[4:21-31] Paul asks the Galatians if they even know or realize what the law says. He tells of Abrahams two sons, the son of the slave and the son of the free. The son of the slave [Ishmael] was a son born of human effort and the son of the free [Isaac] was a son born of God’s own fulfilled promise. The women [and sons] serve as an illustration of God’s two covenants. Galatians 4:24b-26, “…The first woman, Hagar, represents Mount Sinai where people received the law that enslaved them. And now Jerusalem is just like Mount Sinai in Arabia because she and her children live in slavery to the law. But the other woman, Sarah, represents the heavenly Jerusalem. She is the free woman, and she is our mother.” Sarah bore Isaac; Isaac was a miracle. Galatians 4:28-29, “And you, dear brothers and sisters, are children of the promise just like Isaac. But you are now being persecuted by those who want you to keep the law, just as Ishmael, the child born by human effort, persecuted Isaac, the child born by the power of the Spirit.” Legalism is a form of slavery. God’s word says to get rid of all forms of slavery because Jesus Christ allows anyone who believes to be children of the free. Anyone who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ receives everything they need the moment they believe.
