirit" is something that, in Paul's question, brings tangible results for the person involved, such that he ties it to the second statement "and works miracles among you." Our relationship and interaction with the Holy Spirit is something that deserves attention and devotion in a way that, at this time, I'm not sure that I understand.

However, one other part of this discussion reinforces a key Christian belief that deserves to be repeated often: the answer to both of Paul's questions is "by hearing with faith." Paul answers his own question by saying "Just as Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness, know then that it is those of faith who are sons of Abraham. And the scripture, forseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel to Abraham beforehand, saying, 'In you shall all nations be blessed.' So then, those who are of faith are blessed, along with Abraham, the man of faith." [Emphasis and punctuation are mine; the words are ESV.]

That is, while I can't claim to understand these truths as I'd like to,
(1) Hearing (God's word) with faith, trusting him, and trusting him alone is the basis of how we obtain God's pardon for our sins, and
(2) By that faith, we receive God's Holy Spirit, who lives in us and plays an active role in our lives.

Nothing new in there, but perhaps, for me, a new way of looking at it.

Posted: Wed - December 12, 2007 at 08:38 AM           | |

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