Galatians 4:1-9

Galatians 4:1-9New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

My point is this: heirs, as long as they are minors, are no better than slaves, though they are the owners of all the property; but they remain under guardians and trustees until the date set by the father. So with us; while we were minors, we were enslaved to the elemental spirits of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under the law, in order to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as children. And because you are children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” So you are no longer a slave but a child, and if a child then also an heir, through God.

Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to beings that by nature are not gods. Now, however, that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly elemental spirits? How can you want to be enslaved to them again?

I think Paul is tapping into something big here. It has to do with time; it has to do with scripture; it has to do with us and our consciousness.

The story of scripture to me is an ever evolving arc. From the release of the captives of Israel, through the judges, and the kings, and the prophets, the understanding of God by God's people evolved and grew.

Initially, as Paul points out, God's people were children. They needed the laws and boundaries that God gave them. And they saw God perhaps as a harsh master or angry father.  I've heard many people be taken aback and truly troubled by the violent, vengeful God they perceive in the early parts of the Old Testament. That was the God the people understood at that time. That was the story of faith they were able to give.

As time went on perhaps, God began to show new facets in scripture. Or perhaps not new ones, but ones that the people had not yet perceived.

And when the time was right - God was able to show God's self in a way that God's people could identify in a way they weren't ready for before. God in flesh. God among us.

Does our own faith journey not follow a similar path?

Do we retain the same understanding of God at 5, 15, 35, 65...

And if so...why?

We are no longer slaves to the law, says Paul. No longer slaves to a childish understanding of a harsh judge.

What are the things that have pushed and broadened your understanding of God throughout your life?

Lord Jesus, thank you for always showing us the way, even when that way pushes and challenges us to grow in understanding of you. Amen.