In Galatians 4:28–5:1, Paul reminds believers that we are children of promise, not slaves, and urges us to reject legalism, remember our true identity in Christ, and stand firm in the freedom His grace has secured.

In Galatians 4:21–27, Paul uses the stories of Hagar and Sarah to contrast two ways of relating to God—one through human effort and one through divine promise. Those who depend on their own wisdom and strength find only frustration and bondage, but those who trust God’s promise experience true freedom and joy. The gospel reminds us that freedom is found not in what we do for God, but in what God has done for us in Christ.

Presenting the truth, even in love, can be costly. In Galatians 4:12-20, Paul urges the Galatians to return to the freedom and joy they once knew and reminds them of his affection for them. Like a loving Father, he contrasts his longing for Christ to be formed in them with the false teacher's desire to use and enslave them. 

In Galatians 4:8-11, Paul reminds us that before Christ we were enslaved to false gods—impersonal masters that demanded everything and gave nothing. But now, through Jesus, we are known and loved personally by the living God who calls us His sons and daughters. Paul has argued that in Christ we exchange our slavery for sonship, and now he grows deeply personal—pleading with the Galatians not to reverse course and trade their sonship for slavery. 

In Galatians 4:1–7, Paul paints a powerful picture of our adoption into God’s family—no longer slaves but beloved sons and daughters. Through Christ’s redemption and the Spirit’s witness, we are free to live with confidence, intimacy, and joy as heirs of our Father’s kingdom.

In Galatians 3, Paul shows that the law’s purpose was never to save but to reveal our sin and point us to Christ. In verses 23-29, he explains that the law imprisoned and guarded us until faith in Christ was revealed. Now, in Christ, we have a new identity, a new unity, and a new inheritance. The gospel truly changes everything!

In Galatians 3:15–22, Paul explains that God’s promise to Abraham came long before the law—and the law didn’t cancel or replace it. The promise was always pointing to Christ, the true “offspring” of Abraham, through whom the blessing would come. The law was given later to reveal sin, not to give life or replace faith. In short, God’s promise stands firm—our inheritance comes by faith in Christ alone, not by keeping the law.

In Galatians 3:1–14, Paul confronts the Galatian believers—and us—for drifting from the gospel. He shows how easy it is to begin by grace but slip back into self-effort, warns of the damage it brings, and calls us to daily rehearse the good news: Christ crucified for us, Christ living in us, and the Spirit empowering us.

In Galatians 2:17-21, Paul reminds us that we are justified not by law-keeping, but by faith in Christ, and what this means for our practical, everyday living. If we, like Paul, renounce law-keeping as a means of salvation and trust in Christ alone, then we are dead to the curse and burden of the law, alive to God, and living under the good, wise, and gracious reign of King Jesus, who loves us and gave his life for us. Living out of that identity, Paul has all the motivation in the world to pursue holiness.

This week in Galatians 2:15-16, Paul takes Peter and the Jewish believers to the heart of the gospel: we are justified—declared right with God—only through faith in Christ, not by any human status or activity. This essential truth must be guarded and proclaimed, for it is both the foundation and the fuel of the Christian life.

In Galatians 2:11–14, Paul confronts Peter and others for hypocrisy that contradicted the gospel. This passage shows us the need for gospel-centered correction, the ongoing struggle between what we know and what we love, and the vital importance of daily remembering and rehearsing the gospel.

This week we'll examine Galatians 2:1–10, where Paul gives more evidence for the origin and truth of the gospel. Sent by God for the sake of the gospel, Paul meets with Peter, James, and John, who each affirmed that salvation is by grace alone, through faith alone in Christ alone. Their meeting results in unified fellowship and gospel application, and offers us confident assurance. 

This week we're studying Galatians 1:10-12. In these verses, Paul shows us the power of the gospel to free us from the approval of man, and then begins to explain where he received the gospel he proclaimed. Knowing that it comes directly from Jesus gives us assurance and confidence that what we have believed is the true gospel. 

In Galatians 1:6-9, we begin to see the heart of the problem Paul is addressing. The Galatian believers are putting down and setting aside the work of Christ to pick up their own. Rather than resting in the righteousness they receive from Jesus and allowing that to fuel their works, they are attempting to add to Jesus' work and earn righteousness and acceptance before God by their works. Paul knows this has devastating consequences, and he acts quickly to address it.

We begin our study of the book of Galatians. Galatians is a powerful and concise letter that passionately defends the truth of the gospel: that salvation is by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. Paul defends the gospel, proclaims the gospel, and shows us how important the gospel is to ongoing Christian growth and life together. The gospel is not simply the way into the Kingdom of God, but also the way of living in the Kingdom of God. This week, we'll look at Galatians 1:1-5. 

As we begin, we will be asking our church to read through the entire book several times. Each month, we will also encourage everyone to memorize a verse from Galatians. This month, we're encouraging everyone to memorize Galatians 1:8: "But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed."

This week, we conclude our "What We Value" series by examining biblical worship. In the Bible, we see that God's character, nature, greatness, and grace fuel a variety of responses, attitudes, and actions. Some examples include singing for joy and bowing in reverence (Psalm 95), faithful obedience (Genesis 22:5), humility and confession (Isaiah 6), and silent listening (Psalm 62:1). All of these attitudes and actions overflow from reflecting upon the greatness and grace of God (Ps 95:3-5 and 7, Col 3:16-17).

We're in week 4 of our What We Value series, and this week we're looking at Gospel-Driven Missions. In Abraham, we see that God's blessings were always meant to overflow to the world. In Jonah, we see a reluctant prophet who lost sight of God's extraordinary grace and therefore kept God's blessings and grace to himself. Thankfully, in Jesus, we receive the True and Better Jonah, who came to seek and save the lost. Remembering and rehearsing his grace ought to lead us to pray, "Bless us...so that the world may know and sing for joy (Psalm 67). 

This week, we're exploring intentional discipleship. Jesus commanded us to proclaim the gospel to not-yet disciples and teach and train already-disciples. Paul says he aimed to proclaim Christ...and present others mature in Christ. Discipleship happens in a variety of ways and contexts, but not without faithfulness to Jesus' command and intentionality with those around us. 

This week, as we continue exploring “What We Value” at Mars Hill Church, our focus is on gospel community. We're not just talking about community groups, but how we were created, the gift of our new kingdom family, the unifying power of the gospel, and the ethos, culture, and attitude we should have toward this family.

This Sunday, we launched our summer series, exploring five principles and practices that we value at Mars Hill. Every church has theological imperatives that it holds tightly (ours are outlined in our statement of faith). Additionally, every church also has theological distinctives that shape how it practices its beliefs and identity. We've traditionally referred to these as our three pillars, which serve as umbrella categories for all that we do. 

Over the next five weeks, we'll examine Biblical Teaching, Gospel Community, Intentional Discipleship, and two other values that are sometimes overlooked: Gospel-Driven Missions and Biblical Worship. We last studied these as a church in 2018, so this series will be a helpful refresher and encouraging study for new and old. 

This week, we're examining Biblical Teaching and our need to center and submit everything we do to the ultimate authority of God's word.