August 22, 2025

STOP STRIVING/START TRUSTING

TODAY’S SCRIPTURE

“Listen! I, Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. I’ll say it again. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole law of Moses. For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.”

Galatians 5:2–4 NLT

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TODAY’S THOUGHT

Paul doesn’t mince words in his warning to the Galatians. He’s confronting a serious distortion of the gospel: the belief that salvation comes through human effort—specifically, through keeping Jewish laws like circumcision. These false teachers, known as the Judaizers, were convincing believers that faith in Christ wasn’t enough. Paul’s response is bold and urgent.

1. If Law-Keeping Saves You, Christ Doesn’t.

Paul begins by saying plainly: “If you’re counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ is of no benefit to you.” Why? Because it means you’re trusting in your own effort instead of Jesus’ finished work on the cross. It’s like saying Jesus died for nothing. If we can earn righteousness by obeying the law, there was no need for Christ to suffer and rise again.

2. If You Choose the Law, You Must Keep All of It.

Paul continues, warning that if you go back to the law, you don’t get to pick and choose which parts to obey. It’s not a spiritual buffet. The Law of Moses had 613 commands—and if you break even one, you’ve broken the whole law (James 2:10).

Imagine speeding through a red light and trying to justify it to a police officer by saying, “But I’ve never murdered anyone or robbed a bank!” It doesn’t matter—all the other good you’ve done doesn’t cancel out the law you broke. One offense is enough for judgment.

3. Legalism Cuts You Off from Grace.

Trying to earn your way to God through rule-keeping not only fails—it severs your connection to Christ. Paul says, “You have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God’s grace.” That’s a chilling warning. Legalism doesn’t lead to deeper holiness; it leads to spiritual isolation.

4. The Only Path Is Grace.

Here’s the good news: we don’t have to strive in our own strength. Salvation is by grace through faith. The Christian life isn’t about working for God’s approval—it’s about living from His approval.

Paul wasn’t preaching a license to sin; he was preaching the only power strong enough to change us: the Holy Spirit working from the inside out. Rules may temporarily manage behavior, but only grace can transform the heart.

Let’s stop striving and start trusting. Let’s live by faith in the grace of God!

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TODAY’S PRAYER

Holy Spirit, I need You to be my Teacher and my Guide. Lead me every day in the path of righteousness. I don’t want to rely on my own effort or performance—I need Your grace and mercy to rule my life. Change me from the inside out. Amen.

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