 Ma'am, your voice is off. So, they will get muted right from the beginning or did it happen just now? It was from the beginning of this one. Oh, no. Okay, fine. I'll just repeat those sentences. The first argument that Paul makes is that do not go back to the law because a curse will come upon you. The second argument that he makes is regarding a promise which has only one party and the law which has two parties. So, the second argument that he's presenting is that when God made his promise, he was willing to unilaterally on his own fulfill all the requirements which are no good be required to make that promise happen. So, no conditions are being attached on people in any way. So, is it not better to go to that kind of a promise rather than go to a law which was conditional and involved two parties where both parties would have to do their side only then will the benefits come. Otherwise, the benefits will not be granted because when it comes to the mosaic law very clearly God says if you do your part then I will do my part. So, here Paul the second argument that he's presenting is that isn't it better to go to the promise which is being offered freely where God is fulfilling all the requirements where nothing is expected from our side. Isn't it better to go to that rather than go to a law which is highly conditional where you would have to keep your part. So, that's the second argument that he makes. So, this being the case he says why then was the law given at all? I mean if the law is really not inferior and not able to give us salvation then why first of all introduce the law at all. So, he wants to explain that to them. So, if we can have someone read out for us versus 19 to 22, yeah 19 to 22 place. What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions till the seed should come to whom the promise was made and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. Now a mediator does not mediate for one only but God is one. Is the law then against the promise of God? Certainly not. For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. By the scripture has confined all under sin that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe. Amen. So here he says, so why was the law given at all? Because no, it's not as though God changed his mind. In the beginning God made a promise and he said that he would fulfill whatever requirements are going to be there to make that promise happen. And then later for the two years later did he change his mind and he decided, no, no, no, I don't really want to keep my promise. Let me introduce a new covenant, a different covenant where the human party also will have to do their side. So it got changed his mind after for 30 years and then reintroduced something else. No, the two are linked. There is a link between the promise which was originally made and the law which came for the years later. There's a link between them. God made his promise to Abraham and God made his promise to Jesus Christ through whom all the people would be redeemed. So God did that. But until the promise is fulfilled, this nation of Israel had to be kept under control. Because left to themselves, they would have become just like all the other nations. And then the Messiah would not have been able to come through that nation and through that lineage. So therefore, Paul explains in verse 19, why then was the law given at all? It was added because of transgressions until the seed to whom the promise referred had come. So to keep the nation in line, to continuously make them aware of what God's standards are, to urge them and encourage them to follow him. Because he has said he is going to grant them many blessings if they will follow him. So by doing all of this, the law was trying to keep them in line until the seed can come through that nation, through that lineage. So for the sake of keeping these people under control, the law was imposed as a temporary guardian. And so he explains that further if we were to look at verses 23 to maybe 27, if someone could read out for us verses 23 to 27. But before faith came, we were kept under God by the law. Kept for the faith which could afterwards be revealed. Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For as many as you are, as many as you are, you were baptized into Christ, have put on Christ. Amen. Yes, so here Paul says there are basically two functions which the law performed for a temporary period. It served as a guard, it kept the people under lock and key as in it bound them by a bunch of rules which they had to follow. So in that sense it was their guard, it imprisoned them and forced them to stay within certain limits. It also served as a tutor because it showed the people again and again that they are unable to keep the law. It showed them how helpless they are because they might have thought very nicely, very well about themselves. And so the law showed them how utterly hopeless and helpless they are. And so the law was a tutor which proved to them again and again that on their own there is no hope for them. No way will they ever make it into heaven. No way can they ever have a relationship with God. No way can they ever be blessed. So the law as a tutor imprinted these truths upon them. And so it prepared them in every way so that their hearts and minds will be ready when the seed finally comes to fulfill the promise which was originally made. So God always had the promise in mind. The idea was always to fulfill that promise. The idea was always to redeem mankind through the promise. The law was just something which was brought in temporarily to keep this nation in line so that you know God can use them as his instrument through which the seed will one day come. So the law only had a temporary job and so Paul is saying don't go to the law. The law served its purpose. It came for what it was meant to do and it fulfilled its purpose. But the promise is what you need to do because that is what God always gave to us from the beginning and that is what he wanted us to focus upon. So with that you know background that he has given now he talks about some additional aspects of the law in chapter 4. So if we could have somebody read out for us the first seven verses Galatians chapter 4 verses 1 to 7 please. Now I say that the hair as long as a child does not differ at all from a slave though he is a master of all. But is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father. Even so we when we were children were in bondage under the elements of the world. But when the fullness of time had come God sent forth his son born of a woman born under the law to redeem those who were under the law that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons God has sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts crying out above father. Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son and if a son then an heir of God through Christ. Amen. Yes so in chapter 3 he explained to them how the law is something very temporary and very inferior. So it would not be wise to go back to it and having explained that you know because they would have been wondering in their minds why why is the law not something that we are supposed to go back to. So he's explained to them very clearly why the law was just a temporary thing not something that they should be pinning their hopes on. And now he's talking about the status which they have because under the law their status was very low. But now under the promise of Christ their status has risen and it's something very very high now. So this is what he explains he says you know think about a child who is heir of a very large property. You know maybe he's the heir of a very rich parent. But that heir even though he's the heir of something so great of such a large and wealthy inheritance. As long as he's a child he's just like a slave. The slave receives orders from the master of the home. This child also has to live under the orders of the master of the home. There's not much difference between them but then when the time comes for this heir to you know grow up into adulthood. And now the property is turned over to him. Then the status of the two changes the slave continues to being a slave. But this child is now the heir and all that inheritance now belongs to him. So Paul is saying all of us were like that child once upon a time. You know we had been placed under the guardianship of the elemental spiritual forces is what he says in chapter 4 verse 3. What are these elemental spiritual forces under which you know the Israelites had been placed as slaves. These are the spiritual forces of having to perform certain sacrifices. Certain rituals had to be undertaken on a daily basis. They had to celebrate certain feasts because those feasts are symbolizing certain spiritual truths. They had to dress in a particular way. You know they're allowed to only manufacture cloth of one particular type. They're not supposed to mix the fibers of two different types of material. So all these things all these things which are symbolizing and pointing towards the future of what God will do. They were under the control of all these rituals and ceremonies. Because all these rituals and ceremonies were guarding them keeping them in line preparing them for the day when the Messiah would come through them. So they were there were slaves under these forces but he says now something else has happened to you. Now you have been redeemed from this law and you have been adopted to sonship. So now you are no longer like the child who has to follow and obey orders and be under the master just like the slave. That is the condition that we all were in once upon a time. But now we have been brought into adoption into sonship under God. So now we actually are heirs of the inheritance. Once upon a time we were just slaves but now we actually have an inheritance. Our status has become that of people who have walked into their inheritance and can now claim it. So then that kind of status has been given to you. Why do you want to go back and be like a child who is under the elemental spiritual forces? So if you want to go back to the law in fact you're going back to a lower status. You're going back to the status of a slave whereas now you are a you have the status of a son. You are you have the status of someone who has inherited. So therefore he says in verses six and seven because you are his sons. God sent the spirit of his son into our hearts the spirit who calls out Abba father. So you are no longer a slave but God's child. So as long as you know the Israelites were slaves and as long as the Gentiles were slaves to the law which is written on our hearts as long as that was the case. God was at a very great distance. We could not go near him because we are sinners and he is holy and perfect. There was a great divide and gap between God and us. But now when we come under the promise and we accept Jesus as saviour our status changes so radically that no longer is the label slave pasted on us. Rather the label that is there on us is sons and daughters of God. What kind of sons and daughters? Sons and daughters who can actually address God with that very intimate word Abba. You know because that was the Aramaic word which was used by little kids. You know before they can really before they have really learnt to talk. They just say da da. You know they say ba ba. You know they don't really know the actual wording they not say father. They will not use all the terms which may be more grown up children would use. These are very baby terms. Great intimacy. I mean let us say the man has now grown up into adulthood. In front of everyone he is not going to walk up to his father and say da da. It would sound a little strange. But when he is a little child it doesn't matter where he is in front. I know in front of whom you can just walk up to that rich man and just say da da. Using the most informal, intimate wording and the father accepts it. The father is in no way offended by it. So that is the kind of sonship to which you have been brought. You who were once slaves of all these rituals and ceremonies and even after performing all of the ceremonies. You could not really be sure that you have a relationship with God. Because the next day if you fall back into sin then you better come back with one more sacrifice and make one more animal sacrifice for that sin to be forgiven. So your position was so low. But now you can go to him and call him abba. That is the status that you have that you're being given. So do not go back to the law. Understand the new status which you have been granted and enjoy that status. So in line with that he continues his argument and so he's you know expanding more on that on the same thing. So if we can look at verses 8 to 11. Someone could read out for us verses 8 to 11. But then indeed when you did not know God you serve those which by nature are not God's. But now after you have known God or rather are known by God. After that you turn again to the weak and beggarly elements to which you decide again to be in bondage. You observe days and months and seasons and years. I'm afraid for you Lest I have laboured for you in vain. Yeah. So he says once upon a time you were depend I mean you were under the power of this weak and beggarly elements. You know the spiritual elemental forces which we talked about a little while ago. The ceremonies the rituals the sacrifices the dress code the cleansing that they had to perform in their homes all of that. And all of these things which they had been placed under those were actually very beggarly. In the sense they could not make the people spiritually rich. They could not become sons of God by following those. So in spite of keeping all of those things although all those disciplines and which had been given to them. They were still basically slaves of sin in spite of all of the keeping all of that. So those law the elemental forces under which they had been placed those were very beggarly they could not make them rich. Also those ceremonial laws they were weak in the sense the law told them do this this this for the law was not empowering them to keep that. The law could only give orders for the law could not empower them to follow the laws. So it was also weak. So they were slaves of that and they were observing special days and months and seasons and all of that. So he says why are you going back to all of that? Yes back then it was very important that you had to observe a certain festival. You had to go and make sacrifices at a particular point of time. If you didn't do that I mean it would affect you spiritually it would affect you materially. But now you're free from all of that. You don't need to follow those rules and ceremonies now. On the festival day you don't need to go and take a lamb and go and sacrifice and hope that something will come out of that. No Christ sacrifices now they are available to you. So you don't have to go back to observing all of those things. If you do that then it's as if I have wasted all my effort. I have done so much to bring you to this position in Christ to this high status where you can literally call him Abba. And now if you go back to the law and you lose that status it's as if all my efforts have been wasted. So he says in verse 11 I fear for you that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you. And so now he pleads with them and it's very nice though the things that he says in the following verses. If we could have someone read out for us. Oh there's a lot to be read. Maybe if you could read out verses 12 and okay fine you know it's a good reading exercise for whoever will volunteer to read. If you could read from you know verses 12 to 20. You know kind of you know catch the tone that he's using. You know he's speaking with such love he's speaking with such concern. It's like the words are coming literally from the depth of his heart. Up to now he was giving explanations he was teaching and now the words that are coming out of his mouth are so personal. So just pay attention to what he's saying. He's literally pouring out his heart over here in these verses. So from if you could someone could read out for us from 12 up to 20 please. Brethren I urge you to become like me for I became like you. You have not enjoyed me at all. You know that because of physical infirmity I preach the gospel to you at the first. And my trial which was in my flesh you did not despise or reject but you received me as an angel of God even as Christ Jesus. What then was a blessing you enjoyed for I bear you witness that if possible you would have plugged out your own eyes and given them to me. Have I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth. They zealously quote you but for no good. Yes they want to exclude you that you may be zealous for them but it is good to be zealous in a good thing always. And not only when I'm present with you my little children for whom I labor and birth again until Christ is formed in you. I would like to be present with you now and to change my tone for I have doubts about you. Yeah so he says I mean look at the relationship that we had once upon a time at that time when I came over came to you with my eye infection or what with us that he had that ailment which he had. They loved him so much that if possible they would have plucked out their eyes and given it to him. So that is the kind of relationship that they had. So now when he is saying when he is scolding them for going back to the law he is saying don't get offended by my words because we have had a very deep and personal friendship and relationship. So out of that relationship I am now speaking to you and he says in verse 19 I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you. He is basically saying the first time I came to you I was so keen that you should come into the family of Christ so I preached my heart out. I tried to explain the gospel to you as clearly as I knew how I would spend time in prayer and the night and of course all this is not written over here. I am bringing out the meaning of that term you know the pains of childbirth. This is how he gave birth to them brought them into the family of God. He preached to them he would have sat with them and explained to them cleared their doubts. Those who are hesitating and wondering how they are going to face a position from their relatives. He would have gone to them you know spent time with them you know talk to them about the benefits that they can have if they can just come to Christ. So he was there as their encourager supporter explaining things and then in the night probably you know after the end of a tiring day. He would get on on his knees and cry out to God and intercede for them and say Lord please I have spoken to these people today. But Lord they will not come to you unless you intervene others you know Satan will take them away. So he would labor for them in prayer he would weep over them that is how he gave birth to them. It didn't just happen you know where he just went and stood at the pulpit and you know spoke something into a mic and then that is not how this church was birthed. You know he had come there at a time of weakness he was suffering from an ailment and something to do with the ice. I mean you know you basically need your ice for everything and so in that condition where he could not use his ice properly and probably was in much pain. In that condition he labored for them so that Christ would be birthed in them. And now after having done that and brought them into the fold now they are going away. So he says again I am going through the pains of childbirth once more because I am seeing that rather than following Christ you are being led away. And so now again I am in agony and again I am you know on my knees interceding for you trying to explain things to you because I need to see Christ formed in you. What I have worked towards all that should not be lost all that effort must not be wasted and so he is desperately pleading with them. And so you know those of us who are in ministry this is a very high calling you know the example that Paul presents here about how you do teaching. How you do discipleship a very high example that he has set. So in ministry we need to have that kind of a burden for the people that we are ministering to. I mean do we weep for them in prayer or do we just simply share the gospel and walk away. Do we sit with them explain to them when we see them hesitating are we there to go and encourage them so that Satan does not pull them back into the world. We brought into the fold so it would involve many many things. So it's literally like giving birth to a child is a lot involved in bringing forth the child in this case bringing forth the child into the kingdom. So he invested in that manner in the lives of the relations and we would be expected to do the same. So whether we are in full time ministry or whether we are just in some secular role but because we belong to Christ we also have the job of sharing the gospel with people. And so are we investing in their lives in the way Paul invested in the lives of these people. Now we cannot do that for everyone but there are some people that God brings to each one of us. I've seen that know me having a more introverted personality. I'm not a person who goes out to everyone and talks to them and you know but I've noticed that even in my small sphere of influence there are people that God brings that God lays on my heart where I feel that I should go and talk to them and start investing in them. So they have now become my responsibility. So if Christ is to be formed in them if they are meant to grow more and more in him if they're meant to draw closer to me here to him it's my responsibility. God holds me responsible for it. So none of us can say oh I'm not in full time ministry so you know I don't really need to you know invest in people the way they called it. None of us can use it excuse each of us wherever we have placed because we have now become believers and now we are his witnesses. He brings people to us so that we can witness to them. So once we feel that calling you know the Lord is asking us to go and invest in someone's life and cause help Christ to be formed in them it becomes our responsibility. So we have to take that seriously. So what is happening to those children that we have birthed that is something that we would have to pay attention to. They can't just say okay the person God said I'm so glad and walk away. We have a responsibility towards them even after they have come into the faith. Are they growing is Christ being formed in them what is our obligation towards them. I will still continue to pray for them. So even after they have come into the family of God we continue to have a responsibility towards them. So we see that coming out in these verses. Now coming to the last portion of this chapter where Paul uses the example of Sarah and Hagar to make a very important point. There are many things that he has said up to now regarding the law and he has tried to impress upon the reader's hearts that going to the law is really a disadvantage. It's not going to benefit them in any way in fact it's going to work against their interests. It's better for them to stay under the promise being made through Christ rather than going to the law. Now he makes one ultimate argument. So that is what you have all the way from verse 21 up to verse 31. Let's take it in small portions. So if maybe we could have someone read out for us 21 to 26. Someone could read out for us chapter 4 21 to 26. Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham had two sons, the one by a born woman, the other by a free woman. But he who was of the born woman was born according to the flesh and he of the free woman through promise. Which things are symbolic? For these are the two cognants, the one from Mount Sinai which gives birth to bondage which is Hagar. For this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free which is the mother of us all. For it is written Rejoice Obey of the 26th Sister. Thank you. So we'll now have to get into a little background about Sera and Hagar to catch what is being said over here. So if you were to go to Genesis chapter 21, okay if you were to go to Genesis chapter 16 because that's basically where Hagar runs away from Sera. Sera is treating her very badly because she's jealous now that Hagar is pregnant and so Hagar runs away and God says go back and stay under Sera, submit to her. So Hagar returns. So somehow the two ladies have managed to stay under the same roof after this event for almost 17 years now. So Ishmael has been born. The boy has been growing up. So is now around 16 or 17 years of age. And now in the meantime Isaac has been born. And Isaac is just a little boy of about two or three years of age. So when we come to Genesis chapter 21, Ishmael is now around 16 or 17 and this little boy Isaac is around two or three years. And that is the time when they would be the child. Up to now the child had just been living on mother's milk. But now in future, now onwards the child is going to start having solid food. So there would be a ceremony to celebrate this new chapter in the baby's life. So they're having this grand celebration. And at that time, Sera notices Ishmael making fun of this little boy. And that upsets her a lot. It makes her very angry. And so in Genesis chapter 21 verse 10, this is what she says to Abraham. She says cast out this slave woman and her son or the son of the slave woman shall not inherit along with my son. With Isaac is what she says. So in her mind, she's kind of thinking about all the practical details actually, which are involved. She started off this whole problem in the first place. I mean, she's the one who said, why don't you marry my slave, Hagar. And then the child who comes through that will have an heir. So she in fact started off the whole process. But now after she got her own biological child, she started thinking. Now Ishmael has been legally brought up as Abraham's son. So he is going to have a part of the inheritance and he's much older than Isaac. And now when the ceremony is going on, when the weaning ceremony is going on, he's making fun of the baby. So she's kind of worried in her mind probably she's thinking, you know, okay, this guy is much older. What is he going to do to my son? What will be the rights and privileges of my son because this guy is going to overshadow everything. He's after all the older one, you know, and legally he's the older one. He has legal rights to the property, to the inheritance. So she's kind of thinking of all of that and top of that, she now sees him making fun of the child. So which means he's not friendly towards the child. He has a low opinion of the child. Seeing all of this, she's very upset and she says cast out this lay woman. She's not just simply saying send her away when she's using the term cast out. You know, it's being used in the sense of Leviticus 217. It's talking about divorce, formally divorce this lady so that in future Ishmael will not have any legal right anymore to the inheritance. Because so she makes it very, very plain. She says for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit along with my son, with Isaac, no sharing of inheritance. No, it all has to come to Isaac alone. So therefore legally send away this lady and her son. Legally, I know anal terminate the contract so that Ishmael tomorrow will not have any kind of legal claim. So it is basically what she says. And Abraham, you know, if you remember was very upset with this because he loved both the sons, you know, because after all both of them were his children. So he loved both of them and he was not very pleased with the idea. But God backs up Sarah regarding this matter and God says, yes, it must be this way. You must send away Ishmael. Why, why did God back up Sarah, you know, on this matter? Because the life of Sarah and the life of Hagar would be carrying spiritual implications. God would be using them to bring out certain spiritual truths. And so this whole thing had to be done in accordance with what God has in mind. You know, if you would take the example earlier example of Moses, you know, he is asked to speak to the rock the second time to bring out the water rather than strike it. And it would seem like a very insignificant thing. I mean, what does it matter whether you're speaking to the rock or striking it? But then there was a spiritual significance involved over there. That rock was supposed to represent Christ and Christ needs to be struck only once for the living waters to be released. You don't need to, you know, strike Christ three, four times. He doesn't have to go to the cross three, four times. So there's some spiritual significance to a very natural action. In the same way over here, you're basically thinking maybe, oh, this is the life of two ladies, you know, Sarah's life and Hagar's life. But no, there are some spiritual truths interwoven into this story. And so therefore it is very, very important and vital that Ishmael should be sent away because when God made the promise of Genesis 15, Abraham was told that one son would receive the covenant. He would receive the inheritance and that son, of course, was Isaac, not Ishmael. So if Abraham were to divide his inheritance between both the sons, then that promise would not be fulfilled. That promise was made only for one covenant son, which is why in Genesis 22, you know, God says to Abraham, you're one and only son because he's the one and only covenant son that God is referring to over there. So the inheritance cannot be shared between Ishmael and Isaac. Isaac alone would need to have it. Why is God so particular about all of this? In verse 23, this is what Paul says, his son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise. These things are being taken figuratively. The women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves. And then the other covenant, you know, is represents the promise. So he talks about these things. The point that he is making is that Ishmael as the older boy, as the older son actually had legal right to the inheritance. So in a way, he also had legal right to the covenant, you could say. On the other hand, this younger child was born much later, about 17 years, 16 or 17 years later. He had no legal entitlement to the Abrahamic inheritance or in fact to the covenant. But God decided even before Ishmael existed, even before Isaac existed, God decided that it would come to Isaac. So the promise which God made in the according to that promise, he said that by grace, by his mercy, he would grant the covenant to the younger child. So the legal right belongs to the older child. But by mercy and grace, even though Isaac does not deserve it, this covenant would be given to Isaac instead. This was the original promise that was made by God. Now, if you look at the Jewish, the Judaizers, what were they saying? They were saying you have to earn the right to be children of God. So you have to keep the mosaic law. You have to fulfill all the legal requirements and then you will be entitled to be a child of God is what the Judaizers are saying. But Paul explains to them, don't you remember the story of what was written in the law in the first five books? In the Torah, it is very clearly written that even though the legal entitlement was with Ishmael, who actually received the covenant, it was not the one who had the legal entitlement, it was the one who was freely given it as a promise. It was freely given to an undeserved person. So Paul is saying to the Judaizers, you are thinking that you can earn your status of being a child of God by keeping the law. But no, look at those ancestors of yours. Ishmael and Isaac, the story which they, which their life tells the inheritance, the covenant does not come to us through legal entitlement where we earn it. No, it is something that is just given freely as a promise. And if you will just believe that and accept it, it comes to you. It's not something that can be earned. It's the point that Paul is trying to make over here. So he's writing here in this letter to the Galatians and he says in verses 28, 29, 30. Sis, someone could read out that verses 28, 29, 30 please. We don't have much time if you could. I know I just wanted to rest my voice a little bit. So verses 28, 29, 30 please. Now we brethren as Isaac was our children of promise. But as he who was born according to the flesh, then persecuted him who was born according to the spirit, even so it is now. Nevertheless, what does the scripture say? Cast out the born woman and her son for the son of the born woman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman. So then brethren, we are not children of the born woman but of the free. So Paul says long ago the legal heir Ishmael, he mocked, persecuted that little boy Isaac. In the same way, these judicers who have legally, who think that they have legally earned their status as children of God. They are trying to persecute and mock you people who have just come to God by faith on the basis of a promise which God made. They have placed their faith in that promise and they have become children. So the persecution which started at that time is continuing up to today. In the same way the legally entitled person persecuted the one who was by grace. Even today, you people who are by grace are being persecuted by these judicers who think that they have a legal right to heaven just because they have kept the law. But what does it say? What does scripture say in verse 30? He says, but what does scripture say? Get rid of the slave woman and her son for the slave woman son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman son. In the same way, these judicers who are now, you know, persecuting you and who are saying, look, we have kept the law. We have earned the right to be children of God. He says, get rid of them. In the same way at that time, Abraham had to get rid of Hagar and her son. You two today will have to get rid of these judicers. Doesn't matter how influential they are, how powerful they are. You need to get rid of them because he says brothers and sisters, you are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman. And so to make the spiritual point, it was necessary that God, you know, ask Abraham to send away Hagar and Ishmael. However, this does not mean that God disliked Hagar or hated Ishmael because we see that he tells Abraham that, you know, he will bless Ishmael with very great blessing that he will be the father of 12 princes. You know, so in the same way Isaac later on, you know, becomes an ancestor of the 12 tribes. Even Ishmael was given 12 tribes. You know, in no way was Ishmael treated in an inferior manner. But the point that God wanted to make was that this Hagar who had been a slave and who brought forth the son, yes, she had the law on her side. Her son had legal status on his side, but that did not lead anywhere because long before that God had made a promise to Abraham under the stars. Saying that there's going to be a covenant son and whether he deserves it or not freely he will be given the inheritance. So, Sarah was representing the heavenly Jerusalem. Hagar was representing the earthly Jerusalem and the heavenly entry into the heavenly Jerusalem is only through faith. You just simply accept the promise that God is giving that if you believe in me, I will bring you to my kingdom. Entry, so these Judaizers can only have entry into the physical Jerusalem, not the heavenly Jerusalem if they hold on to the law. So, he uses this point to explain to even the Judaizers that they are making a mistake. Their only hope is not in holding on to what Ishmael represents, but it will be better for them to come and place themselves under what Isaac represents. So, to come under the promise rather than stay under the law. So, these are the points which Paul brings out to show the people that they don't need to be followers of the law. So, let's just quickly close with the word of prayer. Lord, we just thank you for the many lessons that we could learn from these two chapters. And yes, Lord, today we know so clearly that we cannot win your favor or earn your favor by trying to keep laws, by trying to impress you through our good deeds and works. Lord, your Holy Spirit and miracles are granted to us simply by believing in the finished work of the cross. Thank you a lot for that. So, we pray that you would help us to continue building ourselves up in the faith, by meditating on your scriptures, by causing those scriptures to literally become imprinted on our hearts. So that we will believe in you more and more and be able to step into all that you have for us. Thank you Lord. In Jesus' name, amen. Thank you so much. We'll meet again next class.