Children Born According to the Spirit vs. Those Born According to the Flesh

Children Born According to the Spirit vs. Those Born According to the Flesh

Galatians 4:22–24

“For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one out of the maidservant and one out of the free woman. But the one out of the maidservant was born according to the flesh, but the one out of the free woman was born through promise. These things are spoken allegorically, for these women are two covenants, one from Mount Sinai, bringing forth children unto slavery, which is Hagar.”

Galatians 4:25–26

“Now this Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.”

Galatians 4:28–31

“But you, brothers, in the way Isaac was, are children of promise. But just as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now. But what does the Scripture say? ‘Cast out the maidservant and her son, for the son of the maidservant shall by no means inherit with the son of the free woman.’ So then, brothers, we are not children of the maidservant but of the free woman.”

1. Integrated Comparison Table

Comparison Item	Children Born According to the Spirit	Those Born According to the Flesh
Abraham’s two sons	Abraham had two sons.	Abraham had two sons.
Their mothers	One was born of a free woman.	One was born of a slave woman.
How they were born	The son of the free woman was born through promise.	The son of the slave woman was born according to the flesh.
Spiritual significance	These things are allegorical: the two women signify two covenants.	These things are allegorical: the two women signify two covenants.
The two covenants	The covenant of promise given to Abraham, associated with the New Covenant, the covenant of grace.	The covenant of law given through Moses, which is entirely unrelated to the New Covenant.
The two women	Sarah was a free woman, signifying the covenant of promise.	Hagar was a slave woman, signifying the covenant of law.
Abraham’s descendants	Abraham’s spiritual descendants.	Abraham’s natural descendants.
Their Jerusalem	His spiritual descendants belong to the Jerusalem above, under the covenant of promise in the freedom of grace.	His natural descendants belong to the Jerusalem below, under the covenant of law in the slavery of the law.
The principle of birth	Those born through the covenant of promise are born according to the Spirit.	Those born through the covenant of law are born according to the flesh.
Right to inherit God’s promised blessing	Children born according to the Spirit have the full right to participate in God’s promised blessing.	Children born according to the flesh have no right to participate in God’s promised blessing.
New Testament believers and Judaism	New Testament believers under the freedom of grace are children of the free woman and are to inherit the blessing of the promised Spirit.	Jews practicing Judaism under the slavery of the law are children of the slave woman and cannot inherit God’s promised blessing—the all-inclusive Spirit as the ultimate expression of the Triune God.
Spiritual identity	Believers in Christ.	Jews practicing Judaism.
The two sons	Isaac.	Ishmael persecuted Isaac.
Their relationship to believers	We believers in Christ are not children of the law under the slavery of the law; rather, we are children of grace under the freedom of grace, enjoying the all-inclusive Spirit with all the riches of Christ.	The Jews, Abraham’s descendants born according to the flesh, also persecuted the believers.
Romans	Romans 8. Verse 8:2: “For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.”	Romans 7. Verse 7:24: “Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?”

2. God Chooses the Second, Not the First

The document emphasizes the following principle: What God desires and chooses is the second, not the first.

Comparison Item	The Second — Chosen by God	The First — Not Chosen by God
Sphere	The second belongs to heaven.	The first belongs to the earth.
Nature	The second is spiritual.	The first is natural, belonging to the flesh.
Isaac and Ishmael	Isaac was Abraham’s second son, yet God chose Isaac.	Ishmael was the firstborn son, the elder brother.
Jacob and Esau	Jacob was the younger son, the second brother, yet God chose Jacob rather than Esau.	Esau was also the firstborn son, the elder brother.
Ephraim and Manasseh	Ephraim was the second son, yet God chose Ephraim.	Manasseh was the first son.
Solomon and Bathsheba’s first son	God loved Solomon, the second son born to David and Bathsheba.	God struck David and Bathsheba’s first son, and the child died.
David and Saul	God wanted David, the second king. God said that David was a man according to His heart.	God did not want Saul, the first king.

3. Key Spiritual Emphasis

The Spiritual Line

From the flesh to the Spirit; from slavery to freedom

 

The Covenant of Law

Hagar → Ishmael → Birth according to the flesh → Slavery under the law → The earthly Jerusalem

 

The Covenant of Promise

Sarah → Isaac → Birth according to the Spirit → Freedom under grace → The Jerusalem above

 

The result: Believers in Christ, as children of grace, enjoy the all-inclusive Spirit and all the riches of Christ and inherit God's promised blessing.

4. Biblical References

Romans 8:2

“For the law of the Spirit of life has freed me in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and of death.”

Romans 7:24

“Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from the body of this death?”

One-Sentence Summary

God’s purpose is not fulfilled by what originates from the natural man and the flesh, but by what comes through His promise and is born according to the Spirit; therefore, believers in Christ are children of grace, enjoying the all-inclusive Spirit and inheriting God’s promised blessing.

Sources Referenced

1.         Recovery Version of the New Testament — Galatians, outline and footnotes.

2.         2026 Fall International Training for Elders and Responsible Ones — General subject: The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; Message Three: The Allegory of the Two Women.