Rules or Relationship

Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. (Galatians 5:2)

As Paul is writing to the Galatians, he says, “Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all,” (Galatians 5:2). This is such a strong warning. Back then Paul was basically saying, “You can choose circumcision or Christ.” Today we would say, “You can choose religion or redemption, you can choose goodness or grace, or you can choose rules or relationship, but you can’t choose both.” Once you add anything to Jesus, you lose the value of all that He did for you by His death, burial and resurrection.

Now, this doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to live righteous lives as we follow Christ. It means that we must understand that our righteousness doesn’t save us. God doesn’t expect perfection from us, but He does demand righteousness. And only the Holy Spirit living in us can make us righteous. Righteousness is not something we work for; it is something we wait for, just as Paul points out. “For through the Spirit we eagerly await by faith the righteousness for which we hope. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love,” (Galatians 5:5-6).

Substitute any word you want to put in there for circumcision – baptism, religion, ritual, rules, voting Republican, or voting Democrat. Doing your best, trying your hardest – to Jesus none of that has value. The only thing that counts to Jesus is faith, and that should be the only thing that counts to us as well.

Dear Lord, thank you for dying for me so that I might have a relationship with you. Continue to remind me that my righteousness will never be enough to save me, and even though you don’t expect me to be perfect, you ask that I pursue righteousness for the sake of becoming more like Christ. In Jesus’ name, amen.