If you don’t grasp the meaning of Jesus’ opening line from the Sermon on the Mount, you’ll misunderstood the entire sermon.
“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.”
— Matthew 5:3
One of the most misunderstood passages in the Bible is the story of the Rich Young Ruler, in Matthew 19. The purpose of the story was not to teach people to the importance of being fully dedicated, fully surrendered and willing to forsake all in order to obtain eternal life. The point was to demonstrate the utter foolishness of thinking we can do anything to earn our salvation.
I bet it was pretty difficult for the Galatians to hear Paul say, “Oh foolish Galatians. Who has bewitched you?” No one wants to be challenged. But the Galatians were guilty of leaving the teachings of Paul, regarding the grace of God, and had turned to the works of the law.
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