«　WEEK 3　DAY 2　»

　　Gal. 5:5-6 For we by the Spirit out of faith eagerly await the hope of righteousness….Faith avails, operating through love.

　　Eph. 6:23 Peace to the brothers and love with faith from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

　　Love with faith is the means by which we partake of and experience Christ (1 Tim. 1:14). Faith is for receiving Him (John 1:12), and love is for enjoying Him (John 14:23). [In Ephesians 6:23] it is not faith and love nor love and faith, but love with faith. This indicates that we need faith as a match and support for our love. Love with faith is needed. This is the conclusion of [Ephesians], the book on the church. The church needs to enjoy Christ in love with faith, which operates through love (Gal. 5:6). Love comes from God to us, and faith goes from us to God. By means of this traffic of love and faith, peace remains our portion….This traffic also keeps us in the continual supply of grace, in the enjoyment of the Lord (Eph. 6:24). (Eph. 6:23, footnote 2)

　　[In Galatians 5:5] by the Spirit, the Holy Spirit, … is in contrast with by the flesh (3:3). Furthermore, out of faith [5:5] is in contrast with out of the works of law (3:2). The hope of righteousness [5:5] means the righteousness we hope for, which is Christ Himself (1 Cor. 1:30). It is not out of works of law in the flesh but out of faith in the Spirit. Christ is our hope of righteousness. He is our righteousness today, and He is our hope to come.

　　In Galatians 5:5 Paul puts the Spirit together with faith. We have pointed out that the Spirit is typified by the land. We have also seen that faith is the camera which photographs the scenery of grace. In order to have the proper enjoyment, we need to have the Spirit as the all-inclusive land and faith as the means to enjoy this land. As we enjoy the Spirit by faith, we eagerly await the coming hope of righteousness.

　　In 5:6 Paul goes on to say, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision avails anything nor uncircumcision, but faith avails, operating through love.” Apart from the Spirit and faith, nothing else avails. In Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything. What avails is the Spirit on God’s side and faith on our side. The Spirit is the all-inclusive land for our enjoyment, and faith is the organ by which we participate in this rich land and enjoy it.

　　In 5:6 Paul also says that faith operates through love. Living faith is active. It operates to work out the fulfillment of the law through love (v. 14). Circumcision is simply an outward ordinance having no power of life. Hence, it avails nothing. It has no force or practical power. Faith receives the Spirit of life (3:2), which is full of power. It operates through love to fulfill not only the law, but also God’s purpose, that is, to complete the sonship of God for His corporate expression.

　　Love is related to our appreciation of Christ. Without such an appreciation, faith cannot operate. When we have the hearing of faith, this hearing awakens our loving appreciation, and this appreciation causes faith to operate. Faith operates because it participates in the riches of the life-giving Spirit. The more we have the hearing of faith, the more appreciation and love we have. The more love we have for the Lord, the more faith operates. The more faith operates, the more it brings us into the riches, the profit, of the all-inclusive Spirit. Instead of being deprived of profit in Christ, we are thus abundantly enriched. Instead of being brought to nought from Christ, we are strengthened with the bountiful supply of the all-inclusive Spirit.

　　Faith receives the Spirit of life (3:2) and operates through love to fulfill the law (5:13). Faith operating through love thus completes the sonship of God for His corporate expression. This faith is the camera which photographs the scenery of grace, the very grace that is the all-inclusive Christ as the life-giving Spirit for our enjoyment. (Life-study of Galatians, pp. 224-226)

　　Further Reading: Life-study of Galatians, msgs. 14, 25; Life-study of Ephesians, msg. 67