Oleksandr Zhabenko

🇬🇧 Glory be to Jesus Christ! 🌞 Dedicated to Emma Kok.

(Galatians IV, 28 – V, 10)

Galatians IV, 30, 31 – ‘ελευθερας’ - ‘eleutheras’ – ‘free’.

Galatians V, 1 – ‘ελευθερια’ – ‘eleutheria’ – ‘freedom, liberty’. ‘ημας’ – ‘emas’ – ‘us’. ‘ηλευθερωσεν’ – ‘eleutherosen’ – ‘liberated, freed’.

There is a good multi-part essay on freedom here:
https://oleksandr-zhabenko.github.io/en/DialogueOnWordsChristFear.html

Galatians V, 5 – ‘ημεις’ – ‘emeis’ – ‘we’.

Paul uses the example of Sarah and Hagar and their children to show the power of God’s promise and the value of freedom and liberation.

The conclusion of chapter IV is logically a continuation of what is also written at the following link:
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In Christ we have access to all of God’s promises. Therefore, the event with Isaac and Ishmael has a figurative meaning – the Lord encouraged Abraham to leave Isaac, the son of promise, as his heir, not because it was necessary at that time, but mainly because it was to be a prototype in Christ for the believers in the New Testament, who were to be sons of the free and not of the slave. This is the way to understand why the Lord spoke those words. The conflict between the children of Abraham could have been settled differently, but for the sake of the prototype and all the believers in the New Testament, the Lord said to do it this way. It should be noted that He continued to care for Hagar and Ishmael, and the latter became the ancestor of the Arabs.

See also more about Hagar and Ishmael in the readings for Lent referred to here:
29032023.html

In chapter V, Paul expands on this idea and also shows that there is no good in going back to the Old Testament when you should be going to the New. There is no point in becoming Jews when you need to become Christians. The Galatians were faced with just such a temptation.

If someone forced Christians to be circumcised and to fulfil the entire ceremonial law of Moses, then instead of Christ, instead of grace, they were returning to the Old Covenant, when there was no redemption, no liberation in Christ from the slavery of sin, but preparation and expectation for Him, for the Messiah-Christ. And if anyone, knowing this, realising this, continues to force the fulfilment of the entire ceremonial Mosaic Law, including circumcision, then such a person neglects the grace in Christ, as Paul writes.

See also the references that have previously addressed the same topic:
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17062023.html

13062023.html

15042023.html

19062023.html

21062023.html

31082023.html

(Mark VI, 54 – VII, 8)

Mark VI, 55 – ‘κακως εχοντας’ – ‘kakos ekhontas’ – literally (something) very bad, evil to the having (those who have). As I wrote earlier, this is how Mark refers to complex and serious illnesses. See more here:
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Mark VII, 6 – ‘εμου’ – ‘emou’ – (from) ‘Me’. The quote is from Isaiah XXIX, 13, see also here:
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For a parallel passage in Matthew (Matthew XIV, 35 – XV, 11), read here:
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Mark adds an explanation of the traditions of the Jews for the Romans because he was writing to Christians in Rome who might not know the details of Jewish life.

It should be noted that Christ is not opposed to hygiene or washing dishes (some of these rules are in the Law, which the Lord kept, and He did not deny greetings and foot washing as such, for He Himself participated in them and even set an example by washing the disciples’ feet at the Last Supper). But He opposes ascribing to hygiene rules and human conventions the weight of God’s ordinances and commandments, levelling them in weight and significance, as the Pharisees did.

Glory be to Thee, our God, glory be to Thee!

Source:
https://www.facebook.com/Oleksandr.S.Zhabenko/