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Abraham", who is father of all, whether Jew or Gentile. We can now go back to Gal. 3:
and give a fuller quotation from the close of the chapter:--
"For as MANY of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is
neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female, for
YE ARE ALL ONE IN CHRIST JESUS. And if ye be Christ's, then ye are Abraham's
seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Gal. 3: 27-29).
The "one" of Gal. 3: 16 is explained by the "one" of Gal. 3: 28. Abraham's seed
in Gal. 3: 16 is Christ; all who believed, as Abraham did, were baptized into Christ,
they put on Christ, and became "all one" in Christ Jesus. So that Gal. 3: 16, far from
denying the thought of the many, has a most valuable lesson to teach. The many are not
seen as so many separate individuals. Whether by birth they were Jews or Greeks is of
no importance. Whether bond or free, whether male or female, they were heirs according
to the promise because in Christ they were all one.
Let us observe, too, that when the apostle wishes to indicate the individual Person, he
uses the full title "Christ Jesus"; while when he wishes to indicate the company which
forms the Christ, in the mystical sense, he uses the title "Christ" by itself. We have,
therefore, an added reason for rejoicing in the promises of God, for although they are
made to each of us personally, yet are they so made as to exclude any participation in
them apart from the Lord Jesus Christ, and our union with Him.
The words "Ye are all one in Christ Jesus" taken from Gal. 3: 28 are often quoted as
though they applied to the church which is His Body. This, however, is not the theme of
Galatians, and such an interpretation is contradicted by the apostle's own conclusion:
"Then are ye Abraham's seed." The church of the mystery is not Abraham's seed; but
the truth to be learnt from Gal. 3: concerning the enjoyment of the promises of God is a
truth applicable to all dispensations and spheres. The apostle was perfectly right when he
said, "And not to seeds, as of many", for the promises were never made to individuals
independently of Christ, and they can never be enjoyed except by those who are "all one
in Christ Jesus".
One further argument to show that individual Israelites, apart from those "in Christ",
are not contemplated as the seed, is found in Gal. 3: 19:--
"It was added . . . . . till the seed should come to whom the promise was made."
The actual number of the "seed" of Abraham at the giving of the law must have
exceeded a million, yet, according to Gal. 3: 19, the seed to whom the promise was
made had not then come. Let us rejoice to know that by shutting us up to Christ, the
promise is made sure to all the seed. Which of us that has any knowledge of Christ
would have it otherwise?