Verse: Galatians 3:1-6
“You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified. I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard? Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh? Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain? So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard? So also Abraham “believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
Devotion
In these verses, the author Paul is calling the Galatians idiots because his explanations about the way God operates were super clear, and they knew all about it, and fully understood it, but they didn’t use the knowledge.
The concept is simple to understand, yet harder to put into practice: you can’t earn or deserve what God gives. It only comes from simple belief and receiving that gift.
We’re all idiots in our own special little way though, and we try to prove to God and to others how much we deserve God’s gifts.
“I’m a good person.”
“I follow all the rules.”
“I do lots of things for God.”
Not even Abraham, who God used for just about everything in Jewish and Christian religion, was considered righteous by what he did. It was his belief that is credited to him as righteousness.
So there you go. This is Christian faith in a nutshell. Don’t be an idiot and think that you can earn God. You don’t need to anyway—God considers you righteous for your belief and trust in him.
Prayer
God, show me an area that I’m trying to earn righteousness so I can stop.
Author: Jordan Ambra
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