Trinity Baptist Church

God’s Amazing Grace

Liberating Grace

Galatians 5:1

 

We're in a series of messages entitled “God's Amazing Grace” and so far we’ve discovered that God’s grace is saving grace, it is sustaining grace and it is healing grace. 

 

Our salvation is God’s grace giving us the free gift of eternal life made possible by the finished work of Christ on the cross.  We receive it by faith and it keeps us for all eternity in a right standing with God.  He has guaranteed that what He has begun He will bring to completion. 

 

And not only are we saved by the grace of God, we live in the grace of God.  He sustains and strengthens us so we can withstand temptation, we find strength when we are tired and comforted when we are troubled, all by the grace of God. 

 

And to the glory of His grace, we are made accepted in the beloved.  By grace I am placed in Christ and because of that, I don’t have to measure up to anybody’s standards.  I have perfect righteousness, I have every resource I need for any challenge in life and I can rest in the finished work of Christ on the cross.

 

Sounds like a pretty good deal so far, huh?  And we haven’t even begun to scratch the surface on God’s Amazing Grace!  Today I want to explore the idea of liberating grace. 

 

 

One of the prophecies made regarding the ministry of the Messiah is that He would set the captives free.  That means He not only deals with the consequences of sin, He deals with the control of sin.  Jesus came to set the captives free. He breaks the power of canceled sin.

 

Satan, on the other hand, wants to place you in bondage and make you a slave and a servant of sin.

The interesting thing is that we have a world that speaks so much about freedom and knows so little about it.

 

We hear a lot of talk about reproductive freedom or freedom of choice.  What that really means is the right to kill babies in the wombs of their mothers.  But folks would never campaign and lobby for that right.  So they dress it up and try to make it palatable by calling it freedom of choice. 

 

Sometimes we hear about freedom of expression.  For many, that’s nothing more than the right to be vulgar and peddle smut.  But we dress it up and call it freedom of expression. 

 

And I hear some talking about freedom from religion.  They don’t want God poking around in their business so they claim to be free from religion.     

 

It all reminds me of the man on the 747 flying over the Atlantic who came out of the cockpit and said, “I have good news! I've thrown the pilot out of the plane!  We're free, we're free, we’re free!”

 

People want to cast of restraint but in removing the restraints, they wind up in bondage. 

 

But Jesus came to set us free. Notice what we read here in

 

Galatians 5:1

 

Paul is telling us about this freedom that we have in the Lord Jesus Christ. So let’s talk about that freedom by looking at two characteristics of what I want to call a life of liberty. 

 

Fist, let’s think about

 

 

First of all, what are the dimensions of this life? I mean by that, from what are we liberated of freed?  Let me show you three things Paul talks about here in the book of Galatians.

 

Going back to the beginning of the book of Galatins, we discover that first of all, we are free from

 

 

Galatians 1:6-7

 

According to these verses, there were two primary problems that had surfaced in the church at Galatia.  According to verse 6, there were some who were  deserting the gospel, and in verse 7, others were perverting the gospel. 

 

Now it appears that one problem developed out of the other problem.  What’s happening in verse 6 is the product of what’s happening in verse 7. 

 

 

Those who were deserting the gospel of grace were doing so because of those who were perverting the gospel of grace.  By the way, Satan is a pervert. He has no original material. All he can do is take that which is good and pure and holy and righteous and pervert it.  

 

And you can rest assured the devil would much rather pervert the gospel than deny the gospel because if he can pervert the gospel and get you to believing a corrupted gospel rather than a true gospel, you'll be satisfied with the substitute and become a synthetic Christian.

 

What God wants is for you to believe the true gospel, and so Satan has come with a substitute gospel.  That’s what verse 7 is talking about. 

 

There is no gospel besides the true gospel and that’s what Paul is saying.  Anything else is a perversion of the truth. 

 

Then notice

 

verse 8

 

Phillips translates it this way, “Let him be damned.” Let him condemned to hell. Let the curse of Almighty God be upon Him.

 

Now, Ii don’t know about you, but that sounds a little narrow-minded to me. Paul is getting carried away.  That’s way too restrictive for modern minds and culture. But I would remind you, we’re not talking about where we’re going to eat dinner.  We’re talking about the eternal destiny of souls. 

 

And the Bible is telling us that anybody who messes with the gospel of grace is worthy of God's greatest judgment. We're not talking here about trivialities.  This is not denominational preferences or the color of the carpet.  This is life and death and eternity. 

 

In fact, it is so important, that Paul repeats it again. 

 

Verse 9

 

Of primary importance is that we preach and respond to the right gospel.  And if somebody shows up with a new message or a rejection of the old message, they are to be conisered as accursed by God. 

 

There is only one gospel, not two not three. Jesus Christ friend is the only way to heaven. Call it narrow-minded if you will, but there are some things in which it is required that we be harrow-minded. When I go to the pharmacy and get my prescriptions filled, I want my pharmacist to be narrow-minded. 

 

When you are flying to your destination, you want your pilot to be narrow-minded.  When I’m out on the highway driving, I expect people to be narrow-minded enough to stay on their side of the road.   

 

But somehow in things that matter the most such as our eternal destiny, people say, “It doesn't matter what you believe as long as you are sincere because all roads lead to heaven.”

 

No, they do not. There is one gospel and it is the gospel of the grace of God. So how do we know that?  How can we be sure the gospel of grace is the true gospel?  Well, Paul gives us three tests right here.

 

First of all,

 

 

From where did it originate? 

 

Verses 11-12

 

This gospel is not the invention of man. It is not something that Paul thought up. It was something that God gave. It is not in man's invention but in God's revelation. So that’s the first thing:  any true gospel has to come from God himself.

 

Second, we authenticate the gospel by

 

 

Not only do we ask, from where it originated, we ask what it says about how we are saved. 

 

verse 6

 

Any gospel that is not the gospel of grace is not the true gospel. How are we saved? We’ve already learned that.  We are saved “by grace through faith and that not of yourselves.”

 

You can't beg it, you can't buy it, you can't borrow it, you can't steal it, you can't earn it. It is grace of God and it was bought by Christ on the cross and when he finished it was accomplished.

You can’t deplete it, you can't add to it, it is the supernatural work of God.

 

So to determine the real gospel, we apply the source test and the salvation test and thirdly,

 

verse 6 (again)

 

Notice, it is the grace of Christ. He is the subject of the gospel. It is about Him. The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ are central to the true gospel.  Nothing else but the gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ for our sins. He is the subject.

 

We don’t need a gospel that gives Him a nod every once in a while or alludes to the Savior.  The gospel centers on Jesus Christ.  He is the focus.  He is the main thing.  He is the only thing. 

 

Listen:  to be saved, you don’t need a creed.  You’re not saved by meeting a code of ethics, but by meeting the Son of God!  You’re not saved by joining the church.  Lots of people have joined churches who’ve never met Christ!

 

The true gospel comes from God and it tells you how to be saved by getting you to Jesus as quickly as it can! He is the only way of salvation!  He is the only way to God and any other gospel is a false gospel and the wrath of God, the judgment of God, the curse of God is upon it.

 

So how does that liberate us?  It’s simple.  Watch this:  if you don't understand that you're saved by the grace of God, you'll always be in bondage to

 

 

 

 

You'll never be able to say, Praise God, I know I'm saved. You’ll always be trying to prove you’re saved or earn your spot in heaven. 

 

In fact, I’ve always found it interesting that the ones who teach you can lose your salvation are the same ones who teach you earn your salvation.  And that makes sense.  If my spot in heaven is determined by what I do, then it makes senses that I could lose it by what I don’t do or should have done. 

 

But If I believe my salvation is the free gift of God, and it is not because of my works, then I can enjoy the freedom of receiving and enjoying and being thankful for that gift.  The very nature of grace underlines the security of my salvation. 

 

And once you understand you're saved by the grace of God, then you're free from the bondage of legalism and self effort. You're not caught in the trap of works.  I don’t have to depend upon me.  I’m trusting Christ. 

 

I know I'm going to heaven, not because I have confidence in myself, but because I have confidence in Christ.  If I had to depend upon myself, I’d never get any rest.  I’d never have any peace.  I would be constantly examining myself and wondering if I had done enough or not. 

 

Am I good enough? Well, I think I am. I don't lie, I don't steal, I don't curse, I don't get drunk, I don't do this or that.  But I did lose my temper the other day. Well, I sure hope I'm saved.

 

 

 

 

You see, if one particle of it depends upon me, I am in bondage. I can never know. But I can praise God today and shout hallelujah, because when I am saved by the grace of God, I can know I'm saved because it all depends upon Him. 

 

I don’t have to live with a question mark over my head.  I can live with a period in my heart.  In fact,

I can live with an explanation point in my spirit that prompts me to stand up straight and declare, saying, “By the grace of God, I'm saved!”

 

To illustrate that, let me show you a contrast that Paul provides to his hearers right here in the book of Galatians.

 

Galatians 4:7

 

Now keep in mind, we are working under the thought of liberating grace and how God’s grace sets us free.  And Paul places before us two different relationships to God.  On the one hand, there is a slave and on the other, there is a son. 

 

Now, if you're trying to be saved by the law, by being good, you're a slave.  If you're saved by grace, you're a son. What’s the difference?  A servant is accepted on the basis of what he does, but a son is accepted on the basis of who he is.

 

The slave is always worried about pleasing his master so he will be accepted.  The son is resting in his father's love and knows that he is accepted.

 

The slave is accepted because of his workmanship. The son is accepted because of his relationship.

 

The slave is accepted because of his productivity, but the son is accepted because of his position.

 

The servant knows that if he fails, he may lose his position. But, the son knows if he fails, he may be lovingly corrected, but he is still the father's son.

Remember, we are saved and made sons and daughters of God by the grace of God.  And grace means God's love is shown to us where there is no merit on our behalf. It doesn't depend upon anything we do.

 

God does not say, “I love you because” or, “I love you since” or, “I love you if”, or “I will love you when” or, “I will love you after”. All of those are conditions. But God's love for us is unconditional.

 

Listen:  if God's love for you depended upon conditions such as your faithfulness or goodness or gentleness or mercy or anything else, if it depended upon anything in you, then if that thing in you changed, then God's love toward you would change. But if it depends upon God and God does not change His love toward you, will not change. There's nothing you can do to stop God from loving you.

 

Now, listen to this. If you don’t get anything else, get this:  God's love is an action toward us, not a reaction to us.

 

It is an action toward us.  It comes out of God's nature. It is not based on what we are but on Who He is. He is love. Therefore, we don't try to put ourselves in a position where God can love us. We react to the love of God that is there.

 

 

God does not change you so He can love you. He loves you so He can change you. And, there's nothing that will change you and liberate you like the grace of God. So many people are living their Christian life trying to make God love them, trying to be good enough to earn the love of God and that is a bondage out of hell and Jesus came to set you free by His grace.  We are free, first of all, from legalism.

 

But secondly, he came to set you free from legalists.

 

Galatians 2:4-5

 

So what’s going on in this text?  Well, Paul had been preaching this gospel of grace and it didn’t go over so well with the Jewish legalists.  So they sent some most high muckety mucks from denominational headquarters to investigate.

 

When they discovered all these converts living and rejoicing in the grace of God, they pulled out their list of rules and rituals and regulations and tried to impose them on those who had been saved.  And boy, did they have a list!  Six hundred and thirteen requirements they had and they not only had a list, they were checking it twice, trying to find out who’s  naughty or nice. 

 

Everywhere they would go, they had their list and they came to check old Paul out and check out those he led to Christ. And notice, Paul called them, false brothers.  They were preaching a different gospel.  And Paul says, “We didn’t tolerate that for one minute.  We preserved the truth of the gospel.” 

 

 

 

See, the list makers don't come from outside the church.  They come from inside the church. They want to put you in bondage!  They‘ve decided how you are supposed to live and what you're supposed to do and what you're not supposed to do.

 

I'm not talking about God's genuine, holy commandments.  I am talking about matters of preference and opinion and tradition.  But Paul was a freedom fighter.  As a matter of fact, down in verse 11 he confronts Peter because he was playing the crowd. 

 

When he was around the legalists, he obeyed the Law of God and when he was around the converts he was enjoying ham and pork chops and Paul put his finger in his face in front of God and everybody and said, “Peter, you’re a hypocrite!  You can’t have it both ways.  You need to get back under grace and stay there or else you will pervert the gospel of truth!”

 

And I’ll tell you what I’ve noticed: every church has some list checkers.  They're on the sin-seeker committee, self appointed as chairman.  Don’t let them put you under bondage.  You stand fast in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free. When you get saved by the grace of God, you are saved. You are free from the bondage of legalism and you are free from the judgment of the legalist. 

 

Now, that's the dimensions of this grace.  Let's talk for just a moment about the dynamics of it.

 

So how does it work?

 

Galatians 2:20-21

 

Now think about the logic of this statement:  In so many words, Paul says, “If you could be saved by being a good boy or girl, then Calvary was a blunder.  God made a colossal mistake by allowing Jesus to die if all you and I needed to do in order to be saved was keep the law.”

 

And it’s unfortunate that the chapter break occurs when and where it does because the first verse of chapter 3 is the rest of the conversation. 

 

3:1

 

It is the cross that declares our freedom.  So how does the cross set me free from legalism?

 

Notice what this verse says. 

 

First of all,

 

 

“I have been crucified with Christ.”

 

You're looking at a man's that's been crucified. I am crucified with Christ. You are crucified with Christ.

 

That's just not rhetoric, that is truth. You see, Jesus died for you. But when Jesus died for you, you died with Him. His death had your name on it. When he was nailed up to the cross, he was your substitute so you died with him.

 

Now, get this down big and plain. He didn't just take your sins to the cross, He took you to the cross. 

 

 

That's a mistake we often make. We talk about He was dying for our sins. He didn't just take your sins to the cross. If He had just taken your sins, that still left you. He took you. He took you to the cross. You died. The problem is not what you do. It is what you are. The wages of sin is death. Your sin demanded death and Jesus died for you and you died with Him.

 

So first of all, I'm crucified with Christ and my life is an executed life. Second,

 

 

“it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me”

 

Not only did He die and I died with Him, but He rose and I arose with Him. Now, suppose I commit murder and I’m sentenced to die.  The day comes when they put me in the electric chair, pull the switch, I twitch and die.  A coroner comes, takes my pulse, pronounces me dead and signs the paperwork. 

 

Question:  can the law do anything else to me? 

 

No sir. Now, suppose by a miracle I come back to life.  Can they put me in the chair again?  No.  I’ve paid my debt to society in full.  And the provision of double jeopardy protects me. I've already died.

 

That is exactly what we are reading in this phrase.  I died with Christ.  Therefore, the law has no more demand on you. My sin debt has been paid in full and by the miracle of the new birth, I have come back to life and I am free from the law. 

 

I live because he died and he rose again and I died with him and I rose with him.

It's an executed life. It is an exchanged life. And thirdly,

 

 

“the life which I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the son of God”

 

That’s a bad translation.  The old KJV says it is the faith “of” the Son of God.  Now remember, we are saved by grace through faith.  And in that regard, I place my faith in Christ and His finished work. 

 

But that’s not what this verse it talking about. 

 

Here, he’s talking about what Jesus ahs done and how it appropriates into my life.  It is His death and His resurrection and it is His faith. 

 

It is the faith of the Son of God and just as it was His death and I died and He arose, therefore I arose, it is His faith that is working in me.  His faith is in me. His life is in me. He inhabits my humanity. The life I now live, I live by the faith of the son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. Isn't that wonderful?

 

That is freedom. That is liberty. That is the grace of God that sets you free.

 

Back in 1961, Major Ian Thomas wrote a little book called “The Saving Life of Christ”.  One of the chapters is titled “Any Old Bush Will Do”.  In that chapter Major Thomas deals with the life of Moses, and in particular, God’s call to Him to lead His children out of captivity by speaking through a burning bush. 

 

 

Thomas writes, “There, on the side of a mountain, was a bush that just kept on burning. It caught his attention until he could not resist going to inspect this phenomenon. What was it with this bush that it didn’t just become a heap of dusty ash? How could this miserable, scrubby bush blaze on with such persistence, for such a long time?

 

Moses had burned out in one blaze of failure. This bush burned and burned and burned. It was not burnt out in an instant, even though that’s what we would expect from a bush in the wilderness.

 

When Moses approached the bush, God called to Him from the flames and changed the entire direction of his life. Moses, the one-time self-assured and self-proclaimed agent of God, was now standing face to face with the presence of God. And in that blazing presence God gave him the commissioning that was all divine, and not motivated by the human breast.”

 

Then Thomas imagines a conversation between God and Moses, in which God answers the question that must have been in Moses’ mind. How could a bush of no real substance burn with such enduring flame and persistent blaze? What did that bush possess that it could perform as no other bush could?

 

God’s reply is, “Do you see that bush over there? That scruffy, scraggy looking thing – THAT bush would have done. Do you see this beautiful looking bush, so stately and fine – THIS bush would have done. For you see, Moses, any old bush will do – ANY old bush – if only God is in the bush!”

 

 

 

“Moses you learned all of Egypt’s wisdom and became confident in yourself. You thought you were some bush! But you burned out and have been a heap of ashes for 40 years.”

 

“If this bush that you admire were dependent on its substance to keep burning it would have burned out in no time – it would be a heap of ashes like you. But it is not the bush that sustains the flame, it is God in the bush, and so ANY old bush will do!”

 

That's what Paul is telling us when he writes, “I am crucified with Christ. Nevertheless I live, yet not I, but Christ lives in me.”

 

And, friend, that's liberty. Don't ever let anybody put you under bondage.  You have been set free.  Now go live like it. 

 

Let’s pray.