TITLE: FREEDOM IN THE SPIRIT Introduction: We come now to the transition point in Galatians. Paul summarizes his arguments thus far, and then begins to explain the practical application of his arguments. He has argued for Christian’s freedom, and now he begins to apply that freedom to real life. But what is this Christian freedom? Both the nature of Christian freedom and its application are counter-intuitive means (having the ability to understand or know something without any direct evidence or reasoning process. Stand firm in your freedom as we read in the book of (Galatians 5:1-12) Read 5:1 (NIV) This is the summary of all that Paul has argued so far. Christians have been set free by Christ, so we are to stand firm in this freedom and not revert to slavery. What is this freedom that Christ has given us? What is the slavery we should resist? The following verses answer these questions (read 5:2-5). The freedom that Christ gives us is the freedom of grace (5:4). He describes this freedom of grace as “by faith eagerly awaiting through the Holy Spirit the righteousness for which we hope”. When you simply put your faith in Jesus, he justifies you, He declares you to be not guilty, forever free from God’s condemnation. This is not because you have become righteous in your behavior, but because through his death he paid the full penalty for all of our sins (past, present, and future sins we commit). This is why Paul says, we eagerly await the hope of righteousness. Hope does not mean desiring an uncertain future outcome; it means confidence about a certain future outcome. Because Jesus has paid for all of our sins, we can be confident that at the final judgment God will declare us to be righteous, even though we remain sinners. So we look forward to that day instead of fearing it, because we are already free from God’s condemnation (cf Jhn.5:24, Rom 8:1) Use your freedom to serve! (Galatians 5;6,13-15) Serve means “to do service as a slave” Why should I use my freedom to serve? Paul provides two reasons. First of all, the very essence of freedom is not the absence of all restraints, but rather the ability to live according to our design. Imagine for example talking to a free fish who wants to use his freedom to live outside the water. What would you say to him? How would you counsel him to use his freedom? You would probably say “Sure, you are free to live outside of water, but if you use your freedom in this way you will wind up being completely unfree (dead)”. Why? Because fish are designed to live in water, not on the dry land. Freedom for fish, therefore, is not freedom outside water, but to fulfill his being “fishiness”, which by definition means living in water. In the same way, God has designed human beings, so freedom is living according to God’s design for our lives. And what is this design? At the very core, it is to love, to be givers. We are created in God’s image, and God is a community of (Persons – plural not only one) who give themselves to one another in love. And since we were created as God’s image bearers, we were designed to give ourselves to others in love God’s kind of love which is “AGAPE” love. This is why Paul reminds us that the very heart of the Old Testament law is summed up by the command to love our neighbors as ourselves (5:14). If we use God’s Law as the means by which we try to earn his acceptance, it becomes our slave-master. But if we see that God’s Law is a description of his design, it can point us to freedom. So the more we become to love-givers, the more free and fulfilled we will be (Jhn. 13:17; Acts 20:35) He offer his life for ransom to all sinners. As a sinner our destiny is definitely in hell. But for God’s; love and mercy, He gave his only and only begotten son Jesus Christ to save us from spiritual death. As we become his adopted child of God. This is our future, an eternal life with God. These are the in vitiation of the gospel. Paul was described this good news, the idea of grace in terms of God rescuing us from the bondage of sin (Gal. 4;19) God pardoning us and to justify us for all of our sins. So we need to respond for what God offer to you and me to redeem us and to become his adopted child. It’s not what the matter for who you are, it’s not what the matter for where you’ve been or what kind of family are you belong Christ formed in you. When we have a new relationship with Christ there was a process of stressing new life formed by the spirit of God. And that transformation begins now, we must completely receive this. In fact if you have a true relationship with Christ it was a new person transformed by the spirit of God. It’s a process of new life formed by the spirit: • A new DNA - which we must be born again thru Jesus Christ himself. • A new purpose – That Jesus Christ rose from the dead that to sustain us from all of our needs. • And a new future – in the spirit of God for living and have freedom which is the works of the Spirit of God that Paul explain to us in this book of (Galatians). That the genuine Christians must to grow in the spirit of God that we should grow normally and not immature. And what does growth look like? How does it happen? This was the purpose of the letter of Paul to Galatians that to be transformed their life in the spirit of God (Romans 12:1-2). To make it simple may I ask you a question to confirm? Is the goal of Christian living reformation or transformation? To become fundamentally different. We must learn how to obey on his word. Do the right thing and avoid the wrong thing. Amen! That’s the way of a normal Christian life. That’s truly all about, we need to change from glory to glory which is the rule to obey on his word. We always engage to the Spirit of God because, he can protect us and guide us in all areas of our life. And life begins for a decision, you must to decide now. The big problem of the people out there is about not going to decide from the bottom of their heart. I’ll tell you this decision is today, tomorrow might be too late. You decide now as the bible declares. If you decide to receive Christ you have new life in him new purpose in him new destiny and new future in him. All of this will be yours if you decide now. And if it is done you have freed in the Spirit of God. We are not under the law but under grace (Romans6;14); (2Peter 2:18-22; 1Corinthians 1;18-22). The world is constantly bombarding us with words to entice us away from our salvation. Our answer ‘It was for freedom that Christ set us free, therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery.” (Galatians 5:1).
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 06:47:40 +0000
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