03/07/10
Living In Light of the Gospel
Summary:
The Gospel is not a message of ‘do’s and don’ts… a message revolving around the law, because the law cannot change the palate of the soul…at best, it can only lead to behavioral change…
The Gospel is so much more than that. It’s about being…about living…about walking in the freedom of the love of our Creator…it’s about Him transforming our affections, and our desires from the inside-out…It’s about discovering what it means to truly live…
Welcome:
Great to be with you…
We’re in Galatians together…
(Repetition)
Just an observation to begin with…If you’ve been with us over the last few weeks, maybe you’ve noticed that there is a lot of repetition in the book of Galatians…
Any of you recognize this? Yes!!! You’re right.
The most important truths, and the biggest threats/dangers require the greatest amount of repetition.
Illustration – At our home – repeat…we love you…we love you for who you are…unconditionally. It’s a truth that is worthy of being spoken again, and again…
We also repeat… Do not hit each other in the face. Do not run out into the street without looking. Do not eat yellow snow… Repetition…
The Apostle Paul wrote this letter to a collection of local churches that he planted as he took the Gospel from Jerusalem to Western Asia into Europe. Shortly after Paul left Galatia, religious leaders came into the church and began teaching a message that Paul refers to as a ‘false Gospel.’ A message that was threatening the foundation of these young believer’s faith. Jesus isn’t enough…you also need to follow the Jewish laws, customs, and traditions.
The Apostle Paul is writing, reminding, urging, pleading with them… Jesus gave his life to rescue you… Therefore, you are Free!!! Embrace and live in the freedom of His love and mercy…(overarching theme)
If you leave this series remembering one truth…here it is. You are completely, wholly, and perfectly loved by God. God has made this abundantly clear by giving His son Jesus Christ to die for you so that you might know Him. Live in, delight in, learn to walk in the freedom of His love… and let your life be a response to that love.
Go to Galatians chapter 5:1…(Sin and Death)
Christ has set us free? This is the Gospel! What has Christ set us free from?
There are two things in our world that we don’t really know how to handle. Two things that frustrate us…they confuse us…people tend to view them as limiting to our human progress and potential…They are sin and death.
Just when we think that we have an explanation, a remedy, or are finally a step ahead of one of the two…they rear their ugly heads again.
H.G. Wells optimistically wrote these words in 1937… “Can we doubt that presently our race will more than realize our boldest imaginations, that it will achieve unity and peace, that our children will live in a world made more splendid and lovely than any palace or garden that we know, going on from strength to strength in an ever-widening circle of achievement? What man has done, the little triumphs of his present state…form but the prelude to the things that man has yet to do (H.G. Wells, A Short History of the World (1937)).
Following the aftermath of World War 2, Wells wrote again… “The cold-blooded massacres of the defenseless, the return of deliberate and organized torture, mental torment, and fear to a world from which such things had seemed well nigh banished – has come near to breaking my spirit altogether… ‘Homo Sapiens,’ as he has been pleased to call himself, is played out.’ (H.G. Wells, A Mind at the End of It’s Tether (1946)).
So…In response to the threat of sin and death, we mount the best counter-attacks that we know how…
To combat sin and its symptoms, we hire lawyers, hire counselors (of which I’m a big fan), develop self-help philosophies/strategies, listen to Dr. Phil, we attend group therapy and seminars to overcome the effects of sin in our lives…if we can’t overcome it, we attempt to cover it with other things…
“Contrary to the legal model, the essence of sin is not (primarily) the violation of laws but a wrecked relationship with God, one another, and the whole created order. ‘All sins are attempts to fill voids,’ wrote Simone Weil. Because we cannot stand the God-shaped hole inside of us, we try stuffing it full of all sorts of things, but only God my fill it.’” (Barbara Brown Taylor).
To combat the enemy of death, we take vitamins, have surgeries that include injecting weird substances into our bodies, drink bottled water, spend hundreds of thousands of dollars on fitness equipment and club memberships that we don’t use, we have mid-life crisis’…and freeze people’s dead bodies in the hope that someday, we may find a cure and bring them back…
The Bible says that if you belong to Jesus, you have been set free…
Romans 8 says… “And because you belong to him (Jesus), the power of the life-giving Spirit has freed you from the power of sin that leads to death.” Romans 8:2
Galatians 5:2-4 (The Way of the Law)
We’ve discovered in the last three weeks that you and I have basically three choices by which to approach God. You can ignore him altogether… You can count on your own moral effort and goodness to save you, or you can count on and trust in what God has done for you through Jesus Christ.
If you live in an attempt to earn God’s favor or try to save yourself through your own morality or goodness, Jesus and his grace will be of no benefit to you…
Paul continues to write...
Galatians 5:5-6 (The way of faith, and the Spirit)
But – Just a note here…you read Scripture very long, and you will come to love the ‘buts’ in the Bible…over and over…you can live this way…but, God has carved out a different way to live…this is the reality of the human condition…but, God has spoken or acted... this is where you are today…but God has a plan for your life…
Paul says…But…for those who trust in Jesus Christ, we are eagerly waiting…we are trusting…we are hoping… to receive the righteousness that God has promised to us.
This is a very significant promise.
(Go to Romans 8:23-25…)
Scripture assures us that Jesus will return one day; and when he comes, he is going to set this world straight. He will put an end to both sin and death… And, He will judge the living and the dead…
On that day, each of us will stand before Him to give account for our lives. Scripture is clear that everyone will spend eternity somewhere.
When Jesus returns, he will not recognize his people by whether they are circumcised. He is not looking for the church-goer, or the person with the biggest Bible. He’s not going to look for those who can talk shop on doctrine…or for those who consider themselves good.
Paul says that Jesus is looking for one thing…He is coming for those who have trusted in Him with an authentic faith. A faith that displays itself in an ever-increasing love for God and people…that’s what matters…Love.
Galatians 5:7-10 (The Race)
Illustration (running) - Some of my small group recently started running together. Now they’re regularly running 5K’s on the weekends. Beth and I are their emotional support… One guy in my small group was telling me that in the last 5k that they ran, he started strong, proudly popped out ahead of the pack, and then around the mile mark, one by one, the pack left him in the dust. Why? If you’re a runner, you know that the perspective and pace involved in running a 5k is different from chasing your kids around the house three times.
The life of faith in Christ is a life-long journey…there’s a reason that Scripture calls it a way of living, not a one-time experience…It’s a super-marathon, not a 50-yard dash. It is possible to start strong and fast, and yet end up losing steam and sucking for air on the side of the road.
Good truth to remember – every one of us is vulnerable to following false teaching, and to sliding into a religion-based, legalistic approach to God…Satan will lie, steal, and kill to keep you from trusting in and loving Jesus…which is why it’s foundational to your health in Christ to stay connected to the body of Christ…we offer small groups, not because we all need another to-do on our calendars, but because each of us needs regular encouragement and support from one another…that’s why we’re Scripture calls us a body. We need each other!
Together, we keep our eyes on Jesus, so that we not only start the life of faith strong, but we also finish strong!!!
In these last three verses, notice Paul’s emphasis on Freedom!
Galatians 5:13-15 (Freedom)
Maybe, throughout this series, you’ve asked what is a very common question… You mean…God offers to forgive me? Yes…And He makes me right with Himself because of what Jesus did for me? Yes…And it has nothing to do with what I do? Right…Then what is keeping me from going out and living like hell, and then coming back to God for his grace… seems like a lot of people could abuse his grace… That’s true. A lot of people have tried to abuse God’s grace… Well, what do you say about this?
Illustration – palate change (Chocolate and Beer) – For much of my life, there were two things I didn’t like much at all. Chocolate, I could endure. Beer, I detested (which could be because a rowdy, intoxicated baseball fan spilt his beer on me when I was young…not sure).
A few years ago, everything began to change… I’ve discovered that the human palate can actually develop over time, as we’re exposed to new tastes, textures, and smells. If you try something multiple times, you can actually start to enjoy it.
So…now…Beth asks me what kind of desert I want, and it’s typically chocolate (as a result, we now have a healthier marriage). I’m also a big fan of beer…good beer...not beer in a can.
I have found that God’s grace brings about a similar change in people’s lives…not in our taste palate, but in the palate of our soul…
A friend told me once that many people enjoy God just enough that they don’t enjoy sin…and they enjoy sin just enough that they don’t enjoy God…
I have found that the more people get a taste of the goodness of God’s love, the more they desire, and begin to delight in Him.
The more I understand God’s love…the more I hate sin and anything that destroys what is of God.
The Gospel is not a message of ‘do’s and don’ts… a message revolving around the law, because the law cannot change the palate of the soul…at best, it can only lead to behavioral change…
The Gospel is so much more than that. It’s about being…about living…about walking in the freedom of the love of our Creator…it’s about Him transforming our affections, and our desires from the inside-out…It’s about discovering what it means to truly live…
Paul says is Galatians 6:15… “It doesn’t matter whether we have been circumcised or not. What counts is whether we have been transformed into a new creation.”
When we walk with Jesus by faith, He will work out his life in us…in how we live…in how we love. He will shape our desires and tastes…
Paul writes in Ephesians 2:10… “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us to do long ago.”
If you want to lose your taste for sin…if you want to love your spouse more…want to exchange anger for peace. If you want to live a pure life, or grow in wisdom, spend time with Jesus, trust Jesus, and over time, He will change the palate of your soul.
Jesus spoke these words in Matthew 11:28-30 – “Are you tired? Worn out? Burned out on religion? Come to me. Get away with me and you’ll recover your life. I’ll show you how to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me – watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly. (The MSG)
Isn’t that a beautiful picture?
Illustration – Lou – our small group always talking about this… We are different people because of Christ’s love!
Galatians 5:13b-14
Illustration – (Australian poll) A survey was recently taken in Australia…asking people to rate their perception of God, Jesus, spirituality and the Church.
God = HIGH marks
Jesus = HIGH marks
Spirituality = HIGH marks
Church = VERY LOW marks
The survey revealed that people won’t step foot in the parking lot of the church if the people inside the four walls wear around their backpacks of religion and talk their Christian cliché, and deduce love for Jesus to one hour a week on Sunday mornings…
If the church’s only message to people is…Do these things…act like us…talk like us…follow these rules…and God will love you…why are we surprised that people prefer sleep, football and brunch over the body of Christ?
People will run to the church if they believe that it is a place marked by love and freedom and grace and hope. Where the message is…Come as you are…
Some will initially find it too good to be true.
Really, I’m a doubter, I’m a skeptic… Great, so am I. On my best days I only get the Gospel about this much (inch).
Well, I lust… I spent years wrapped up in lust. Let me tell you about the God who freed and continues to free me.
I’m divorced… Let me introduce you to the God that heals and promises that he will never leave you.
I’m mean… Great, if it weren’t for the Holy Spirit, most of us would be arrogant jerks too. But God is changing us, he’s softening us…he’s teaching us to love. If it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t even know what love is…
I’m a failure…The Bible says that we’ve all failed to live up to God’s standard of goodness and holiness, yet He loves us any ways… Why? I don’t know but it changes us!
The thing I love about the Gospel is that it calls reality out. I’m imperfect…you’re imperfect…
I don’t have to convince you that I’m a perfect pastor (because I’m not), and you might be greatly disappointed with that fact.
But, I can be me, you can be you, and together we can trust Jesus, love and follow Jesus, and depend on the Holy Spirit to cultivate in us a deeper desire for Jesus.
Close
At the end of the day, an ever-expanding love for God and for people is the litmus test of genuine faith.
If the Gospel is taking root in your life…you’ll find yourself serving other people out of love for them.
If the Gospel isn’t taking root in you, you’ll find yourself being critical, cynical and judgmental…
Only Jesus can change us…only he can transform us…
My Prayer
My prayer for you is that you would discover the freedom that we have in Christ. And that you would delight in Him. And that your faith in Christ will show itself more and more in an ever-expanding love for those around you.
(PRAY)
