Boasting in the Cross Alone

Galatians 6:(1–5)6–18

Exposition
In a world built on comparison and performance, Paul ends his letter to the Galatians with a strange boast: “Far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.” (v.14) For Paul, the cross is not an embarrassment—it is everything.

The cross destroys self-righteousness. It reminds us that we cannot save ourselves. But it also destroys shame, because it declares us fully loved and forgiven. “Neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation.” (v.15) In Christ, we are made new. Our identity is not in what we do, but in what He has done.

And because of that, we are free—not only to rest in grace but to carry each other’s burdens, to sow in the Spirit, to do good without growing weary.

Application
Where are you tempted to boast—your success, your knowledge, your moral record? Where are you tempted to despair, thinking you don’t measure up? The gospel answers both: You are more broken than you know, and more loved than you dared imagine.
Live from that freedom. Be generous. Carry the weight of others when they falter. In school, at work, online—let your presence point not to your own strength but to the cross, where strength was made perfect in weakness.

Transform Our Heart Through Prayer
Jesus, teach us to boast in your cross. Free us from the exhausting race of comparison. Make us new by your Spirit. Let us carry the burdens of others, walk in humility, and sow seeds of goodness for your glory.
 Amen.