in the end of galations, paul writes this awesome statement in his own hand, as kind of the "wrap it up, get serius" moment of the letter. he says this:
11 Notice what large letters I use as I write these closing words in my own handwriting.
12 Those who are trying to force you to be circumcised want to look good to others. They don’t want to be persecuted for teaching that the cross of Christ alone can save. 13 And even those who advocate circumcision don’t keep the whole law themselves. They only want you to be circumcised so they can boast about it and claim you as their disciples.
14 As for me, may I never boast about anything except the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Because of that cross,[c] my interest in this world has been crucified, and the world’s interest in me has also died. 15 It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation. 16 May God’s peace and mercy be upon all who live by this principle; they are the new people of God.[d]
17 From now on, don’t let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus.
18 Dear brothers and sisters,[e] may the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen.
paul is getting serius... hes saying that you can have all the outword things you want to... it doesnt make any difference... you can follow all the religious rules and doctrines you want too... but paul says this: "What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation." he believes this so strongly that he even blesses those who understand it: living the life means your life is changed from the inside out, and the outside will come. look at verse 17, probably one of my favorite verses in the entire bible: paul writes, in his own hand: "From now on, don’t let anyone trouble me with these things. For I bear on my body the scars that show I belong to Jesus."
what scars do i have? what have i done to show a changed life? do i have any scars to show that i belong to Jesus?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment