Redeemed By Faith
Galatians 4:1-14
The word "redeemed" means to be delivered from bondage, to be ransomed, to be delivered from the possession of another by making an equivalent payment.
The word "redemption" comes from the Greek word "agorazo" and means making a trip to the market place for the purpose of purchasing. In most cases this phrase referred to the purchase of slaves!
The word "redemption" is used to describe the believer being purchased out of the slave market of sin!
That purchase price was the death of Jesus Christ!
1Co 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Since by our own "Faith" we believe that we are the purchased objects of God's love and at such a terrible cost, we have become God's slaves, to do God's will!
That word "redeemed" comes from the Greek word "exagorazo" which means that Jesus Christ has purchased each believer, by "Faith", from that slave market and removed them from the slave market altogether and never to return!
Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Whosoever by their "Faith" believe that Christ has done this wonderful thing, just because He wanted to, are released from the bondage of sin and slavery to sin!
1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
And we now belong to God as a possession!
Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Tit 2:15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.
This is the message that we must take to the world!
SO, Let's begin where we left off last week:
Since the original text did not have chapter and verses let's add the last verse of chapter 3 to get the full context.
*****Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Gal 4:1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
Gal 4:2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
We need to remember that false teachers and preachers had come into the churches of Galatia and taught a false doctrine.
They had taught that all Gentiles must first obey the Laws of Moses before they could accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. In other words it was the Law that saved and not Faith!
No doubt we should always try our best to be the best we can, by all standards.
Even God says this:
Tit 3:1 Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,
Tit 3:2 To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
Still the pure fact is that no one can be saved by just being good or being the best we can!
As we go through chapter 4 we will see God's salvation plan!
In the previous chapters Paul has established that once we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ "by Faith" in the work He has done, we are then sealed with the Holy Spirit and subject to the promises first given to Abraham.
We already know that it is Jesus Christ who was the "Promised Seed" and we are heirs according to the bloodline of Jesus Christ!
S0 Paul continues saying that, even though we are heirs, until we receive our inheritance, we are no more than a child waiting on that inheritance!
Every child is to be obedient to his parents just as any slave or servant is to be obedient to their masters.
What is the point of these things? Paul is saying that until the "appointed time" by that parent, that inheritance was out of reach for that child.
And in comparison, Paul says that while we were lost, there was absolutely nothing that we could do of ourselves to inherit the promises of God, "justification" was out of our reach !
*****Gal 4:3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
What are these elements that Paul is speaking to? The elements of this world refer to all things that men will try to use to get right with God!
What are some of these things?
1) Men have used "laws" and many religions continue to try this method.
2) Men have used "good works" and many religions still try this method.
3) Men have used "rituals and ceremonies", along with "ceremonial worship" and many religions still try this method.
4) Men have used "church membership and keeping of ordinances" and many still try this method.
5) Men have used "astrology or science" and many still try this method.
6) Men have used "philosophy" or we say "Religion" and many still try to use this method.
What does God say about all of these things?
**God says we need to quit acting like children and understand what He is saying!
Heb 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
**God says we need pay attention to Jesus Christ!
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
**God says if you trust in science and astrology, you are trusting in temporary things!
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
**God says to not become subject to the teachings of men!
Col 2:20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
Col 2:21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
Col 2:22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?
**God says to not fall into the traps of legalism!
Act 15:10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
**God says to quit being children being fooled by the things of this world and understand the truth of the Word of God!
1Co 14:20 Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.
**God says listen to the truth, God says "listen to My plan of salvation" and be a part of My plan!
God says listen to the only plan that can make you a part of the promises made to Abraham!
*****Gal 4:4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Gal 4:5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
We should realize that when Jesus Christ appeared on this world it was not by chance!
Christ's coming was according to the Word of God.
Jesus Christ first came to this earth at the exact right time as prophesied by Daniel.
God and God alone had decided the fulness of time!
What do we know for sure?
1) Jesus Christ was born of a particular person, as prophesied.
2) Jesus Christ was born at a particular time, as prophesied.
3) Jesus Christ was born in a particular place, as prophesied.
4) Jesus Christ was born in a particular way, as prophesied. (The incarnate Son of God)
5) Jesus Christ was born under a particular system, as prophesied. (The Law)
6) Jesus Christ suffered from the curse of Adam's sin and the curse of the Law, being subject to the same worldly system from which He had come to save all others, "but without sin", as prophesied!
7) This world had been prepared for the first coming of Christ Jesus, as prophesied.
a) The Law had shown the Jewish people their transgressions and despite God's blessings, they had refused to seek God! (Sounds a whole lot like America today)
b) The world was full of spiritually starved people! They worshipped themselves, they worshipped pleasure, they worshipped false gods, they worshipped philosophies, but the soul of men still hungered for the truth.
c) The world at the time of Jesus was more at peace than it had been for many years because of Roman domination, but people could still move around and it was possible for the "Gospel" to spread at this time.
d) Most of the world depended on one language, "Greek", making communication possible around the known world at that time, again allowing the Gospel to spread.
e) The world had a system of roads in place which allowed for travel between all nations.
SO, What did Jesus preach just after He had been baptized by John the Baptist?
Mar 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
The fulness of time had come and God had prepared the world to receive His Son!
The Almighty Living God had sent His own Son into this world to deliver all mankind!
God had sent His Son into this world to provide that means of adoption into the family of God and therefore be able to also receive the promises made to Abraham!
SO, What else did Jesus preach?
Joh 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
Jesus Came to fulfill the Father's plan because it is only by the Father's plan that we can be "Justified" and "Redeemed"!
Joh 7:28 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.
Joh 7:29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.
God just asks us all to be part of His plan because there is no other plan that will bring us such a salvation!
What is the truth of the Gospel?
God sent His Son made of a woman, which was "born out of a woman" because we would not have accepted the Messiah under any other conditions!
Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
God spoke the Word by the Holy Spirit and this young virgin conceived a Son, who had to become a man so He could save all men!
Luk 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luk 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luk 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
These are the things that we must base our "Faith" upon!
Jesus Christ was born under the Law because all mankind are under the laws of men!
Jesus Christ had to obey the Law in every single detail in order to become that "perfect" ideal man and the only "sacrifice" that could be accepted by our Father in Heaven.
Rom 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
Rom 8:4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
To believe all these things is to be redeemed and openly welcomed into the family of God!
Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Joh 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
The Law condemned us all to death, but by our own "Faith" we are welcomed into God's family!
*****Gal 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Gal 4:7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
The Spirit of Christ will be sent by our Father in Heaven to dwell within every believer upon a confession of their 'Faith"!
Rom 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
Rom 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Adoption is a serious matter!
An adopted son is permanent. They cannot be adopted today and unadopted later!
An adopted son loses all rights to his previous family but now has full rights to his new family.
An adopted son is looked upon as a new person and has a new name and any debt connected to his old family is cancelled and forgotten as if they never existed!
An adopted son has a very special relationship with all the other family members, up close and personal!
An adopted son becomes an heir to the riches of His new Father!
None of these things are available to those that reject the Lord Jesus Christ!
*****Gal 4:8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
The Apostle Paul says to remember where you came from!
We should ask ourselves, just why does God want us to read and understand all His written Word and God gives us that answer.
1Jn 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
God wants us all to know the truth!
When we have reached this point of knowing the plan of salvation by the "Grace of God" and by our own "Faith", why in the world would we accept anything less than this truth!
When we had no knowledge of our Savior, we knew that we did serve the falseness that this is all this world has to offer!
Once we have realized the presence, and the fellowship, and the care, and the communion with the Lord, why would we want to give that up for anything that promises so much less?
It is a fact that if you are in the world, you are serving false gods!
These Galatians had not been Atheist, they had served many false gods.
These Galatians had not been Agnostic, they knew in their hearts that there had to be a real God!
These Galatians knew that they had been slaves to false worship of false gods, that only took their money and never promised salvation of any kind!
They served gods which by nature were no gods!
They served gods that were only gods of the mind!
Most people worship things that they themselves have exalted to some high priority!
Most people have a fixed picture in their minds of what they want their personal god to be like, to suit only themselves and their own way of life!
Most people worship their own thoughts, their own ideas, and their own way of life and they reject anything that goes against these things!
These people have it in their minds how they want their God to be and reject seeking the truth of who God says He is!
Most people will spend eternity in the Burning Lake of Fire, "because they reject the truth of God in Jesus Christ"!
It is only the sin of "unbelief" that cannot be overcome!
To know Jesus Christ, is to know the Living God and these Galatians knew this to be true!
*****Gal 4:9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
We must realize that it is a great privilege to know the truth of God but it is even a greater blessing to know that God knows your name and that God knows more about you than you can ever know about yourself!
God offers us all an opportunity to have a close and personal relationship with Him but we must first accept who He is!
Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
God says that while we are still living in this life, we must leave the things of this world behind and focus on the things of God!
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
God says we may live in this world but we are not to be a part of this world!
To be "redeemed" is to belong to God!
Isa 43:1 ***** for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
We cannot come to know God by works, or rituals or anything that we can do ourselves!
We can only be "Justified" by our "Faith" and that is "Faith in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ"!
These are God's rules and this is God's plan and too many today just want to ignore God's plan for their own plan which will always fail!
These Galatians were about to turn back to the weak and beggarly elements that lead to destruction and lead to failure in the service of God.
Were they turning back to pagan worship? No!
They were considering that all men can only become acceptable to God by their own efforts and by good works which God says will have absolutely no effect on your "justification"!
Look at what is happening in our world today. In radical Islam, these people are going to extremes in an effort to appease a false god and they are not the only ones as some so-called Christians do the same thing along with so many others of false religion.
God knew all these things would happen therefore His plan is the greater of all plans!
When Christians return to this line of thought, they are returning to the bondage and slavery of man's laws!
These elements of false religion are weak and beggarly according to the Apostle Paul and useless in the eyes of God!
Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
What did Paul see happening to these Galatians?
*****Gal 4:10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
These Galatians began "again" to trust in rituals.
They again, returned to ceremonial worship.
They again, returned to special religious days or special worship days in an attempt to please God.
They returned back to worldly attempts to please God!
BUT, none of these things can bring "Justification" in the eyes of God!
This does not mean we are ignore the Lord's Day as a day of worship.
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
We must gather together in worship and we must gather together to strengthen each other in "Faith"!
BUT, we can never make our own selves righteous!
And Paul said to these Galatians that they would be useless in their service to God!
When we do not follow God's plan, then we become useless in God's plan to redeem other sinners!
*****Gal 4:11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
We live wasted lives when we seek to find ways to become righteous in the eyes of God!
Every approach to God will fail except "Faith" in Jesus Christ!
The world rejects this truth and the world is doomed to failure!
Any other approach to appeasing God, leads to death and destruction the same as not knowing God at all!
And Jesus said:
Luk 9:62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
And God says this:
Heb 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
We are just as foolish as these Galatians, if we have accepted the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and have been "redeemed" and then turn back to religious self-righteousness and ignore the Word of God!
The Apostle Paul said, "I was also raised as a Jew under all those laws, under all those rituals, under all those ceremonies and under all those observances and none of those things got me one step closer to a relationship with God"!
*****Gal 4:12 Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.
We should not forget the Apostle Paul had come under vicious attack not only by those Judaizers but many of these of the church who had gotten confused about the truth of the "Gospel" and the "Grace of God"!
Paul called them brothers because they were still his brothers in Christ.
Paul did not treat them as enemies.
Paul did not treat them as those who opposed Jesus Christ!
Paul did not talk about them, Paul talked to them!
Paul did not gripe over his frustrations, nor complain about their actions, Paul expressed deep brotherly love for each of them.
After all they were still God's children by adoption!
Paul showed to these Galatians the heart of true Pastor!
Paul begged and pleaded with them from the heart as a true minister of God!
Paul simply said "be like I am, for I am one of you".
Paul had totally given up Judaism as a means to please God and had accepted Jesus Christ as his own personal Savior.
Paul was saying to these Galatians, "you do not have to become a Jew to be saved, you must only have "Faith" in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul said "I will never hold any bitterness or malice against you"!
What is a Pastor?
A Pastor feeds God's sheep!
A Pastor is God's appointed man over a congregation of believers!
A Pastor ministers the "Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ"!
A Pastor should be a picture of God's "Grace" to each believer!
God had prepared these Galatians when they had first met Paul but God had also prepared Paul in a special way.
*****Gal 4:13 Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first.
Gal 4:14 And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.
God will often use weak, despised, and poor instruments to accomplish His will!
When we are weak in the flesh because of illness, we certainly cannot display our own power.
BUT, the truth of the "Gospel" cannot be hidden even in our own weakness!
2Co 13:8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
2Co 13:9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
Paul's illness at this time was as much a trial to himself as it was a trial to all these Galatians.
This traveling evangelist had taken the opportunity in all of Galatia to preach the Gospel no matter how he felt, no matter his health, and no matter his physical condition.
Paul had not been rejected because of the way he looked.
Paul had not been rejected because he was not some great speaker.
Paul had been received because of the Message he had!
In fact Paul had been received as if he were an angel sent from God!
Paul had been received as if he had been Jesus Himself!
Jesus said:
Mat 10:40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
When we hear the "Gospel of Grace", we know that we have heard the truth!
1Th 2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
Again Paul points out to these people how much they have changed from the truth!
We began this lesson by saying that we can only be redeemed by our "Faith"!
One day John the Baptist was preaching and baptising in the Jordan River and he looked up and saw Jesus Christ and he had these words:
Joh 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world".
If our "Faith" is not wrapped up in this statement by John the Baptist, then we are not saved. and we have placed our "Faith" in something other than Jesus Christ!
For behold, it is only the Lamb of God who can take away all our sin!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
Galatians 4:1-14
The word "redeemed" means to be delivered from bondage, to be ransomed, to be delivered from the possession of another by making an equivalent payment.
The word "redemption" comes from the Greek word "agorazo" and means making a trip to the market place for the purpose of purchasing. In most cases this phrase referred to the purchase of slaves!
The word "redemption" is used to describe the believer being purchased out of the slave market of sin!
That purchase price was the death of Jesus Christ!
1Co 6:20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
Since by our own "Faith" we believe that we are the purchased objects of God's love and at such a terrible cost, we have become God's slaves, to do God's will!
That word "redeemed" comes from the Greek word "exagorazo" which means that Jesus Christ has purchased each believer, by "Faith", from that slave market and removed them from the slave market altogether and never to return!
Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
Gal 3:14 That the blessing of Abraham might come on the Gentiles through Jesus Christ; that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.
Whosoever by their "Faith" believe that Christ has done this wonderful thing, just because He wanted to, are released from the bondage of sin and slavery to sin!
1Pe 1:18 Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers;
1Pe 1:19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot:
And we now belong to God as a possession!
Tit 2:14 Who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a peculiar people, zealous of good works.
Tit 2:15 These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thee.
This is the message that we must take to the world!
SO, Let's begin where we left off last week:
Since the original text did not have chapter and verses let's add the last verse of chapter 3 to get the full context.
*****Gal 3:29 And if ye be Christ's, then are ye Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise.
Gal 4:1 Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all;
Gal 4:2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
We need to remember that false teachers and preachers had come into the churches of Galatia and taught a false doctrine.
They had taught that all Gentiles must first obey the Laws of Moses before they could accept Jesus Christ as their Savior. In other words it was the Law that saved and not Faith!
No doubt we should always try our best to be the best we can, by all standards.
Even God says this:
Tit 3:1 Put them in mind to be subject to principalities and powers, to obey magistrates, to be ready to every good work,
Tit 3:2 To speak evil of no man, to be no brawlers, but gentle, shewing all meekness unto all men.
Still the pure fact is that no one can be saved by just being good or being the best we can!
As we go through chapter 4 we will see God's salvation plan!
In the previous chapters Paul has established that once we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ "by Faith" in the work He has done, we are then sealed with the Holy Spirit and subject to the promises first given to Abraham.
We already know that it is Jesus Christ who was the "Promised Seed" and we are heirs according to the bloodline of Jesus Christ!
S0 Paul continues saying that, even though we are heirs, until we receive our inheritance, we are no more than a child waiting on that inheritance!
Every child is to be obedient to his parents just as any slave or servant is to be obedient to their masters.
What is the point of these things? Paul is saying that until the "appointed time" by that parent, that inheritance was out of reach for that child.
And in comparison, Paul says that while we were lost, there was absolutely nothing that we could do of ourselves to inherit the promises of God, "justification" was out of our reach !
*****Gal 4:3 Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world:
What are these elements that Paul is speaking to? The elements of this world refer to all things that men will try to use to get right with God!
What are some of these things?
1) Men have used "laws" and many religions continue to try this method.
2) Men have used "good works" and many religions still try this method.
3) Men have used "rituals and ceremonies", along with "ceremonial worship" and many religions still try this method.
4) Men have used "church membership and keeping of ordinances" and many still try this method.
5) Men have used "astrology or science" and many still try this method.
6) Men have used "philosophy" or we say "Religion" and many still try to use this method.
What does God say about all of these things?
**God says we need to quit acting like children and understand what He is saying!
Heb 5:12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat.
**God says we need pay attention to Jesus Christ!
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
**God says if you trust in science and astrology, you are trusting in temporary things!
2Pe 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned up.
**God says to not become subject to the teachings of men!
Col 2:20 Wherefore if ye be dead with Christ from the rudiments of the world, why, as though living in the world, are ye subject to ordinances,
Col 2:21 (Touch not; taste not; handle not;
Col 2:22 Which all are to perish with the using;) after the commandments and doctrines of men?
**God says to not fall into the traps of legalism!
Act 15:10 Now therefore why tempt ye God, to put a yoke upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?
**God says to quit being children being fooled by the things of this world and understand the truth of the Word of God!
1Co 14:20 Brethren, be not children in understanding: howbeit in malice be ye children, but in understanding be men.
**God says listen to the truth, God says "listen to My plan of salvation" and be a part of My plan!
God says listen to the only plan that can make you a part of the promises made to Abraham!
*****Gal 4:4 But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
Gal 4:5 To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
We should realize that when Jesus Christ appeared on this world it was not by chance!
Christ's coming was according to the Word of God.
Jesus Christ first came to this earth at the exact right time as prophesied by Daniel.
God and God alone had decided the fulness of time!
What do we know for sure?
1) Jesus Christ was born of a particular person, as prophesied.
2) Jesus Christ was born at a particular time, as prophesied.
3) Jesus Christ was born in a particular place, as prophesied.
4) Jesus Christ was born in a particular way, as prophesied. (The incarnate Son of God)
5) Jesus Christ was born under a particular system, as prophesied. (The Law)
6) Jesus Christ suffered from the curse of Adam's sin and the curse of the Law, being subject to the same worldly system from which He had come to save all others, "but without sin", as prophesied!
7) This world had been prepared for the first coming of Christ Jesus, as prophesied.
a) The Law had shown the Jewish people their transgressions and despite God's blessings, they had refused to seek God! (Sounds a whole lot like America today)
b) The world was full of spiritually starved people! They worshipped themselves, they worshipped pleasure, they worshipped false gods, they worshipped philosophies, but the soul of men still hungered for the truth.
c) The world at the time of Jesus was more at peace than it had been for many years because of Roman domination, but people could still move around and it was possible for the "Gospel" to spread at this time.
d) Most of the world depended on one language, "Greek", making communication possible around the known world at that time, again allowing the Gospel to spread.
e) The world had a system of roads in place which allowed for travel between all nations.
SO, What did Jesus preach just after He had been baptized by John the Baptist?
Mar 1:15 And saying, The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel.
The fulness of time had come and God had prepared the world to receive His Son!
The Almighty Living God had sent His own Son into this world to deliver all mankind!
God had sent His Son into this world to provide that means of adoption into the family of God and therefore be able to also receive the promises made to Abraham!
SO, What else did Jesus preach?
Joh 6:38 For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.
Jesus Came to fulfill the Father's plan because it is only by the Father's plan that we can be "Justified" and "Redeemed"!
Joh 7:28 Then cried Jesus in the temple as he taught, saying, Ye both know me, and ye know whence I am: and I am not come of myself, but he that sent me is true, whom ye know not.
Joh 7:29 But I know him: for I am from him, and he hath sent me.
God just asks us all to be part of His plan because there is no other plan that will bring us such a salvation!
What is the truth of the Gospel?
God sent His Son made of a woman, which was "born out of a woman" because we would not have accepted the Messiah under any other conditions!
Isa 7:14 Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
God spoke the Word by the Holy Spirit and this young virgin conceived a Son, who had to become a man so He could save all men!
Luk 1:31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
Luk 1:32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:
Luk 1:33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end.
These are the things that we must base our "Faith" upon!
Jesus Christ was born under the Law because all mankind are under the laws of men!
Jesus Christ had to obey the Law in every single detail in order to become that "perfect" ideal man and the only "sacrifice" that could be accepted by our Father in Heaven.
Rom 8:3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
Rom 8:4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.
To believe all these things is to be redeemed and openly welcomed into the family of God!
Joh 1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Joh 1:13 Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
The Law condemned us all to death, but by our own "Faith" we are welcomed into God's family!
*****Gal 4:6 And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father.
Gal 4:7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
The Spirit of Christ will be sent by our Father in Heaven to dwell within every believer upon a confession of their 'Faith"!
Rom 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.
Rom 8:10 And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.
Adoption is a serious matter!
An adopted son is permanent. They cannot be adopted today and unadopted later!
An adopted son loses all rights to his previous family but now has full rights to his new family.
An adopted son is looked upon as a new person and has a new name and any debt connected to his old family is cancelled and forgotten as if they never existed!
An adopted son has a very special relationship with all the other family members, up close and personal!
An adopted son becomes an heir to the riches of His new Father!
None of these things are available to those that reject the Lord Jesus Christ!
*****Gal 4:8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
The Apostle Paul says to remember where you came from!
We should ask ourselves, just why does God want us to read and understand all His written Word and God gives us that answer.
1Jn 5:13 These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God.
God wants us all to know the truth!
When we have reached this point of knowing the plan of salvation by the "Grace of God" and by our own "Faith", why in the world would we accept anything less than this truth!
When we had no knowledge of our Savior, we knew that we did serve the falseness that this is all this world has to offer!
Once we have realized the presence, and the fellowship, and the care, and the communion with the Lord, why would we want to give that up for anything that promises so much less?
It is a fact that if you are in the world, you are serving false gods!
These Galatians had not been Atheist, they had served many false gods.
These Galatians had not been Agnostic, they knew in their hearts that there had to be a real God!
These Galatians knew that they had been slaves to false worship of false gods, that only took their money and never promised salvation of any kind!
They served gods which by nature were no gods!
They served gods that were only gods of the mind!
Most people worship things that they themselves have exalted to some high priority!
Most people have a fixed picture in their minds of what they want their personal god to be like, to suit only themselves and their own way of life!
Most people worship their own thoughts, their own ideas, and their own way of life and they reject anything that goes against these things!
These people have it in their minds how they want their God to be and reject seeking the truth of who God says He is!
Most people will spend eternity in the Burning Lake of Fire, "because they reject the truth of God in Jesus Christ"!
It is only the sin of "unbelief" that cannot be overcome!
To know Jesus Christ, is to know the Living God and these Galatians knew this to be true!
*****Gal 4:9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage?
We must realize that it is a great privilege to know the truth of God but it is even a greater blessing to know that God knows your name and that God knows more about you than you can ever know about yourself!
God offers us all an opportunity to have a close and personal relationship with Him but we must first accept who He is!
Heb 11:6 But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
God says that while we are still living in this life, we must leave the things of this world behind and focus on the things of God!
2Co 6:17 Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you,
2Co 6:18 And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.
God says we may live in this world but we are not to be a part of this world!
To be "redeemed" is to belong to God!
Isa 43:1 ***** for I have redeemed thee, I have called thee by thy name; thou art mine.
We cannot come to know God by works, or rituals or anything that we can do ourselves!
We can only be "Justified" by our "Faith" and that is "Faith in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ"!
These are God's rules and this is God's plan and too many today just want to ignore God's plan for their own plan which will always fail!
These Galatians were about to turn back to the weak and beggarly elements that lead to destruction and lead to failure in the service of God.
Were they turning back to pagan worship? No!
They were considering that all men can only become acceptable to God by their own efforts and by good works which God says will have absolutely no effect on your "justification"!
Look at what is happening in our world today. In radical Islam, these people are going to extremes in an effort to appease a false god and they are not the only ones as some so-called Christians do the same thing along with so many others of false religion.
God knew all these things would happen therefore His plan is the greater of all plans!
When Christians return to this line of thought, they are returning to the bondage and slavery of man's laws!
These elements of false religion are weak and beggarly according to the Apostle Paul and useless in the eyes of God!
Heb 3:12 Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
What did Paul see happening to these Galatians?
*****Gal 4:10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years.
These Galatians began "again" to trust in rituals.
They again, returned to ceremonial worship.
They again, returned to special religious days or special worship days in an attempt to please God.
They returned back to worldly attempts to please God!
BUT, none of these things can bring "Justification" in the eyes of God!
This does not mean we are ignore the Lord's Day as a day of worship.
Heb 10:25 Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.
We must gather together in worship and we must gather together to strengthen each other in "Faith"!
BUT, we can never make our own selves righteous!
And Paul said to these Galatians that they would be useless in their service to God!
When we do not follow God's plan, then we become useless in God's plan to redeem other sinners!
*****Gal 4:11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labour in vain.
We live wasted lives when we seek to find ways to become righteous in the eyes of God!
Every approach to God will fail except "Faith" in Jesus Christ!
The world rejects this truth and the world is doomed to failure!
Any other approach to appeasing God, leads to death and destruction the same as not knowing God at all!
And Jesus said:
Luk 9:62 And Jesus said unto him, No man, having put his hand to the plough, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God.
And God says this:
Heb 10:38 Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
We are just as foolish as these Galatians, if we have accepted the truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and have been "redeemed" and then turn back to religious self-righteousness and ignore the Word of God!
The Apostle Paul said, "I was also raised as a Jew under all those laws, under all those rituals, under all those ceremonies and under all those observances and none of those things got me one step closer to a relationship with God"!
*****Gal 4:12 Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am; for I am as ye are: ye have not injured me at all.
We should not forget the Apostle Paul had come under vicious attack not only by those Judaizers but many of these of the church who had gotten confused about the truth of the "Gospel" and the "Grace of God"!
Paul called them brothers because they were still his brothers in Christ.
Paul did not treat them as enemies.
Paul did not treat them as those who opposed Jesus Christ!
Paul did not talk about them, Paul talked to them!
Paul did not gripe over his frustrations, nor complain about their actions, Paul expressed deep brotherly love for each of them.
After all they were still God's children by adoption!
Paul showed to these Galatians the heart of true Pastor!
Paul begged and pleaded with them from the heart as a true minister of God!
Paul simply said "be like I am, for I am one of you".
Paul had totally given up Judaism as a means to please God and had accepted Jesus Christ as his own personal Savior.
Paul was saying to these Galatians, "you do not have to become a Jew to be saved, you must only have "Faith" in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul said "I will never hold any bitterness or malice against you"!
What is a Pastor?
A Pastor feeds God's sheep!
A Pastor is God's appointed man over a congregation of believers!
A Pastor ministers the "Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ"!
A Pastor should be a picture of God's "Grace" to each believer!
God had prepared these Galatians when they had first met Paul but God had also prepared Paul in a special way.
*****Gal 4:13 Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first.
Gal 4:14 And my temptation which was in my flesh ye despised not, nor rejected; but received me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.
God will often use weak, despised, and poor instruments to accomplish His will!
When we are weak in the flesh because of illness, we certainly cannot display our own power.
BUT, the truth of the "Gospel" cannot be hidden even in our own weakness!
2Co 13:8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but for the truth.
2Co 13:9 For we are glad, when we are weak, and ye are strong: and this also we wish, even your perfection.
Paul's illness at this time was as much a trial to himself as it was a trial to all these Galatians.
This traveling evangelist had taken the opportunity in all of Galatia to preach the Gospel no matter how he felt, no matter his health, and no matter his physical condition.
Paul had not been rejected because of the way he looked.
Paul had not been rejected because he was not some great speaker.
Paul had been received because of the Message he had!
In fact Paul had been received as if he were an angel sent from God!
Paul had been received as if he had been Jesus Himself!
Jesus said:
Mat 10:40 He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me.
When we hear the "Gospel of Grace", we know that we have heard the truth!
1Th 2:13 For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, because, when ye received the word of God which ye heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but as it is in truth, the word of God, which effectually worketh also in you that believe.
Again Paul points out to these people how much they have changed from the truth!
We began this lesson by saying that we can only be redeemed by our "Faith"!
One day John the Baptist was preaching and baptising in the Jordan River and he looked up and saw Jesus Christ and he had these words:
Joh 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, "Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world".
If our "Faith" is not wrapped up in this statement by John the Baptist, then we are not saved. and we have placed our "Faith" in something other than Jesus Christ!
For behold, it is only the Lamb of God who can take away all our sin!
Questions?
Let's Pray!
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