The book of Galatians deals with the present evil age, the religious world (1:4; 6:14). To try to keep the law is something of religion (2:16, 19). According to this principle, to try to do good or improve oneself to please God is religion. Circumcision also is something of religion (5:6; 6:15). This indicates that to keep any form, ritual, or regulation is religion. These two definitions of religion are great principles. Human beings seemingly cannot stay away from trying to do good or from keeping forms, rituals, and regulations. We often keep forms and rituals without realizing it. In the church life we may even attend meetings as a religious form or ritual. However, to decide not to go to a meeting is also religion. To try to do good is religion, but to try not to do good is also religion. To keep a form is religion, but not to keep the form may also be religion. We need to drop all religion. Only Christ is not religion.
In Galatians the apostle Paul says that he was formerly in religion and was even a leading one there (1:13-14). But one day it pleased God to reveal His Son in Paul (vv. 15-16). This shows that Christ is versus religion. After seeing the present evil age in Galatians 1, we see the subjective Christ—Christ revealed in us. The Christ who is versus religion is not the objective, doctrinal Christ but the subjective, experiential Christ. Galatians 2:20 says, “It is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me.” Then 3:27 says that we who have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. Finally, 4:19 says that Christ is being formed in us. This means that Christ needs to be constituted into our being. Ephesians 3:17 reveals that Christ is making His home in our heart. Every part of our inner being—our mind, emotion, and will—needs to be saturated and possessed by Christ so that He can be one with us. This is the subjective Christ who is versus religion.
In Galatians 3 the emphasis begins to shift from Christ to the Spirit. Verses 2 through 3 speak of receiving and being perfected by the Spirit, and verse 14 speaks of receiving the promise of the Spirit. God’s blessing in the gospel is to minister the Spirit to us. When we receive the Spirit, we are born of the Spirit. Galatians 4:6 says, “Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father!” Then 5:25 says, “If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit.” The Spirit today is one with our spirit. The divine Spirit mingles Himself with our human spirit to be one wonderful spirit. Now we need to live and walk in this mingled spirit. Galatians 6:1 says that even when we see a brother overtaken by sin, we need to restore him in our spirit, which is mingled with the divine Spirit. Verse 8 says, “He who sows unto the Spirit will of the Spirit reap eternal life.”
In the middle of Galatians the crucial point shifts from Christ to the Spirit. Christ and the Spirit are one, but we need to see the difference between Christ and the Spirit. The title Christ, which means “the anointed One,” implies the Lord’s divinity and humanity. Christ as the Son of God was incarnated to be the Son of Man. He is a wonderful person with divinity and humanity. As one who is both God and man, Christ was uniquely qualified to be anointed, appointed, and commissioned by God to fulfill God’s eternal purpose.
The first and the main thing that Christ did to fulfill God’s eternal purpose was to accomplish redemption. On the cross Christ took away our sin (Heb. 9:26; John 1:29) and our sins (1 Pet. 2:24), dealt with the world (Gal. 6:14), crucified our old man (Rom. 6:6) and our old “I” (Gal. 2:20), destroyed the devil (Heb. 2:14), and abolished the law of the commandments in ordinances (Eph. 2:15). All the negative things were taken away by Christ on the cross. By accomplishing redemption, Christ, the anointed One, opened the way for God to reach us. Because God is righteous and holy, He could not do anything to be one with man until Christ had accomplished a full redemption. Christ’s work on the cross gave God the full liberty to come in to accomplish His purpose with man.
After His death Christ was resurrected to impart His life into all His believers, making them His members (John 12:24; 1 Cor. 12:12). Furthermore, Christ ascended to the heavens far above all (Eph. 1:20-21). The powers on the earth and the evil powers in the air could not hold Christ. He transcended everything and ascended into the heavens, where He was made the Head over all things to the church (v. 22).
After accomplishing redemption, Christ became the life-giving Spirit to indwell us (1 Cor. 15:45b; John 20:22). Christ and the Spirit are two parts, which together form a complete view. To illustrate, being a student is the first part of a person’s career. After earning a college degree, a student may enter a profession, such as teaching. Thus, the student and the teacher are two parts of a complete whole. The student and the teacher are not different persons; they are one. However, without first being a student, a person is not qualified to be a teacher. The first part qualifies a person for the second part. Likewise, to become the indwelling Spirit, Christ first had to be incarnated, crucified, resurrected, and ascended. Christ’s processes qualified Him to become the indwelling Spirit. For this reason, the book of Galatians first focuses on Christ and then emphasizes the Spirit. When a student becomes a teacher, it does not mean that his qualifications as a student are gone. Rather, the teacher still possesses all the qualifications of the student. Similarly, Christ, who today is the Spirit, still possesses His incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. The indwelling Christ is the Spirit. He is not only in us but also in the heavens. In the heavens He is the Christ; in us He is the Spirit. Christ and the Spirit are one.