The verse that stood out to me this morning was verse 15 “Neither circumcision nor uncircumsion means anything; what counts is a new creation.” (NIV)
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, He is a new creation; the old has gone the new has come”. When we begin a relationship with Christ we go from death to life and become a new creation. That is why Jesus called it being born again (John 3), a new life has begun, a life in the Spirit.
In Galatians 5:16-26 we talked about the fruit of the spirit being a natural response, not of working hard on producing fruit, but rather drawing closer to Christ, “keeping in step with the Spirit”. If we draw near to God and pursue a close relationship with Christ we will bear fruit. Our lives will reflect Christ-likeness.
If we do that, like Paul’s statement “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus”, it will be undeniable that we follow Christ. Our bodies may not have physical marks on them from persecution like Paul’s but God’s influence in our lives will be undeniable, answering the question “if you were arrested for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict you”.
What was it that stuck with you the most from our study of Galatians?