Pastor
David Jang’s exposition of Galatians chapter 3 invites us beyond the cold
obligation of the Law into the warm embrace of grace. Through Rembrandt’s
masterpiece and Abraham’s faith, we explore the heart of the gospel and the
true freedom enjoyed in the Holy Spirit—liberated from the curse of the Law.
In
the dim pre-dawn hours, the human figure standing before a mirror always looks
rather wretched. The mirror shows, without embellishment, our tousled hair,
tired eyes, and the traces of time. The Law is like that mirror. It coldly
points out how far we fall short of the standard—how disheveled our appearance
truly is. But a mirror cannot wash us. It only reveals the dirt; it cannot
cleanse it.
The
Galatian believers in the early church were despairing before this cold mirror.
The heavy yoke of “keeping the Law,” brought in by Judaizing teachers, sought
to make them finish in human effort what they had begun by the Spirit. In the
midst of this spiritual crisis, Pastor David Jang (Olivet University), through
his exposition of Galatians 3, shines a light on the overwhelming grace of
God—grace that goes beyond the mirror to cleanse us and clothe us.
The
Prodigal’s Return, and Beyond the Limits of the Law
We
are reminded of Rembrandt, the painter of light and shadow, and his late-life
masterpiece, The Return of the Prodigal Son. In the painting, the
prodigal kneels in his father’s arms, wearing worn-out shoes and ragged
clothes. Behind him, in the darkness, stands the older brother—upright and
rigid—watching the scene with displeasure. The older brother was dutiful, but
he was bound not to the father’s heart, but to “rules” and “rewards.” He
represents the Law.
The
Law calculates what we have done and what we have failed to do, and it condemns
us. But the father is different. The father embraces his son not because of the
son’s deeds, but because of the son’s very being.
As
Pastor David Jang expounds Galatians 3, he pierces straight through to the
heart of the gospel that the parable reveals. The reason the apostle Paul
lamented, “You foolish Galatians,” was that though they had already been held
in the Father’s embrace (grace), they were trying to return to the older
brother’s arithmetic (the Law).
Pastor
Jang acknowledges the Law’s function of exposing sin—its role as a “guardian”
or tutor—but, drawing on the theological insights of Calvin and Luther, he
makes it clear that the Law can never save us. Just as the father’s hands in
Rembrandt’s painting wrap around the prodigal’s shoulders, Christ’s grace
covers those who tremble under the curse of the Law and declares them
righteous. This is not because of our merit, but because Jesus Christ, on the
cross, bore the curse in our place and redeemed us.
A
Faith that Counts the Stars, Walking the Horizon of Promise
We
often reduce faith to “intellectual agreement” or “emotional confidence.” But
the faith Scripture speaks of is far larger and far more dynamic. Pastor David
Jang presents Abraham’s life as the archetype of such faith.
Abraham
was counted righteous hundreds of years before the Law was even given. He did
not rely on a scroll inscribed with commandments; he trusted God’s promise
while looking up at the stars of the night sky.
As
Hebrews 11 testifies, Abraham’s faith was not settling down, but setting
out—not calculation, but risk-filled obedience. Pastor Jang insists that this
is precisely the essence of faith modern Christians must recover. Clinging to
works of the Law is like walking while staring only at the ground. Faith, by
contrast, lifts its head and fixes its gaze on the stars of God’s promise.
As
N. T. Wright has emphasized, Abraham’s faith became a channel of communal
blessing through which all nations would be blessed—far beyond mere individual
salvation. As Pastor David Jang explains, the basis for our freedom from the
Law’s curse today is not our moral perfection, but God’s unchanging
covenant—running from Abraham onward—and its fulfillment in Jesus Christ.
The
Gospel of the Cross Planted in Unfamiliar Soil
This
gospel of “grace alone” requires even more careful approach when it crosses
cultural barriers into other contexts. In cultures where merit-based thinking
or strict notions of cause-and-effect retribution run deep, “free grace” can
feel unfamiliar—and even seem unfair.
Pastor
David Jang, drawing on the insight of Romans 1, finds a missional point of
contact in the universal truth that all humanity has turned from God, worshiped
idols, and become imprisoned under sin. The essence of sin is not merely
ethical failure, but estrangement from the Creator.
What
matters on the mission field is not wielding a legalistic yardstick, but
relying on the power of the Holy Spirit and “translating” grace into lived
reality. Just as Paul approached Jews as a Jew and Gentiles as a Gentile, we
must plant the seed of the gospel within people’s cultural language and
emotional world.
Just
as baptism signifies more than a mere ritual—union with Christ—mission is the
process of entering into union with others in life so that we may show them the
love of Christ. The emphasis Donald Guthrie placed on the church’s unity and
oneness applies in the mission field as well. When the church demonstrates
oneness in Christ that transcends race and class, the gospel gains its
strongest persuasive power.
The
mirror of the Law is cold, but the embrace of grace is warm. Pastor David
Jang’s exposition of Galatians asks us again: Are you standing before the
mirror, counting your flaws—or are you resting in the Father’s arms, enjoying
His love?
The
Law condemns us and drives us to the cross, but the cross sets us free and
leads us into the life of the Spirit. May we lay down the heavy burden of the
Law and walk the journey of faith on the wind of freedom the Spirit gives. That
is the thrilling gospel message Galatians—and today’s pulpit—proclaims to us.
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