Galatians
4:11-12, 15 I
am afraid I may have labored over you in vain. Brothers, I entreat you, become
as I am, for I also have become as you are. You did me no wrong….What then has
become of your blessedness?
The new believer is filled with joy at knowing
Christ as Lord and Savior. The Spirit brings life and relief to the troubled sour
of men. Paul’s preaching of the Gospel was effective in bringing many to
Christ.
The work of the Spirit brought freedom to the new
converts. No longer did they need to work to appease their god, who is no god
at all. No longer did they need to wonder if their god knew them and was
pleased with their efforts to please him.
They had been performing works righteousness. They
had been trying to earn God’s approval of them. You attend meetings, and
services without failing. You give of your possessions to prescribed measures.
You volunteer a prescribed number of hours at the soup kitchen. As you labor to
earn god’s approval, you are observed and measured by others who have earned
their salvation. Your devotion and spirituality is measured by the effort you
make to do all these things. When you fail along the way, you do not receive praise
but criticism for not measuring up fully. You can be found unworthy for not
meeting the standards of others. You are less spiritual than those who measure
your progress.
Where is the joy the Galatians once had? They
exchanged it for a guilt ridden system of measures to appease their god and
other people. There is no joy in such a system or religion. Who can ever
perfectly measure up to any standard each day of your life? No one, no joy.
