Gal 3.16
In the above verse, the apostle Paul says, Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made.
He [God] saith not, And to 'seeds', as of many; but as of one, 'And to thy seed', which is Christ.The verse is crucial because it clearly shows that Jesus Christ is the Seed of Abraham. Paul points out that the promises were made to Abraham and to a single offspring or descendant or 'seed' (the Christ).
Importantly for those who believe in Christ, they are said to be 'the children of Abraham' (Gal 3.7, 9, 26, 27, 29): through their faith in Christ, they are the 'seed' or descendants of Abraham.
And Abraham, as we know, was not considered righteous ('rightwised') because of anything he did; he was 'rightwised' (=made right) because he believed God's promises1 (Rom 4.22; Gen 15.6).
Romans also says that God is God of both Jew and Gentile on the basis of faith (Rom 3.29-30). That is, not on the basis of religion, culture or race. For the true people of God are 'the children of the promise' not those 'who are the children of the flesh' (Rom 9.6-8).
The Children of the Flesh
Galatians 4.21-31 introduces a basic contrast between the two sons of Abraham: the first born according to the flesh, the second born by promise. The apostle says that these two sons represent two covenants: the first represents Sinai and leads to bondage; the second is 'heavenly' and 'above', and is 'free'.
To follow God in the spirit of Sinai is to deny the Messiahship of Jesus Christ. A comprehensive rejection of Jesus as Christ is what the Jewish leadership orchestrated during the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth and in doing that, they2 revealed the depth of their own faithfulness towards the God of Israel.
In each of the gospel accounts and then in The Acts of the Apostles the spiritual character of the Jewish leadership at the time of Christ is revealed as apostate. They put themselves forward as exceptional because of their Abrahamic ancestry. However, they reveal themselves to be prideful, hardhearted, rageful, blind, stubborn and murderous3 when faced with Jesus and the apostles' signs, wonders and words (e.g., Matt 15.12-14; 23.1-36, 37-39; Mk 3.6; 10.2-5; Lk 11.39-54; Jn 8.37-59; Acts 2.23b; 2.36b; 3.13-15; 7.51-58; 1 Thess 2.13-16).
Both Jesus (Matt 23.37-39) and Paul (Rom 9.2-3; 10.1) lament over the apostasy of Israel and desire its repentance. However, they both also realise that without 'circumcision of the heart' (Jn 3.3, 5; Rom 2.28-29) stemming from faith in the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, Israel will reap what it has sown which occurs in the terrible judgements of AD 68-70 and AD 135.
1. The promises of land, seed and blessing.
2. Thankfully, not all 'despised and rejected' Isa 53.3 him but a majority did (Jn 1.11-12).
3. Although, some have sought to represent these descriptions as 'antisemitic' and even responsible for the 'holocaust' of the mid-20th C, this neglects the fact that Moses, the Judges, and the OT prophets sound a similar note re the intransigence of Israel in the OT towards the Word of God.
2. Thankfully, not all 'despised and rejected' Isa 53.3 him but a majority did (Jn 1.11-12).
3. Although, some have sought to represent these descriptions as 'antisemitic' and even responsible for the 'holocaust' of the mid-20th C, this neglects the fact that Moses, the Judges, and the OT prophets sound a similar note re the intransigence of Israel in the OT towards the Word of God.
