Galatians 3:16-17, “On The New and Old in Regards to Time”

Galatians 3:16-17, “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say, ‘and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ. ¹⁷What I mean is this: The law introduced 430 years later, does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the promise.”

In a previous entry I discussed the righteousness of Abraham, which he was granted by God because of His faith. This was not only due to his belief in God, but his faith that God’s promises were steadfast. In addition, I discussed the “offspring,” promised and made known to Abraham. This offspring was to be a singular person, and through Him the world would be offered the reconciliation unto God. Here, in Galatians, Paul presents the argument of the singular seed that was to come by and through Abraham’s bloodline. As profound as this is, Paul goes further, dipping a bit into history to reveal the true nature of the covenants.

Within the philosophical and theological boundaries of the Christian “religion,” we tend to separate the covenants of Moses and Jesus, and break the Bible down, in a general sense, into both the Old and New Testaments. Man loves to put things and ideas into categories or groups, that by their division, they may be easily sorted and understood. Concerning the division of the Old and New Testaments, as well as the old and new covenant, I conclude there is nothing specifically wrong with this. However, one stumbling block does arise that I have witnessed, but this is the fault of man. It usually concerns those new in the faith or exploring it. It doesn’t seem too uncommon for those whom Christ is calling to be curious about the differentiation between the God of the Old Testament and the New, rather than looking at it as a complete revelation from and of God.

We need to remind our brothers and sisters in Christ, and in fact everyone, that the Scriptures represent a singular narrative that explicitly shows God and reveals He is the same yesterday, today and forever. Why the wrath shown in the Old Testament? Paul gives us a clear answer:

“These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us . . .” -1 Corinthians 10:11

So am I saying its wrong to refer to old and new? Not at all! In fact, the Lord Himself declared prior to Christ that a new thing was being done, and a new covenant will be established with Israel. The Book of Jeremiah says in Chapter 31, Verse 31:

“‘The days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.'”

Yet, if it was shared with Abraham, what is it that makes it new? Simply, it is new in human, temporal terms. It is not as if man, who is subservient to God, caught God unaware and He had to hatch a new plan to save man. Rather, God’s plan was destined from the beginning. God, let it be known that it is a new covenant, because this is truly what it is in the context of time. Time has no bearing on God, for God controls time, and since time is under God’s belt, to God it is already finished. If anyone believes differently, then one cannot believe in the omniscience of God, for God would be subservient to time. Furthermore, if He is subservient to time, He could not be God, and our faith would be meaningless, for by and out of God came Christ. Yet, to God, it is time that has no meaning. The breadth of its meaninglessness is shown by eternity. We usually think of eternity as it corresponds to time, that time will stretch forever, but in actuality, eternity is a place where time doesn’t exist. The extent of the meaninglessness of time to God is made clear in 2 Peter 3:8:

“But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: With the Lord a day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day.”

Therefore, according to time, which we all are subservient, the law came before, and Christ after, and in temporal terms it is new, or more recent. Yet, that’s not all, by this new covenant it gave the law unto the hearts of man, and revealed God unto the world, so that no man or woman is without excuse. Yet, God did promise the new covenant unto Jeremiah and Abraham, and because He refers to it as “new” to Jeremiah, we see that though the promise was made known, and though the revelation of Christ to come preexisted some 430 years prior to the Law, it doesn’t negate the temporal relativity of the coming of Christ and the Spirit. In addition, as Paul says, the two don’t cancel each other out, but instead, they compliment each other to such perfection, they become united and fulfilled in Christ.

It is not necessarily disrespectful or wrong to conclude that the two covenants, outside time, represent one great covenant, where man can be saved through faith, as Abraham was. This, I would argue, when approaching this issue in human linguistics, that the covenants represent old and new revelations, through which God’s attributes and power were proclaimed to man. First, His nature, commandments, and wrath. Secondly, His grace, love, and peace.

The plan of God was singular, but we can differentiate between the covenants, because of what they revealed to man and by the manifestations of God. Under the old covenant, God spoke through the prophets, yet in the new, God came to earth, became man, taught to a multitude, was crucified, and rose again. By this, man does not need to turn to a prophet to know God, but now, His Son and Sprit dwell within our hearts, upon which the law is now written.

Romans 12:3, “On The Nature of Pride”

“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you.” -Romans 12:3

"The Confusion of Tongues," by Gustave Dore. engraving, c. 1865

In my earlier post concerning 2 Corinthians 10:7 entitled, “On Proper Pride and Humility,” I discussed a little about the relative aspects of pride and a few ways one can avoid this particular sin in their life. Yet, I feel some added clarification is required, that we may gain a deeper understanding of this sin, in order that it might be identified. Pride has great ability at concealing itself in ones life, by defining it with more clarity, we may illuminate it.

Pride at its very core is a lie and deceitful. To have pride in oneself, is to take those attributes one has been granted by God and embellish upon them so they become more than they are. As Paul urges, “Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought.” This in essence it what pride is, to think of oneself more highly than you should, or to think about a particular attribute more than you should.

Therefore, if you stand in front of a mirror and suck it in and flex periodically, as I have been known to do, you are exercising that pride. Also, if you are a big, “Rock Band” fan and picture yourself in your minds eye playing in front of a crowd of screaming women, or men, this is also prideful. Do not use your mind and heart to exalt and exaggerate the self, for to do so is incredibly sinful. In addition, because you will fall short in this elaboration, this can lead to extreme depression, when one doesn’t match up to the conception offered up by the sinful mind.

In atheism, a popular argument against God’s being, is that if He existed or exists than He is an extremely prideful being. Yet, when we take Paul’s definition, we find this not to be the case at all. God knows exactly who He is and cannot be anything different. Furthermore, because he is the thing-above-which-no-greater-can-be-thought, as defined perfectly in St. Anselm of Canterbury’s Ontological Argument, He is perfectly worthy of worship. In fact, due to God’s knowledge of exactly what He is, this is humility.

"Sistine Chapel Ceiling (detail)," by Michelangelo. fresco, c. 1508-1512

Paul continues saying, “think of yourself in sober judgment.” This is what humility is when it is in, “accordance with the faith God has distributed.” This being the case then it negates the idea of God being a prideful, and thereby sinful deity. God cannot deceive Himself, for this would present an irreconcilable contradiction, for He would have to imagine Himself greater than He is, which is an impossibility when one applies the definition of God offered by Anselm.

This verse suggests something which may give some insight into what human nature consists of. We are told, again, to think of ourselves in sober judgment in accordance with our faith in Christ. Thereby, since faith plays such a roll in the sober judgement of self, the question arises if we can have any victory against pride away from Christ? I would argue we can’t for the world is based on the self and the flesh. This sin of pride is the very same that drove Adam and Eve from the Garden. In a world where even good actions are self serving and motivated by the self, this doesn’t seem like a complete absurdity.

"Adam and Eve Expelled," by Gustave Dore. engraving, c. 1865

To be in accordance with one’s faith, we need to realize that we are indeed imperfect and sinful. This is how Paul had such a lowly conception of himself without sinning. Paul realized how much of a sinner he was and how unworthy he was to both serve God, and be offered grace through Jesus Christ. Paul was completely humble in that he knew what he was and worked for God to serve all man and almost singlehandedly brought about the New Israel among the Gentiles.

Remember to use discernment and do not elaborately adorn yourself with things like makeup, clothing (but please do wear clothes), jewelry, and anything that you use to magnify your being. This goes for both men and women. Yet, at the same time, we do not need to look like we just crawled out of a gutter whenever we go out in public, but we should use, “sober judgement in accordance with the faith.” Do not attempt to hide the beauty of being that goes beyond mere appearances, but be modest. God has granted you many things and because God is perfect, they are perfect. Do not magnify it by means of worldly things to either please the self or others, for this is a stumbling block to both, and sinful.

Finally, God has distributed the Spirit to all those in the faith. I can’t address every context and every situation, for such wisdom and omniscience belongs to God alone. Pray to the Lord that He may reveal you by the Spirit of Truth, if such sin is present, and to what degree. Pray that He would help and instruct you how to walk that thin line between both pride and envy, that you may see yourself for who you are, a precious child of the Most High.

Matthew 5:37, “On Promises and Vows”

“All you need to say is simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” -Matthew 5:37

While giving His Sermon on The Mount, Jesus tells us to let our yes be yes and our no be no. Like most of the words of Christ, and indeed all God breathed scripture, there is deep meaning here that must be explored.

A vow to God is no small thing, as is evident in the story of Jephthah and his daughter in the book of Judges (Chapter 11). Jephthah made the vow that if he was victorious in battle against the Ammonites, then he would sacrifice the first thing to come out of his door when he arrived back at home.

I don’t know what in the world he was thinking, for it seems odd that he didn’t consider the possibility of any of his family walking out to greet him when he came home, but be that as it may, his daughter was the first thing to walk out of the door. The scriptures tell of Jephthah and his daughters mourning concerning what was to come to pass, and although the scriptures don’t go into detail concerning the sacrifice, it can be concluded that it did in fact occur.

This admittedly horrific tale is often used by non-believers to throw a wrench in our faith in a perfect loving God, but we have to remember that nowhere in this tale is it said that God approved of Jephthah’s actions. Rather, when we look at the scriptures, this event must have been extremely displeasing to the Lord, for time and time again, the word tells us God discourages human sacrifice. The Pagan’s often did it by tragically throwing children into a fiery pit to worship Molech, but God tells us He wants no part of such offerings. In fact, the Ammonites were worshippers of Molech making a veiled connection between both the Judges account and the commands in Leviticus, which could very well suggest God’s distaste for the act (See my note on Leviticus 20:3, “On Molech’s Taste For Human Sacrifice and God’s Distaste”).

So why is it included in scripture then? Simply, it is intended as a warning to those that make a vow before God, how much that promise, or vow, must be honored by the person making it. Jephthah was an example that showed the degree of seriousness a vow to God is.

Again, Christ tells us to make no oaths, for beyond that comes from evil. Why evil? Let us take a look at the nature of oaths and vows. When someone says, “I promise,” what is it they mean? They mean that no matter what circumstance might arise to keep them from accomplishing and fulfilling that vow, that they will follow through. There becomes a few issues with this point alone.

When making a vow, the outside situations that may arise while in pursuit of fulfilling that vow are unknown to us. We have no idea of knowing, for instance, if some disaster or misfortune will hinder our obedience in completing that promise. As is mentioned earlier, this doesn’t excuse the vow being broken, rather we need to realize it is still binding no matter what issues may arise. This being said, it reaches no absurdity to conclude that with God’s infinite wisdom, though He makes vows, no contradiction or hypocrisy exists, for He has an omniscience that is not present in man.

Furthermore, one should reflect on who it is that makes vows and promises. Though not an absolute, I would suggest that the more promises a person makes, the more untrustworthy they are. For such people it is intended to add to their “yes” the extra confidence that their vow will be followed through with and accomplished. This, of course, suggests that the person making the vow has been less then trustworthy in the past, or their word alone would have been taken with complete confidence to begin with. Yet, people should have confidence in a person anyway that their yes will mean yes, and their no mean no, without any added attribution.

A person who doesn’t do what they say is untrustworthy and an untrustworthy person is under the influence of evil, for evil begets lies and deceit. Indeed, essentially, a broken vow is the same as a lie. Be trustworthy. Do not behave in such a way that you need to make vows just for people to believe you, but live in a way that people can rely on you just by what you say. That in their darkest days they may ask you to help carry their burdens like our Lord Jesus commands (See my note on Galatians 6:2, “On The Greatest Burden and The Greatest Love”).

Romans 1:13, “On The Plans of Man in Relation to God’s Will and in Which You’ll Read a Few Notes Concerning Responsibility, or, ‘When in Rome . . .'”

“I do not want you to be unaware, brothers and sisters, that I planned many times to come to you (but have been prevented from doing so until now) in order that I might have a harvest among you, just as I have had among the other gentiles.” -Romans 1:13

Paul in verse 13, tells of his strong desire to visit the church at Rome. Indeed, it could be reasonably said, that it was something very important to Paul, for despite it not coming to pass for some time, he never abandoned his plan, but rather held to the desire throughout his numerous travels.

Paul continues telling the reader that the reason he didn’t visit, was that he was prevented from doing so. At least in this verse Paul doesn’t elaborate, but due to the manifest relationship with Paul had with the Lord, it seems that the Lord, even by allowing hardship, postponed Paul’s visit to the Romans.

1,400 Year Old Fresco Found in Roman Catacomb Purportedly Showing The Apostle Paul

The plans of Man and the plans of the Lord scarcely match up. Even when we feel that we are dong something to further the Lord’s kingdom on earth and have nothing but the best of intentions, it doesn’t necessarily follow that it is God’s will. Paul did eventually make it to Rome, suggested by the use of the words, “until now.”

This seems to be a place where God’s will and Paul’s desire are in sync, at least to some degree. However, we must remember that in our relationship with the Lord, this may or may not be the case and though we may wait on Him, our desires may never come to fruition.

The fact is that God can easily prevent, or even force people, to do His will, like in the case of Jonah. This is a right God has because of His sovereignty  and like it or not, our existence denotes that we are already part of His will. So, this being the case, where does responsibility fit in, for some suggest that if God is indeed sovereign then it follows that responsibility is an illusion?

"Jonah Leaving The Whale," by Jan Brueghel The Elder. oil on panel, c. 1600

To state it simply without going into pages of philosophical ramblings, our time and place is predetermined in that the decisions we would make freely would be the necessary means to God’s final purpose. An omniscient awareness of choice and it’s outcome doesn’t necessarily contradict or negate the particular individuals responsibility in decision.

In our struggle of our will with God’s we have a freedom to choose what role we will Play in God’s ultimate purpose, and this freedom represents a clear choice and if there is choice, than it follows their must be responsibility in our actions and decisions.

"Adam and Eve," by Albrecht Durer. copper-plate engraving, c. 1504