Today Our Daily Bread Galatians 4

Better Late than not.....computer/cable phone down again today BUT we're back up !!! Thank GOD!
Galatians 4
1What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate. 2He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father. 3So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. 4But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law, 5to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons. 6Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, "Abba,[a] Father." 7So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
Paul's Concern for the Galatians
8Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods. 9But now that you know God—or rather are known by God—how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? 10You are observing special days and months and seasons and years! 11I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you.
12I plead with you, brothers, become like me, for I became like you. You have done me no wrong. 13As you know, it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you. 14Even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus himself. 15What has happened to all your joy? I can testify that, if you could have done so, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me. 16Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?
17Those people are zealous to win you over, but for no good. What they want is to alienate you from us, so that you may be zealous for them. 18It is fine to be zealous, provided the purpose is good, and to be so always and not just when I am with you. 19My dear children, for whom I am again in the pains of childbirth until Christ is formed in you, 20how I wish I could be with you now and change my tone, because I am perplexed about you!
Hagar and Sarah
21Tell me, you who want to be under the law, are you not aware of what the law says? 22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. 23His son by the slave woman was born in the ordinary way; but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a promise.
24These things may be taken figuratively, for the women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. 25Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. 26But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. 27For it is written: "Be glad, O barren woman, who bears no children; break forth and cry aloud, you who have no labor pains; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband."[b]
28Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. 29At that time the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. 30But what does the Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son."[c] 31Therefore, brothers, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman.

~ Lena’s Journalin’ ~
What is the difference between a child and a son? Growth, maturity, responsibility & recognition. Who is it that brings the person from childhood to sonship? The Father; and it is the Father who recognizes that the growth, maturity and responsibility (ability to respond) are there. I believe God has a goal and trains us towards that goal, he uses tutors in our lives to bring us to that goal also. As with any parent who sees a potential goal or desire or dream in a child and leads that child towards this "end", it is easily recognizable whether the child has reached the goal or not. Even if the total fulfillment of that goal is not in play, but the pathway is being followed with maturity and responsibility, that father knows the time has come for the Son to pick up where the father led him, he is no longer a child, he can do what the father and the tutors would have done for him. It’s kind of like a young child whom one is raising, Mom says brush your teeth honey, she reminds him for years and years, then one day he "graduates" into a matured state when he does not have to be told by anyone, but he does it on his own. Our society has so perverted training by others. The reason is the sway of evil, evil says, I can do it by myself, don’t tell me what to do, ever. It rebels from any tutors and goes its own way, never following in the footsteps of trainers, of fathers. This is why there are 40+ year old children, who have never really gotten anywhere. This tutoring thing puts a ton of responsibility on "fathers", as they need to see a desired end and spend a lifetime steering their arrows (Ps127) accordingly. There is such freedom to sons, those who do the will of the father, those who follow the voice of the Father, those who walk in the pathway of the father, those who do not rebel and begin plowing their own ground from the clearing of the field on, but rather inherit the field already cleared by others. God may have a son clear a field for others ahead of him, as he expands his borders and has been faithful in another man’s field, but it is not how one was meant to begin by Divine will and design. Jesus came as a child, grew as a son and conquered the fields for us, to give them to us. We don’t have to pour out our blood for the purchase of the field, we own the field. He paid for it with his blood. He wants to train us to work it and inherit it. It was inherited by Him from His Father. (The earth is the Lords’ and all of its fullness, the people and all who dwell therein Ps?) It is ridiculous that we would ever listen to the liar who tells us there’s another way, we can buy another field and we can sweat and work and bleed and get it for ourselves, no one has to give it to us, we can clear it ourselves etc. That is NOT our Father talking, that is the father of lies talking and if we listen to him, we will surely perish in that rebellion in that field, we will have wasted a life and die unfulfilled, because the ONLY way to true fulfillment is to do the will of the Father. It says here that we were slaves, we were as children, immature and not receiving anything from God, but He has given us what equalized us to being a matured son. When we receive Jesus, we receive the benefit of sonship in God’s eyes, when we were children of the evil one we had not part with God, other than His plans to draw us to salvation, but because of the obedience of one earthly so- Jesus, we’ve been given what no one in this world’s success could ever give us. It is clear here that once one turns to the Lord, he could also turn back to what he knew was the way to success in the world! Lately I’m seeing something I’d not seen before. We are born here and we live out our days here and we die and as we believe we go on to eternal life elsewhere. Why did we come here for so short of an eternal time? Why do we spend so much of it trying to figure out who we are and climb success ladders and make a name for ourselves and get popular or rich or whatever? Is that why God sent His Son to earth? Jesus was even here a shorter earth time than many of us are. The purpose that God sent Jesus to earth was the same purpose he’s sent any of us to earth. To destroy the works of the evil one. How much time does that take? A lifetime! How much can one destroy? It depends on us, without knowledge of the warfare we would never engage ourselves in it, if our enemy can keep us blinded to our or God’s need for us to be engaged, we could spend our whole lives here and never be a part of the father’s plan for His field. Or we can follow His will, His voice etc and engage ourselves wholeheartedly in the plan.
The only way to truly engage in that plan is to know Truth and do it. Our enemy hates truth and spends his days telling lies to God’s children and sons, so that they will not only reject Truth, but minimize it and disregard it and separate themselves from it. If you were a warrior, a soldier and you knew this was your enemy’s plight against your regiment, would you not oppose this tactic and go full force against it? How can one do so in spiritual living? By getting all the truth one can, by hearing more and more of the truth and by no matter how hard it may seem, taking truth as their own, and swallowing it. Preparing oneself to both hear and receive the truth. Buying it, and refusing to ever sell it to anyone at any time in any circumstance. Who do we really belong to? Slavery or Freedom? When we do not follow truth, we are enslaved to our old masters, to our old fathers, old tutors (worldly voices). When we follow truth we are free in Christ to serve God’s will and plan. There is no other true freedom except in Christ! Every other offer will come your way. Do not try God like every other thing in life! Serve Him, be His son, His heir, His landowner.