Birthright

Q: Please explain Galatians 4:1 to me.

A: Galatians 4:1 says, "What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate." An heir, by definition, is a person who inherits all the property of a deceased person, as by descent, relationship, will, or legal process. As a child of God, a Christian is an heir to all God has given them through the death of Jesus Christ. In other words, the will of God can best be described as a description of the inheritance we have been given in Christ. The love, acceptance, meaning and purpose we all seek in life is realized in Christ Jesus. When we understand how much God has loved us, and how much we have in Him, we can then engage the world with what we have received from God rather than looking to get from the world that which it cannot provide. What the world has to offer is a poor substitute for God's love and can only be experienced through some form of sin. When we don't realize what we already have in Christ we try to obtain it through many different avenues. This normally manifests itself through attempted obedience to religious law. Galatians 4:1is a summation of what the Apostle Paul was writing about in the previous chapter regarding the difference between law and grace.

"If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise (Galatians 3:29)." The promised seed of Abraham is Jesus Christ. Since all Christians belong to Christ, we are, therefore, heirs according to that promise. "For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on a promise; but God in his grace gave it to Abraham through a promise (Galatians 3:18)." The promised inheritance of God can only be obtained through faith in Jesus Christ. It can not be obtained through obedience to the law or any other form of self-effort. The purpose of the law, whether it be the Mosaic Law or man-made religious law, is to show us our sinfulness, spiritual death and complete inability to live up to God's righteous requirements, so that we would come to the end of ourselves and turn to Jesus Christ by faith. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, "Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect. (Matthew 5:48)." This is a command that nobody can live up to. In order for us to be as perfect as God the Father, we would have to be God ourselves. Jesus said this in order to bury us under the weight of God's standard of perfection in order to receive His inheritance. The law of God demanded perfect obedience or death. Jesus Christ took both options for us. He lived a perfect and sinless life, thereby fulfilling the requirements of the law. Then, although He didn't deserve it, He took our place on the cross and died for us. Thus, "having canceled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; he took it away, nailing it to the cross (Colossians 2:14)."

There are many instances in life where you see a child unable to access their inheritance until they reach a certain age or certain requirements are met. However, the inheritance is still rightfully theirs. As children of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, we may not have experienced the complete benefit of all we have inherited as heirs, but it is still our possession. That is why Galatians 4:1 says that we own "the whole estate" although we are said to be no "different from a slave." We are compared to slaves because, like slaves, we are "subject to guardians and trustees (Galatians 4:2)." Our guardian and trustee is the indwelling Holy Spirit who guides a believer through this life and on into eternity. Through resting in and trusting in the Holy Spirit we are certain to experience the fullness of the inheritance we have waiting for us. "Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba, Father." So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir (Galatians 4:6-7)." As is the case with many who inherit fortunes, the individual who has that fortune must die before the beneficiaries are rewarded with what is promised them. What a child wants most from their father is His unconditional love and acceptance. As children of God we have been given all of that from God, our Father, and more.

What is the whole estate we own as children of God? At the moment of salvation everything we strive to achieve through self effort is credited to us by our one act of faith. Amongst other things, we are totally forgiven (Col. 2:13), totally cleansed (1 Cor. 6:11), holy and blameless (Col. 1:22), safe from the wrath of God (Rom. 5:9), saved by grace (Eph. 2:8-9), made at peace with God (Rom. 5:1), freed from condemnation (Rom. 8:1), sanctified (Heb. 10:10), made perfect forever (Hebrews 10:14), made an heir to God (Gal. 4:7), made complete (Col. 2:9-10) and given everything we need for life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3). These truths completely eliminate the idea that we have to keep striving for things we already have been given as heirs in Christ. Once we believe that, we are free to enter His Sabbath rest (Hebrews 4:1). When we realize that we are already right with God through what Christ did for us, we are free to experience the abundant life spoken of in John 10:10. We can boldly proclaim His salvation message to the lost because we are secure in the knowledge of what we have inherited. It is not about what we earn from Him, but what He freely given to us in Christ.