CHILDREN OF PROMISE

Gal 4:28-31 Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless what saith the scripture? Cast out the bondwoman and her son: for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the freewoman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

Once shown the error of his way, as he traveled the road to Damascus, the apostle Paul immediately left the Jewish law behind, and began to serve his Savior, Jesus Christ. There was no hesitation in doing so. Now Paul is faced with teaching others, both Jew and Gentile, to abandon Judaism and paganism, welcome Jesus Christ into their lives, and, by faith, diligently serve God, and the cause of Christ, through whom they have a hope of eternal salvation. In the last eleven verses of this chapter, Paul is filled with amazement at the tenacity of Jewish Christians that, departed from the truth of God's word. They continued to cling to the Law of Moses, and they were determined to incorporate some of its tenets into the New Testament doctrine of Christ, which was established by divine inspiration of the apostles on the Day of Pentecost.

Confronting this doctrinal error, Paul addresses these false Judaizing teachers and their followers with this question: Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law (Vs. 21)? The obvious answer was, "no they did not hear the law." They did not understand its precepts. As diligently as their spiritual leaders were to read the Old Testament law, they remained ignorant of its purpose, prophecy, and meaning. In order to show these Judiazers their error, Paul uses an illustration very familiar to them: portions of the story of Isaac and Ishmael, the sons of Abraham. Ishmael was born of Abraham and Hagar, a bond maid, while Isaac was born of Abraham and Sarah, a free woman (Vs. 22). Verse 23 tells us that Ishmael was born after the flesh, while Isaac, of the free woman, was by promise. Jews knew very well that Isaac was promised by God to both Abraham and Sarah, which was recorded in Genesis 18:10-14 and 21:1-2.

God's original promise to Abraham was that in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed (Gen. 12:3b). This same promise was restated later when God told Abraham that in thy Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed (Gen. 22:18). However, not all of Abraham's sons were the seed through whom this universal promise was to be fulfilled. Abraham's six sons born to his wife, Keturah (Gen. 25:1-2), were not the promised seed. Neither was Ishmael, being born (of Hagar) after the flesh. Only Isaac, born of the free woman, Sarah, was the seed of promise (See Rom. 9:7-9). To Isaac God confirmed the promise made to Abraham, when He told him that in thy Seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed (Gen. 26:4). And like the sons of Abraham, not all of the sons of Isaac were destined to be the seed of promise - only Jacob. Esau, and his heritage, were excluded from this universal promise.

These historical facts serve as an allegory (Vs. 24), which Paul uses teach this extremely important fact. The bondwoman, Hagar, and her fleshly offspring, Ishmael, represent the bondage placed on the Jewish nation. Earthly Jerusalem consisted of all Jews having natural birth, and all were required to live under the Law of Moses that was given by God to the nation of Israel from Mount Sinai. This Paul details in verses 24b-25 preceding the lesson text.

Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. We, that is Paul and all other fellow Christians, are as Isaac was. Isaac was the seed promised to Abraham and Sarah, through whom Jesus Christ descended, and through whom all nations of the earth (shall) be blessed. Christians, and only Christians, are the children that are destined to be the beneficiaries of this promise of a hope of eternal salvation. These live under a New Covenant and must abide by God's doctrine, which was established by the Holy Spirit-inspired message found in the gospel of Christ, given on the Day of Pentecost, from Mount Zion, which is Jerusalem. All Christians must experience a new, spiritual birth, which culminates in baptism for the remission of sins. They then become the adopted children of God. They become joint heirs of eternal salvation with the Son of God, Jesus Christ. They will be privileged to enter the New Jerusalem, which is Heaven, and live eternally with God, the Creator of all. Christians are the children of promise!