English Standard Version
Paul was addressing particular circumstances and particular issues. The Galatians were struggling with understanding how grace and the Law worked together, and so Paul worked through it with them, and we have evidence of this.
Sometimes, I read it and struggle to know exactly how a certain passage relates to this day and age, but that's because of how relevant Scripture is. It matters to our daily lives, and so the letters in the New Testament were addressed to real communities wrestling with real issues. Because of that, we have to work a little harder to translate some passages into our modern lives, but I take comfort in that, because it means that Scripture matters to my daily life, too, to the here and now. It matters, and so we listen to the words of Scripture, sometimes taking a little longer than others, and eventually come to find what the Holy Spirit has to say to us, here and now, because we are in the midst of the world and called to engage with that outside community. We're not called to cloister ourselves away, but to be salt and light, in touch with the world around us, and Scripture matters to the world. The hope of heaven is revealed in the pages of Scripture, and we can all agree that we need a little more hope!
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