Bible Study October 7, 2026
CHILDREN OF PROMISE
GALATIANS 4 (ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION)
Galatians 3:23-29 (ESV)
23 Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed. 24 So then, the law was our guardian until Christ came, in order that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. 27 For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. 28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.
Sons and Heirs
1 I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, 2 but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. 3 In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world.
Paul contrasts the path of slavery and death with the path of freedom and life. He uses the illustration of slavery to show that before Christ came and died for sins, people were in bondage to the law. Thinking they could be saved by it, they became enslaved to trying--and failing--to keep it. We were once slaves, but now we are God's very own children and have an intimate relationship with him. Because of Christ, there is no reason to be afraid of God. We can come boldly into his presence, knowing that he will welcome us as his children.
4 But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.
John 1:12-13 (ESV)
12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
Romans 8:14-16 (ESV)
14 For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. 15 For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, “Abba! Father!” 16 The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God,
Jesus was born of a woman, so he was human. He was born as a Jew, so he was subject to God's law, and he fulfilled it perfectly. Thus, Jesus was the perfect sacrifice because although he was fully human, he never sinned. His death bought freedom for us who were enslaved to sin so that we could be adopted into God's family.
"When the right time came," God sent Jesus to earth to die for our sins. For centuries the Jews had been wondering when their Messiah would come--but God's timing was perfect. We may sometimes wonder about God's timing. Do you wonder if God will ever respond to your prayers? Never doubt him or give up hope. At the right time he will respond. Are you waiting for God's timing? Trust his judgment and trust that he has your best interests in mind.
Under Roman law, an adopted son was guaranteed all legal rights to his father's property, even if he was formerly a slave. He was not a second-class son; he was equal to all other sons, biological or adopted, in his father's family. As adopted children of God, we share with Jesus all rights to God's resources. As God's heirs, we can claim what he has provided for us--our full identity as his children.
Paul's Concern for the Galatians
8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more? 10 You observe days and months and seasons and years! 11 I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.
12 Brothers, I entreat you, become as I am, for I also have become as you are. You did me no wrong. 13 You know it was because of a bodily ailment that I preached the gospel to you at first, 14 and though my condition was a trial to you, you did not scorn or despise me, but received me as an angel of God, as Christ Jesus. 15 What then has become of your blessedness? For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me. 16 Have I then become your enemy by telling you the truth?
Paul's illness was a sickness that he had endured while visiting the Galatian churches. People can be callous to the pain and misery of others. Paul commended the Galatians for not scorning him even though his condition was a trial to them. (He didn't explain what was wrong with him, though it may have had something to do with his eyes; see 4:15.) Such caring was what Jesus meant when he called us to serve the homeless, hungry, sick, and imprisoned as if they were Jesus himself (Matthew 25:34-40). Do you avoid those in pain or those facing difficulty, or are you willing to care for them as if they were Jesus Christ himself?
Have you lost your joy? Paul sensed that the Galatians had lost the early joy of their salvation because of the legalism that had crept back into their lives. Legalism can take away joy because (1) it makes people feel guilty rather than loved, (2) it produces self-condemnation rather than humility, (3) it stresses performance over relationship, and (4) it points out how far short we fall rather than how far we've come because of what Christ has done for us. If you feel guilty and inadequate, check your focus. Are you claiming the freedom that faith in Christ brings, or are you trying to live up to the demands and expectations of others?
Paul did not gain great popularity when he rebuked the Galatians for wavering in their beliefs about what it meant to have faith in Christ. Human nature hasn't changed much--we still get angry when we're criticized. But don't disregard someone who challenges you. That person may be speaking truth that you need to hear. Receive his or her words with humility and carefully think them over. If you discover that you need to change an attitude or action, take steps to do it.
2 Corinthians 11:24-29 (ESV)
24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches. 29 Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is made to fall, and I am not indignant?
17 They make much of you, but for no good purpose. They want to shut you out, that you may make much of them.
The false teachers claimed to be religious authorities and experts in Judaism and Christianity. Appealing to the believers' desire to do what was right, they were drawing quite a following. Paul said, however, that they were wrong and that their motives were selfish.
18 It is always good to be made much of for a good purpose, and not only when I am present with you, 19 my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you! 20 I wish I could be present with you now and change my tone, for I am perplexed about you.
Paul led many people to Christ and helped them mature spiritually. Perhaps one reason for his success as a spiritual father was the deep concern he felt for his spiritual children; he compared his pain over their faithlessness to the pain of childbirth. We should have the same intense care for those to whom we are spiritual parents. When you lead people to Christ, remember to stand by them to help them grow.
Example of Hagar and Sarah
21 Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? 22 For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. 23 But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise. 24 Now this may be interpreted allegorically: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar.
Paul uses what happened to Sarah and Hagar as a picture of the relationship between God and people.
25 Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. 26 But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. 27 For it is written,
“Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear;
break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor!
For the children of the desolate one will be more
than those of the one who has a husband.”
28 Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29 But just as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now. 30 But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman.” 31 So, brothers, we are not children of the slave but of the free woman.
People are saved because of their faith in Christ, not because of what they do. Paul contrasts those who are enslaved to the law (represented by Hagar, the slave wife and mother of Ishmael) with those who are free from the law (represented by Sarah, the freeborn wife and mother of Isaac). Ishmael's mistreatment of Isaac (Genesis 21:9) was like the persecution that the Gentile Christians were receiving from the Judaizers, who were insisting that people had to keep the law in order to be saved. God chose Sarah to be the mother of the covenant line of descendants that would lead to the Messiah. God kept his promise to give her a son, just as those who worship Christ in faith will also receive the full benefits of God's promises.