Being a Foreigner: An Analogy

I have a friend who loves using analogies.  They help him picture in his mind how things work, especially when it comes to more abstract ideas.

I was reading Galatians the other day and I had one of those moments of clarity that actually leave you kind of dumbfounded.

I know no matter how long I live in Korea, I will never be Korean.  In the same way, no matter how strictly I follow the letter of the law, I cannot be justified by it.

So how exactly are those two things connected?  I'm gonna try to explain.

Living in a foreign country, you learn the food, the language, the fashion, even some of the thought processes.  The longer you are there the more you assimilate.  But make no mistake, you will never be a native.  You will always have a former way of life that influences how you live now.  Complete transformation is impossible.

Here's the connection.

I can follow the letter of the law, and the more I know about the law, the more I look as though I am conforming to it.  I do the right things, say the right things, but the thing is, my heart is still stuck in the former life of sin.  The law can teach me, but it can't justify me, because its like I am still a foreigner to God.

Here is the beauty of the Gospel.  The Spirit brings life and a new birth.  I can grow up like a native in God's kingdom, with a new, transformed mind and heart.  I'm a true citizen.  I grow more like my Father.  Not because of the law, but because His Spirit draws me and changes me from the inside out.

I'm no longer a foreigner in God's kingdom, although I am a foreigner now in this world, to its values and culture. 

I have no idea if that makes sense to anyone but me, but I needed to write it out.