Galatians 5:4

Become of no effect. Or, “severed relations with,” “made inoperative.” The covenant relationship requires absolute faith on the part of the believer (see on v. 1). He who mingles works-righteousness with his faith thereby violates his part of the agreement, and Christ is thus released from any further obligation toward him. “Works” are a denial of faith. The Galatians called themselves Christians; in fact, they had been persuaded that only those who accepted “the law” could be true Christians. But by their course of action they were denying the very thing Christ had come to do for them and had deprived themselves of His merits. If they could, indeed, earn salvation, what need had they of Christ at all? His work on their behalf would become superfluous, for they had found a way to get right with God on their own behalf. If they could find justification outside of Christ, then they did not need Him. But Jesus had declared that no man could come unto the Father except by Him (John 14:6; cf. Acts 4:12). Jesus’ emphasis on the truth that He is “the way” is so prominent in His teachings that in later years His followers called themselves the people of “the way” (see Acts 9:2; 22:4).

Justified by the law. That is, think they can obtain righteousness through work of law (see p. 933; see on Rom. 3:20; Gal. 3:19, 24). The most “the law” can do is to show a man his need of justification and to point out to him the way to Christ. In his gospel Paul had clearly set forth God’s plan for man’s salvation. It is the same plan by which Abraham received justification (see on Gal. 3:6). It was not until after he had been declared righteous that he received the rite of circumcision. Circumcision — one of “the works of the law” — did not bring righteousness. It was a sign that Abraham accepted righteousness by faith (see Rom. 4:9-11). The “works” Paul later recommends (Gal. 5:13 to 6:15) are the “fruit of the Spirit” (ch. 5:22), and thus evidence of the power of Christ unto salvation (Rom. 1:16), but in no way a means of earning salvation.

Fallen from grace. Literally, “fallen out of grace,” “fallen down from grace.” For the meaning of “grace” see on Rom. 3:24. The Galatians had received the Spirit of God (ch. 3:2, 3), they had experienced justification by faith (ch. 1:6), they had actually enjoyed the liberty of the gospel (ch. 5:1), they had “run well” for a time (v. 7). If they now sought salvation by “the works of the law” (see on ch. 2:16), they would forfeit the grace of Christ they had hitherto enjoyed (see on ch. 5:1-4; cf. on ch. 3:19). These two methods of obtaining justification are mutually exclusive. To adopt the one is to reject the other.

The position some take, that Paul here affirms the arbitrary withdrawal of God’s grace because of certain acts of sin, is without scriptural support. The loss of divine favor results from the voluntary act of the one who forfeits it. God bars no one from the blessings of salvation except those who bar themselves (see Eze. 18:23, 31; 33:11; 2 Peter 3:9; see on John 3:17-20; Eph. 1:4-6). The context of the statement shows clearly that the responsibility rests wholly with those who deliberately reject salvation by faith for salvation by works. It is not a matter of God forsaking men, but of men turning away from Him and rejecting to all who will turn from their willful ways (see John 3:16; 1 John 1:9). One who has fallen from God’s grace is always — and only — one who has willfully chosen a course of conduct he knows to be contrary to the will of God. This is the deplorable state of many professed Christians today. This condition is the result of a desire to follow the natural inclinations of the human heart — to enjoy the pleasures of sin — instead of heeding the promptings of God’s Spirit. Until such persons commit the unpardonable sin by persistent rejection of the promptings of the Spirit (see on Matt. 12:31, 32, 43-45), there is hope that they may be restored to grace.

Paul here specifically and emphatically denies another popular but altogether unscriptural teaching commonly expressed in the words, “once in grace, always in grace.” This, in turn, is based on another unscriptural teaching, according to which God has predestined certain persons to be saved and others to be lost, irrespective of their own choice in the matter. For a discussion of the true nature of Biblical predestination see on John 3:17-20; Eph. 1:4-6. According to the popular concept of predestination, those whom God has elected to salvation cannot possibly fall from divine grace because their right to it has been guaranteed by God. By a parity of reasoning those whom God has foreordained to damnation can never attain to divine grace, and consequently can never fall from it. Corollary to this is the conclusion that those who appear to have fallen from grace only appear to have done so, since they have never actually attained to it. Suffice it to say that only by taking the words of Gal. 5:4 completely out of their context is it possible to make them appear to sustain such a conclusion (see on vs. 1-4).

In reality, this theory — the theory of so-called divine decrees — ignores all the plain statements of Scripture that point to the human will as the decisive factor in the salvation of any and every man. See such passages of Scripture as Isa. 55:1; Eze. 18:21-30; 33:12, 13; Luke 5:32; John 6:37; cf. John 7:37; 12:32; Rom. 10:13; 11:20-23; 1 Cor. 9:27; Rev. 22:17. The doctrine that God foreordains some men to salvation and others to destruction, irrespective of their choice in the matter, is clearly incompatible with these statements of Holy Writ. Thus the corollary teaching that a man cannot fall from grace — that when once “in grace” he is “always in grace” — proves to be a human invention.