Testament, a new birth. That new creation is wrought by the saving work of Christ, and applied by the Holy Spirit. And after the new creation has been wrought, there is a new life on the basis of it. In the new life there is still a battle against sin. But the Christian has received a new power, the power of the Holy Spirit. And when he yields himself to that new power, he fulfills in its deepest import the law of God. Only he fulfills it not by obedience in his own strength to a law which is outside of him, but by yielding to a power which God has placed in his heart. This new fulfillment of the law on the part of Christians is what Paul means when he speaks of "faith working through love"; for love involves the fulfillment of the whole law.
Such was the gospel of Paul as it is set forth in the Epistle to the Galatians. Paul had received it from the Lord Jesus Christ. Without it the Church is dead. It need not be put in long words, but it must be proclaimed without the slightest concession to human pride, if the Church is to be faithful to the Saviour who died. We deserved eternal death; the Lord Jesus, because he loved us, died in our stead—there is the heart and core of Christianity.
QUESTIONS ON LESSON XX
- Describe Paul's first visit to Corinth.
- Where did Paul go at the beginning of the third missionary journey?
- What was the occasion for the writing of the Epistle to the Galatians?
- What great principle is defended in the Epistle? What is the meaning of the death of Christ? What is the meaning of "justification by faith"?
- Give an outline of the Epistle, showing the three great divisions.
- Why does Paul give, in the first part of the Epistle, a review of certain facts in his life?
LESSON XXI
The Third Missionary Journey. The Epistles to the Corinthians and to the Romans
Another Epistle, in addition to the Epistle to the Galatians, was written by Paul at Ephesus on the third missionary journey. This was the First Epistle to the Corinthians.
