Instead of speaking simply of the Holy Spirit, Paul uses a phrase that is very original and found only here in the whole Bible: “the spirit of his Son.” The phrase complicates the sentence, and some ancient manuscripts simplify it by omitting “of his Son.” However, the logic of the passage requires the complexity because it is explaining how God has made us his sons and daughters thanks to the sending of the Son and the Spirit. In order for us to become God’s children, the Father himself must act. An action by the Son alone would not be sufficient. It would not be sufficient if God sent only his Holy Spirit to us, as he did to various individuals in the Old Testament (e.g., Judg 13:25; 1 Sam 16:13; 19:20), because the Spirit alone would not establish a filial relationship. This is why Paul says, “God sent the spirit of his Son,” who cries, “Abba, Father!” The Spirit is in an intimate relationship with God the Father, who sent him, and with the Son, to whom he belongs. Believers are thus brought into intimate relationship through the Spirit, in the divine Son, with God the Father himself.
The Old Testament records two analogous instances of God transferring the spirit of one person to another. In the book of Numbers (11:17, 24–25), God takes some of the spirit that was on Moses and bestows it on seventy elders of Israel; in 2 Kings 2:9–10 Elisha receives a double portion of the spirit of Elijah. In neither of those cases, however, does God establish the person as his son; rather, he gives him the capacity to carry out a mission: governing in the case of the seventy elders, prophecy in the case of Elisha.
Readers might wonder if “the spirit of his Son” means the same thing as “the Spirit of God.” Although this passage does not explicitly say so, the parallel text in Rom 8:14–17 leaves no doubt, since there the children of God are led by “the Spirit of God” (Rom 8:14). The context makes clear that when Paul speaks of the indwelling of the Spirit in the hearts of believers, he does not distinguish between “the Spirit of God” and “the Spirit of Christ” (Rom 8:9). Elsewhere Paul clearly affirms that the Spirit of God is given to believers (1 Cor 3:16; 6:19; 1 Thess 4:8). We can therefore conclude that “the spirit of his Son” in verse 6 is identical to “the Spirit of God.”
BIBLICAL BACKGROUND
Is Everyone a Child of God?
Although both St. Paul and St. John speak of the fact that Christians have become children of God as an extraordinary †grace, it is common to hear people refer to every human being as a child of God. What does Scripture teach?
To begin with, Genesis presents Adam, who represents humanity as a whole in God’s image and likeness, as God’s son (see Gen 1:27; 5:1–3), and the Gospel of Luke confirms this perspective in its genealogy of Jesus (Luke 3:38). It is therefore legitimate, biblically speaking, to speak of all human beings as God’s children.
Scripture also speaks in a particular way about the people of Israel as God’s son (Exod 4:22–23; Hosea 11:1) and about the Israelites as “sons and daughters” (Deut 32:19; Isa 43:6).
God promises a special relationship of sonship to the kings who descend from David: “I will be a father to him, and he shall be a son to me” (2 Sam 7:14). Although this promise, famously expressed in Ps 2:6–9, applied in some measure to all the Davidic kings, it found its complete and ultimate fulfillment in Jesus, the †Messiah.
Jesus revealed that his own relationship to God as Son was something altogether new and of a different order from any other sonship. On the one hand, he was the human son of God by being the son of David, by embodying Israel in himself (Hosea 11:1), and by being the Son of Mana—that is, Adam’s preeminent descendant. On the other hand, Christ was the preexistent divine Son, who was with the Father from all eternity.b
Jesus’ coming into the world made possible a new kind of relationship with God that comes by divine power, through †faith in Jesus, rather than by ordinary human generation (John 1:12–13). While John speaks of this new divine sonship as being born of or begotten by God,c Paul uses the analogy of adoption to describe itd but indicates that it entails far more than a change of legal status, since God has sent “the spirit of his Son into our hearts” (Gal 4:6; see also Rom 8:15).
Nonetheless, the New Testament points to an even more wonderful future relationship with God as his sons and daughters. Paul speaks of an “adoption” that we await, “the redemption of our bodies” (Rom 8:23). For John that future intimacy with God goes beyond the marvelous current condition of being God’s children in whom his seede is present (1 John 3:9). He says, “Beloved, we are God’s children now; what we shall be has not yet been revealed. We do know that when it is revealed we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2).
To sum up, while every human being is a child of God, created in his image and likeness, and Israel is God’s son through God’s †covenant with the patriarchs, baptized Christians have been adopted by God and made his children in a far deeper way. We have received in our hearts the Spirit of God’s only begotten Son, who makes possible an extraordinary intimacy with the Father (to know him as “Abba,” Gal 4:6) and with Christ himself (to become “one spirit with him,” 1 Cor 6:17). An even greater intimacy with the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit awaits us when Christ returns (1 Cor 15:28; Eph 2:7).
a. Hebrew ben adam.
b. Matt 11:27; John 1:1–14; 3:12; 5:19–20; 6:38; 10:30; 14:9–11; 16:28; Phil 2:5–11; Col 1:13–16; Heb 1:2.
c. 1 John 2:29; 3:9; 4:7; 5:1, 4, 18.
d. Rom 8:15; Gal 4:5; Eph 1:5.
e. Greek sperma; RSV, “nature.”
This does not mean that the difference in the terms is unimportant. Rather, it is rich with doctrinal content. “The spirit of his Son” reveals that the way the Holy Spirit comes to us is through the redemptive self-emptying of the Son of God.
The Spirit of the Son of God sent into our hearts makes us sons and daughters of God and expresses that filial relationship by crying out within us, “Abba, Father!” This way of addressing God is found three times in the New Testament, the first time on the lips of Jesus during his agony (Mark 14:36) and the other two times linked to the prayers of Christians (Gal 4:6; Rom 8:15). It stands out because it consists of an Aramaic word, Abba, accompanied by its translation. “Abba” was a way of addressing one’s father within a family setting in Judaism. It was not customarily used to address God. However, according to Mark 14:36, Jesus addressed God as “Abba” in Gethsemane, demonstrating his awareness of the unique intimacy of his relationship with God (see Matt 11:27; Luke 10:21–22; John 10:30, 38). The first Christians, including the Galatians, were aware of having received the Spirit in their hearts when they came to believe in Christ. They were so strongly aware of being united through the Spirit in Jesus’ filial relationship with the Father that they could address God in the same familiar way. Both here and in Rom 8:15, Paul presupposes that his readers are familiar with this Aramaic word, indicating that even Greek-speaking †Gentile Christians had adopted the practice of using “Abba” in prayer to address God as their Father. This intimacy with God through the Spirit of his Son, with the privilege of addressing God as Father in familiar terms as his beloved children, is available to all who are baptized believers in Jesus.
[4:7]
Paul concludes, So you are no longer a slave but a child—literally, “son.” What exultation there is in these words! Paul employs the second-person singular “you,” which would have caught the original readers’ attention; it emphasizes that this conclusion applies to every single Christian. This status of being a son or daughter stands in marked contrast to the condition of slavery described in verse 3. Becoming God’s children puts an end to subservience and confers on us the highest possible dignity. The Spirit of adoption frees Christians from fear and makes it possible for us to grow in God’s likeness (Rom 8:15; 2 Cor 3:17).
But there is more! Sonship brings the right of †inheritance: and if a child then also an heir, through God. The gift of the Spirit we have received is proof of our access to the inheritance promised to Abraham’s offspring (Gen 12:7; Gal 3:29), but ev
en this gift is not the whole inheritance. It is only a down payment, “the first installment of our inheritance” (Eph 1:14; see 2 Cor 1:22; 5:5). The situation of Christians is full of hope, since it entails receiving an inheritance from God himself (see the sidebar, “What Is Abraham’s Inheritance?,” p. 107). With this final clarification, Paul communicates complete assurance to the Galatians, freeing them from the fear aroused by the †Judaizers of being excluded from the promised inheritance.
Reflection and Application (4:1–7)
The fact that God has made us sons and daughters is a truth that can take our breath away once we grasp it. Neither fear nor shame nor feelings of inferiority nor insecurity need to weigh down those who know that they are God’s children, sons and daughters in Christ. Those who struggle with these emotions can find strength by meditating on or memorizing some of these verses (e.g., Gal 4:4–7; Rom 8:14–17). Although we are called to humility and service like Jesus, the truth is that we Christians are all royalty, princes and princesses, children of the greatest King!
Another striking truth in these verses is that God the Father has shared with us the Spirit that he and his Son Jesus share. In that way we have been brought into communion, an intimate relationship, with the Trinity—we share the same Spirit, the same inner life, as the Father and the Son, although not in the same way. It is what Jesus promised in the Gospel of John: “Whoever loves me will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our dwelling with him” (John 14:23). The Father and the Son dwell in us by means of their Spirit, whom we have received.
Although Paul presupposes that his readers have an experiential knowledge of God as Father, we know that not all Christians today share that experience. Many need to learn this truth through meditation on God’s word or through inspired preaching or teaching that brings the message home, or through prayer to be filled anew with the Holy Spirit.
Some people have obstacles to experiencing the fatherhood of God, due to negative experiences of their human fathers. By God’s grace, and sometimes with the help of counseling or healing prayer, these brothers and sisters can also come to experience God as Father. The first step is to make a conscious choice to listen to and believe what the word of God says about our objective standing as sons and daughters, and about the kind of Father that God is.9 Alongside that act of faith, which bears repeating until it becomes a habitual way of thinking, we can count on the Holy Spirit to gradually make this fact a reality in our experience. We can cooperate with this work of the Spirit by continually asking the Father to send the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts. Jesus’ promise in Luke 11:9–13 reassures us of the outcome:
I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. What father among you would hand his son a snake when he asks for a fish? Or hand him a scorpion when he asks for an egg? If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the Father in heaven give the holy Spirit to those who ask him?
Concluding Exhortation: Do Not Return to Slavery (4:8–11)
8At a time when you did not know God, you became slaves to things that by nature are not gods; 9but now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and destitute elemental powers? Do you want to be slaves to them all over again? 10You are observing days, months, seasons, and years. 11I am afraid on your account that perhaps I have labored for you in vain.
OT: Isa 37:19
NT: 1 Cor 8:4; Gal 4:3; Col 2:16; Heb 7:18
Catechism: liturgical observance of days and seasons, 1163–73
BIBLICAL BACKGROUND
Paul’s Nuanced View of the Law
Paul’s clear declarations in Galatians and Romans that Christians are freed from the †lawa have led some interpreters to regard Paul as antinomian, a teacher who completely rejects law. But other statements in Paul’s letters reveal a great appreciation for the law. How can we reconcile these seemingly contradictory positions?b
First, it will help to review what Paul says against law. Paul insists that no one can be put right with God by works of the law (Gal 2:16), that “all who depend on the law are under a curse” (3:10). The law cannot give life (see 3:21). Rather than coming directly from God, the law of Moses “was promulgated by angels at the hand of a mediator” (3:19), and its purpose is to reveal sin (3:19, 22; Rom 3:20; 5:20; 7:7–13). The law leaves people enslaved to the elements, or “†elemental powers,” of this world (Gal 4:3, 8–10). God intended it only as a temporary guardian for Israel until the coming of Christ, of †faith, of the Spirit, and of adoption as sons and daughters (3:23–25; 4:1–3; Rom 10:4). Those who seek to be †justified on the basis of the law are “separated from Christ” and have “fallen from grace” (Gal 5:4).
In other passages, however, Paul expresses a very high regard for law and even describes Christian life as “keeping God’s commandments” (1 Cor 7:19). He says the law of Moses is “spiritual” (Rom 7:14), “holy and righteous and good” (7:12). He seems to have continued to observe the law in some respects (see the sidebar, “Did Paul Keep the Law of Moses?,” pp. 174–75). He expects his readers to exceed the ethical requirements of the law of Moses by living in the Spiritc (Gal 5:16, 18, 22–26; Rom 8:4, 13–14) and keeping the commandment to “love your neighbor as yourself,” which fulfills the whole law (Gal 5:14; Rom 13:8–10). Paul respects the law of Moses as divine revelation and cites it as his authority for doctrinal teaching (Gal 3:6–9, 16–18; 4:21–31), church practice (1 Cor 9:9; 1 Tim 5:18), and moral instruction of †Gentile Christians (Eph 6:2–3). He indicates that the law remains in force against gross violations of morality and says that this understanding fully accords with “the glorious gospel . . . with which I have been entrusted” (1 Tim 1:8–11). Far from being antinomian, Paul condemns “lawlessness” (2 Cor 6:14; Titus 2:14) and insists that unrepented serious sin will exclude a person from the kingdom of God (1 Cor 6:9–10; Gal 5:19–21; Eph 5:5). Paul himself does not hesitate to give authoritative instructions and rules for his churches when circumstances call for it (1 Cor 11:16, 33–34; 14:26–40; 2 Thess 3:6, 10–12).
How then do we understand Paul’s sharp critique of the law? First, it is helpful to realize that Paul’s passionate teaching in Galatians does not aim to present a perfectly balanced systematic exposition of all that he understands about the law, but rather to combat an error that threatens the †gospel. Second, when Paul refers to the “law,”d the term can refer to the law of Moses (the Pentateuch), to the entire Scriptures, to other traditional teaching, or even to some controlling entity (e.g., “the law of sin,” “the law of the spirit,” and “the law of my mind” in Rom 7:23–8:2). Consequently, it is always necessary to consider the context to understand precisely what Paul means by “law” in each instance.e
In Galatians and the early chapters of Romans, Paul is addressing the basis of justification—that is, the foundation of a relationship with God. Judaism held that the right foundation consisted in accepting the law of the †covenant at Sinai. The first Jewish Christians continued to observe the law of Moses while also believing in Christ.f Following this pattern, the †Judaizers wanted to require Gentile Christians to keep the law of Moses as an essential element of Christian life. The Apostle Paul realized that this position undermined the gospel and was incompatible with God’s plan for gathering Gentiles into the people of God.g There cannot be two different foundations for a right relationship with God—the death of Christ on the one hand and the law of Moses on the other (Gal 2:21–3:1).
Paul also rejects every human claim to establish one’s relationship with God on the basis of ethical conduct—the idea that “if I keep the moral law, I am just before God, and God must recognize me as righteous.” Thinking like this not only contradicts what Scripture says about the universality of sinh but also makes just
ification, a person’s relationship with God, depend on human effort and accomplishment, and that leads to boasting rather than gratitude and dependence on God (Matt 5:3; Eph 2:8–9). Neither the law of Moses nor striving to keep the moral law can establish a person in a right relationship with God. The only foundation is †grace received through faith in Christ.
a. Gal 2:19–20; 5:18; Rom 6:14–15; 7:1–14.
b. For more, see Cardinal Albert Vanhoye, The Catholic Priest as Moral Teacher (San Francisco: Ignatius, 1990), esp. “The Apostle Paul as Moral Teacher and Guide,” 21–38. Also see the sidebar, “Law in Catholic Tradition,” pp. 196–97.
c. Gal 5:16, 18, 22–26; Rom 8:4, 13–14.
d. Greek nomos; Hebrew torah.
e. See the great variety of uses in Rom 7:12–8:8, and note that the Greek word translated “principle” in Rom 7:21, 23 is also nomos, “law.”
f. Acts 10:14; 21:20.
g. James and the Jerusalem Council reached the same conclusion (Acts 15:13–29).
h. Ps 143:2; Gal 2:16; Rom 3:9–20, 23.
Having ended his theological argument against looking to the †law of Moses for †justification, the Apostle now speaks directly to the Galatians to make them see the stark contrast between the doctrine he has just expounded and their present way of thinking. The fact is that the Galatians are no longer slaves but sons and daughters of God. However, their current mentality is a return to slavery, a foolish and indefensible reversal that is highlighted by Paul’s impassioned question in verse 9: “Do you want to be slaves . . . all over again?”
[4:8]
Their slavery in the past was a consequence of ignorance: they did not know God—a truly deplorable condition. The book of Wisdom proclaims, “Foolish by nature were all who were in ignorance of God” (Wis 13:1). Not knowing the true God, the Galatians, like other †Gentiles in the Greco-Roman world, were slaves to false gods, to idols, a servitude not fitting to human beings, who are of infinitely greater value than gods of wood, stone, or metal, which are incapable of helping those who worship them (see, e.g., Ps 115:4–7; Isa 44:9–20; Jer 10:3–5).
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