The Amish Voice 4
was not what they were about to do. What were they turning back to?
The false teachers (Judaizers) in Galatia were teaching that a man was
to approach God by the law and works—that a man became
acceptable to God by his own efforts, by working and doing as much
good as he could.
Of course, this is exactly what all religious people do, no matter
their religion: they try to please their god, to secure the god’s
approval by doing what pleases him. This means that all religions
(
except Christianity) are religions of works and of law. Therefore, if
the Galatians subjected themselves to the law and to a religion of
works, they would be
returning
to a life of bondage—the bondage of
working to get God to pay attention to them and to receive and accept
them.
The crucial point is this: there is no difference between seeking
God through the law and seeking God through pagan worship. The
foundation of all religious seeking (except Christianity) is the same:
that of working to keep the laws that please a person’s god—that of
doing good so that a person’s
god
will accept him.
Note that Paul calls man’s elementary notions of God weak and
beggarly.
a. The law and other approaches to God are weak in that they are
helpless in saving man. The law itself could only point out
man’s sin, but it could never justify and make him acceptable
to God.
b. The law and other approaches to God are beggarly, that is,
worthless in saving man. The law itself is meaningless, of no
use whatsoever in justifying and making man acceptable to
God. It is not the law nor man’s works and attempts to be good
that saves him.
Note also that Paul illustrates his point by referring to special
religious holidays. The point is that ritual, ceremony, and the keeping
of religious days will not justify and make a person acceptable before
God. Christ and Christ alone—faith in Him—saves a person.
2.
Note the results of backsliding, of turning back to the world and
seeking to please God by self-effort and self-righteousness.
a. A person becomes enslaved in that he tries to please God
by keeping the rules of the law, but he finds he cannot. But
he still slavishly tries and tries again. However, it is all to
no avail, for the man finds himself still in the bondage of
sin and death. He still sins and he still dies, and there is no
absolute assurance within of eternal life. And it is the lack
of assurance, of knowing that one is acceptable to God, that
is so enslaving. The question and doubt of living with God
gnaws and gnaws at man—always without the sure
knowledge and assurance of God’s love. Perfect assurance,
confidence, and security come only through faith in Jesus
Christ.
b. A person lives a wasted life. Every approach to God fails
except faith in Jesus Christ. Every approach leads to death
and condemnation; therefore, every life that approaches
God by any other means than faith in Jesus Christ is a
wasted life.
“
And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put
his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for
the kingdom of God” (Lu.9:62).
“
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man
draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in
him” (He.10:38).
ILLUSTRATION:
What things would cause a Christian believer to backslide?
Perhaps some illumination will come through this story.
The boy scout was really excited about going on the annual
winter camperee. With a couple feet of snow on the ground, the
setting was perfect for a great weekend.
His was one of the first troops to hike in and set up camp. The
boy scout, along with his troop, forged into the wilderness. Upon
arrival, they set up camp and prepared for their weekend
adventure.
After pitching his tent, the boy scout realized that he had left
something in the bus. So, he proceeded to take the long walk back
to the bus which was a few miles away. Feeling confident in his
“
retriever skills,” he did not take care to look for the important
landmarks which would show him the way back to camp.
Coming back from the bus proved to be an unplanned
adventure. The confusion from other scouts setting up their own
camps caused him to question which paths to take. After awhile,
every path looked the same. To say that he was getting worried
would be an obvious observation. “How could I have missed it? If
only I could find something (or someone) familiar.”
The backslider is a lot like this confused boy scout. They forget
to set familiar landmarks in place to keep themselves on track.
What are those landmarks? Regular time in God’s Word, frequent
prayer, and accountable fellowship with other believers.
Whatever happened to that backslidden boy scout you might
be wondering? Every approach to his camp ended in failure.
Hours later, his scoutmaster found him and brought him back to
camp. That is exactly what the Great Scoutmaster, the Good
Shepherd, does for wayward sheep. He finds them and brings
them to Himself.
QUESTIONS
:
1.
What insights can you gain from the experiences of this boy scout?
2.
What sort of attitude are you to have in regards to backsliding?
3.
What are some of the results of backsliding? What have you done
to prevent becoming a backslider?
