“God gave the promises to Abraham and his child. And notice that the Scripture doesn’t say “to his children,” as if it meant many descendants. Rather, it says “to his child”—and that, of course, means Christ” (Galatians 3:16 NLT).
In his letter to the Galatians, Paul referred to Genesis 22:18, where God had promised Abraham that in “your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed.” He pointed out that the word “seed” was singular, not plural, so that it pointed to a “child” not “children.” He did this to make the case that Christ Jesus was the fulfillment of that promise. And therefore, believing in Christ had always been God’s plan for salvation, not the law.
Why did Paul go all the way back to Genesis to make his case? Because certain Judaizers had come to Galatia teaching that the new Gentile believers needed to start keeping all the law as given through Moses. Paul warned them that the law could not save. For the “righteous will live by faith” (Gal.3:11). Paul went back to the covenant God had made with Abraham to show its superiority over the covenant of the law made through Moses.
Why was the promise superior to the law? Several reasons. First, it came first. Paul noted that it preceded the Mosaic covenant by “430 years” (Gal. 3:17). Second, the promise was given by God as an unconditional covenant with Abraham that was irrevocable, while the Mosaic covenant was conditional upon Israel’s ability to obey it. Third, the promise was given for salvation, while the law was given because of sin. The promise was given to bring blessing to all nations through the Promised Seed, Christ Jesus.
I’m thankful for the Promised Seed, Christ Jesus today. As Tim Keller said, “For a promise to bring a result, it needs only to be believed, but for a law to bring a result, it has to be obeyed.”
Christ Jesus is God’s promise to believe.
PRAYER: Dear Father, we love how Your Word, from Genesis to Revelation, fits together as a whole. Thank You for the Promised Seed, Jesus Christ. For we have believed in Him and received adoption as Your children. Strengthen us today to walk not by rules and duty, but by Your Spirit. In Jesus’ name, amen.