In Galatians 5:13-15, Paul begins to turn more fully to ethical instruction in this letter: how does the doctrine he has taught translate into living? He began that transition in Chapter 5. In the first 12 verses he was hitting one opponent of freedom: the legalists. Now he addresses those who might be taking freedom…
If sinners, depraved and blind, shall ever see the glory of the gospel, glory that radiates from a humble, curs-ed cross, the Spirit of God must unveil our hearts so that we may truly see.
Paul talked about the blindness and heart-heartedness of his fellow Jews, but what he says of them is true of all the sons and daughters of Adam. We all enter this world with the same congenital heart defect. And there is nothing that we can do to change it. Another must do it for us.
The Law of Moses explained the rules by which the people of Israel would be governed. It included instructions and consequences for violations. The problem was that the Law had nothing in it that would enable a person to become a law-keeper. It was designed only to manage law-breakers.