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Stay Focused in the Gospel: Christ Formed in Us (Galatians 4:17-20)

December 19, 2024 Nate Holdridge

With this passage, we wrap up Paul’s passionate appeal to the Galatians not to add to the gospel they’d been given but to stay firm in the gospel of grace. Through his words, we’ve also seen the Spirit’s heart expressed for all of us, and so far, we’ve learned that God wants us to stay simple in the gospel, relating to him as our father, and to stay free in the Christian liberty he won for us.

Stay Free in the Gospel: In Christian Liberty (Galatians 4:12-16)

December 12, 2024 Nate Holdridge

Today, we pick up in the middle of Paul’s loving appeal to the Galatians, pleading with them to stay firm in the gospel of grace rather than being swayed by false teachers to add practices of Judaism to be accepted by God. As Paul expressed his heart to them, we learn the Spirit’s heart for all of us. Last week, we saw how God wants us to stay simple in our relationship with him, relating to Him as our Father.

Stay Simple in the Gospel: God Is Our Father (Galatians 4:8-11)

December 5, 2024 Nate Holdridge

We are in the middle of Paul's theological case to the Galatian church. After he had brought them the gospel, they had begun to drift from it. False teachers were telling them they needed to attach the practices of Judaism to their new faith in Christ. Soon, these brand-new Gentile Christians were acting out Old Testament practices in an attempt to become accepted in God's sight. All this was abhorrent to Paul—he referred to it as a gospel contrary to the one they had received, a distorted gospel, a different gospel, one worthy of a curse on all who proclaim it (Galatians 1:6-9).

Do I Feel God Is My Father? (Galatians 4:1-7)

November 28, 2024 Nate Holdridge

After asking, Do I think God is my Father? the second question this text leads us to ask should be, Do I feel God is my Father? These verses tell us that God is discontent with only positioning us as his sons or us merely thinking we are his sons—he also wants us to feel we are his sons. He puts his Spirit in believers, and the Spirit within us cries out to God, “Abba, Father!”

Do I Think of God as My Father? (Galatians 4:1-7)

November 21, 2024 Nate Holdridge

This entire passage illustrates the point in the final verse: "So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God" (7). If you have trusted Christ and believed his gospel, you have been transferred from slavery to sonship. You are—right now, not only in the future—a full heir of God because of your connection to Jesus.

The Law Complements the Gospel Because It Combatted Sin until Christ Arrived & Reveals Our Need for Christ (Galatians 3:19-22)

October 31, 2024 Nate Holdridge

Last week, we began looking at how the law complements the Gospel, the first way being that it arrived after Christ was promised - over four centuries after the promise made to Abraham and his offspring.

The Law Complements the Gospel Because It Arrived after Christ Was Promised (Galatians 3:15-18)

October 24, 2024 Nate Holdridge

In a sense, there is no bigger question than the one Galatians attempts to answer: How do we relate to God? Do we experience God as a reward for good works? Do we gain fuller and more complete revelation of him by keeping more of his law as revealed in nature, conscience, or Scripture? Or do we encounter God by his grace? Do we enjoy him through faith in his promises?

The Gospel of Grace Brought the Spirit to Us (Galatians 3:10–14, ESV)

October 17, 2024 Nate Holdridge

Through this passage over the past couple of weeks, we’ve examined two reasons the gospel of grace transfers us from curse to blessing: it shows us the way of faith and that Christ is the one to consume the curse. The third reason the gospel transfers us from curse to blessing is that it brought the Spirit to us. Because Jesus died and rose, when we believe in him, we become recipients of the Holy Spirit (cf. Eph. 1:13-14, 2 Cor. 1:22). He is God, and he makes his home in us. Paul explained this truth this way:

Paul Used the Example of Abraham to Demonstrate Gospel Truth (Galatians 3:1-9)

September 26, 2024 Nate Holdridge

The book of Galatians is a letter detailing a struggle for the gospel of grace. Paul was a first-century apostle, and God's purpose for Paul was to send him to the non-Jewish (Gentile) nations with the good news of Jesus.

The Gospel is Worth Every Sacrifice and Asks for Our Ongoing Trust (Galatians 3:1-5)

September 19, 2024 Nate Holdridge

As Paul is writing to the Galatians, he pivots toward defending gospel doctrine to help them turn back to Jesus and the sufficiency of His cross. He poses a series of rhetorical questions, each highlighting some of the beautiful benefits of the gospel. Through Paul’s initial questions that we studied last week, we saw how the gospel unleashes the Spirit and supplies the necessary resources to become complete. Today, we’ll examine two more questions Paul asked to help them see the gospel afresh.