“Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, ‘And to seeds,’ as of many, but as of one, ‘And to your Seed,’ who is Christ. And this I say, that the law, which was four hundred and thirty years later, cannot annul the covenant that was confirmed before by God in Christ, that it should make the promise of no effect.” Galatians 3:16-17
God’s covenant promise to Abraham was to bless all the nations of the earth in one of Abraham’s offspring (Gen. 22:18). This promise was fulfilled when God sent His only-begotten Son into the world, born of the Virgin Mary, to fulfill all righteousness and to make atonement for the sins of all. The law given 430 years later on Mt. Sinai does not nullify God’s promise to Abraham in Christ Jesus.
Grant that I trust in Your promises, O Lord, and look not to the law for salvation but to Jesus Christ and His atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world. Amen.
“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us (for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”), that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.” Galatians 3:13-14
Though the law curses and condemns us all because of our sin and disobedience, Jesus Christ, by His perfect obedience and by His innocent sufferings and death for the sins of all, has redeemed us from the curse and condemnation of God’s law that we might also partake of the blessings of forgiveness and life credited to Abraham through Spirit-wrought faith in Christ.
Thank You, O Christ, for redeeming us from the law’s curse and granting us forgiveness and life through faith in Your name. Amen.
“For as many as are of the works of the law are under the curse; for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who does not continue in all things which are written in the book of the law, to do them.’ But that no one is justified by the law in the sight of God is evident, for ‘the just shall live by faith.’” Galatians 3:10-11
The law curses and condemns all who rely on their own works under the law, because the law requires perfect obedience, and any violation of its parts demands death. Therefore, not a single one of us is justified in God’s eyes by keeping the law; we can only be justified through faith in Christ Jesus and His perfect obedience to the law and His atoning sacrifice for our sins.
O God, grant that I acknowledge my sin and guilt under the law and look in faith to the perfect righteousness of Christ and to His holy sacrifice for sin that I might be counted just and righteous in Your eyes through faith in Him. Amen.
“But yet a tenth will be in it, and will return and be for consuming, as a terebinth tree or as an oak, whose stump remains when it is cut down. So the holy seed shall be its stump.” Isaiah 6:13
When God carries out judgments against those who ignore His Word and reject Him, He still preserves a remnant that repents of their sinful ways and looks to Him for mercy and forgiveness for the sake of His Son and His atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world.
Grant that I hear Your Word, O God, and walk in Your ways, trusting in Your Son and His cross for pardon and forgiveness, that I not be swept away in Your judgment but be preserved unto life everlasting. In Jesus’ name, I pray. Amen.
Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying: “Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” And He said, “Go, and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ “Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed.” Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered: “Until the cities are laid waste and without inhabitant, the houses are without a man, the land is utterly desolate, the LORD has removed men far away, and the forsaken places are many in the midst of the land.” Isaiah 6:8-12
God’s judgment upon those who do not heed His Word and repent can be a hardening of the heart so that they hear but do not understand and see but do not perceive. And this hardening of the heart (or withdrawal of His enlightening Holy Spirit) continues until they are swept away in God’s judgment and suffer the temporal and eternal punishments for their sins. Those with understanding see it happening in our own nation and land.
O Lord, have mercy on us and grant that we see the error of our ways and look to You for pardon and forgiveness in the shed blood of Jesus, Your Son, and our Savior. In His name, we pray. Amen.
