What does it mean to fall from grace (Gal. 5:4)? Can the ones who have fallen from grace be saved?
There are several books in the New Testament which closely resemble one another, such as Ephesians and Colossians, and Galatians and Romans. The reason for this resemblance is that one book presents a matter from one point of view, while the other book proves the matter from another point of view. Ephesians says that the church is the Body of Christ; Colossians then turns around and says that Christ is the Head of the church. Romans says that justification is by God’s grace, based on God’s righteousness, and through man’s faith. Galatians, from the negative side, says that man cannot be saved by the law or justified by works. Romans tells us what is the truth, and Galatians tells us what is not the truth. By knowing what is not the truth, the knowledge of the truth becomes even clearer.
The believers in Galatia had a good beginning because they were saved by faith. However, a danger developed among them; some said that even though the beginning of man’s salvation is by faith in Christ, by the moving of the Holy Spirit, and by the grace of God, once he is saved, he can only please God by keeping His law and trying his best to do good. If you ask someone how he was saved, he will say through faith. But if you ask someone how he can please God, he will say it is by doing good. This was the condition of the believers in Galatia. They thought that salvation was by faith but that maintaining salvation depended on keeping the law. They thought that the first thing they had to do was be circumcised and the second thing they had to do was keep the ordinances of the Old Testament. Therefore, Paul told them, “You have been brought to nought, separated from Christ, you who are being justified by law; you have fallen from grace” (Gal. 5:4).
What does “fallen from grace” mean? From Galatians 5:1 we know that they had entered into grace: “Stand fast therefore, and do not be entangled with a yoke of slavery again.” This indicates that Christ had set them free. They were already free. Now they should stand fast in this freedom and not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. As we read further, we understand what it means to fall from grace. Suppose one is standing in a position of freedom. If he moves away from his position of freedom and takes a yoke to bear, this is to fall from grace. This, basically, has nothing to do with whether or not one can be saved. On the contrary, only those who have already been saved have the possibility of falling from grace.
Every saved Christian obtains a new position on the day he is saved. He also obtains a freedom which is his as a child of God. Freedom does not mean indulgence; it is having a free spirit before God. We are not required to do hard labor or keep the days [in the Law], much less to be circumcised.
Before God, what is the difference between a Christian who is free and a Christian who is not free? When a Christian who is free comes to the presence of God, he only remembers that he is acceptable to God because of the Lord Jesus. He forgets himself and does not look at himself, but only remembers that his coming to God’s presence is by the blood of the Lord Jesus. Therefore, he has boldness to enter into the Holy of Holies. However, a Christian who is not free thinks he must be very careful from morning until evening. If he treats people well, reads his Bible with joy, and prays long prayers during the day, he is bolder when he comes to a meeting. Even his “amen” is uttered in a louder voice. If he does not do quite as well on a particular day, he thinks that God is displeased with him. This kind of Christian always turns his eyes inward to look at himself. He forgets to look at what Christ has already accomplished. He thinks that God is pleased with him if he does well and that God is displeased with him if he does not do well. Consequently, from morning until evening he makes an iron yoke for himself, a yoke composed of the strictest laws to keep.
We should realize that the freedom which Paul speaks of does not refer to one’s position or salvation but to a Christian’s daily enjoyment of the freedom in grace which God has given him. Freedom is not licentiousness, nor is it to do anything one wishes. Freedom refers to the kind of freedom we have before God, which was given to us through Jesus Christ. If we come before God forgetting the blood and looking only at ourselves, we are committing the greatest sin, because we have lightly esteemed the blood which God values highly. Hebrews 10:29 tells us that it is a great sin to count the blood of the covenant by which man was sanctified a common thing. The blood is so valuable to God that the Bible calls it “the precious blood.” Anyone who does not look at the precious blood before God will lose the enjoyment of grace in this life.
“You have been brought to nought, separated from Christ” (Gal. 5:4). This means that such a one has lost the blessings of this life. If a person is saved, he will certainly have the blessings of the coming life. But if he does not know how to live daily by what Christ has accomplished, he is not able to enjoy the blessings which Christ can give to him day by day. A Christian who is not free makes a yoke for himself to bear; he lives as a slave, not as a son.
The Bible places great emphasis on the work of Christ. It tells us that God accepts us because of the work of Christ, not because of our own works. Each time we come before God it is based on what Christ is before God, not on what we are before Him. God esteems Christ highly, not us. Even if we could do better than Peter, John, and Paul, we still could come before God only because of Christ. It is Christ who brings us before God, not our own good works.
We come before God by what Christ has accomplished. By what then should we come before men? Should we say that because our coming to the presence of God depends on what Christ has accomplished, it does not matter if we have bad conduct before men? Our light should shine before men. If our light shines before men, people will give glory to our heavenly Father because of our good works. If our conduct is bad, people will not acknowledge us as Christians.
The position which Christ has given us before God is very secure. Each day, each time, we come to the presence of God, we should come with a conscience void of offense. Some Christians always feel guilty when they come to the presence of God. But Hebrews 10:2 says, “Having once been purified, would have no longer had the consciousness of sins.” With our conscience once purified by the blood, we are forever free before God.
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