Galatians 3:10 For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11 Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.”
We live in a generation that has a problem with the Bible because they believe many of its’ principles are not politically correct. For instance, when Christ said in John 14:6, “…I am the way, the truth, and the life, no man comes to the father unless he comes through Me,” He eliminated the validity of all other religions, and that doesn’t always set well with society at large.
Jesus also said in John 8:24, “…unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” Once again, this verse goes head to head with a society that ultimately believes that all roads lead to the same place. If Christ’s word is true, and it is, then only one road leads to heaven. The moment that we stop speaking this message in this society, either the rocks will cry out, or the Church will die.
So why is the gospel so necessary? The Gospel is necessary because we all, according to Galatians 3:10, come into this world under a curse. The curse that Paul is speaking of is the fact that the only way to stand pure before God is to perfectly keep all of the commandments and requirements in the Law and do them. If you study the Old Testament, you will find that the punishment for violating the commands of God was death, sometimes even being hung on a tree. Because we have all failed God by breaching the Law in so many ways, outside of divine intervention, we will all stand condemned before God after this life.
God has offered a solution to this problem that no other religion has found a way to solve. Although our defilement of the Law of God brings punishment worthy of death and eternal separation, Galatians 3:13 says “…Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us – for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree” – 14 so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.” Christ was crucified, or hung on a tree, so that the curse that was ours because of our Law-breaking might fall upon Him as our substitute.
The wording in this passage is overwhelming when you begin to see that your violation of God’s Law was worthy of death, but God chose instead to bless you through Christ. If God will go to such great lengths to save you, you can’t imagine all of the grace and mercy He has in store for you as He molds you into the image of Christ.
