Last time we went through Chapter 4 where Paul builds on the idea that the law did not give anyone sonship status but treated everyone as slaves and infants. Everyone that broke the law at any point fell under its curse. Jesus Christ died under the law to redeem us from the curse of the law and lift us above it through the adoption of sons. Under grace we are the sons of God and he illustrates this point through the examples of Abraham’s marriages to Hagar and Sarah. The women represent the covenants (law and grace) and the sons represent what they produced – a slave and a son. Ishmael was a product of the flesh and Isaac was the child of promise. In Christ, we are as Isaac was…children of promise.

Last time we went through chapter 3 where Paul asks the question “The things that
have begun in the Spirit, can they now be completed by the flesh?” He then goes on to explain the role that the law played and it’s intent. It’s purpose was to drive us to faith in Christ, not to justify anyone. The legalists were focused on taking these New Testament Christians back to Moses, but Paul took them even further back to Abraham…showing that Abraham was justified by believing the promises of God. All those who have exercised faith in Christ for salvation are the spiritual children of Abraham.

Last time we went through chapter 2 of which Paul tells of his two defenses of the gospel(once in Jerusalem and once in Antioch). In Jerusalem, he recounts how he took Barnabas and Titus with him and preached the gospel in private to the leaders of the Jerusalem church. False brethren infiltrated one of the meetings and pressed Titus to be circumcised and tried to bring them all under bondage. Paul said that they didn’t suffer them even for an hour that the truth of the gospel might stand which is justification by faith alone in Christ alone.