In this compelling episode, Pastor Skip Heitzig shares an insightful teaching focused on the Galatians and their struggle with returning to religious bondage. Dive deep into the personal nature of our relationship with God, and understand the contrast between knowing God and being known by God. Pastor Skip elaborates on how human-made religious systems often enslave us, hindering the true freedom that comes through faith in Christ.
This is Connect with Skip Heitzig. Thanks for joining us today here at Connect with Skip. Our mission is to help you know God’s word and apply it to your life through clear, practical Bible teaching and real encouragement every day. And if you’d like to keep growing in your walk with Jesus, sign up for Pastor Skip’s free weekly devotional. You’ll receive biblical insight, teaching highlights, and exclusive resource offers straight to your inbox. Plus, when you sign up today, we’ll send you a free digital download of a chapter of Skip’s book, Biography of God. It only takes a minute to sign up. Go to connectwithskip.com and join the list today. That’s connectwithskip.com. Now let’s dive into today’s teaching from Pastor Skip Heitzig.
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When I grew up and my mother would say, your father wants to speak to you, that was different than, hey, your dad would like to see you. Because when she said my father, that’s just sort of a buttoned up phrase. That’s sit up, pay attention. But dad, especially daddy, well, that’s relational. That’s familiar. Let me sit you down and tell you a story. That’s a daddy. So God has sent the spirit of his son in our hearts where we have a personal relationship with him like Abraham who believed God and was counted to him for righteousness. Then the law came. The law served its purpose. Jesus died on the cross. That religious system is out of the way. Now we cry once again in that relational way, Abba, Father. It’s intimate. It’s personal. It’s personal. Therefore, you are no longer a slave, but a son. And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. Paul writes in 2 Corinthians, Though Jesus was rich, he became poor for your sakes, that you through his poverty might be rich. So the Son of God became a man to enable men to become sons of God. But, verse 8, then indeed, when you did not know God, you served those which are by nature not gods. The Galatians were, their background, pagan. They worshipped a whole host of Roman and Greek gods, the pantheon of gods that, well, they worshipped gods, but they were all fake gods. Just as there are many religions in the world today that worship different gods, but they’re all fake. They’re all made up. Every religious system that worships this god or that god, they’re just people made these things up. It’s really by human imagination there’s only one divine revelation that tells us there’s one true God. So he’s referring now to the Galatian worship system. When you did not know God, you serve, you Galatians serve those which by nature are not gods. They’re just made up deities. You remember Paul went to Athens. We’ve gone through the story even in Galatians. And he looked around and he went to the men on the Areopagus and he said, you know, I’ve been hanging around your town today. And I notice all the statues that you have to so many different gods. You are a very religious group of people. I even saw a statue that said to the unknown God. I mean, you have all these gods by name, but in case you left one out and you don’t want to offend some unknown God, you have a statute of the unknown God. Well, I have come here to tell you about that unknown God and make him known to you. And he preached the gospel of the true and living God to the Athenians. But now, verse 9, but now after you have known God… Now watch this. Or rather are known by God. How is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements to which you desire again to be in bondage? We often refer to somebody who is a believer as somebody who knows God. Oh, he knows the Lord. Oh, she knows the Lord. And it’s pretty amazing to an unbeliever. What do you mean you know the Lord? Right? If they’re not initiated into what we believe, that falls on their ears like thunder. Who do you think you are? You know God. Yeah, I know God. I talked to him earlier. We’re friends. Oh, how can you say that? It’s just weird to them. Well, here’s something even more astonishing than I know God. God knows me. So now that you know God, or rather, Paul says, are known by God. You see, you couldn’t know God unless you were known by God. God always takes the initiative. The reason you know him is because he has taken the initiative to know you and to call you. It’s like love. We love him because he first loved us. We choose him because he first chose us. That’s what Jesus told his disciples. You didn’t choose me, I chose you. So, I know God. Well, actually, God knows you. And… You are inscribed, it says in Isaiah, on the palms of his hands. He knows you’re going out, you’re coming in. He knows your secret thoughts. It’s a beautiful thought. God knows me and took the initiative. So after that happened and you’ve known God and you’ve been known by God, how is it that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements, the ABCs, those elements he spoke about, to which you desire again to be in bondage. Why are you going back to Judaism? Why are you going backward, not forward? Here, you’re Gentiles, and somebody’s convinced you that you need to keep the law of Moses, which served a purpose, keeping people caged and in restraint until the Messiah could come so they could enjoy the full expression as adult sons and daughters of God. Why are you going backwards? But you see, religion does this. Religion enslaves people, makes people feel good. If you keep this, then God will love you. Okay, I’ve kept that. God must love me. And then I feel like I’m in jeopardy. If I didn’t keep that, now God maybe doesn’t love me as much. That’s all religious system. That’s bondage. And they were going back into that. It keeps a person in fear. What were they doing specifically? Verse 10, you observe days and months and seasons. And years. They get hung up on certain days. Oh no, it’s the Sabbath. So? Well, it’s the Sabbath. I mean, there’s certain things I can’t do on the Sabbath. Well, I can. Well, don’t you keep the Sabbath? Well, the Sabbath has been kept for me in Christ. So one man esteems one day of the week, the Sabbath, over all the other days. Another man esteems all the days alike. These are Paul’s words. Let each be persuaded in his own mind. So in my mind, in Skip’s mind, the Sabbath is no different to me than Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday. I worship God on all those days. Well, that’s not my conviction. Good. Be convinced in your own mind. Keep it to yourself. Verse 11, I’m afraid for you, he writes, Paul writes, this Jewish rabbi, once Jewish rabbi writes to these Gentile Christians, I’m afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain. I came there, I shared the gospel of grace, of liberty, and now you’re going backward. I feel like all the labor that I did in Galatia was for no good reason. You’re going back to bondage. Brethren, I urge you to become as I am. What does that mean? Free, man. I’m free. I grew up in that stuff. I was a Hebrew of the Hebrews. I kept the law. I worked hard at it. But he continues in Philippians 3 and he says, Those things that I thought were awesome and I counted as important, they’re dung, they’re refuse to me. I put them aside that I might be found in him, not having my own righteousness, which is of the law, but the righteousness which is by faith in Jesus Christ. So I want you to become like I am, free in Christ. Brethren, I urge you, become as I am, for I am as you are. You know, I was steeped in Judaism and now I have become like you guys. Not hung up on it, but now you guys are getting, you know, hung up on what the Judaizers are feeding you. You have not injured me at all. You know that because of physical infirmity, I preach the gospel to you at the first.” And my trial, which was in my flesh, you did not despise nor reject, but you received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus. What then was the blessing you enjoyed? For I bear you witness that if possible, you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. Now I need to unravel that a little bit for you. First of all, take note that Paul said he was sick. Now, I say take note. Take note, especially if you are of the faith persuasion of, you know, word of faith kind of church. The Kenneth Copeland, Kenneth Hagin school that says, if you’re a child of God, you’ll never be sick. You never have to be sick. You can walk in perfect health and you can be healed. Well, poor Paul. He didn’t, wasn’t smart enough to have your theology. Because he says, you know that the reason I came to Galatia is because I was sick. I had an infirmity. You know that because of physical infirmity, I preached the gospel to you at first. I do thank God that he is a God who heals. And I believe God heals today. I think Jesus is the same yesterday, today, and forever. And when somebody’s sick, I’ll pray for healing. And I’ve prayed for people and I’ve seen them with my own eyes get healed, sometimes miraculously. I’ve prayed for other people and they’ve died. Now, I’ve been healed of every disease I’ve ever had. Here I am. I’m alive. But one day I won’t be. As Walter Martin used to say, we all die of our last disease. Even faith healers. They don’t like to broadcast it and their followers certainly don’t like to let you in on it, but they die of their last disease.
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This is Connect with Skip Heitzig. When you give to this ministry, you help reach thousands of people every day with God’s life-changing truth. encouraging them to know Him, trust Him, and walk in His freedom. And this month, we want to thank you with a special resource package. You’ll receive Skip’s book, Biography of God, which helps you explore God’s nature, His power, the mystery of the Trinity, and the hope that comes from removing the false limitations we sometimes place on Him. Plus, you’ll get Skip’s six-message CD series, Expound Galatians, where Skip unpacks the book of Galatians and the freedom believers have through grace, not works. Your gift today helps bring the life-changing message of Jesus to people around the world through Connect with Skip. Request your resources when you give $50 or more at connectwithskip.com slash offer or by calling 800-922-GALATI. 1888. Now, here’s more from Pastor Skip.
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Now, Paul had some kind of an infirmity. What was it exactly? Well, most people, most scholars believe it was a form of malaria. And that the malaria was especially prevalent in the area of Galatia that he first went to. So you remember in Acts 13 and 14, which is Paul’s first missionary journey, that Paul went from Antioch in Syria to the island of Cyprus, conducted his ministry there. Then he went north and sailed north to Perga, the port of Perga in Pamphylia. Well, Pamphylia was known for its moist climate and it was filled with malaria. And a lot of people got malaria in the area of Pamphylia. So it is believed that perhaps Paul got malaria and he needed to get to higher elevation, which the area, the cities of Galatia, Iconium, Lystra, Derbe, the area that he preached in, is at 3,600 feet above sea level. That’s higher and drier. That would have taken care of the symptoms he was experiencing of malaria. So it could be that when Paul in 2 Corinthians 12 speaks about his thorn in the flesh, some physical ailment, some physical infirmity that he had that he called a thorn in the flesh. And he said, I prayed three times that God would deliver me from it. And God just basically said, no. He said, my grace is all you need, Paul. So you’re going to have to live with it. So Paul said, all right, I’ll live with it. I’ll boast in it. Because as long as I’m sick and I’m weak, then I’m depending on Jesus for his strength. So I embrace it and I glory in it. So what was that thorn in the flesh? Perhaps malaria that affected his eyes. Or, and it could be a combination of this, but when he was in Iconium and then he went to Lystra, and preached the gospel in Lystra, they took him outside the city and stoned him. And they thought he was dead. But the believers got around him, prayed for him, and he got back up on his feet. And he went from there to Derbe, the next town. Then he went back to Lystra where they stoned him and kept preaching the gospel. And it could be that when he was stoned, that that affected his eyes and that he had a perpetual case of running eyes. Some say because of malaria, others say because of the stoning. But it would seem, and I’m just guessing here, that… Part of Paul’s condition was an eye condition, an ophthalmic condition. Because he mentions here in verse 15, I bear you witness, if possible, you would have plucked out your own eyes and given them to me. You saw my condition and you welcome me and you love me. Something else toward the end of this book, look at chapter 6, verse 11. See with what large letters I have written to you with my own hand. Now when Paul wrote a letter, he dictated it. Somebody else wrote it, a scribe wrote it, an amanuensis wrote it. But the amanuensis would stop short, leaving Paul the ability to sign off the last few words with his own handwriting. But evidently when he wrote this epistle of Galatians, he had to use words. Pretty big printing, pretty big lettering with large letters I wrote to you. And then look at verse 17. From now on, let no one trouble me, for I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus. Perhaps he’s referring to the residue or the result of being stoned in Lystra. on that first missionary journey that it affected his eyesight. All of that to say, I don’t know, but those are possibilities. Verse 16 of chapter four, have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth? They zealously, that is they, the Judaizers, they zealously court you, but for no good. Yes, they want to exclude you that you may be zealous for them. So they were trying to, the Judaizers came in, this group of Jewish people from Jerusalem telling them to get circumcised. They came in, they tried to isolate the Galatians from Paul and Paul’s influence. And they were very zealous. They were very persuasive. And Paul is saying, look, there’s nothing wrong with being zealous, as long as it’s for a good cause, for a good reason. Remember what Paul said about the Jews in Romans? They have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. You know, some people get swept up by the dynamic of a person. They’re just so zealous, and they’re almost mesmerized by it. A person’s zeal can be persuasive. So be careful. When somebody’s really zealous for something, you know, if it’s for a good cause, cool. And if it’s for truth, cool. But weigh the words, weigh the doctrine. Make sure that it’s for the right cause. So it’s like I have no problem with zeal, If it’s for the right reason. But it is good to be zealous in a good thing, verse 18, always and not only when I am present with you. My little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you. Now that sounds like a beautiful sentiment, and a lot of times that is quoted. Oh, you know, that’s the heart of Paul the apostle, this pastor, and I labor for you again until Christ is formed in you. He wants to see them grow. But get what he’s saying here. Let me put it to you this way, women. Imagine having the same baby twice. No thanks, right? I mean, once that baby’s born, that baby’s born. You don’t want to like, you’ll have other children, but you don’t want to have that baby twice. So Paul labored just to bring them to a born again experience. Now he feels like he has to labor again to rebirth them into the grace that they have left behind. But I’m willing to do it if I have to do it, because I want to see Christ formed in you. I love how he begins verse 19, my little children. Let me tell you why I’m drawing your attention to that. It’s the only time Paul writes like that. This is not unusual for the apostle John. If you’re familiar with 1 John, he uses seven times my little children in those epistles. That’s a John kind of a thing to say. But Paul isn’t that kind of touchy-feely, my little children, but here he is. He has, you know, given a lot of his time and labor to the Galatian church. So, my little children, for whom I labor in birth again until Christ is formed in you, I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone, for I have doubts about you. This is the problem of writing a letter or a text. You don’t get the tone of voice. This is why I don’t like text messaging. You can’t get the intonation and the meaning. You can say something and the tone of your voice makes it mean something different. I could take my little puppy, Maisie, and say, oh, Maisie, you’re the stupidest, ugliest dog ever. She’s not going to know the difference. She’s not going to know the insult I just gave. Because the tone of my voice is different than the meaning of my words. So when you write something like a letter or a text, you don’t always get the tone correctly. So it’s a handicap way of communicating. I wish I was with you. Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons. The one by a bondwoman, the other by a free woman. Who was the bondwoman? What was her name? Hagar. And the free woman, what was her name? Sarah. Sarai. Sarah became his wife. Hagar was the handmaid of Sarah, the Egyptian handmaid, and they had Ishmael. But he who was of the bondwoman was born according to the flesh, and he of the free woman through the promise. Which things are symbolic? For these are the two covenants, the one from Mount Sinai, which gives birth to bondage, which is Hagar. For this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia that corresponds to Jerusalem, which now is and is in bondage with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, which is the mother of us all. For it is written, Rejoice, O barren, you who do not bear. Break forth and shout, you who do not travail. For the desolate has many more children.” than she who has a husband. Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as he who was born according to the flesh, then persecuted him who was born according to the spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless, what does the scripture say? Cast out the bondwoman and her son, for the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman. So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.” Now, I feel that’s going to take some explaining. Because there’s so many different thoughts, and unless you’re immersed in that literature of Genesis, it might seem a little awkward to you. Maybe you all understand that perfectly. But because of the time, I wanted to finish chapter 4, and now we’ll reach a little bit into chapter 4 next time, like we did in chapter 3 this time. A little bit into that to set the pace for chapter 5 next week. and I’ll unravel all that we just read that sounds to some of you like mumbo-jumbo. Let’s pray. Father, we know it’s not mumbo-jumbo. We know it is your word. And these are very powerful truths, especially for those who have been immersed in the law and are trusting in the law. or are hearing from others that they should trust in the law, trust in themselves in keeping the law, rather than the freedom of just trusting completely, unreservedly, in the work that Jesus did.
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Thanks for joining us today on Connect with Skip Heitzig. Before we go, remember, your generosity helps share God’s Word around the world, bringing truth and hope to people who need Jesus. And this month, we’d love to thank you for your support by sending you a special resource bundle, Skip’s book, Biography of God. along with his six-message CD series, Expound Galatians. Together, these resources help you explore who God really is and how to live in the spiritual freedom He offers. Give today at connectwithskip.com slash offer or call 800-922-1888. See you next time on Connect with Skip. Make a connection
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Connect with Skip Heitzig is a presentation of Connection Communications, connecting you to God’s never-changing truth in ever-changing times.
