But none of these things will send you to hell. Remove grace from any community and you will soon have quarrels, strife, bickering, manipulation, envy, hatred, and all the other works of the flesh that Paul lists in Galatians 5:19–21. What are the dangers of falling from grace? The danger was not that God would destroy them, but that “you will be destroyed by each other” (Gal. The Galatians were becoming carnal, biting and devouring one another in vicious arguments. Paul never tells the Galatians, “You are losing your salvation.” Instead, he says, “You are indulging the flesh” (Gal. These are serious words with serious implications, but they do not imply condemnation.Īs always, he remains the faithful husband who keeps us safe while promising that no one, not even ourselves in a moment of stupidity, can snatch us out of his hands. Other translations say they became estranged, separated, severed, and cut off. The NIV Bible says the Galatians alienated themselves from Christ. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ you have fallen away from grace. They were no longer continuing in the faith.īut did this mean the Galatians were now unsaved, under condemnation, and hell-bound?įalling from grace does not mean falling out of the kingdom. They were no longer continuing in the grace of God.

Some guys with long faces and long knives came preaching mixture and the Galatians bought it hook, line, and sinker. To fall from grace is to stop trusting in grace.

I’m saying there is nothing we can do to add or improve upon Christ’s perfect work. In their case the issue was circumcision, but for us it could be anything that puts a price tag on grace-church rules, confession of sins, the spiritual disciplines, whatever. The Galatians lost their liberty in Christ by allowing themselves to be enslaved to the yoke of the law. I am so glad the book of Galatians is in the Bible because we can learn a lot from other people’s mistakes.

What does fall from grace mean