Ask Me Anything: “In the flesh”
Join us as we address some hot-button topics in the Church through questions submitted by our own members.
Scripture: Galatians 2:19-21
This is Part 4 in our ongoing series addressing the submitted question, “What is your perspective on the LGBTQ+ community and how can we love them?” For additional context and other helpful notes on this subject please refer back to Parts 1, 2, and 3.
In Galatians 3:28, we find what are potentially the most controversial words found in the Bible as the Apostle Paul emphatically claims that in Christ, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” This is surprising for a number of reasons:
Firstly, let’s understand what Paul is NOT saying here. He is not claiming that due to the work of Christ, gender identities and social classes no longer exist. As we know from history, males continued to function as males in the early church, and many slaves continued to serve their masters even after embracing Christianity. Rather, Paul is redefining these distinctions in light of the work of Christ as he transforms our understanding of the world. What this means is that regardless of where you find yourself in the world or what body you were born into, each of these things no longer have the same hold on your life the way that it did before you knew Christ. We see this truth play out in astonishing ways throughout the Bible. In Judges, we see Deborah take up the mantle as God’s leader for his people, circumventing the prevailing patriarchy of her day. In Acts, we witness the welcoming of the Gentiles into the community of God, undoing hundreds of years of prejudice and racism. Indeed, only with such a transformed perspective on race, gender, and social class, by the work of the Holy Spirit, can we begin to envision a world where we no longer assign disproportionate value to these distinctions.
This leads us to our second reason: in Christ, we adopt a cause that takes priority over our own. As Paul states in Galatians 2:20, “The life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” Notice Paul’s deliberate wording here as he emphasizes the life that we lead in our earthly mortal bodies. In other words, the way we live out our bodily existence in this present age is now redefined in light of a savior who expresses love through sacrifice. Following in Christ’s footsteps, we are called to live sacrificially by relinquishing our own personal flags and rights by laying them down so that Christ might be glorified through how we are loving to our neighbors. This is as radical as it gets when it comes to the value we attach to the list mentioned earlier. It is especially profound in a highly stratified culture where men were given certain rights that women were not and masters held enormous power over the wellbeing of their slaves. Into this context, Christianity enters to say that all are now one in light of a King who washes His servants’ feet and willingly dies for his enemies. This shift led to groundbreaking changes, granting women unprecedented privileges and rights and redefining the relationship between slaves and their masters, as illustrated in the book of Philemon. These changes were the building blocks that laid the foundation for subsequent civil rights movements and continue to shape Western culture today.
Therefore, regardless of where we place ourselves on the political spectrum in each of these categories (race, gender, or social classes), no longer are we defined by how culture defines us as men or women, Asian or Caucasian, or even by our occupations. Rather, we can rejoice in knowing that their power over us is now nullified and that our worth is now found in Christ alone.
Study Questions:
What other examples can you think of in the Bible where the work of the Holy Spirit redefined the distinctions mentioned in Galatians 3:28?
According to the blog post, what does Paul mean by “in the flesh” in Galatians 2:20?
What are some cultural values that we attach to the distinctions mentioned in Galatians 3:28?
How do these cultural values attached to race, gender, or social class contrast with the example of Christ?
Can you think of any contemporary examples where individuals or movements are following the idea of living sacrificially for a higher cause, as discussed in the post? How can we emulate this in our own lives?
