Opening Verse
“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.”
Galatians 4:6-7
A Reflection On Being a Child of Faith
When was the last time you talked with your children about the Holy Spirit? Not the flannel-board stories. Not the songs they sing in Bible class. The real thing: what God the Father planned, what Jesus the Son did, and what the Spirit of God means for the one who belongs to Him.
If you are like most of us, the honest answer is “not often.” Somewhere along the way we decided that the deep things are for the adults, and the children can have the stories. But Paul did not write Galatians 4 for scholars. He wrote it to everyday Christians about what it means to be a child in God’s house.
Last week we left the young heir “under guardians and managers until the date set by the father” (Galatians 4:1-2). This week Paul tells us what happened when that date arrived, and in doing so he hands parents and grandparents three things to build into the next generation of heirs: faith, knowledge, and freedom.
Building Children of Faith – Galatians 4:1-7
God’s Perfect Timing
The whole world was waiting, held “in bondage under the elemental things of the world” (Galatians 4:3). Then, at exactly the right moment, God acted:
“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” — Galatians 4:4-5
“The fullness of the time” means the appointed time, the perfect and appropriate moment. God was never late and never early. That is the first lesson of faith our children need: God keeps His schedule, and He keeps His word.
Born of a Woman, Born Under the Law
Paul gives us two short phrases that describe the conditions Jesus accepted when He became a man. “Born of a woman” means He was truly human. “Born under the Law” means He lived under the Law of Moses like every other Jewish child. Look at what He took on:
- He shared our flesh and blood. “Since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same” (Hebrews 2:14).
- He faced every weakness of the flesh. “We do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin” (Hebrews 4:15).
- He came without privilege. He “emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men” (Philippians 2:7).
- He was expected to keep the Law. He was circumcised on the eighth day and presented at the temple “according to the law of Moses” (Luke 2:21-22). Even the One who is “Lord of the Sabbath” (Matthew 12:8; Mark 2:28; Luke 6:5) lived under the Law He came to fulfill (Matthew 5:17).
Why? To Redeem
To “redeem” is to buy back, to pay the price that sets a slave free. Everyone under the Law was a slave to sin, and Jesus came to purchase our freedom. The Son of God became a son of man so that the sons of men could become sons of God.
The Spirit of His Son
And then Paul says something remarkable:
“Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”” — Galatians 4:6
The Spirit was promised (Galatians 3:14) and received “by hearing with faith” (Galatians 3:2). He is the Father’s gift to His sons, the proof that we belong to the family. Only those who have become sons through the Son receive the Spirit of the Son. And the conclusion is the very heart of this series: “Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God” (Galatians 4:7).
This is what builds faith in our children: a God who planned, a Son who came, and a Spirit who lives in those who belong to Him.
“But Isn’t That Too Deep for Children?”
Some will say so. But let me tell you something, folks:
Our children aren’t too young to comprehend it. Maybe we’re too short on faith to commend it.
Timothy knew the Scriptures “from childhood” (2 Timothy 3:15). Jesus said, “Let the children alone, and do not hinder them from coming to Me” (Matthew 19:14). We hinder them when we decide for them that they cannot understand. Let them see the story of redemption in the word of God, and then get out of the way. Do not imprison them inside the limits of our own understanding. Free them to know God for themselves, push them to excel in their learning, and build their faith by teaching them to build it themselves.
Building Children of Knowledge – Galatians 4:8-20
Every Child Has a Journey
There was a time in every one of our lives when we did not know God. Paul reminds the Galatians of theirs:
“However at that time, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those which by nature are no gods. But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how is it that you turn back again to the weak and worthless elemental things, to which you desire to be enslaved all over again?” — Galatians 4:8-9
Two Words for “Know”
Paul uses two different Greek words in these verses, and the difference matters:
- Oida (v. 8): “when you did not know.” They had no knowledge of Him at all.
- Ginōskō (v. 9): “now that you have come to know.” This is personal, experiential knowledge, the kind of knowing that comes through relationship.
- Ginōskō again (v. 9): “or rather to be known by God.” The same relational word, but now God is the one doing the knowing.
It is one thing to know about God. It is something else to know Him, and to be known by Him.
“At That Time”
Paul uses the same phrase in Ephesians to describe life before Christ:
“Remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world.” — Ephesians 2:12
Without God, there is no hope. And Scripture is sober about the end of that road: the Lord will deal out “retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus” (2 Thessalonians 1:8).
What This Means for Our Children
Our little ones are not lost. Jesus said, “the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these” (Matthew 19:14). But there comes a point in every child’s life, what we often call the age of accountability, when they become responsible before God for themselves. A child cannot ride into heaven on Mom and Dad’s faith. God has no grandchildren. Each one must come to know Him personally.
Paul felt this weight for the Galatians. They had forgotten what they knew and were turning back to the Law under the influence of the Judaizers. “I fear for you,” he wrote, “that perhaps I have labored over you in vain” (Galatians 4:11). Then, with a parent’s heart: “My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you” (Galatians 4:19). That is the labor of every Christian parent. We teach them the oracles of God until Christ is formed in them.
How Do We Come to Know Him?
“But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor. For you are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus. For all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free man, there is neither male nor female; for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s descendants, heirs according to promise.” — Galatians 3:25-29
Through faith, in baptism, we put on Christ. And when we belong to Christ, we belong to the family.
In Christ, You Come Next
Our children sing “Father Abraham” in Bible class. They know the stories of David and Goliath. Now it is time to connect those stories to the line of Jesus, and to teach our children that in Christ, they are in that same line. The genealogies of Matthew 1 and Luke 3 are not finished. In Christ, you come next.
So teach your children, not as history lessons or family tradition, but so that they will know their Father, their Savior, and the Spirit who can and will dwell in them. John wrote with exactly that goal:
“These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life.” — 1 John 5:13
Building Children of Freedom – Galatians 4:21-31
Two Mothers, Two Covenants
Paul closes the chapter with a picture from Genesis. Abraham had two sons, “one by the bondwoman and one by the free woman” (Galatians 4:22). Hagar stands for the covenant from Mount Sinai that bears children into slavery. Sarah stands for the promise, “the Jerusalem above,” who “is free” (Galatians 4:24-26). Paul’s conclusion leaves no doubt about which family we belong to:
“So then, brethren, we are not children of a bondwoman, but of the free woman.” — Galatians 4:31
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” — Galatians 5:1
“Child, Do You Want to Be Free?”
Ask your children that question. They will say yes. Then tell them the truth: if you want to be free, you must live for the King. You must live for something, and Someone, greater than yourself.
Freedom in Christ is not freedom to do whatever we please. It is a life of spiritual responsibility. “If we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7). In the family of Christ, we have been set free from two masters:
- The Law. “But now we have been released from the Law … so that we serve in newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter” (Romans 7:6).
- “Having been freed from sin, you became slaves of righteousness” (Romans 6:18).
“So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed” (John 8:36).
That is what God has done for you.
That is what Jesus has done for you.
That is what the Holy Spirit has done for you.
Now, will you live for Him?
Taking It Home
- Tell them the whole story. Talk about the Father who planned, the Son who came, and the Spirit who dwells in His people. Don’t save the deep things for adults.
- Ask bigger questions. Give your children questions that stretch them. They will rise to what you expect of them (2 Timothy 3:15).
- Show them their place in the line. Open Matthew 1 together and read Galatians 3:29. In Christ, their name comes next.
- Teach the purpose of worship, not just the experience. The Father seeks those who worship “in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Help them understand why we do what we do.
- Ask the freedom question. “Who are you living for?” Ask it often, and let your own life answer it first.
Closing Thoughts
Galatians 4 leaves us with three marks of the children of the King:
- Children of the King develop a faith in God, instilled by their parents and supported by the church.
- Children of the King develop a relationship with God, where they know God and God knows them.
- Children of the King live a faithful, obedient life for the King who set them free from slavery, so that they might live for Him.
Children of the King are disciples of Christ. Teach them to be who God wants them to be, and God will use them for what He wants them to do.
And one more thing, parents: we are not called to sell our children on the experience of worship. We are called to tell our children the purpose of worship. Experiences fade. Purpose holds.
So this week, open the Book with your children. Tell them who their Father is. Tell them what their Savior has done. Tell them about the Spirit who lives in the sons of God. And then ask them the question every heir has to answer for himself: Now, will you live for Him?
Join us next week as we continue our study of Heirs to the Kingdom on Excel & Reflect.
