How do we “fall from grace”?
Sep 26, 2011
The Race for Grace - part sixteen in a study of the book of Galatians
By Mike Gaudet
How do we “fall from grace”?
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.” Galatians 5:1-4
Initially, Christianity was considered to be a sect within Judaism. It’s easy to understand why. The center of the Christian church was initially located in Jerusalem. The twelve apostles were Jewish. The Jewish Bible (The 39 books of the Old Testament) was the only Bible the early church had. It wasn’t until the fourth century that the 27 books of the New Testament were officially recognized.
As the gospel of Jesus Christ spread into the Gentile world, Christianity was increasingly recognized as a religious faith in its own rite. In spite of this separation, the process of clarifying which beliefs were Jewish and which were Christian was painfully slow. It was common to find elements of each being mixed together. This is what happened in Galatia.
Paul, called by God to be God’s apostle to the Gentile world, was one through whom the distinctive beliefs of Christianity were clarified. His letters, some of which are located in the New Testament, were documents that brought much needed clarity to the church. Being trained as a Jewish theologian, Paul understood Judaism clearly enough to be able to distinguish between what was Jewish and what was Christian.
When Paul left Galatia to proclaim the gospel elsewhere, Jewish-Christian missionaries arrived who taught these new believers that to become Christians they first needed to become Jews. These teachers cited passages from the Bible commanding dietary restrictions, holy day observances and male circumcision as necessary requirements for becoming one of God’s chosen people. Because they had not yet developed the requisite theological discernment, these new Christians were unable to counter these convincing arguments.
We might be tempted to look back disapprovingly on such lack of discernment. However, the Christian church still wrestles with questions concerning which practices are Jewish and which are Christian. Old Testament commandments concerning circumcision and animal sacrifice are easily set aside. However, many Christians still believe that keeping the Ten Commandments is the means by which men and women are accepted by God. This is Jewish. It isn’t Christian.
Christian belief prohibits the use of commandment keeping as currency to purchase God’s acceptance.
In his letter to the Galatians Paul drew a line in the sand between what is and is not Christian. He indicated that someone who “lets himself be circumcised” is “obligated to obey the whole law.” If Paul’s concern were limited to the practice of circumcision, there’d be no cause for alarm in our day. However, Paul’s concern was broader than this. He indicated that a man or woman who is seeking to be “justified by law” has “fallen from grace.”
To be “justified” means to be “declared righteous by God.” Someone who’s “trying to be justified by law” is attempting to obey Old Testament Law in order to earn God’s acceptance. It isn’t possible to honor “acceptable” elements of Old Testament Law, like the Ten Commandments, and reject “unacceptable” ones, like circumcision or animal sacrifice. When we base our righteousness on being “law abiding” we are “obligated to keep the whole law.” We aren’t free to pick and choose.
God sent His Son into the world to “set us free” from the jurisdiction of Old Covenant Law . . .”It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.” We are to “stand firm” in this freedom. Paul issued this command; “do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
We are to resist Bible teachers who would lead us to believe that we control God’s love and promises by our adherence to the Ten Commandments. We are to resist those who attempt to convince us that God loves us . . . but will love us even more if we fast, pray, serve, study, give or tithe.
Concerned about “falling from grace”?
Learn to distinguish between beliefs that are Christian . . .
. . . and beliefs that are not.