Oh, foolish Galatians! Who has cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ’s death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of his death on the cross. Let me ask you this one question: Did you receive the Holy Spirit by obeying the law of Moses? Of course not! You received the Spirit because you believed the message you heard about Christ. How foolish can you be? After starting your new lives in the Spirit, why are you now trying to become perfect by your own human effort? Have you experienced so much for nothing? Surely it was not in vain, was it? I ask you again, does God give you the Holy Spirit and work miracles among you because you obey the law? Of course not! It is because you believe the message you heard about Christ. In the same way, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.” The real children of Abraham, then, are those who put their faith in God. What’s more, the Scriptures looked forward to this time when God would make the Gentiles right in his sight because of their faith. God proclaimed this good news to Abraham long ago when he said, “All nations will be blessed through you.” So all who put their faith in Christ share the same blessing Abraham received because of his faith. But those who depend on the law to make them right with God are under his curse, for the Scriptures say, “Cursed is everyone who does not observe and obey all the commands that are written in God’s Book of the Law.” So it is clear that no one can be made right with God by trying to keep the law. For the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.” This way of faith is very different from the way of law, which says, “It is through obeying the law that a person has life.” But Christ has rescued us from the curse pronounced by the law. When he was hung on the cross, he took upon himself the curse for our wrongdoing. For it is written in the Scriptures, “Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.” Through Christ Jesus, God has blessed the Gentiles with the same blessing he promised to Abraham, so that we who are believers might receive the promised Holy Spirit through faith.
Galatians 3:1-14 NLT
God wants you to experience the life that comes from His Spirit. Paul was trying to convince the Galatians that they do not need to be circumcised in order to be saved or accepted by God. In these verses he gave two arguments. First, Abraham believed in God and was considered righteous. Faith has always, even in the Old Testament, been the way to be right with the Lord. Second, Paul gave the example of the Spirit's power in the lives of the Galatian believers – they had been changed and seen miracles. This power didn't come through circumcision, but through faith – making the decision to trust and follow Jesus.
Follow the way you most experience God’s Spirit. If it is in worship, listen to worship music all the time. If it is reading books or listening to sermons, make time to be filled up with those. If it is nature or hiking or serving or missions or silence or journaling, make a way to do those things. Make prayer and the Word of God a part of those times too. And don’t neglect gathering with other believers, either (Heb 10:24-25). Let the Lord speak into your life, make decisions with Him, and live a fully devoted life. This is life way beyond the rules or trying to prove you are a “good” or “religious” person. This is an adventure and journey with Jesus, a relationship with the Creator and Savior that will change your life. Walk with the Spirit of God and experience life!
How do you most experience the life of God’s Spirit? What difference could it make if you spent more time doing these things?
