- We cannot lose sight of the truth of the gospel nor give in to pressures that compromise its purity. A negative example was the apostle Peter, who, while in Antioch, ate with the Gentiles, but when he heard about the arrival of some Jews from James, he withdrew, fearing those of the circumcision. Barnabas also followed this behavior due to strong pressure from the Judaizers. We must not act like this. Our righteousness does not come from practicing the law, but from faith in Christ Jesus (Gal 2:14-16).
- Man’s salvation is in the divine life, not in his own ability. If we follow the path of self-righteousness, we will err like Adam and Eve. Let us not try to act, judge, or discern for ourselves, without having God as our source. For the Lord, this attitude belongs to the sphere of the law. We do not want to go back to the law. Salvation is simple: it does not require higher knowledge, only faith in the name of Jesus. By believing, we receive His person within us, even the tree of life. Thus, we receive the life of God and become His children (Gen. 3:1-24; Rom. 5:12, 19; John 1:12; 6:40).
- The law was given by God through Moses. But if God wanted to give His life to man, what was the purpose of giving the law to Israel? The law was not intended to justify Israel through its fulfillment, but to guard the people until the coming of Christ. It served as a “schoolmaster” or tutor, because the other nations were pagan and idolatrous, and the Lord wanted to reserve a people exclusively for Him. Thus, the law led the people to Christ, so that they could finally be justified by faith. Before the coming of Christ, faith had not yet arrived, and the people remained under the practice of the law. With His coming, we were freed from this practice, because now we have faith (Gal 3:23-26).
- We were not justified by our conduct, but because we believed in Jesus. Abraham was justified by God because he believed, even before he was circumcised, becoming the father of faith. Therefore, the Judaizers could not boast about him, because he was not only the father of the people of Israel, but of all those who are justified by faith. Not all circumcised people have Abraham as their father, because it is not a question of blood heritage, but of walking in the footsteps of faith. Even those who lived under the law in the Old Testament, by exercising faith, were justified like Abraham and became heirs through the righteousness of faith — just as we are today. In the righteousness that comes from faith, we are saved from all conflicts, living in newness of life, freed from all condemnation, and became servants of righteousness (Rom 4:1-5, 9-13; 7:6-25; 8:1-2; 6:14, 16-18; Gal 2:19-20).
Did you know that we also have kids’ immersion? Click here to do it with your child: KIDS IMMERSION