“But if, while we seek to be justified by Christ, we ourselves also are found sinners, is Christ therefore a minister of sin? Certainly not! For if I build again those things which I destroyed, I make myself a transgressor.” Galatians 2:17-18
If we who trust Christ for pardon, forgiveness, and righteousness before God now seek to be acceptable to God by fulfilling worship laws and traditions, do we make Christ a servant of sin because we fail to do all that such laws require? As Paul writes, “Certainly not! “ If we go back to depending on our works under the law, we again stand condemned by the law!
O Christ, You have fulfilled the law in my stead, and You have suffered my just punishment under the law in Your death on the cross. Grant that I do not now begin to rely upon my own righteousness under the law but hold fast to You and Your cross for my salvation. Amen.
“Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law but by faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, that we might be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law no flesh shall be justified.” Galatians 2:16
Since none of us measure up to the holy demands of God’s law, we do not seek to be just in God’s eyes by our keeping of the law but rather through faith in Christ Jesus, who kept the law perfectly for us and then atoned for our sins by His innocent sufferings and death on the cross.
I have sinned and broken Your law, O God. Forgive my sins and count me just and righteous in Your eyes for the sake of Christ Jesus, my Savior. Amen.
“But I reveal to you, brothers, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, neither was I taught it, except by a revelation of Jesus Christ.” Galatians 1:11-12
Paul, who was called by Jesus Christ to be His apostle to the Gentiles, did not receive His gospel from men, nor was it taught to him by men. Rather, it was given to him by a revelation of Jesus Christ. Therefore, his doctrine, taught in his epistles, is not from men but from God and is to be received by all as a message from God.
Grant that I hear and heed Your Word, O Lord, repent of my sins and trust in Christ Jesus alone and His cross for my righteousness and salvation. Amen.
“For whoever finds me finds life and obtains favor from the LORD, but he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; all those who hate me love death.” Proverbs 8:35-36
Those who hear and heed the wisdom God reveals in His Word find life and obtain the LORD’s favor. They acknowledge and confess their sins and look to the LORD God for pardon and forgiveness, and He shows them mercy. Those who refuse to hear and heed the truth God has revealed in His Word bring evil and death upon their own souls.
Teach me the truth, O LORD, and have mercy upon my soul. Grant that I hear Your Word, confess my sinful ways, and trust in You for mercy and forgiveness for the sake of Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice on the cross. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
“For am I now seeking the approval of men or of God? Or am I trying to please men? For if I were still trying to please men, I would not be the servant of Christ.” Galatians 1:10
To be a servant of Christ and seek the approval of God means being faithful to Christ and to the teaching of God’s Word in all things (Matt. 28:18-20). Seeking the approval of men leads to compromising and explaining away the clear teaching of the Bible.
Keep me faithful to You and Your Word, O Christ, and grant that I do not yield one iota of the Bible’s teaching to gain the approval of men. Amen.
