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Galatians 3.10-14 (ESV)
The Righteous Shall Live by Faith
10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12 But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.
When I lived in Southern CA, I dreaded having to drive on the freeways simply because it was quite possible that I would get stuck in a traffic jam. Sometimes the traffic jam was just a matter of congestion resulting from large numbers of cars getting on the freeway, or freeways that merge together, or freeways that have a reduction in lanes at some point. However, sometimes there were accidents that either restricted or blocked traffic completely and you simply had to wait until things were cleared. But once the blockage was cleared, it was back to traveling at speed, that is, until you come upon the next traffic jam (by the way, in a 2019 study, the worst city for traffic in the United States—Boston, Massachusetts).
In this passage, Paul is talking about a spiritual traffic jam of sorts.
If you remember from the previous passage, Paul spoke about Abraham. The Lord made a covenant with Abraham, promising him a great family and land and that all nations would be blessed through Abraham (Genesis 12 and 15). In Genesis 15:6, we’re told that Abraham believed the promises of God; in other words, Abraham had faith.
That promise wasn’t simply just for Abraham and his family and his descendants (the Jews). It was a promise for all the nations (Genesis 12:1-3).
However, a traffic jam developed along the way. As N.T. Wright notes in his commentary on Galatians, “God’s promise still held good; God still intended to bless the whole world through Abraham’s family; but Israel, the promise-bearers, were not only themselves failing, but getting in the way of the wider fulfillment [of God’s covenant promises].”
Fortunately, the Lord is the great and perfect promise keeper, and throughout the Old Testament, we get hints that the Lord is going to fulfill His promise in a very special way. The prophets Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Joel, and others speak of the Lord fulfilling His promises, bringing restoration and reconciliation not only to the descendants of Abraham but to the entire world, and it all happens through the gift of God’s Son, Jesus the Messiah.
In Jesus, the law is not abolished but fulfilled. Through His crucifixion and resurrection, He defeated the curse of sin and death, and the gift of the Spirit is poured out to all who entrust their lives to Christ alone. In short, the covenant blessings promised to and through Abraham are fulfilled in and through Jesus’ birth, life, death, and resurrection.
In Jesus, the roadblocks have been removed, and we can be reconciled and restored.
Yet it seems like we still struggle with roadblocks. These are not roadblocks from the Lord, rather they are roadblocks of our own making. Individually these roadblocks are made up of our own stubbornness and refusal to let go of old sinful habits or of our unwillingness to trust the Lord with every aspect of our lives. For the church, the roadblocks consist of our reluctance or even our outright refusal to follow where the Lord leads and calls.
What roadblocks might be hindering the pursuit of your relationship with Jesus? What roadblocks might be keeping your church from following where the Lord leads? How might the loving gift of Jesus and the Spirit remove any roadblocks in your life and the life of your church?
God bless you and know that you are prayed for constantly,
Scott
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