Autumn/Winter 2016-17 Issue

The following posts are part of the Autumn/Winter 2016-17 Issue. Articles that are in this issue contain information about secret sodomites, imperfect Christians, Christian dating, what the Bible says about hating the government or its authorities, common misinterpreted scriptures in the new devotional series called “Wrong Verses Right,” healthy scalp maintenance for headcovering wearers, and more!

full course

“… a man is not justified by the works of the law…”

Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law: for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified. ~Galatians 2:16 KJV

Wrong Interpretation:

Many Christians use this scripture to justify that works are no longer necessary after being saved.

Right Interpretation:

Paul is specifically referencing Peter’s hypocrisy because Peter left the uncircumcised Gentiles and sat with the circumcised Jews because he felt the Gentiles were unclean because they did not have the Jewish circumcision made with hands. Paul was scolding Peter’s act of returning to the former circumcision of the flesh. Being under Christ’s circumcision, which is the cutting out of wicked works from the heart and mind, comes through having faith by following the commands of God and the doctrine of Christ given by the apostle Paul.  So Paul is saying, “Men, trusting in cutting the skin off of your private part to make you clean puts you back under the law (which you will be judged by) and frustrates the grace you’ve been given because you are then rejecting the new circumcision of Christ.” Therefore, this scripture is not actually about working for salvation, but more about losing grace. We still do good works after we obtain salvation and are told to “work out our own salvation with fear and trembling.” 1

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.