True freedom is a gift that God gives to us through faith in Jesus Christ alone, therefore we must rest in God’s promise of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone.
1. We must rely on God to save us.
“Human initiative will only get us human results. Or to put it even more simply, flesh will only beget flesh. Sinful human beings will only reproduce more and more sinful human beings. This is why Paul insists that the old covenant, with circumcision and the Law, isn’t the answer for the Galatians, for the old covenant, established at Mount Sinai, is only ‘bearing children for slavery’” (v.24).—Todd Wilson
“We preserve our spiritual freedom when we rely upon God’s promises, not our own ingenuity, resourcefulness, or power. In fact, the extent to which we take matters into our own hands is the extent to which we forfeit our freedom in Christ. On the other hand, the extent to which we trust in God’s promises—and entrust ourselves into his hands—is the extent to which we will walk in freedom.” —Todd Wilson
2. We must rejoice in God’s power.
3. We must get rid of anything that would enslave us.
“This verse tells us what church history confirms: there’s always been animosity between the children of the flesh and the children of the Spirit. For the flesh and Spirit ‘are opposed to each other’ (5:17), whether in our own lives or in the life of the church or in the life of our community or country. Sometimes this animosity expresses itself in social pressures; at other times it gets hostile, even violent.” —Todd Wilson