There is an immutable law that operates in the Kingdom of God. It is the law of sowing and reaping. For every action there is a result. For every decision there is a consequence. There are no exceptions to this.

One of the catastrophic effects of the so-called "dispensation of grace" is the weakening of this iron law. The believers are not sure to what extent (if any) they will get back what they have done, especially in the form of loss of inheritance. They may be rewarded for their good works (some do not believe even this!) but they never will be punished for their sin. Their pastors and teachers stand in line to assure them that no Christian need have any fear of the Judgment Seat of Christ.

How terribly incorrect! How terribly destructive of our moral behavior! First of all, let us assure ourselves that Galatians 6:7,8 (above) is speaking to Christians. An examination of the text of Galatians will reveal beyond all doubt that Paul is writing to Gentile believers who were being seduced by Jewish teachers. These teachers were advising the Galatians of the need for circumcision if they were to be saved.

To the Gentile Christians in Galatia (as well as Jewish Christians) Paul was saying, "You are going to reap what you are sowing." To get anything else out of this passage is to willfully distort the Scriptures. And there are several other passages in the New Testament that state the same law of sowing and reaping.

Notice that we Christians, in terms of our behavior, reap either corruption or eternal life. We need to think carefully about this because we are apt to think in terms of Hell and Heaven, not in terms of corruption and eternal life. The expressions may not be equivalent.

Current teaching is that you obtain eternal life when you "make a decision for Christ" (an unscriptural expression). We do not "make a decision for Christ." We either come to the Man or we don't. This is no mere academic distinction.

When you come to Christ you get a deposit on eternal life. Then you have to fight the good fight of faith constantly in order to hold onto this deposit. If you are faithful in maintaining the life given to you, you will get the whole bank account when the Lord comes.

Eternal life is something you reap in terms of your behavior. It is a deposit on eternal life that is given when you truly receive Christ into your personality. The Scripture is clear enough (the parable of the sower, for example) that you can lose your deposit if you do not obey the commandments issued by the Apostles of the Lamb.

How then do we explain the statements of Paul that salvation is a gift given to us upon our belief in Jesus Christ? What is all this talk about reaping what we sow?

The explanation is simple and straightforward. Paul, when stressing the role of faith in both Romans and Galatians, was reacting to those who were attempting to add the Law of Moses to the Christian experience. In Galatians the issue was circumcision.

Paul resolves the seeming contradiction by showing, in Galatians, that while he was not under the Law of Moses he was under an infinitely stricter law. He was crucified with Christ and was now living by the Life of Christ.

In this context it makes perfect sense for Paul to emphasize, on the one hand, the role of faith in Jesus Christ in the plan of salvation; and to state, on the other hand, that Christians will reap what they sow.

To be continued.