This individual study guide draws directly from the sermon “Sunday Morning Worship Service 10:45am” so you can keep engaging with the message all week. Read, reflect, and share it with your small group or friends.

In-Depth Bible Study Guide

Connected in Christ: The Gospel's Unifying Power

Primary Text: Galatians 3:26–29

1. Introduction & Overview

This sermon delivers a compelling exposition of Galatians 3:26–29, anchored in the declaration that saving faith connects us to Christ and to one another. Pastor Charles argues that the gospel does not merely reconcile the individual sinner to God — it simultaneously creates a new community that transcends every human division. Drawing on the historical crisis of the Judaizers in Galatia, the sermon unfolds four dimensions of gospel-union: we are all sons of God, all baptized into Christ, all one in Christ, and all Abraham's offspring and heirs according to the promise.

Primary Text: Galatians 3:26–29 Supporting Texts: Galatians 2:20; 4:4–7; Ephesians 2:8–9; 4:4–6; 1 Corinthians 12:13; 1 Peter 1:3–4; John 17:21; Romans 4:12

Study Objectives: By the end of this study, the learner will be able to (1) explain the historical occasion of Galatians and why Paul's argument matters, (2) articulate what it means to be "in Christ" using the text's own imagery, (3) trace the theme of Abrahamic inheritance across the biblical canon, and (4) identify the practical implications of Christian unity for local church life.

Estimated Study Time: 2.5–3 hours

Why This Passage Matters: Galatians 3:26–29 is among the most theologically dense and socially radical statements in all of Paul's letters. It addresses simultaneously the doctrine of justification, the nature of the church, racial and social reconciliation, and eschatological inheritance. Few passages do so much in so few verses.

How This Guide Builds on the Sermon: The sermon establishes the theological foundation with pastoral clarity and homiletical power. This guide goes deeper into the Greek text, the Greco-Roman and Jewish cultural background, the full sweep of the Abrahamic promise across Scripture, and the interpretive debates surrounding key phrases — equipping serious learners to teach, defend, and live these truths.

2. Exegetical Analysis

Literary Structure and Genre

Galatians is a Pauline epistle written in the tradition of ancient letters, but with strong characteristics of a legal brief and a theological treatise. Galatians 3 is the doctrinal heart of the letter, where Paul makes his most sustained argument for justification by faith alone. The chapter employs a complex blend of scriptural citation, logical argumentation, and historical appeal.

Galatians 3:26–29 functions as the climactic summary of the argument Paul has been building since 3:1. The passage is structured around four declarations, each introduced by the word "all" (pantes), creating a rhetorical emphasis on the universal scope of gospel-inclusion:

v. 26 — All are sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus
v. 27 — All who were baptized into Christ have put on Christ
v. 28 — All are one in Christ Jesus (with three antitheses)
v. 29 — All who belong to Christ are Abraham's offspring and heirs

The Passage in Context

Paul writes Galatians in response to the Judaizers — Jewish-Christian teachers who insisted that Gentile converts must be circumcised and observe the Mosaic law to be fully saved. Chapter 3 begins with Paul's exasperated rebuke ("O foolish Galatians!") and proceeds to establish that Abraham himself was justified by faith before circumcision (Genesis 15:6), and that the Mosaic law was a temporary guardian (paidagōgos) until Christ came. Verses 26–29 announce that "faith has come" (v. 25), making the guardian obsolete and opening full sonship to all believers.

Verse-by-Verse Analysis

Verse 26: "For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith." The "for" (gar) connects directly to verse 25 — because the guardian's era has ended, something new has arrived. The phrase "sons of God" (huioi theou) is deliberately gender-specific, as the sermon rightly notes. In the Greco-Roman world, daughters were typically excluded from inheritance rights. Paul's use of "sons" is therefore inclusively elevated — every believer, regardless of sex, receives the full inheritance status that only sons held in antiquity. This is radical social inversion through gospel logic.

Verse 27: Paul shifts from the language of faith to the language of baptism, not to introduce a second means of salvation, but to describe what faith-union with Christ looks like in practice. The metaphor of "putting on Christ" (Christon endusasthe) draws on the ancient practice of donning new garments after baptism, which symbolized new identity. Paul transforms this cultural practice into a rich theological statement: the new garment is not linen but Christ himself.

Verse 28: Three paired antitheses — Jew/Greek, slave/free, male/female — correspond closely to a well-documented Jewish morning prayer (the Berachot) in which men thanked God they were not Gentiles, slaves, or women. Paul systematically dismantles these social hierarchies as irrelevant to standing before God in Christ.

Verse 29: The climax. The conditional "if you are Christ's" (ei de humeis Christou) — literally, "if you belong to Christ" — is the only criterion that ultimately matters. Those who belong to Christ are identified as Abraham's sperma (seed, offspring) and klēronomoi (heirs). The inheritance is not earned but promised (kata epaggelian), grounding the believer's security entirely in God's covenant faithfulness rather than human performance.

3. Historical & Cultural Context

The Galatian Crisis

Paul's first missionary journey (Acts 13–14) brought the gospel to the Roman province of Galatia in modern-day Turkey, establishing churches in Antioch of Pisidia, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. After Paul's departure, a group of Jewish-Christian teachers — whom Paul calls "agitators" (5:12) — arrived insisting that circumcision and Torah observance were necessary for full salvation and covenant membership. This was not merely a theological dispute; it was an identity crisis. Who belongs to the people of God, and on what terms?

The Judaizers and Their Influence

The Judaizers likely appealed to the prestige of Jerusalem and the apostles there (cf. 2:1–10) and may have challenged Paul's apostolic authority. Their message had significant social appeal: circumcision would bring Gentile Christians under the protective legal status of Judaism in the Roman Empire, potentially shielding them from persecution. Paul saw this as a fundamental compromise of the gospel.

The Paidagōgos in Ancient Society

The "guardian" (paidagōgos) of Galatians 3:24–25 was not a schoolteacher but a household slave assigned to escort children to school and ensure their moral conduct. This figure had real authority over the child but was clearly subordinate to the father. When the child reached maturity, the paidagōgos was no longer needed. Paul uses this image to describe the Mosaic law's role — authoritative and necessary in its time, but superseded when the heir came of age in Christ.

Inheritance Law in the Roman World

Roman inheritance law (testamentum) was a matter of enormous social and economic consequence. A father's will (voluntas) determined the distribution of the hereditas (estate). Sons (heredes) had legal standing to inherit; daughters, freedmen, and slaves had limited or no standing without specific legal arrangements. Paul's declaration that all believers — including women, slaves, and Gentiles — are "sons" and "heirs" was a stunning reversal of the social order, grounded not in Roman law but in divine promise.

The Jewish Morning Prayer (Berachot)

The Talmud records a blessing recited daily by Jewish men: "Blessed are you, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has not made me a Gentile... who has not made me a slave... who has not made me a woman" (b. Menachot 43b). Most scholars believe Paul is deliberately echoing and inverting this prayer in verse 28. Where the prayer marked boundaries of privilege, Paul marks the dissolution of those boundaries in Christ. As F.F. Bruce observes in his commentary on Galatians, "Paul's threefold antithesis may be a deliberate echo of the threefold thanksgiving."

4. Word Studies

"Sons" (Greek, huioi, singular huios)

Meaning: Male offspring; in legal contexts, one who holds the status of heir and inheritor within a family estate.
Etymology: From a Proto-Indo-European root related to "birth" and "generation." In Greek legal papyri, huios denotes a recognized heir.
Biblical Usage: Matthew 5:9 ("they shall be called sons of God"); Romans 8:14 ("those who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God"); Romans 8:19 ("the revealing of the sons of God"); Galatians 4:7 ("you are no longer a slave, but a son"); Hebrews 12:7 ("God is treating you as sons").
Theological Significance: Paul's choice of huios over teknon (child, offspring in a general sense) is deliberate. Teknon emphasizes biological relationship; huios emphasizes legal status and inheritance rights. Every believer receives the full legal standing of an heir — not a second-class membership.
Translation Considerations: Some modern versions (NIV 2011, NLT) render this "children of God" for inclusive readability, but this flattens Paul's intentional legal argument. The ESV's "sons" preserves the rhetorical force.

"Baptized into" (Greek, eis Christon ebaptisthēte, "baptized into Christ")

Meaning: The preposition eis ("into") indicates direction and incorporation — not merely association with, but immersion into the person of Christ.
Etymology: Baptizō derives from baptō, meaning to dip, plunge, or immerse. In non-biblical Greek, it was used of dyeing cloth (the cloth is changed by immersion) and of ships sinking (total engulfment).
Biblical Usage: Romans 6:3 ("baptized into his death"); 1 Corinthians 12:13 ("in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body"); Matthew 28:19 ("baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit").
Theological Significance: The phrase "baptized into Christ" describes Spirit-baptism — the act by which the Holy Spirit unites the believer to Christ at conversion. As James Dunn argues in Baptism in the Holy Spirit, Paul's primary reference here is to the spiritual reality, of which water baptism is the outward sign. The believer is not merely affiliated with Christ but incorporated into him.
Translation Considerations: The force of eis is difficult to render in English. "Into" is more accurate than "in" because it implies entrance and union, not mere location.

"Put on" (Greek, endusasthe, aorist middle of enduō)

Meaning: To clothe oneself; to put on a garment. The aorist tense indicates a completed, decisive act. The middle voice indicates the subject acts upon themselves — you put it on yourself.
Etymology: From en (in) + duō (to sink into, to enter). The image is of stepping into a garment, being enveloped by it.
Biblical Usage: Romans 13:14 ("put on the Lord Jesus Christ"); Ephesians 4:24 ("put on the new self"); Colossians 3:10 ("put on the new self"); 1 Thessalonians 5:8 ("putting on the breastplate of faith and love").
Theological Significance: The middle voice is theologically crucial. As the sermon rightly noted, while baptism is performed by another, putting on Christ is an act you perform for yourself — it is the personal, volitional appropriation of what Christ has done. This guards against both passive fatalism and works-based activism: Christ is the garment; faith is the act of wearing him.

"Heirs" (Greek, klēronomoi, singular klēronomos)

Meaning: One who inherits; a legal heir entitled to receive an estate.
Etymology: From klēros (lot, portion, allotment) + nemō (to distribute, to manage). Originally referred to one who received a portion by lot.
Biblical Usage: Romans 8:17 ("heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ"); Titus 3:7 ("heirs according to the hope of eternal life"); Hebrews 1:2 ("whom he appointed the heir of all things"); James 2:5 ("heirs of the kingdom").
Theological Significance: The inheritance (klēronomia) in Galatians 3:29 is explicitly tied to the Abrahamic promise, not to human merit or ethnic lineage. As 1 Peter 1:4 describes it, this inheritance is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven." The security of the inheritance rests not on the believer's performance but on the immutability of God's promise — a point the sermon celebrated with great pastoral warmth.

5. Cross-References & Biblical Theology

Old Testament Background

Genesis 12:1–3 — God's original promise to Abraham: "In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed." This is the covenant Paul has in view throughout Galatians 3. The promise was never ethnically exclusive; from the beginning, "all families" were in view.

Genesis 15:6 — "And he believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness." Paul quotes this in Galatians 3:6. Abraham was justified by faith before circumcision (Romans 4:10), establishing faith as the original and ultimate basis of covenant membership.

Genesis 1:27 — "Male and female he created them." Paul's phrase "no male and female" in Galatians 3:28 echoes this creation text. The deliberate allusion suggests Paul is not abolishing creation distinctions but declaring that in Christ, those distinctions no longer determine one's standing before God.

New Testament Parallels and Fulfillments

John 17:20–21 — Jesus prays "that they may all be one, just as you, Father, are in me, and I in you." The unity Jesus prays for is not organizational uniformity but Spirit-wrought oneness rooted in Trinitarian communion. This is the theological ground of Galatians 3:28.

Romans 4:11–12 — Abraham is "the father of all who believe without being circumcised... and the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith." Paul's argument in Romans 4 and Galatians 3 is the same: faith, not ethnicity, defines Abraham's true family.

Romans 8:14–17 — "All who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God... you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, 'Abba! Father!'" This passage expands Galatians 4:6–7, showing that the Spirit's indwelling is the present evidence of the inheritance that awaits.

Ephesians 2:14–16 — "He himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility." The "dividing wall" likely refers to the soreg, the Temple barrier separating the Court of the Gentiles from the inner courts. Christ's death demolished this barrier, making the Galatians 3:28 declaration architecturally real.

Ephesians 4:4–6 — "One body, one Spirit... one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all." This sevenfold unity is the doctrinal basis for the practical unity Paul demands. Unity is not achieved; it is received and then maintained.

1 Corinthians 12:13 — "In one Spirit we were all baptized into one body — Jews or Greeks, slaves or free." This verse mirrors Galatians 3:27–28 almost exactly, confirming that "baptized into Christ" refers to Spirit-baptism that creates the one body.

1 Peter 1:3–4 — The inheritance described as "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you." This is the eschatological dimension of being "heirs according to the promise."

Revelation 7:9 — "A great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne." This is the eschatological fulfillment of Galatians 3:28 — the one new humanity from every human category, united before God.

6. Interpretive Considerations

The Meaning of "Baptized into Christ" (v. 27)

The most contested interpretive question in this passage is whether "baptized into Christ" refers to water baptism or Spirit baptism. Three main views exist:

Water baptism view: Some scholars (including many in the sacramental traditions — Roman Catholic, Lutheran, Anglican) argue Paul refers to the rite of water baptism, which functions as the instrument of union with Christ. On this reading, the passage does teach baptismal regeneration or at least baptismal efficacy.
Spirit baptism view: Most evangelical and Reformed scholars (Dunn, Longenecker, Bruce, Schreiner) argue the reference is to the Spirit's baptizing work described in 1 Corinthians 12:13, with water baptism as the outward symbol. This reading is consistent with the letter's entire argument that no ritual act contributes to salvation.
Both/And view: Some interpreters (including N.T. Wright) suggest Paul deliberately uses language that encompasses both realities — the spiritual act and its outward expression are so closely linked that separating them is artificial.

The sermon wisely navigated this by affirming believers' water baptism as "an essential symbol of salvation" while insisting that "the water can't help you if you ain't in Christ." This reflects the evangelical consensus and is exegetically sound given the letter's anti-ritualist argument.

"No Male and Female" — Does This Teach Egalitarianism?

Galatians 3:28 has become a flashpoint in debates about gender roles in the church and home. Two primary positions:

Egalitarians (Christians for Biblical Equality) argue this verse establishes the principle that all role distinctions based on sex are abolished in Christ, including those in church leadership and marriage.
Complementarians (Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood) argue the verse addresses soteriological equality (equal standing before God in salvation) but does not address role differentiation, which Paul upholds elsewhere (1 Corinthians 11; 14; 1 Timothy 2; Ephesians 5).

The sermon took the complementarian position, and this is exegetically defensible. The context of Galatians 3 is specifically about who qualifies for salvation and inheritance, not what roles believers fulfill. The verse's parallels with the Jewish morning prayer further support reading it as a statement about covenant access, not organizational structure.

Replacement Theology and Abraham's Offspring

The sermon rightly flagged "replacement theology" as a debated subject. The question is whether the Church replaces Israel as God's covenant people or fulfills the Abrahamic promise as its intended expansion. Paul's argument in Galatians 3 is not that the Church has replaced Israel but that the Abrahamic promise was always intended to encompass Gentile believers through Christ. This is better described as fulfillment theology than replacement theology.

7. Theological Implications

Adoption (Huiothesia) as a Core Soteriological Category

Paul's use of "sons of God" language points to the doctrine of adoption (huiothesia), which appears in Romans 8:15, 23; 9:4; Galatians 4:5; and Ephesians 1:5. Adoption is distinct from regeneration (new birth) and justification (legal declaration of righteousness), though all three occur simultaneously at conversion. Adoption addresses relational status — the believer is brought into the family of God with full rights of an heir. As J.I. Packer famously wrote in Knowing God, "Adoption is the highest privilege that the gospel offers: higher even than justification."

Union with Christ

The phrases "in Christ Jesus," "baptized into Christ," and "put on Christ" all describe what theologians call union with Christ (unio mystica). This is not mystical absorption (we do not become divine) but personal, covenantal, Spirit-mediated union. As John Calvin argued, union with Christ is the ground of all other saving benefits — justification, adoption, and sanctification flow from being "in him." Galatians 3:26–29 is one of the richest texts for this doctrine.

The Church as the New Humanity

Galatians 3:28 is a founding charter of what theologians call the "one new man" (Ephesians 2:15) — the eschatological community that anticipates the final unity of all things in Christ. The church is not merely a voluntary association of like-minded believers; it is a Spirit-created, eschatologically-charged community that embodies the future of humanity. When the church lives in genuine cross-cultural, cross-class unity, it becomes a sign of the kingdom.

The Security of the Believer

Verse 29's declaration that believers are "heirs according to the promise" grounds Christian assurance in God's covenant faithfulness rather than human performance. This connects to the broader Reformed doctrine of the perseverance of the saints and the Wesleyan doctrine of assurance — while the traditions differ on the mechanics, both affirm that the believer's inheritance rests ultimately on God's promise, not human achievement.

8. Practical Application

The Scholarship Informs the Living

Understanding that Paul uses the legal term huios (son/heir) rather than the relational term teknon (child) has profound pastoral implications: your standing before God is not merely emotional (you are loved) but legal (you are an heir). On days when you don't feel like a child of God, you can stand on the legal reality of your adoption. The inheritance is secured by promise, not performance.

Cross-Cultural Relationships as Gospel Witness

The sermon's challenge — "strive to develop relationships with other believers in the church that won't make sense without Jesus" — is not a program suggestion; it is an exegetical application of verse 28. When believers of different races, economic classes, and life stages pursue genuine friendship, they embody the "one new humanity" that the gospel creates. This is the church's most powerful apologetic.

Baptism as Public Declaration

The study of endusasthe (put on) in verse 27 — with its middle voice emphasizing personal action — invites serious reflection: Have you publicly "put on Christ" through baptism? The sermon's call to water baptism is not a ritual requirement for salvation but a gospel-shaped act of personal declaration. If you have trusted Christ but not been baptized, this text is a gentle summons.

Resting in the Promise

The phrase "heirs according to the promise" (kata epaggelian) is a direct antidote to performance anxiety in the Christian life. Spiritual disciplines, faithful service, and generous giving are responses to grace, not conditions for inheritance. As the sermon powerfully illustrated through the story of the woman who bought the portrait, God's bequest to us is entirely based on love for the Son — and we receive it by receiving him.

Giving and Serving as Heirs

When believers understand themselves as heirs of an imperishable inheritance, earthly resources are held loosely and deployed generously. The church's call to give, serve, and invest in community is not a burden on heirs — it is the natural expression of people who know they have "something coming" that no earthly loss can diminish.

9. Discussion Questions

Observational Questions

In Galatians 3:26–29, Paul uses the word "all" repeatedly. Make a list of every group or category Paul explicitly includes in the gospel's reach. What is the cumulative effect of this repetition?
Verse 28 contains three antitheses (Jew/Greek, slave/free, male/female). What specific historical context — Jewish, Roman, or cultural — helps explain why Paul chose these three pairs? What might a modern equivalent list look like?
Compare the two metaphors Paul uses in verse 27 — "baptized into Christ" and "put on Christ." What does each image communicate that the other does not?

Interpretive Questions

The sermon argued that "sons of God" in verse 26 is intentionally gender-specific because Paul is making a point about inheritance rights. Do you find this argument convincing? What would be lost if Paul had simply said "children of God"?
Paul says in verse 29 that believers are heirs "according to the promise" (kata epaggelian), not "according to performance." How does this phrase function as the climax of the entire argument Paul has been building since Galatians 3:1? What would be at stake if the inheritance were according to performance?
How should we understand the relationship between Galatians 3:28 ("there is no male and female") and Paul's other letters that address distinct roles for men and women in the home and church? Are these passages in tension, or do they address different questions?

Theological Questions

The sermon described adoption (huiothesia) as the reality behind "sons of God." How does the doctrine of adoption differ from the doctrines of justification and regeneration? Why might Packer's claim — that adoption is "the highest privilege the gospel offers" — be theologically defensible?
If the unity described in Galatians 3:28 is already spiritually real ("you are all one in Christ Jesus"), why does the church so often fail to reflect it visibly? What is the relationship between our positional unity in Christ and our practical unity in community?

Applicational Questions

The sermon challenged believers to pursue relationships in the church that "won't make sense without Jesus." Who in your church community is most unlike you in terms of race, age, economic status, or life stage? What would it look like to intentionally pursue friendship with that person?
If your inheritance is "imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you" (1 Peter 1:4), how should that reality change the way you think about financial anxiety, career ambition, or the fear of loss in this life?
The sermon noted that some professing Christians attempt to hold on to Christ while letting go of the church. Based on Galatians 3:26–29, why is this impossible on Paul's own terms? How would you respond to someone who says, "I love Jesus but I don't need the church"?

Investigative Questions

Paul appeals to Abraham throughout Galatians 3 to argue for justification by faith. Read Genesis 12, 15, and 17 alongside Romans 4 and Galatians 3. How does Paul's reading of Abraham's story in Galatians 3 compare to his reading in Romans 4? What additional nuances does Romans 4 bring to the question of who qualifies as Abraham's offspring?

10. Recommended Resources

Commentaries

Accessible Level

Timothy George, Galatians (New American Commentary, B&H, 1994) — Theologically rich, pastorally warm, and accessible to serious lay readers. George is an excellent guide to the letter's historical background and doctrinal significance. Highly recommended as a first commentary.
John Stott, The Message of Galatians (The Bible Speaks Today, IVP, 1968) — A classic exposition by one of the twentieth century's finest preacher-scholars. Clear, convicting, and accessible without sacrificing depth.

Intermediate Level

F.F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Galatians (New International Greek Testament Commentary, Eerdmans, 1982) — Bruce engages the Greek text throughout but explains his findings clearly. Particularly strong on the Jewish background and the Abrahamic covenant. The source of the quote on the Jewish morning prayer cited in this guide.
Richard Longenecker, Galatians (Word Biblical Commentary, Zondervan, 1990) — Comprehensive and technically detailed. Longenecker's introductory material on the Galatian situation and his verse-by-verse exegesis are among the best available.

Advanced Level

J. Louis Martyn, Galatians (Anchor Yale Bible Commentary, Yale University Press, 1997) — A landmark work in Galatians scholarship. Martyn's "apocalyptic" reading of Paul is provocative and not universally accepted, but his exegetical detail is extraordinary. Best read alongside a more traditional commentary.

Theological and Thematic Works

Accessible Level

J.I. Packer, Knowing God (IVP, 1973) — Chapter 19, "Sons of God," remains the most accessible and devotionally powerful treatment of the doctrine of adoption available. Essential reading for anyone wanting to go deeper on Galatians 3:26.

Intermediate Level

N.T. Wright, Paul and the Faithfulness of God (Fortress Press, 2013) — Wright's magisterial work on Pauline theology provides the richest available context for understanding Paul's use of the Abrahamic covenant and the "in Christ" language. Chapters on Galatians are particularly relevant.

Biblical Background

Accessible to Intermediate

Craig Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament (IVP, 1993) — An invaluable one-volume resource for understanding the Greco-Roman and Jewish cultural context of every New Testament passage. The entry on Galatians 3 provides helpful background on the paidagōgos, inheritance law, and the Jewish morning prayer.

Online Resources

The Gospel Coalition Commentary on Galatians (thegospelcoalition.org) — Offers accessible, theologically reliable exposition of each passage. Free and well-organized.
Blue Letter Bible (blueletterbible.org) — Essential for word studies. Provides access to Strong's lexicon, Thayer's Greek Lexicon, and multiple commentaries with direct links to original language tools.

This study guide is designed to be used over multiple sessions. Consider working through the word studies and cross-references in one sitting, the exegetical and historical sections in a second, and the discussion questions in a group context. The goal is not merely to know more about Galatians 3 but to be formed by its truth — to live as heirs of the promise, connected to Christ and to one another.