Tag: Galatians 04

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Apostolic Writings Discussions Torah

Hagar and Sarai: A lesson in the supremacy of the Spirit over the flesh (Genesis 16; Galatians 4)

Adobe Firefly AI oil palette knife style portraits of a young and an old Ancient Near East woman. Text says, "Hagar and Sarai: A lesson in the supremacy of the Spirit over the flesh." Genesis 16: Galatians 4

The account of Hagar and Sarah, recorded in Genesis 16, illustrates the timeless conflict between the flesh and the Spirit of God. As reflected on in Galatians 4, Hagar, the slave woman, represents bondage that the unspiritual can create from God’s Law, while Sarah, the free woman, symbolizes the liberty of the Spirit. This comparison teaches that the Law is meant to serve the Spirit, not the other way around. True freedom comes not from self-effort, but from submitting to God’s sovereign plan — preserved in the Law — and trusting in His promises, namely the Promised One, the Messiah. The flesh must be subordinate to the leading of the Spirit.

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Discussions Prophets and Writings Torah

God’s unwavering love: Foreshadowed in Abraham, realized in Messiah (Genesis 12–17)

God's unwavering love: Foreshadowed in Abraham, realized in Messiah (Genesis 12-17)

This study on the Torah reading לֶךְ-לְךָ Lech Lecha (Genesis 12–17) explores the spiritual lineage of Abraham and how it emphasizes God’s faithfulness and love, irrespective of human failings. This faithfulness and love reaches its fullness in Yeshua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ).

Being a true descendant of the covenant the Creator of Heaven and Earth made with him means embodying the trust — faith — he had in Heaven’s promises, not just sharing his DNA. We explore the importance of spiritual commitment over rituals such as circumcision, biblical criticism toward religious figures’ service without sincerity, and the necessity for total devotion for a covenantal relationship with God.

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Discussions Torah

Numbers 1:1–4:20: Counting the nations in Heaven’s inheritance

https://hallel.info/wp-content/uploads/190608-Parashat-Bamidbar-Numbers-1v1-4v20.mp3Podcast: Play in new window | Download (Duration: 1:18:25 — 31.4MB)Subscribe: RSSWhat are we going to eat? What are we going to wear? What’s going to protect us from the elements? Where do we belong? These four important questions are behind the census of ancient Israel described in Torah reading בְּמִדְבַּר Bamidbar (“in the wilderness,” […]

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Apostolic Writings Discussions

Mature believers and the Torah: Meaning of ‘Sarah’ and ‘Hagar’ in Galatians 4

Mature believers and the Torah: Meaning of 'Sarah' and 'Hagar' in Galatians 4. 'Jerusalem above is free' vs. 'Present Jerusalem ... is in slavery.'

Galatians 4, with its discussion of freedom from being “under [the] law” and not of the Jerusalem related to the flesh, is often cited by those who argue that observing the Torah is a backward step for believers in Messiah Yeshua. However, considering what Paul already wrote in chapters 1 through 3 and the parallel discussion in Romans 5–7, his point in this chapter is that both Jews and non-Jews are in the same situation without God’s method of salvation, which isn’t God’s Law. Yet God’s goal for humanity long-term is heart-led obedience to His Law.