"The Son Abideth Ever."

(Gal. 4:25-31; 5:1, R. V.)

"This Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to the Jerusalem that now is; for she is in bondage with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, which is our mother. For it is written,

> Rejoice, thou barren that bearest not; > Break forth and cry, thou that travailest not; > For more are the children of the desolate than of her which hath the husband.

"Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise. But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now. Howbeit, what saith the Scripture? Cast out the handmaid and her son; for the son of the handmaid shall not inherit with the son of the free woman. Wherefore, brethren, we are not children of an handmaid, but of the free woman. With freedom did Christ set us free; stand fast, therefore, and be not entangled again in a yoke of bondage."

The word "handmaid," which is used in the revision, is manifestly in contrast with "free woman"—so that it is the same as "bondmaid" and "bondwoman" in the common text. The Greek word from which it is translated is defined as "a young female slave."

Study these verses, beginning with verse 21, most carefully. Read them over a hundred times, if necessary, in order to see the connection and force of every word. Do not study for controversy, nor to find out how to meet an opponent, but that you may find what instruction and comfort there is for you personally. It is only when we are anxious to do God's will that we learn of the doctrine. John 7:17.

1. 1.Do not forget that Hagar was a slave, and as such could bear children only to bondage. Ishmael was not the heir of Abraham until Isaac was born, becoming a slave afterwards; he was always only a bond-servant. His mother could never bear any other than bond-servants, even though Abraham himself were their father. Even so the covenant from Sinai which is Hagar and the old Jerusalem, could never bring forth free sons of God. There was never a time when the covenant of Sinai could do more than work condemnation and wrath. From its first moment it was an instrument of death, and all who held to it were in bondage—the slaves of death.
2. 2."Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above." James 1:17. Only the Jerusalem that is above can give freedom. That is the city for which Abraham looked. He did not come to Mount Sinai, but to Mount Zion, to Christ, the Mediator; and those who do likewise are heirs. All who look to the Jerusalem that now is for blessings, or who expect any blessing whatever in connection with it, are in bondage to the old covenant, which was never designed to give freedom.
3. 3.Verse 27 is a quotation from Isa. 54:1. From it we have a key to much of the prophecy of the Old Testament, for we see that all the prophecies concerning the glorious restoration of Jerusalem, and the gathering of her scattered children, refer to the New Jerusalem which cometh down from God out of heaven. Rev. 3:12. Jerusalem is now desolate; none of her children are within her walls, for Christ has not yet come to take them there. Soon the seed will come, to whom the promise was made, and then it will be seen that Jerusalem has a host of children, for they will then come to their inheritance. Then the place which old Jerusalem occupies will be found altogether too small, and a much larger place will have to be prepared. Isa. 49:18-22. From among the Gentiles will her children be gathered. See also Acts 15:14-17.
4. 4.Isaac was the child of faith, the child of promise, born of the Spirit. If we truly believe, then we are born again, "born from above" (John 3:3, margin), and, like Isaac, are the children of promise, having the New Jerusalem for our mother. We may expect tribulation and persecution from the flesh, even from our own flesh; but that is only for our encouragement. "If ye were of the world, the world would love his own; but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you." John 15:19.
5. 5."Cast out the bondwoman and her son." Does this seem like a hard commandment? Do not regard it so; it conveys a most glorious promise. It is a personal word to each one of us. The bondwoman is the covenant of human works, and the son is our own sinful flesh, which only shows itself the more sinful the more we try to do the works of the law. It must be cast forth, for only free-born sons can inherit the promise. "Every one that committeth sin is the bond-servant of sin. And the bond-servant abideth not in the house forever; the son abideth ever." John 8:34, 35. Who gives the order? It is God, who said, "Let there be light," and the light was. If we recognize Him as Creator, we shall see that His command, "Cast out the bondwoman and her son," is proof that it shall be done, and we shall be delivered from every phase and every trace of bondage. It is the proclamation of liberty to the captives, the opening of the prison to them that are bound. Isa. 61:1, 2.
6. 6.The word has already been spoken and the freedom is ours. With the psalmist we may say, "O Lord, truly I am thy servant; I am thy servant, and the son of thine handmaid; thou hast loosed my bonds." Ps. 116:16. Whoever comes to the Lord, acknowledging himself to be God's servant, is by Him acknowledged as a son, alive from the dead. Being sons, we shall abide in the house of the Lord forever.
7. 7."Brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free." No matter though we have been bound hitherto, we are sons of the free woman, because the proclamation of freedom has gone forth to all. The bonds are loosed, but we may not have known it. All we have to do is to arise, shake ourselves from the dust of the dungeon, and loose ourselves from the bands of our neck. Isa. 52:1, 2. Don't stay in slavery after the emancipation has been proclaimed. Liberty has been proclaimed to all the inhabitants of the land, to the sinners of the Jews as well as to the sinners of the Gentiles; to professed Christians, who find a yoke of bondage still on their necks, as well as to the reckless transgressor.
8. 8.With freedom Christ did set us free, even with His own freedom. "The glorious liberty of the children of God," is a present reality. The inanimate creation yet groans under the bondage of corruption, and must until the time of restoration, at the coming of the Lord, but it will at that time only be delivered to share the glorious freedom which the sons of God now enjoy. If we are truly sons of God now—and we are if we truly believe—we are joint heirs with Christ, and as free as He is; that is, as free from sin and from all the power of the enemy. This being the case, why should we ever allow ourselves to be entangled in the yoke of bondage?
9. 9.Here is a serious personal matter for the consideration of each one. Christ said, "If ye continue in My word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." John 8:31, 32. He is the truth. John 14:6. "If the Son, therefore, shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed." John 8:36. Are you free indeed? Do you know your freedom? Are you free from all bad habits and from every form of slavery? Are you master of the world, the flesh, and the devil? Does the devil flee from you at your command? Have you victory over the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life? If not, you do not yet know the truth, for the truth makes free, and the freedom is nothing less than that here spoken of. This and nothing less is the freedom that Christ, the Son, the Truth, gives us. Do not complacently rest in the correctness of the doctrine you hold. No one may be able to pick a flaw in it; yet if you have not this freedom, you do not know the truth, much less can you teach it to others. To be thus free is not a hard requirement, but a glorious gift offered freely to all. Take it, and stand fast in it.

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