By David M Rogers

www.BibleTruth.cc

Published: April 2012

Galatians 5:1-15

For freedom Messiah has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery.  Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Messiah will be of no benefit to you at all!  And I testify again to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.  You who are trying to be declared righteous by the law have been alienated from Messiah; you have fallen away from grace!  For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait expectantly for the hope of righteousness.  For in Messiah Yahusha neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight--the only thing that matters is faith working through love.  You were running well; who prevented you from obeying the truth?  This persuasion does not come from the one who calls you!  A little yeast makes the whole batch of dough rise!  I am confident in Yahuwah that you will accept no other view. But the one who is confusing you will pay the penalty, whoever he may be.  Now, brothers and sisters, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the stake has been removed.  I wish those agitators would go so far as to castrate themselves!  For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge your flesh, but through love serve one another.  For the whole law can be summed up in a single commandment, namely, "You must love your neighbor as yourself."  However, if you continually bite and devour one another, beware that you are not consumed by one another.

When we come to Paul's discussion of the freedom we have in Messiah, we find a message that is consistent with all that we have learned throughout the rest of Scripture, including what Messiah taught and modeled, regarding the freedom Elohim provides to those who trust in him.  Paul talks about this freedom:

It is for freedom that Messiah has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. (Galatians 5:1)

Now, let's get understanding about what this freedom entails.  Certainly, this freedom is a release from the bondage of sin.  Sin no longer has control over those who are in Messiah.  But what else are we set free from?

Christians have been preaching for a very long time that this freedom Paul speaks of is freedom from Mosaic Law.  The reason for this is because of what follows this statement by Paul in verse 1.  He goes on to have a discussion of circumcision and "the law" which he says is contrary to faith.  Is this really what Paul is referring to here?

I am convinced that this passage has been grossly misunderstood and misinterpreted by Christian ministers, pastors and theologians.   I would contend that Paul is NOT talking about freedom from Mosaic Law, but rather, he is discussing the freedom we have from man made religious systems and laws.  He uses circumcision as his example of the bondage from made up religious dogmas Messiah has released us from.  He writes:

Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Messiah will be of no value to you at all.  Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law.  You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Messiah; you have fallen away from grace.  But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope.  For in Messiah Yahusha neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. (Galatians 5:2-6)

In order to understand exactly what Paul is talking about, we need to have an understanding of the circumcision controversy in those times.  We can ascertain this by looking at other places in the New Testament Scriptures where circumcision is explored.

Earlier in this very letter Paul wrote to the Galatians, he talks about the source of the controversy of circumcision:

Now this matter arose because of the false brothers with false pretenses who slipped in unnoticed to spy on our freedom that we have in Messiah Yahusha, to make us slaves.  But we did not surrender to them even for a moment, in order that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.  But from those who were influential (whatever they were makes no difference to me; Elohim shows no favoritism between people)--those influential leaders added nothing to my message. (Galatians 2:4-6)

There are some clues in this text about the source of the teaching about this circumcision which Paul rejects.  He says that "false brothers with false pretenses" are responsible.  And later he calls them "influential leaders."  Who are these "false brothers" who were "influential leaders"?  Of course, we know who these were.  Paul speaks of them several times.  They are the "Judaizers"- the Jewish religious leaders who always found themselves in conflict and disagreement with Messiah.

The key to uncovering the mysteries which revolve around this circumcision may be found in the discussion in the book of Acts about the circumcision controversy.  Luke explains it thus:

Now some men came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Mosheh, you cannot be saved." (Acts 15:1)

This same circumcision controversy kept popping up for the Messianic believers.  Paul deals with this topic several times in his letters.  So, what is this all about?

According to Acts 15:1 this circumcision was to be done "according the the custom of Mosheh."  But when we read the biblical accounts of circumcision, we never read of any such "custom of Mosheh"!  Circumcision was a covenant sign which Elohim gave to Abraham, not Mosheh.  Indeed Mosheh received instructions regarding circumcision which Elohim spoke to him.  But there was no "custom of Mosheh" ever mentioned regarding circumcision.

However, the Pharisees acknowledged such a "custom of Mosheh."  In fact, the concept of circumcision as a "custom of Mosheh" is well known in Rabbinic literature.  The Pharisees produced this "custom of Mosheh" and it has been an integral part of Rabbinic Judaism since the times of the Pharisees.  The Hebrew word usually translated custom is ghnm (pronounced min-hag).  These minhagim (plural for minhag) were traditions which became law in Israel.

If a Rabbi makes a habit of doing something, it becomes a minhag, which in turn becomes binding of all Israel.  The Rabbis have a saying which says, "minhag Yisrael torah hi" which translated means "a custom of Israel, this is law."  A minhag becomes law in Israel by the sheer fact that the community accepts it as a regular way of life.  Another example of this is the yarmulke (kippah).  There is nothing in the written Torah about the kippah, but you will not find a religious conservative Jew without one.

The big problem with these customs that become law is that the written Torah strictly forbids adding to or taking from the Torah that Elohim gave to Mosheh for all Israel.

Now, Yisrael, pay attention to the rules and right-rulings I am about to teach you, so that you might live and go on to enter and take possession of the land that Yahuwah, the Elohim of your ancestors, is giving you. Do not add a thing to what I command you nor subtract from it, so that you may keep the commandments of Yahuwah your Elohim that I am delivering to you. (Devarim 4:1-2)

and

You must be careful to do everything I am commanding you. Do not add to it or subtract from it! (Devarim 12:32)

The Proverbs repeat the same:

Every word of Elohim is purified; he is like a shield for those take refuge in him.  Do not add to his words, lest he reprove you, and prove you a liar. (Mishlei 30:5-6)

The normal way these minhagim became attributed to Mosheh is like this:  Pharisees took customs that had become law, and in order to give these customs greater weight of authority, they attributed these customs to a famous rabbi.  Since Mosheh was the greatest of the "Rabbis" it would be even better to attribute the custom to Mosheh, thus giving it the greatest amount of authority.

So, their particular ritual of circumcision was pawned off as a "custom of Mosheh."  And, the rabbinical "procedure" for circumcising a Gentile was credited to Mosheh: "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Mosheh, you cannot be saved" (Acts 15:1)

The Pharisaic (and later Rabbinical) rite of circumcision was to be performed exactly according to their specific procedure, without fail, which included certain prayers and blessings and the sucking of the wound!  In most worlds, this sucking of the wound would be considered aberrant and deviate behavior, but the Rabbis required it in their circumcision.  No wonder Paul so adamantly opposed their circumcision!

Paul will have none of that Pharisaic circumcision.  Pharisaical circumcision is opposed to Messiah, because in doing this, one is submitting to the authority of men rather than to the authority of Yahuwah. When submitting to men (Pharisees, Rabbis, Church leaders) one must abide by all the teachings or find oneself outside of the favor.

Paul goes on:

You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?  That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you.  "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough."  I am confident in Yahuwah that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be.  Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished.  As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves! (Galatians 5:7-12)

This play on ideas places the Pharisees, who are so interested in "cutting" their Gentile converts with their own brand of circumcision, in a place where they are "cutting" themselves off by adding to and taking away from the authority of the written Scriptures.  When they put their own customs and commandments above the commandments of the Almighty, they are essentially cutting themselves off from the commonwealth of Israel.

But for those who are in Messiah, we are free from the manipulations and coercions of men.

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love.  The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbor as yourself."  If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other. (Galatians 5:13-15)

The freedom we have in Messiah is not freedom from the Torah of Mosheh.  This freedom does not allow us to "indulge the sinful nature," which is to say, it is not freedom which allows us to break or ignore the commandments of the Almighty.  This freedom is liberty to ignore the traditions and religious dogmas of men so that we may freely serve our Elohim by faithfully keeping his laws, right rulings and commandments.

Additional Notes:

Galatians 5:1-15

Scriptural Freedom

Law and Liberty

1 Yochanan 5

What is Our Freedom in Messiah?

Acts 15

Custom

Minhag Contradicts Torah

Doing the Entire Torah

The Gift Given

Lift the Face \ Favor

Understanding Circumcision

"Uncircumcision"

1 Cor 7:18

Why are These "Nothing"?

Conspiracy!

Cut Off