FREEDOM IN CHRIST

July 21, 2019

Rev. Bernt P. Tweit

Old Testament Lesson; 1 Kings 19:14-21

Gospel Lesson; Luke 9:51-62

Sermon Text; Galatians 5:1

Galatians 5:13-25

The portion of God's Word we look at is taken from Galatians, chapter five, looking at selected verses. This is in Jesus' name.

God's Word says:

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not allow anyone to put the yoke of slavery on you again.

After all, brothers, you were called to freedom. Only do not use your freedom as a starting point for your sinful flesh. Rather, serve one another through love. In fact, the whole law is summed up in this one statement: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you keep on biting and devouring one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another.

What I am saying is this: Walk by the spirit, and you will not carry out what the sinful flesh desires. For the sinful flesh desires what is contrary to the spirit, and the spirit what is contrary to the sinful flesh. In fact, these two continually oppose one another, so that you do not continue to do these things you want to do. But if you are led by the spirit, you are not under the control of the law.

Now the works of the sinful flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, complete lack of restraint, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, discord, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things similar to these. I warn you, just as I also warned you before, that those who continue to do such things will not inherit the Kingdom of God.

But the fruit of the spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Against such things there is no law. Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the spirit, let us also walk in step with it.

This is God's Word.

I am not making this up. This last week, as you know, was Vacation Bible School week, here at Holy Cross. On Friday, the lesson was this. It was Jonathan serving God by helping out a friend of his, by the name of David. Let me talk about that just a little bit. So, the king of Israel was Saul. Usually, when somebody comes to succeed the king, it is from the king's own family. The oldest child of Saul was a boy by the name of Jonathan. So, it should have been Jonathan who was going to become the next king of Israel.

But, God wanted David to be king.

You would think Saul's son, Jonathan, would be filled with envy, and jealously, and he would have dissension toward this other boy he knew. But yet, that was not the attitude, at all, of Jonathan. Rather he loved his friend David. And, Jonathan served God by helping David.

'The Memory Treasure' from Friday was from Galatians, chapter 5, verse thirteen.

Serve one another in love.

So, here we are, just a few days removed from our Vacation Bible School, and the portion of scripture we are focusing on is Galatians, chapter five, looking at selected verses, including that verse!

Serve one another in love.

I am not making that up. I didn't try to do it. It is God who is doing that for us!

Well, in order to understand our portion of scripture for today, it is good to know the whole book of Galatians. The whole book of Galatians is broken down really into three parts. There are six chapters total.

-The first two chapters are very personal. The Apostle Paul, as he is writing to the church in Galatia, just explains to the people who he is. He explains to them how he came to faith, on the road to Damascus. He explains to them how God called him to be an apostle, (that is one who is sent out to proclaim the Gospel to other people). It is personal.

-The second part of the book of Galatians is doctrinal. In those two middle chapters God's Word tells us about His grace, and our coming to faith. Probably the key portion from that middle section is this, when it tells us,

“You are all children of God,

through faith in Christ Jesus.”

It tells us God is gracious to us, and He loved us so much that He sent Jesus to be our Savior. Now, the Holy Spirit has brought you to faith to believe in Jesus, as your Savior.

-The third part of the book of Galatians is practical. It is really where 'the rubber hits the road'. It is to take what Jesus has done for us on the cross, and now to live that in the lives we live, and to serve one another in love.

So, you have freedom in Christ. You have been set free from your sin. And you are now free for a life of service with other people around you.

Before we get into our text for today, I want to review quickly, just quickly, the doctrinal portion of the book of Galatians. I am going to just quickly go through the 'who', 'what', 'where', 'when', and 'how'. (Paul doesn't mention that in this portion of his text.)

So, who set us free?

-It is Jesus who has set free.

What did Jesus set us free from?

-Well, He set us free from our sin. He set us free from death. And, He set us free from the power of the devil.

Where did Jesus set us free?

-He set us free at the cross.

When did Jesus set us free?

-It was about two thousand years ago, when Jesus died on the cross. So, that is when it was.

Why did Jesus set us free?

-He set us free because God loved you and me so much. God loved you and me so much that He didn't want us to be separated from Him forever. So, He sent Jesus out of love for you and me, so we could be with Him in Heaven.

Now, how did that all take place?

-It took place through Jesus' perfect life, through His suffering, and death on the cross, and through His glorious resurrection.

God is gracious to you and me. He even sent the Holy Spirit to bring us to faith to believe in Jesus, as our Savior.

Which gets us to our text for today. Knowing what Jesus has done for us, the Apostle Paul says, “Do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”
This is a yoke.

You have seen this before. Usually you think in terms of two oxen being joined together through this yoke. But, really as Paul is talking about this in our portion of scripture for today, he is talking about your neck, and my neck being in one of those cradles, and sin being in that other cradle.

Look at what Christ has done for you. It is for freedom that Christ has set you free, and that yoke was broken through Jesus' life, through His death, and through His resurrection.

But, Paul says, “Don't go back to being yoked to sin.”

Paul then shares with us just part of The Ten Commandments, when he says,

“Love your neighbor as yourself”.

But let's include The First Table of The Law as well.

Love God.

Love your neighbor.

Jesus once said,

“Love the Lord your God with all of your heart,

with all your soul,

with all your strength,

and all of your mind,

and love your neighbor as yourself.”

Here Paul is saying, “Don't go back to being yoked by sin”. Everyday we make decisions. Do those decisions enslave us, or do those decisions free us?

There was once an American poet. His name was Henry Wadsworth Longfellow He lived in the 1800's. Probably the poem everybody is most familiar with of his is Paul Revere’s Ride. He also wrote a little poem, a short, little poem about a little girl. Here is what he wrote.

There was a little girl

who had a little curl

right in the middle of her forehead.

When she was good,

she was very, very good.

But when she was bad,

she was horrid.

What is Henry Wadsworth Longfellow saying there? He is talking about this little girl who had decisions to make. When she made good decisions, she was very, very good. But, when she made bad decisions, she wasn't just very bad, but she was horrid.

It gets me to thinking about the two lists that are in our text for today. One is a good list. And, one is a bad list. The first list in our text for today is the list according to our sinful nature. It is found at verse nineteen. Everyday we have decisions that are set before us. Are those decisions leading us to a path of freedom, or are those decisions leading us to a path of slavery.

Here is that first list, and this is a list according to the sinful nature.

Now the works of the sinful flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity, complete lack of restraint, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, discord, jealousy, outburst of anger, selfish ambition, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, orgies, and things similar to these.

So, that is the first list, and it is a list of the sinful nature. Our sinful nature wants to fall in to that list. It wants to fall in to those sins.

But, the second list is this, and it is life according to the Spirit. It is walking according to the Spirit.

It just so happens this last year (I think I have shared this with you, before.) this list is what we shared with the youth here at Holy Cross School. Every Wednesday when we had our chapel, we focused on the fruit of the Spirit.

But, the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.

I am going to toggle back and forth between these two lists, for a moment. As you see these two lists, which list is a description of you and me? It is black and white. There is no gray. The answer is easy, but sometimes the truth is hard to hear.

Which gets us to the very practical nature of our text for today. What is Paul saying in our text? Our text is all about where 'the rubber hits the road'. We have decisions to make in life, and those decisions either lead us on a path of slavery, or a path of freedom.

There may be some natural times in our life, when we experience new found freedom. I will share a couple with you.

-You are sixteen years old, and you get your driver's license for the very first time. Your parents hand the keys to the car to you. New found freedom! So, what do you do with your freedom? Do you drive according to the rules of the road? Do you drive as you have been taught? Or, because nobody is in the car with you, anymore, do you drive recklessly? Do you drive unlawfully? There are decisions to make in your new found freedom.

-Or, maybe you go to camp. (We just got done with camp a week ago.) New found freedom. Your mom and dad are not there. Wow! That is awesome! I don't have to listen to my parents, anymore. What decisions am I going to make? How am I going to live in my new found freedom? Do I listen to my counselors, or do I not listen to my counselors?
-Or, you go to college. New found freedom. Probably as a freshman in college, you have more time on your hands than you have ever had in your life, because your schedule has been so set for you. New found freedom. What decisions are you going to make? Are they going to be decisions that lead to freedom, or decisions that enslave you?
-The boss goes on vacation. You have decisions to make. Am I going to kick up my feet on the desk, because the boss is not going to know if I get my work done, or not? Or, are you going to work as if the boss is there, and diligently do your work? You have decisions to make, and are those decisions going to enslave you, or are those decisions going to set you free?
With freedom comes responsibility. Freedom is like coming in to a great sum of money. That great sum of money can be beneficial, but that great sum of money can be a curse, if it is abused.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

Again, we look at what Christ has done for us. He has done everything. He set us free from our sin, death, and the power of the devil, with what He did at the cross two thousand years ago. Now, He brings it to you, today.

It is for freedom that Christ has set you free.

But, now, how are we going to live in that freedom?
I am going to close for today with talking about Abraham Lincoln. Abraham Lincoln set the slaves free through The Emancipation Proclamation. But the slaves weren't free just yet, until the end of The Civil War, when the Union Army of the North defeated The Confederate Army of the South. On the day in which Richmond, Virginia fell, Abraham Lincoln made a surprise visit to the city. Nobody knew he was coming, but everybody knew who he was, particularity the slaves who had been set free. They came running up to Abraham Lincoln, and they were so happy for their freedom. Probably the most famous sentence Abraham Lincoln said that day was,

“Liberty is your birthright.”

Liberty is your birthright.

But then he warned them.

“Don't let your joy carry you into excesses.”

Don't let your joy carry you into excesses, and do more than you should do in your joy. Liberty is your birthright.

Well, brothers and sisters in Christ, as we are gathered together for worship, I can say the same thing to you. “Liberty is your birthright.” Liberty is your birthright! Look at what Christ has done for us on the cross. He has set us free.

But, it can also include that warning, again. “Don't let your joy carry you into excesses.”

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.

Jesus has done everything necessary for our salvation, and now we are free to serve Him, as we serve one another in love.

Amen