◄ What Does Galatians 3:10 Mean? ►

Throughout the book of Galatians, the apostle Paul seeks to demonstrate that salvation by grace through faith in Christ is not only the first step in the Christian life, when a sinner is born from above, but that we are also to live our entire Christian life from that point forward, by grace through faith in Christ alone. We are not revert back to the unattainable works of the Law, which God designed as a schoolmaster to bring us to Christ.

The works of the Law are impossible to keep and unattainable for fallen man to achieve, for they are based on man's work and man's merit and not by God's grace through faith in Christ.

It is shocking to realise that those who insist that Christians live by the works of the Law, are placing themselves and others under God's condemnation and curse. No man, woman, or child is capable of ever keeping the Law, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. All have missed the perfect standard God requires of mankind: all except the Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ fulfilled the perfect requirements of the Law, not only by the perfect life that He lived, but in the WAY that His life was lived. Christ not only 'kept' the written requirements of the Law, but throughout His whole life He did ONLY what the Father willed; He said ONLY what He heard from the Father. Christ lived as God intended mankind to live, in utter and total dependence on His Father.

Christ fulfilled the whole Law, and all who believe on Him by grace through faith are identified with His death. Christ rising from the dead gave proof of His perfectly fulfilling the Law, and we are similarly identified with His resurrection life. And so, like Christ, we are to live that life as God intended: by grace through faith and not by works of the Law.

Only as Christ's life is lived in and through the believer, by grace through faith, are we living as God intended man to live, in utter and total dependence on Him. But when we substitute the works of the Law (carried out through man's merit) for works of the spirit (carried out by the indwelling Spirit of God by grace through faith) we unwittingly place ourselves back under the curse of the Law.

Let us never forget that Christ took the curse for us: "Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written, 'Cursed is everyone who is hung on a pole.'"

Heavenly Father, thank You that I am saved by grace through faith. Help me also to live by grace through faith and not by works of the Law carried out though my own merit. Help me to live as You intended man to live, in utter dependence upon the Lord Jesus, in the same way that He lived His life in utter dependence upon You. In Jesus' name, AMEN.