"Self-Inflicted Ruin" -2

"They shall fall by the sword: they shall be a portion for foxes." (Psalms 63:10) I know it might sound harsh, but it is really God's way or the highway; and when I say 'highway', I mean the "wide road", which just so happens to be the road must traveled, even by those that think that they are serving God. How about this, if you are still listening, "Live by the law, be judged by the law." (Galatians 3:10) Talk about self-inflicted ruin, it really does not have to end that way! When you study the second part of this verse, it describes something of 'an allotment', which actually means, "by courtesy, law or providence". The NLT translates "foxes" as "jackals", which I find rather interesting, since the two are totally different in the way they live; foxes live in holes, while jackals primarily live in ruins. Either way, there is an interesting connection between the two, in that they are both often depicted as clever sorcerers in the myths and legends of their regions; which causes me to think again about Paul's comment to the Galatians, "Who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you?" (Galatians 3:1) The NLT states it like this: "Oh, foolish Galatians! Who hast cast an evil spell on you? For the meaning of Jesus Christ's death was made as clear to you as if you had seen a picture of His death on the cross." It is pretty obvious that we cannot keep the law, we should have figured that out by now; it is also pretty obvious that God knows we can't keep the law, otherwise He would not have sent His Son to die to set us free from the law; so what's seems to be the problem? Oh, it gets so twisted, just like a lie has so many twist and turns; it started with a lie, and it continues with a lie; the lie to make man feel he can make it without God's help, the lie to make man believe that he can somehow be like God, and the lie that causes man to die... "So Christ has truly set us free. Now make sure that you stay free, and don't get tied up again in slavery to the law. Listen! I, Paul, tell you this: If you are counting on circumcision to make you right with God, then Christ will be of no benefit to you. I'll say it again. If you are trying to find favor with God by being circumcised, you must obey every regulation in the whole law of Moses. For if you are trying to make yourselves right with God by keeping the law, you have been cut off from Christ! You have fallen away from God's grace." (Galatians 5:1-4) NLT