[4:1-7] Paul uses an analogy of a father leaving an inheritance to an immature son. He states that the son is no better than a slave because they must obey their guardian until the father decides the son has reached full maturity. Paul tells the Galatians that this is how it was before Christ came. He states in Galatians 4:3, “We were like children; we were slaves to the basic spiritual principles of this world.” God sent Jesus to “…buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law so that he could adopt us as his very own children” [Galatians 4:5]. This adoption allows believers in Jesus Christ to obtain the Spirit of God, who emboldens believers to be joined with God their “Abba Father” [Romans 8:9-16].
