2 Ways to Live, part 1

"On whom we depend determines if you live a life of slavery or freedom."

This was my pre-worship gathering tweet yesterday morning. Jumping into Galatians 4:21-5:1, we see Paul allegorically comparing Abraham's two sons, Ishmael (mother: Hagar, a slave-bond servant) and Isaac (mother: Sarah, wife). Using this historical illustration, Paul shows us that there are two ways to live, slave or free. But it has nothing to do with anything political, rather, it has everything to do with your heart and whom you depend on to live each and every day.

The first way to live is by depending on self. This is the life that leads to slavery. Hagar and Ishmael represent this way to live.

1: Live by own desire and ability (4:23)

It took no faith to conceive Ishmael; Hagar was young and fertile.

There’s a lot we can do on our own that doesn’t require faith; and while it may produce immediate results, they may not be God’s desired results.

2: Burdened by law (4:24-25)

Paul is symbolically portraying Hagar as the Mosaic Covenant, which was given on Mt. Sinai.

The law is good as it shows us our sin and need for Jesus as our savior; the law is bad as it is looked to for righteousness, for we consistently break it and are burdened by guilt, shame, and bitterness.

3: Horizontally focused (4:25)

When Paul says “Present Jerusalem” he means to be relying on law and focused on behaviors and expectations from man. Being horizontally focused puts us in the position of God, because while there are always those we compare ourselves to that are “better”, we can always find others who are worse off so we feel better about ourselves. Either way, it is an idolatrous way to live, not a worshipful way to live; for fear of man replaces fear of God.

4: Persecutor (4:29)

Ishmael and his descendants (starting with his mom Hagar) have always been in conflict with Isaac and his descendants; Jews trace their ancestry through Isaac, Arabic peoples trace theirs through Ishmael…Middle Eastern conflict began because of Abraham living by his own ability!

But the greater principle here is that law is always in conflict with gospel…Jesus’ biggest “enemies” were the religious, legalistic, fundamentalists of his day Why? Because their systems of acceptance, control, and power are threatened. They are insecure. Irreligious people aren’t threatened at all.

One way to tell if you find you justification based on works is that you persecute (hateful & hostile) those who are different from you, whether it's racial, social, religious, geographic, gender, or ideological differences.

Do the markers of the "slave life" apply to you? If so, you need to check your heart for legalism and dependence on yourself verses true dependence on God.

We'll be back with part 2 tomorrow!