Set Free in Christ

To know for sure that your site is a growing process with most Christians as they exercise three things. First of all a greater trust in the promises of God. That's your bedrock of assurance. The second thing is by the inward evidences of grace are the marks of fruits of grace in your life and the third is a direct testimony of the Holy Spirit that he speaks directly to your soul through the word. I am thy salvation or bring some of the promise to play into your life in such a way that you can't deny that he is assuring you you belong to Christ, and Christ belongs to you. Take those three things the promises of God, evidences of grace, testimony, the Holy Spirit and then put over them all. God's faithful track record over the years, God's people can have full and infallible assurance of faith. Assurance of faith by Joel BK visit Lincoln here.org/teaching series to learn more. The gospel is for failures.

The gospel is for the broken. The gospel is for those who cannot do anything this, nor amounts of input on parts that can bring about this desired result. Renewing Your Mind on this Thursday. Kindly when one of the most beautiful and liberating aspects of Christianity is found in the message that were about to Dr. Derek Thomas is believing is through a study of Galatians, the apostle Paul's old defense of the gospel in today's message will hear echoes of Jesus words. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Lesson number nine and we are in Galatians 4, verse 21 and I want to go all the way into the first verse of chapter 5 on this at first verse of chapter 5 that I want to read the very start of a lesson for freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm therefore and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery, freedom September 1620 the Mayflower was also the Speedwell that had to come back because it was taking in water but that the Mayflower set course from Holland heading westwards across the Atlantic. 66 days later, November 9 in 1620. It was spotted off Cape cod 102 passengers of saints and strangers 30 crew within months. Winter run 45 of them died the saints across Kim for freedom to escape King James in England and the acts of in tolerance for Puritan worship, freedom. It's the birth of a nation story and that's what Paul is not going to do here telling the bus of a nation story and it's about two women and one man and two sons. The bus of Jews and Arabs Isaac and Ishmael Sarah and Hagar and of course Abraham and the issue.

Verse 21, you who desire to be under the law, do not listen to the law so he's going to tell us the history and then Paul in verses 24 through 27 is going to do something, just little bit weird little bit unusual.

Paul is usually a logical thinker or scholars say he was influenced in his rhetorical analytical style by Quintilian of Greece and more often than not. Paul argues certain reasons logically. Now he turns to an entirely different way of teaching and he introduces what we call an allegory like Bunyan's Pilgrim's progress.

Except the characters in this allegory are actual real people say begins with history and he's back again with Abraham, and we've seen Abraham pop up several times because what he wants to say is that Jews and Gentiles without obedience to the ceremonial law of the Old Testament are equally children of Abraham. The point is that Abraham had more than one child. He had Ishmael and that is a problem and you remember in Genesis 16 Sarah told Abraham to sleep with Hagar the same girl to all intents and purposes, and Sarah is Byron and he does that and then in Genesis 18. Remember, God comes to Abraham whose hundred and Sarah, who is 90 and says you're going to have a son. And remember Sarah. She laughs and she was rebuked for laughing but you can understand why she law.

She is way past the age of child bearing and to Isaac who is born and other points here in verse 23, the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through the promise and is setting up now allegory. One is of the flesh, and one that is of faith and is a perfect allegory for what Paul has been talking about in terms of our justification by one view the Judaizers view. It's of the flesh. It's through obedience is through the imposition of laws upon the consciences of Christians that have no place within the kingdom of God and obedience to the matter of conscience sake would be legalism and the other is by faith alone and that the plaintiff additional was a slave owned Isaac Chris free and so that's the history it's history of the birth of a nation story and that is the way of the flesh on this the way of faith that is the way of walks on this way that is reflective of how we are made right in the sight of God, not to human efforts not to human obedience but entirely as a free gift from Almighty God and received by faith alone will the allegory then is one of one is my walks and the other is by faith to sons, Ishmael and Isaac to mother's Hagar, which represents Mount Sinai, which is in Arabia so representing law and the other Sarah representing Jerusalem, the mother of all who believe. You have to go with the allegory from Hagar to Sinai and you remember our Sinai. When Moses describes Sinai syrup clouds cover to this thunder and lightning and it's an oppressive face, and the description of it is one of oppression. There are two covenants to sons to mother's two covenants and one is by works and one is by grace. Verse 24. This may be interpreted allegorically.

These women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai bearing children for slavery. She is Hagar and the other is Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. Verse 26 that is the way of walks do this and live in this the way of grace live and do this the way it works. Do this and you will live, perform, and you will live, work, and you will live in this the way of grace live and do this out of obedience, not in order to become a Christian, but because you are one and you're the child's working with Jesus, our Savior.

You're the child of the King know what's the point of this. Why was Paul introduced here.

This allegory doesn't do this so often. This is unusual and this is not meant to justify using all of the Old Testament allegorically and in the history of the church and one thinks of origin. For example, was an influence that lasted all the way through the Middle Ages that all historical narrative in the Old Testament should be interpreted allegorically and seeing things. So then, in the historical narrative that are not meant to be seen, and I think the rule of thumb is, we should only interpret the Old Testament allegorically where the Bible itself. Dawson don't go any further.

Don't start doing your own little bit of a liberalization of the Old Testament because of the probably get you into muddy, murky waters. The lesson is a wonderful lesson and some grace to the barren and desolate. The point of the allegory is that Sarah is from one perspective, we need to say this delicately, it's not simply she was. Byron couldn't have children and that's a that's a very difficult position for a young woman to be in until one needs greater sensitivity.

For example, around her mother's day that there are folks in the congregation who can't have children or living with the guilt of having aborted child's or the living with the problems that the children no longer want have anything to do with them and multitude of other scenarios, so the condition is one of enormous sensitivity, but in this instance, Sarah isn't 19 years old she is in her 10th decade of life, and there is no way that a 19-year-old can have the child and if she does, it's a miracle if she does, it's the imposition of the sovereign hand of God is a God thing. It's not a man thing it's another human thing. It's a God thing. And that's a perfect way to describe salvation. Salvation is not by human effort.

It's not by human initiative. It's not by human intuition. It's not by human cleverness is entirely a God thing. Unless a man is born from above, we can translate born again. This from above, meaning the sum is emphasizing the second birth but emphasizing the sovereignty of the birth that our new birth is entirely because of the imposition on the intervention of the sovereignty of God from one point of view.

Sarah was a failure.

She was broken she was okay.

Part fragile. Must've been intolerable for her. It's hard to imagine being married to two women at the same time allowing two women in the same house, but the taunting and so on. One thinks of her Samuels mother, Hannah and how she was taunted by another woman in the house who will assist for tireless rabbit. It seems, and though the difficulty of that. I think the point in the allegory is that the gospel is for failure's the gospel is for the broken. The gospel is for those who cannot save themselves. The gospel is for those who cannot do anything this, nor amounts of input on our parts that can bring about this desired result.

I sometimes think in our celebration of the Lord's table. It is customary to read from first Corinthians 11 and the dire warning about eating and drinking judgments to your selves and sometimes we pick up that words to Ethan to drink unworthily unworthily, and that therefore there is something that we need to do to make ourselves worthy sometimes, so preachers will read that passage in to be fair, Paul is addressing the situation in Corinth that is unlike any situation that I've ever encountered in 40 years of ministry of what was going on in Corinth was systemic failure what was going on in Corinth was unbelievably wicked. There were things going on in the Lord's supper and in the agape love feasts combined with the Pepcid church potluck dinner and the whole thing is gobbled in first Corinthians 11 it's chronic and perhaps that's not the passage that we should use for communion on the day-to-day week two weeks year to year basis because that's not where most of our congregations all the promise is the only passage in the New Testament dimensions the Lord's supper, but sometimes that passage can be used in such a way to bring a sense of fear in the sense of gloom and a sense of trepidation and I don't think that's how the Lord's supper should be fought over the Lord's supper is a celebration it's in anticipation of the marriage supper of the Lamb. And we ought to eat and drink with joy and with assurance and with a sense of the blessedness of our condition as children within the family coming to the family table for a meal to the Lord's supper is more likable hors d'oeuvre in anticipation of a meal, reminding us that we are pilgrims somewhere a on journey now are we the sons of God, but does not yet appear what we shall be mentioned Lord's supper because is a very famous story from the 19th century, Rabbi Duncan, the gray to gray assistant scholar of many languages. Indeed, from the free Church of Scotland in the 19th century and he was so taken communion and noticed a woman interior send her Bible upon the drops of tears falling down on her Bible and and when the bread the plates came in her direction.

She just shook her head and Robert Duncan, who knew this one very well said to take it woman it's for sinners. And that's the point of the Lord supper that there's nothing that we can do to make ourselves worthy of this bread tend worthy of this cup we are unworthy, by nature, Jesus died not because we are worthy, but because we are unworthy. This is sense here and Galatia. But in order to be assured of their status they need to make themselves worthy in the way they did that was to be out of conscience, loss, ceremonial loss from the Old Testament days and weeks and months, and so on, and perhaps also in the background, the issue of circumcision for Gentiles and in the assured for a food source kosher food loss and imposing this upon the consciences of the Gentiles. And then this first verse of chapter 5 for freedom Christ has set us free.

Whatever you think of Nelson Mandela is beside the point.

But he was imprisoned. Of course in South Africa and when he was released from prison and a beam to the prison scene where it is selectable island off the coast of Cape Town.

Remember the book hero to try freedom and that's really what Paul is saying here freedom. Don't give that up liberty liberty and justice for all.

Don't give up that liberty. That's very special to me is so recent American citizen. Truth be told, majesty, never gives up her subjects are still true of a British passport, but Thanksgiving day has taken on a whole new meaning liberty liberty in the Mayflower sense of liberty for those states. There were also strangers on board with the Saints on board the Mayflower and they came to escape from bondage.

What is legalism. Legalism is obeying out of conscience laws which God does not demand obeying out of conscience, meaning that if you don't obey these laws. Conscience is going to condemn you do this do that taste not handle not undo, you can bring out the examples of the legalism in the church. Jesus has died to give you freedom Jesus has died to give you freedom from imposing laws which have no business being imposed upon your conscience and that liberty notes the issuer for metering offered to idols.

Paul takes up elsewhere and Corinth and elsewhere. This of the Romans and saw percentage eight Romans 14 in our neighbors coming home from work and is passing the butchers and the it's late at night, and there's no refrigeration in the flies everywhere, and though the meat is being offered to enter 25% of what it's worth in the system give me the meat and the pace for the girls home and he says to his wife. It's going to be stew for supper tonight and she says did you get it from that butchers and he said yeah because I got from butchers and then she says, was it offered to idols, asked no questions for conscience sake meat is meets but now that you've asked questions for conscience sake, you're in a mess of trouble because that's what legalism does, it binds it messes you up, makes you look at yourself and it makes you look at loss and it makes you look at obedience rather than look at Jesus, who is given you freedom, freedom to be who God intends you to be well celebrate that freedom and hold on to that freedom don't let law med Lewis mess up your conscience. My conscience is captive to the word of God unto the word of God alone. It was the heart of the Luther so help me God that our consciences are held captive only to Jesus and to no one else you notice in verse 29 Paul says, just as at that time he was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the spirit so it is now, and that's the heart of legalism.

It's a form of persecution is a form of manipulation. It's a form of control when treacherous institutions preachers River. They'll try to mess up your conscience try to impose something that the Bible is never imposed. It's a form of persecution is a form of control. You must not let it happen. Try freedom for freedom Christ the second free pencil your teaching fellow Dr. Derek Thomas with a message from his series. No other gospel. Paul's letter to the Galatians by Willie Webb, thank you for joining us today for Renewing Your Mind. There are 14 messages in this series we are pleased this week to air fiber those messages. Dr. Thomas watches through the background teaching and significance of Paul's letter to the Galatians and he leads us to the unmistakable conclusion. If we get the gospel wrong we get everything wrong will be happy to add this series to your online learning library. When you give a donation of any amount to litigator ministries will also send you the two DVD set, you can give your gift online@renewingyourmind.org or you can call us her number is 800-435-4343 was no question that we are witnessing a seismic cultural shift the moral order seems to been turned on its head. Doesn't it more than ever we as believers need to know what we believe why we believe it how to live it and how to share it.

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That button allows you to share today's program on Facebook, Twitter or by email. You may never know who might be helped by the biblical truths you share of the problem with adhering to the law for salvation is that we have to follow all of it perfectly is why the book of Galatians is so important. I hope you'll join us tomorrow for Renewing Your Mind is Dr. Thomas continues his series with a message titled standing in freedom