Transformed | Nova creatura

We have been transformed into a new creation - Galatians 6:15.

Very often we want to become better and change ourselves. We make commitments and start new projects. We sign up for new training programs, and so on. But everything we begin by our own strength is usually not lasting. We need something else to encourage us and transform us.

The Apostle Paul discovered that only the grace of God can make a difference in a person's life. He himself declared: "Far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world" (Gal 6:14). The sign of the cross is the best explanation of how this grace works. When you are totally abandoned and without strength, you can only depend on the grace that comes from heaven — for as Paul heard the Lord say to him: "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness" (2 Cor 12:9). 

The grace of God is the grace of divine love. Like every true love, it heals you without effort on your part, for "God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us" (Rom 5:5). You can think of your parents' love, or of true friends who love you not because of what you do, but because you are precious in their eyes.

The Apostle Paul experienced how strong the love of Jesus is as he traveled alone through his life. He came to acknowledge that nothing and no one could fulfill all his desires but the love of Christ. He was deeply transformed by Jesus' presence and his holy word. Thus he could begin a new life in the grace of God, for "if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, behold, the new has come" (2 Cor 6:17). He found peace and mercy not among men in this world, but in the heavenly Kingdom — that "peace of God, which surpasses all understanding" (Phil 4:7). And so he became a new person, a faithful follower of Jesus Christ.

How is it with you? Are you feeling lonely and abandoned? Do you feel weak and fragile on your own? Do not worry — this is our common human experience. Do not let anyone trouble you, but trust in the heavenly grace you can experience every day, in every situation — on your journey home from work, for instance. Just remember to read the Holy Bible with full attention, and let the Holy Spirit work in you, for "nothing... will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 8:38-39).

Perhaps you too bear on your body the scars that show you belong to Jesus, as Paul himself said: "I bear on my body the scars of Jesus" (Gal 6:17). So be thankful that you are worthy to become a disciple and close friend of the Son of God.

"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. Amen" (Gal 6:18).

Reflection on 1 Galatians 6:11-18  by Jozef.

(Listen to podcast here)

Merdeka

Saudara-saudara, memang kamu telah dipanggil untuk merdeka. Namun, janganlah mempergunakan kemerdekaan itu sebagai kesempatan untuk hidup dalam dosa, melainkan layanilah seorang akan yang lain dengan kasih - Galatia 5:13.

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Negara-negara yang memiliki sejarah penjajahan, selalu memperingati hari kemerdekaan dengan meriah. Di Indonesia, sebentar lagi tepatnya tanggal 17 Agustus, seluruh Indonesia akan bersukacita merayakan Hari Kemerdekaan. Bendera berkibar, lomba-lomba digelar, dan semangat "merdeka!" bergema di mana-mana. Tapi pernahkah kita berhenti sejenak dan bertanya: apa sebenarnya arti merdeka itu?

Apakah merdeka berarti bebas melakukan apa saja, bahkan hal-hal yang tidak baik? Ternyata tidak. Sebuah bangsa yang merdeka dari penjajahan tetap hidup di bawah hukum dan aturan demi menjaga ketertiban dan kebaikan bersama. Kemerdekaan sejati bukan tanpa batas - ia punya arah dan tujuan.

Prinsip yang sama berlaku, bahkan lebih dalam lagi, dalam kehidupan iman kita.

Surat Paulus kepada jemaat di Galatia lahir dari kerinduan untuk meluruskan pemahaman yang keliru. Ada yang mengira keselamatan diperoleh lewat usaha menaati hukum Taurat. Paulus dengan tegas meluruskan: keselamatan adalah anugerah, yang datang semata-mata melalui iman kepada Kristus.

Lewat kematian-Nya di kayu salib, Yesus menggenapi tuntutan hukum Taurat dan membebaskan kita dari belenggu dosa dan maut. Paulus menuliskannya dengan lantang di awal pasal ini:

"Supaya kita sungguh-sungguh merdeka, Kristus telah memerdekakan kita. Karena itu berdirilah teguh dan jangan mau lagi dikenakan kuk perhambaan" - Galatia 5:1.

Hukum Tuhan kini bukan lagi sekadar aturan di atas loh batu, melainkan tertulis di dalam hati kita oleh Roh Kudus. Kita bebas — bukan untuk lari dari Tuhan, tetapi untuk datang dan melayani-Nya dengan sukacita.

Inilah paradoks indah dari kemerdekaan Kristen: kita dimerdekakan, namun kemerdekaan itu justru memanggil kita pada tanggung jawab yang lebih besar.

Kristus tidak hanya membebaskan kita dari tuntutan hukum Taurat, tetapi juga dari kuasa dosa itu sendiri. Melalui karya penebusan-Nya, kita bukan cuma diampuni, tetapi diberi kemampuan baru untuk sungguh-sungguh hidup dalam kebenaran.

Namun kemerdekaan ini bukan tiket untuk memuaskan hawa nafsu semau kita. Sebaliknya, ia adalah ruang untuk mengasihi dan melayani sesama. Sebagai orang percaya, tanggung jawab kita tidak berhenti pada diri sendiri — ia meluas kepada komunitas iman, kepada saudara-saudara di sekeliling kita.

Ada satu kebenaran yang begitu menenangkan: melalui pengorbanan Yesus, kita dibenarkan di hadapan Allah. Dia telah melakukan segalanya — tidak ada lagi yang perlu kita "bayar" untuk layak diterima.

Karena telah dimerdekakan, kita dipanggil untuk hidup sebagai ciptaan baru:

"Jadi, siapa yang ada di dalam Kristus, ia adalah ciptaan baru: Yang lama sudah berlalu, sesungguhnya yang baru sudah datang" - 2 Korintus 5:17.

Amin.

Refleksi dari Galatia 5: 13-26 oleh Meist. 

Called to freedom | In libertatem vocati

 

For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for self-indulgence, but through love become slaves to one another — Galatians 5:13.

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Nations with a history of colonization always celebrate their Independence Day with great enthusiasm. In Indonesia, very soon — on August 17th — the whole country will joyfully celebrate Independence Day. Flags will wave, competitions will be held, and the spirit of "merdeka!" (freedom!) will echo everywhere. But have we ever paused to ask: what does freedom truly mean?

Does being free mean we can do anything we want, even things that are not good? As it turns out, no. A nation that is free from colonization still lives under laws and regulations to maintain order and the common good. True freedom is not without limits — it has direction and purpose.

The same principle applies, even more deeply, in our life of faith.  Paul's letter to the church in Galatia was born out of a desire to correct a mistaken understanding. Some believed that salvation was earned through obedience to the Law of Moses. Paul firmly corrects this: salvation is a “gift of grace”, received solely through faith in Christ.  Through His death on the cross, Jesus fulfilled the demands of the Law and freed us from the bondage of sin and death. Paul declares this boldly at the beginning of this chapter: "For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery”- Galatians 5:1. 

God's law is no longer merely a set of rules written on stone tablets, but is now written on our hearts by the Holy Spirit. We are free — not to run away from God, but to come to Him and serve Him with joy.

Here lies the beautiful paradox of Christian freedom: we have been set free, yet that very freedom calls us to an even greater responsibility. Christ did not only free us from the demands of the Law, but also from the “power of sin” itself. Through His redemptive work, we are not merely forgiven — we are given new capacity to truly live in righteousness.

Yet this freedom is not a license to satisfy our own desires however we please. Instead, it is a space to love and serve one another. As believers, our responsibility does not stop with ourselves — it extends to the community of faith, to the brothers and sisters around us.

There is one truth that brings such deep peace: through Jesus' sacrifice, we are made righteous before God. He has already done everything — there is nothing left for us to "pay" in order to be accepted. Because we have been set free, we are called to live as a new creation: "So if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation: everything old has passed away; see, everything has become new!" — 2 Corinthians 5:17. Amen.

Reflection from Galatians 5: 13-26 by Meist.

(Listen to podcast here)