Are You Perfected by the Flesh?

 July 11, 2024

Thursday

Galatians 3:2–3 (NASB 2020) ² This is the only thing I want to find out from you: did you receive the Spirit by works of the Law, or by hearing with faith? ³ Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh?

It seems that some want to return to keeping the law as a means of salvation. They condemn those who do not do as they say the scriptures dictate. Sure, there should be fundamentals that we all believe and follow. We must know that Jesus is the only means of salvation. We must know He was resurrected and all of His miracles were real. We must know He is coming back. We must all believe that the Bible is the inspired word of God. 

It seems that the question at hand is whether we can interpret something differently that does not fall into the fundamentals. Of course, this too must become reasonable. One simply can't say that Adam flew like a bird because he had dominion over the birds of the sky. And we need to carefully consider any doctrine that is based on one or two scriptures without support from the rest of the Bible. I Corinthians 15: 29 asks why people are baptized for the dead. Do we start baptizing for the dead because of this one scripture? I think not! The rest of the Bible does not support that.

So, we must understand that we agree on the fundamentals but give grace where we disagree in interpretations. We must never make doctrines out of issues that are not supported by other scriptures. We must understand that people come from different levels of education and traditions. There are some things that have been engrained into people that cannot be eliminated. There are those who will not wear jewelry and those who will not eat at church. They have their reasons. They believe they are following the Bible. 

I, personally, do not drink alcohol. It is not a sin for those who drink in moderation. The absence of alcohol for me is a limited fast. I don't drink alcohol as a commitment to the Lord. I don't think others must follow my example. It is what I do. Should I impose that as a rule for others I have returned to a righteousness from law. 

Unfortunately, people want to impose their personal beliefs and long-held interpretations on others. It just seems right to them. But for me, I want to be biblical. I want the Bible to determine what is right. Yet, if others have different views but can support that with their own biblical interpretations, I will fellowship with them. I may not agree on a particular issue, but I will agree on the fundamentals that cause us to be Christians. 

I am a Christian because I know Jesus. I am justified by His sacrifice. I will never be perfected by keeping rules or laws. Praise God for that. I would never be good enough to be justified if that was the case. I am made free from the law that condemns me.