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Outline:

As we move from Galatians 3 to 4 it’s important you keep in mind that Paul’s original letter did not contain chapter and verse breaks. (Chapter divisions were first introduced by English Archbishop Stephen Langton in the early part of the 13th century. Then in 1551 a Frenchman by the name of Robert Estienne added the verse structure. Both developments occurred to make the reading and referencing of the Bible easier.)

This means chapter 4 is nothing more than the continuation of Paul’s concluding point in chapter 3. Galatians 3:24-29, “Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.”

As we noted last Sunday because of our faith in the work of Jesus on the cross we are not only spiritual descendants of Abraham, but we’ve been made adopted “sons of God” meaning we’re now “heirs according to the promise.”

In chapter 4 Paul is now going to explain how it is we’re “heirs” and the implications of this incredible reality all the while illustrating the true silliness of those who’ve been saved by Grace returning again to the law (seeking to earn God’s approval as opposed to enjoying it).

Galatians 4:1-3, “Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.”

In order to unpack the essence of what Paul is communicating to these Galatians we need to first define what Paul means when he uses this word “child” or “children.” In the Greek this word “child” and later “children” is “nêpios” meaning “infant or little child.”

Keep in mind Paul is writing to a group of Christians and he’s using this imagery of a “child” to describe the state of their lives before regeneration so that he can then contrast that particular existence with the moment they became “sons.”

Here’s why this distinction is important… While the Bible clearly states that all people are God’s creation (Colossians 1:16, “All things were created through Him and for Him”) and that God loves all people (John 3:16, “God so loved the world”) nowhere does the Scriptures describe all human beings children of God.

Instead the Bible makes the case that only those who are born again (placed their faith in Jesus) are in actuality “children of God.” John 1:12, “But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God.”

The reality is (and this is a difficult pill to swallow) before regeneration, while in our rebellion, we were all in actuality children of the devil! John 8:44 Jesus told the Pharisees that they “belonged to their father, the devil.” In 1 John 3:10 we’re told, “This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother.”

Read the Rest at: http://www.c316.tv/sermons/174