One Family: A closer look at Galatians 3:28

I am fortunate enough to live in the great state of Queensland, Australia. It is renowned for great weather, pristine beaches and incredible wildlife. The locals love the great outdoors and a cold beer and are typically a pretty chilled bunch. In fact, there are only a couple of times a year when they get hot under the collar, and both have to do with footy. By football, I mean Rugby League. We are currently two matches into the annual State of Origin competition between Queensland and New South Wales. For the uninitiated, the best players from their respective states come together to play three games and determine which state is the best. (Which, of course, is Queensland). So we await with great expectation for round 3.

When the players from various teams come together for Origin, their usual team jumper is cast aside for the state jersey, and they come together to represent the one ‘state family’. The divisions that exist on a weekly basis, the fixture and ranking ladder are no longer lines that separate the Origin team from being one unit.

We saw in the recent game that when the team embraces that unity and plays as one, they play well. Unity doesn’t just happen, though; it is intentional and often credited to the leadership of the coach.

In the letter to the Galatians, Paul is giving the churches he founded a robust coaches address to remind them of the gospel they received and what team they represent as a result.

Galatians 3:28 says, “There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

No doubt you have heard this scripture used before to promote equality, and while this issue is important, Paul is addressing so much more. So, are you ready to unpack this with me? Let’s have a look at why Paul was writing this letter in the first place.

When Paul went on his first missionary journey, he travelled through a region known as Galatia. Scholars argue about exactly where this was because it covered a large area, and over time, the names of places have changed, but for our reference, the broad area is in modern-day Turkey.

Paul preached the gospel of Christ crucified there, and not only did they accept this salvation message, but they also received the Holy Spirit, the mark of God’s new creation.  

Is it any wonder that a few years later, Paul is furious to hear that some Christian Jewish teachers from Jerusalem had visited these churches and were teaching a different gospel? Their message was that accepting Christ in faith is not enough to be accepted into God’s family, but that these Christians would also have to keep the law of Moses. This involved things like abiding by strict food and ceremonial laws, and in particular, for the men to be circumcised.

Paul wrote his letter to remind the Galatians that the gospel they received was confirmed in them through the Holy Spirit. He sets out a compelling correction to the Jewish teaching, highlighting the scriptural basis for being accepted into God’s family through faith in Christ. The climax of his argument is what we have just read in Galatians 3:28. Paul mentions three pairs of distinctions: cultural, social and gender distinctions, and unites them in Christ.

It would be easy to think that he is collapsing the lines of cultural, social and gender differences, but that’s not what is happening here.

Let’s take a closer look at what Paul is saying in this verse:

1. “There is neither Jew nor Gentile…”

The Galatian church were largely Gentiles (non-Jews), and the Jewish Christian teachers had convinced them that to be fully accepted into the family of God, they had to keep Jewish law. In particular, they were instructed to become circumcised like Abraham. However, Paul argued against this; he did not reject the Old Testament law but highlighted that righteousness was not given by the law but only through Christ and the Spirit.

He explained that way back in Genesis, Abraham’s faith in God’s promise to bless the nations through his seed was credited to him as righteousness – before the law was received, and years before circumcision was even a thing!

Simply put, the Galatians didn’t have to become Jewish to be accepted into God’s family because they were already in. They had already been adopted through their faith and baptism into God’s Son, Abraham’s seed, Jesus Christ.

Key Takeaway: Neither the status or practices of one group is more important or advantageous than the other in God’s family because in Christ, all are equally welcomed into the family.

2. “neither slave nor free…”

Paul now speaks to the social situation of the Galatians. There would undoubtedly have been a section of the church who were slaves, and in case distinctions about power or privilege are being drawn up within the congregation, Paul shuts this down. We look at slavery now, and it’s a no-brainer that it’s not cool to own people. But in the first century Roman Empire, slavery was a fact of life. Slaves did not have the same rights as free people, and Paul’s point here is that there is no hierarchy of power or privilege in God’s family.

Key Takeaway: Whatever earthly status one has, whether slave or free, in Christ all are adopted into the family as true and equal children with a spiritual inheritance.

3. “nor is there male and female…”

Paul doesn’t say there is no male or female, he says there is no male and female. What does that mean? Some have questioned if Paul is abolishing gender, but ultimately most studies on this verse have concluded that gender is not subject to hierarchy in Christ. The use of 'and' echoes back to Genesis 1:27 that describes God creating humankind in his own image before differentiating them as male and female. Looking at this passage we can see that before the fall both male and female were created specifically as image bearers, and in this God-given gender distinction declared good.

In Christ, gender difference is not negated, but the relationship between male and female that was damaged under the curse of sin is restored and transformed.

Key Takeaway: Baptised into Christ as part of God’s new creation, both male and female equally and fully reflect Christ’s image in the world.       

4. “for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

The Galatians lived in a society that was highly divided and where the tendency was to separate oneself to highlight one’s honour and status. It is interesting to note a pagan prayer attributed to the philosopher Socrates that gives thanks to Fortune for the following: “First, that I was born a human being and not one of the brutes; next, that I was born a man and not a woman; thirdly, a Greek and not a barbarian.”

Even more interesting is the devout Jewish prayer that was prayed in the first century and is still prayed by some today: “Praised be you, Adonai our God, King of the universe, because you have not made me a Gentile. Praised be you, Adonai our God, King of the universe, because you have not made me a woman. Praised be you, Adonai our God, King of the universe, because you have not made me a slave.” These are the divisions that mattered in society in the first century. Are they still divisions that matter today?

Through Jesus Christ, God takes all of the human-made divisions and ideas about power and importance and makes us one together in his family. He takes the God-ordained distinctions that were good but were damaged by human sin, and he restores us to his original intention.

Key Takeaway: The differences that separate us are not deleted; they are transcended as we enter into faithfulness to Christ. Through that faith, we are welcomed into God’s family. Difference exists in family. We are not the same and thank goodness for that! But we are all united as one in God’s family. We all inherit his eternal promises and are restored to reflect his image within the world – whoever we are and however we came to accept faith in Christ.

Where to from here?

We have just seen that Paul was countering the false teaching that acceptance into God’s family was through Christ plus the Jewish law. Building on his argument about lines of separation between humans, he spoke to the issue of slave versus free, a common social distinction of his day. Even though slavery isn’t a common social issue for us today, we do have groups in our community that are more vulnerable and have less self-determination than others. Think of the poor, elderly, single parents, immigrants, or physically or mentally impaired persons. Finally, to drive his point home, Paul outlines that even God-given distinctions that humans have devalued and set against each other are transformed in Christ.

So, I have some questions for us to wrestle with, and hopefully, to help us move forward with a deepened faithfulness to Christ.

1. When have we ever imagined that salvation looks like Jesus plus something else?

2. When have we imposed or maintained divisions (in our thoughts or actions) that diminish vulnerable people in God’s family?

3. When have we operated out of fractured relationship with our brothers or sisters in Christ instead of operating out of unity, mutuality, and respect towards them?

As you may be calling these times to mind, I encourage you to ask the Holy Spirit to reveal your motivation in these situations. If you are continuing to live within the restriction of human-made divisions instead of within the freedom that God gives us in Christ, what would it look like to live within that unity?

It doesn’t matter where we have come from in life or who we are, when we put on Christ, we are part of his family together. It’s kind of like putting on the State of Origin jersey, but in Christ we are always on the winning team.

Father God, Thank you that your intention is for everyone to be welcomed within your family. Thank you, Jesus, for your sacrifice and death which allows us free access to your life and resurrection. Help us Spirit to be transformed and live in the freedom and unity given to us as part of God’s family. Amen.