I've been working this autumn on rewriting and updating some Bible reading curriculum for young people. Thirty three booklets are already completed (that's eleven titles in three different languages) and I'm working now on the booklets that include readings from several New Testament letters. So this week I'm reading the Bible books of Galatians and Philippians.
Reading this morning in Galatians chapter three, it struck me that the whole letter to the Galatians basically addresses one major issue: the danger of believing that we can meet God's requirements by following the Law or by "being a good person." It's an issue that still plagues the churches of the 21st century.
The Galatians had got off to a right start - coming into God's kingdom through faith in the sacrifice of Jesus - but then they had subtly shifted and begun believing and living as if they could maintain a righteous life by their own human effort. Likewise today, it's easy for an alcoholic or a drug addict to come to Jesus with their messed up life, totally aware they can't make it on their own… and then later, once they've "cleaned up their life," to fall into the subtle trap of believing that they can do it on their own now.
In fact, that's why it's sometimes easier for a criminal to come to Jesus than for a respectable, church-going person to be saved. The criminal can really see how much he needs Jesus, while the church goer doesn't particularly feel like a "sinner" and can tend to depend on the fact that they've "always tried to live a good life."
A good test to see which category you fall into (a sinner saved by grace or a religious person following the Law) is to ask yourself this question: when was the last time you asked God to forgive you for something, and what was it for? If you can't remember, it might be an indicator that you've fallen into the same trap as the Galatians: the subtle danger of living your life as if you don't really need Jesus. Such people often feel as if God is far away, because they've got so used to living their lives as if they can manage without Him. If we realise we're there, how can we get back to where we're supposed to be? How can we get back to the place where we depend on God and He feels real to us again?
One way is to come humbly before God every day and ask the Holy Spirit to show us the things we need to ask forgiveness for. He's more sensitive than we are to the little attitudes of impatience, irritation, judging others and self righteousness, and will soon show us what we need to repent of. Sometimes we need to re-learn that lifestyle of Holy Spirit sensitivity, just as my Bible Challenge booklets seek to help young people develop that daily habit.
Another way, also in the Challenge booklets, is to develop a lifestyle of thankfulness that will draw us closer to God and give us a deeper appreciation for His grace and forgiveness. Asking forgiveness and being thankful; these two lifestyle habits can protect us from the subtle danger and trap that the Galatians fell into.
Continue reading below in the previous post (13th October - a matter of choice) for interesting evidence about the power of thankfulness.
