Reflexion Connexion

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, join us here today
We are such frail creatures
Full of anxiety
Full of fear
And often full of hate

And we organize our lives
around this fear and hate
We codify it
Institutionalize it
Teach it in our families
And in our schools
And in our churches

That this person
should be feared or hated
Or that one
And how we
should be
Regarded carefully
Honored
Treated well
Better than others
As is our due

And though this satisfies
the hunger of our fears and hate
It keeps us tied up
Locked up
And stuck
within sight
of the kingdom of heaven
But still outside

Break through to us
Break us down if you must
So we may fully enter
Your kingdom
Your presence
And fully partake
Of your love
As it casts out all fears
And makes us able
To love our neighbors
All of them
Just as you have loved us

And help us help others
Especially our neighbors
who already claim your name
Love this way
Putting aside every hinderance that
Leads to bigotry
And oppression
And prejudice
And disregard
And cruelty
So with you
And in your way
We can be
The kingdom of heaven
At hand
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

See with what large letters I am writing to you with my own hand Galatians 6:11

Intro: The Galatians were coming to the end of Paul’s letter,

And suddenly the handwriting was different
– instead of the well-formed characters of a professional scribe,
• the printed letters were large and scribbled
◦ this shift was certain to grab their attention
◦ like changing the “font” of a sentence in a document to all upper case or bold print
• but why did Paul insist on writing this last bit with his “own hand”?
◦ perhaps this is how he usually signed off (as many commentaries point out)
“I, Paul, write this greeting with my own hand. This is the sign of genuineness in every letter of mine; it is the way I write” (2 Thes. 3:17)
◦ or, he wanted to ensure that they took notice, and that is why he drew attention to it
– here at the end, Paul returns to what had been his hot topic–and I think I understand why
• it is frustrating to manage a crisis from a distance
◦ had he been with them, their feedback would been immediate
◦ he would know whether they understood him and agreed or disagreed
• separated by many miles and months of waiting for a response by mail,
◦ he could not be sure they were convinced
◦ so he hammers at his point one last time

Paul looks at the same issue, but from a different angle
 It is those who want to make a good showing in the flesh who would force you to be circumcised, and only in order that they may not be persecuted for the cross of Christ. For even those who are circumcised do not themselves keep the law, but they desire to have you circumcised that they may boast in your flesh Galatians 6:12-13

His previous concern has been with what the legalist party was demanding
– and this is something we need to understand
• they weren’t preaching Christian conversion, but cultural conversion
◦ this has been goal of many Evangelicals and missionaries

Question: How do we know when a person is a true Christian?
Answer: When they look and think and talk like us
For those of us who remember the Smothers Brothers, one of their famous parodies went like this:
As I walked out in the streets of Laredo,
as I walked out in Laredo one day,
I spied a young cowboy, all dressed in white linen,
dressed in white linen as cold as the clay.
I see by your outfit that you are a cowboy.
I see by your outfit you are a cowboy, too.
We see by our outfits that we are both cowboys;
if you get an outfit you can be a cowboy, too!

◦ this is the simplistic message of some evangelists, “Want to be a Christian? Get the outfit.”
• Paul has covered that, but what he is telling them now is new
– he is exposing the motives of these interlopers, and he lists three:

First, they were concerned with their image
– The New Living Translation, they “want to look good to others”
• there was a group of rigid Pharisees they wanted to please
◦ this was the popular movement back home in Jerusalem
• talking Gentile Christians into circumcision and law-keeping would enhance their status with other religious bigots
Second, they wanted to avoid being persecuted for the cross of Christ
– when Paul refers to “the cross,” it is shorthand for his central message
• it’s the entire story of Jesus, which Paul also refers to as “the gospel”
◦ it features the death and resurrection of Jesus
“For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. . . . For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:18 and 22-24)
• Paul was brutally persecuted for taking this message to Gentiles
◦ he could have compromised his message to avoid persecution
◦ but then he could no longer say that we are “saved by grace”
Third, converting Gentiles to Judaism would give the interlopers bragging rights
– Paul makes this point in an odd, but graphic way
• in effect, these people could win popularity points when they could control what Gentiles did with their bodies
• this is a basic requirement of bad religion
◦ and it is a recognizable characteristic of every cult

In listing these motives, Paul exposed another problem
“they do not themselves keep the law”
– it’s hard to think of anything that does worse damage to religion than hypocrisy
• but people who pretend they can achieve perfect holiness cannot help but fail
◦ and their failure can destroy others who looked up to them and trusted them

So where did Paul stand in comparison?
But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creation. And as for all who walk by this rule, peace and mercy be upon them, and upon the Israel of God Galatians 6:14-16

Paul uses the word “boast” a lot (twenty-two times in 2 Corinthians)
– the same word can also mean something like, “look for glory”
• in high school baseball, we called players who stepped in front of other players to catch an outfield fly ball “glory hounds”
– but though bragging was frowned upon in Paul’s day, boasting was considered a legitimate behavior
• the social structure in Mediterranean world has been labeled honor/shame cultures
◦ it was okay to boast to enhance your social standing

Paul, however surrendered all his boasting rights
– he considered himself fortunate to be God’s slave
• his Lord was everything and he was nothing
• so though the bigots boasted in their achievements,
◦ Paul refused to boast in himself
– I feel it necessary to point out that we find Paul doing some hefty boasting in 2 Corinthians
• the Corinthians were greatly influenced by boasting of spiritual leaders
◦ so to win the Corinthians’ attention, Paul was compelled to boast
• however, he was embarrassed in doing this, and more than once apologizes for it
◦ in fact, he stated openly how he felt about it:
“‘Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord.’ For it is not the one who commends himself who is approved, but the one whom the Lord commends”
“let no one think me foolish. But even if you do, accept me as a fool, so that I too may boast a little.”
“I have been a fool! You forced me to it, for I ought to have been commended by you.” (2 Cor. 10:17-18; 11:16; 12:11)

In chapter 2, we’ve already seen how the cross affected Paul’s life
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal. 2:20)
– this is the life to which Jesus called his disciples
“If anyone would come after me, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me” (Mt. 16:24)
• to this day, Bible scholars are still working out a coherent theology of the cross
• at any rate, somehow the cross becomes an experience we share with Jesus
◦ it is death to an old life of addiction to sin
◦ it is resurrection to a life of new possibilities
– we’ll leave it there for now

So what is Paul’s last word on circumcision?
– “For neither circumcision counts for anything, nor uncircumcision” – a huge relief!
• there are many trivial issues in which religious people can get tangled up or be driven crazy
• in 1 Corinthians, Paul addressed eating food offered to idols
◦ for some, it was an issue with great importance, but Paul wrote,
“Food will not commend us to God. We are no worse off if we do not eat, and no better off if we do” (1 Cor. 8:8)
– like circumcision, the issue is irrelevant to the life of faith in Jesus
• what is relevant, is that in Christ we are something new–a new creation (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17)
After these concluding thoughts, Paul pronounces a benediction for a specific community
– namely, “all who walk by this rule”; that is to say, who live by this principle
• “peace and mercy”
– the “Israel of God” is the new people of God, brought together in Jesus Christ

Paul’s parting words
From now on let no one cause me trouble, for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen Galatians 6:17-18

This past week the President of the United States and the United States Secretary of War addressed a gathering of career military soldiers, including Generals and other high ranking officers
– without commenting on it, Paul’s demand seems to be an appropriate response of the audience to the speakers that day
• Paul’s message is essentially, “Back off! I’ve earned my stripes”
• when he came to Galatia, he wore the marks of physical abuse on his body
– in verse 18, Paul comes full circle, closing the letter the way he began–with “grace”

Conclusion: If you’ve ever gone in the Ocean at Salt Creek beach,

You may have experienced the strong riptide there
If you try to fight it, all you will gain is exhaustion — resistance will only wear you out

Some of us have felt a similar exhaustion trying to deal with the division in our nation
(However, sociopaths never get tired of irritating and angering others, arguing, and name-calling)
Reading in Revelation yesterday, I came to Jesus’ letter to the church in Ephesus,
“I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false” (Re. 2:2)
Jesus knew their resistance to the false apostles had taken a toll on them
He also knew that resisting the strong current of deception had carried them away from their “first love”
It is possible that in resisting what we perceive as gross error and deadly trends,
our first love for the Lord and others has been threatened or lost
(and in all honesty, at times we have lost it)
But then, if lose our first love, what have we been fighting for?
We need to find our way back to the center,
where rational and meaningful spiritual conversations can take place
We need to find our way back to the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ
We need to let the Spirit of God help us recover our first love
We need to receive the benediction of God’s peace and mercy and grace

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, Join us this morning
Our lives are fragile
And our need for you is great

Life can change in a minute
Our security stripped
Our work arounds crumbled
Our lives at risk
Our true situation made plain

Sometimes our need for you
Fosters resistance
Fosters pride
And we step out on our own
Still, eventually,
The course of life
brings us back
to the lived reality
Of every human:
We are dependent
Creatures in this world
In need

If we are in resistance
Call us gently to you
With your great good love
Assure us of your care
And strength
And your desire to make us whole
As we navigate
And negotiate
Our lives

We thank you Lord
for meeting us in our need
As well as in our resistance
Each day
Each moment
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
Brothers and sisters, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted. Galatians 5:26-6:2

Intro: Years ago, and in another life, I had a feisty personal assistant

Although she is genuinely compassionate, she had a favorite line: “Get over yourself”
– I think that held her together through a hard and complicated season of her life
• she said it to herself, to he friends, to people who called the church office for help,
◦ and more than once she said it to me–her boss
• but she never said it when I didn’t need to hear it
◦ Paul’s next lesson in this letter to the Galatians is, “Get over yourself”
– the chapter break here is unfortunate
• his contrast between the works of flesh and fruit of Spirit ended at chapter 5, verse 25
◦ verse 26 fits perfectly with where chapter 6
◦ now he begins to stress the importance of caring for each other
• “conceit” interferes with that personal care
◦ rather than assisting each other, conceit provokes others
◦ rather than respecting others, conceit envies others
“Get over yourself so you can be here for those who need you”

Paul sets off in this direction with an unexpected example

He begins by addressing a negative problem and how to deal with it
(compare this with places where his instruction to believers is encouraging and positive)
“Let each of us please his neighbor for his good, to build [them] up” (Rom. 15:2)
“Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing” (1 Thes. 5:11)
– here he jumps right into helping someone who has taken a fall
• I suppose this happens frequently enough that everyone in the spiritual community must prepare for it
◦ in fact, that’s what this entire letter has been until now,
◦ Paul leading the Galatians back to Jesus and the true gospel
• the way Paul sees the Christian family is that everyone is affected by one person’s slip-up
◦ the goal in this instance is restoration (the same Greek word is used for mending nets, Mt. 4:21)
– his specific advice is excellent
• first, identify the agents who need to be deployed to help this person
“you who are spiritual”
◦ no doubt, these people display the “fruit of the Spirit” he had just gone over
• next, they’re to approach this person “in a spirit of gentleness”
◦ in my experience, this is a rarity
◦ often people who assume this role show no hint of “gentle,”
but go in a spirit that is judgmental, or self-righteous, or aggressive
• third, those who go must be watchful of their own issues
◦ of course, we all have our own temptations
◦ but may Paul means they may be tempted to be too harsh with the person who slipped

This is just one example of how we help others with their burdens
– there are also financial burdens, health burdens, grief burdens, mental burdens, and so on
• the nature of our burdens shift as we age
◦ and so does the kind of help we’re able to give
• when we were young, we did a lot of physical labor
◦ now we may be more with providing money, or meals, or emotional support, or spiritual counsel

I’m not sure, but here’s what I think Paul had in mind
For if anyone thinks he is something, when he is nothing, he deceives himself. But let each one test his own work, and then his reason to boast will be in himself alone and not in his neighbor. For each will have to bear his own load Galatians 6:3-5

Some people are unwilling to do anything for anyone else
– Paul says they think they are something “special”
• like they’re above helping someone carry a heavy object
◦ “Why should I help them when I have my own burdens?”
• perhaps Paul means, if you’re not helping, then you’re not something, you’re nothing
Dad used to say, “If you’re not good for something, you’re good for nothing”
– you can see that God swings back to conceit, which is where he started into these things
• when people think they’re something when they’re not, Paul says they are lying to themselves
• and the only ones deceived are themselves
◦ everyone else sees the truth of what they are

Paul issues a challenge to his readers
– “test” often refers to a method used to check the strength, quality, or purity of a metal, a jewel, a blood sample, etcetera
• so the challenge is to examine your own work
◦ its value, effect, quality, and quantity
• then, if you prove to be talented, gifted, brilliant, or generous
◦ you will have earned your bragging rights
◦ also, you won’t be comparing yourself to anyone else
– again, I am guessing that Paul is saying,
• we each have to deal with our own issues, carry our own load
◦ but that doesn’t mean we’re exempt from helping others
◦ here is how the these verses appear in the Message Bible:
“Make a careful exploration of who you are and the work you have been given, and then sink yourself into that. Don’t be impressed with yourself. Don’t compare yourself with others. Each of you must take responsibility for doing the creative best you can with your own life”

We’re all responsible for what grows in our spiritual garden|
Let the one who is taught the word share all good things with the one who teaches. Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life
Galatians 6:6-8

Again, deception is an issue – Greek word for deceived here means “led astray”
– I find it significant, when the disciples asked Jesus,
“what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
• in his first words of warning he used this word:
“See that no one leads you astray” (Mt. 24:3-4)
• it’s as if there will be so many wrong ideas and wrong teaching
◦ that we will hardly be able to trust anyone
“And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray” (Mt. 24:11)
– Paul gives one of the clearest explanations of a spiritual principle in the entire Bible
• it is so simple, anyone can understand it
◦ what plants do we want to grow in our garden? what sort of life do we want to live?
◦ well, what thoughts are on our mind much of the time?
what desires do we hold in our hearts?
what feelings do we hang on to? (resentment? regret? impatience?)
what habits do we want to form?
(constant worry or constant prayer? getting along with our neighbors or fighting everyone?)
• think about it – this has to with everything!
– Paul has brought us back to the opposition of the flesh and the Spirit
• the contrary dynamics of works versus fruit

Years ago, a television commercial ran for a glue that formed a super powerful bond. Two pickup trucks were lined back to back and chained to each other, with glue holding the chains together. Then both truck revved their engines, trying to pull away from each other, but the glued chains held them in place. Now as I think about, it seems there was more than met the eye. But being a kid, I was more interested in how I could get one truck to defeat the other truck and drag it away. The simplest solution I could think of, was don’t put gasoline in one of the trucks, and the other would win with no problem. That’s like the advice I hear Paul giving the Galatians.

If you don’t want to grow weeds in your life’s garden, stop planting them
– this analogy makes understanding the solution very simple
• but that may give us the impression that it’s easy–it’s not!
• like any garden, it takes effort, diligence, and self-discipline

Paul delivers his application to our real-life situation
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith Galatians 6:9-10

Does it ever break your heart,
– that with all the good many wonderful Christians are doing in the world, there is still so much suffering?
• so much deadly poverty?
• so much violence and warfare?
• so many unmet needs?
• and just so much apparent insanity?
– Paul tells us specifically what we should be planting
• and not get weary of it, even if we’re working under a hot sun and our backs ache
• “doing good”–it confounds me that some Christians reject this word
◦ they assume if you’re not preaching at people, handing out tracts, converting them,
◦ but “only” feeding them, providing clean water, clothing them, and giving them soup without a sermon,
that your work is worthless
◦ that keeping people alive physically is not Christian, if at the same time we’re not saving their souls

Contemplative spirituality is learning to always be aware of God in the moment
– we are living in the moment but not for the moment – we always lean toward the future
• and so, “in due season we will reap”
“For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven” (Ecc. 3:1)
• I was a silly child the first time I tried planting a peach seed
◦ I figured there would be no need to wait for my parents to go to the store if I could just go and pull a peach off of my own tree
◦ so I planted my seed and watered it every day for a week
◦ then I dug it up to see if it was growing roots, but it looked just the same
◦ so I kept watering it and kept digging it up every couple of days
◦ finally I gave up and threw it over the fence into the neighbor’s yard
• Paul assures us there will be a harvest, a reward, even if we have to wait for it

“So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone”
– I promise you, if we look, we will find an “opportunity” every day to do good for someone

Conclusion: Maybe this next week I can be a little bit better person than last week

And when I get to the end of this week,
maybe the following week I can be a little better than that

Paul has shown us a sample of what “doing good” looks like
He’s also shown us the things that tend to gets in the way
Yesterday, reading in 1 John, it struck me that we have a way to see who is a real deal Christian
and who is not
And it’s so simple!
“By this it is evident who are the children of God, and who are the children of the devil: whoever does not practice righteousness is not of God, nor is the one who does not love his brother or sister”
And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ AND love one another, just as he commanded us (1 Jn. 3:10 & 23)
Political affiliation does not determine who is a Christian,
nor does it set limits on who we love, whether Republican or Democrat,
or even whether Capitalist or Socialist!
The question is,
Are we showing love to our human siblings?
It’s as simple as that

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, join us here today
There are days
when the choices
before us are stark
Crystal clear
Forcing us to choose
This or that
Good or evil
Life or death

Other days creep up on us
Saddling along side
And we are
Hardly noticing
the reality of
The new conditions
The new situations
The new demands

Hardly noticing
Our new,
Greater
Present
Need of you
With our weakness made bare
In fresh ways
The vulnerabilities
Of those we love
Laid bare
The power
we have relied upon
Stripped bare
Our resources no longer enough.

It was always a lie that we
Should manage on our own
An illusion that we even could
Because the security in our lives
never came from us
Or our group
Or our intelligence
Or our following the rules
Or our wallets
Or our rights

Always, always, always
Our security
Our hope
Our life
Is rooted in you
And your great love

Make this a day
Where our need for you
Is plain
And your loving care
For each and every person
Is just as crystal clear
And once again
we give ourselves
To you
wholly
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the desires of the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do Galatians 5:16-17

Intro: Paul has chased a serious concern through his entire letter

So it is not surprising that near the end, he would present an the ultimate challenge of the Christian life
– in verse 16 Paul begins last segment of his central message
• what follows in chapter 6 is his concluding remarks and directions
– what we have in verses 16-25 is this chunk of scripture that tracks one theme
• Paul makes this clear by marking where it begins and ends
•it begins in verse 16, “walk by the Spirit,” and in ends in verse 25, “live by the Spirit”
◦ in scripture, framing a passage this way is common, and is referred to as an envelope structure or closing circle
◦ anyway, the literary structure reveals the heart of the passage–it’s one key point

Before moving on, we need to know what he means by “flesh”

It sounds like Paul is referring to our physical bodies of flesh and blood
– in the past, some believers assumed that’s what he meant
• in all sorts of odd ways, they mistreated their bodies

St. Francis famously referred to his body as “Brother Ass,” and treated it like a donkey that needed training to become useful to its master, yet did not require much work as to its welfare or compassion regarding its burdens, and that the body was meant to suffer like Christ through self-denial. St. Francis, for example, subjected himself to severe fasting and slept on a stone floor rather than on a bed or mattress. However, before he died he did ask his body’s forgiveness for how he treated it.

– the human body is not naturally corrupt, sinful, or evil
• self-control isn’t denying the body’s basic needs, like food, shelter, and the family unit
◦ the body’s drives are related to our intrinsic animal nature
◦ but unlike animals, we have knowledge of good and evil
• later, God’s law given to Moses was meant to regulate our human drives
◦ but something with in us rebels against God’s law
◦ that rebellious nature or impulse is what Paul calls the flesh
“For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God” (Ro. 8:7-8)

Paul identifies the spiritual dynamics of two opposing forces

These forces account for an internal conflict and its external manifestation
– this is the core challenge of the Christian life: flesh vs Spirit
• between the Spirit and the flesh, there can be no truce, no alliance, and no compromise
• but the point he makes, is not that we must battle the flesh
◦ that was the old struggle of trying to be right with God through law-keeping
◦ we weren’t able to win that wrestling match
– Paul turns our attention in a different direction
“Walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh”
• remember Enoch? He walked with God – so did Noah
◦ they enjoyed God’s companionship
• Paul reveals something even more intimate and profound
◦ the Spirit of God living with you, inside of you
◦ his thoughts becoming your thoughts; his ways becoming your ways

The next point Paul makes is rather simple
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law Galatians 5:18

Walking by the Spirit is God’s alternative to law-keeping
– the Spirit enables us to be what we could never be on our own
and to do what we could we could never do on our own

Our sinful nature produces “works”
Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissentions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God Galatians 5:19-21

Reading in the Old Testament, what comes to my mind are the artisans and sculptures who made idols
“The ironsmith takes a cutting tool and works it over the coals. He fashions it with hammers and works it with his strong arm. He becomes hungry, and his strength fails; he drinks no water and is faint. The carpenter stretches a line; he marks it out with a pencil. He shapes it with planes and marks it with a compass. He shapes it into the figure of a man, with the beauty of a man, to dwell in a house. He cuts down cedars, or he chooses a cypress tree or an oak and lets it grow strong among the trees of the forest. He plants a cedar and the rain nourishes it. The it becomes fuel for a man. He takes a part of it and warms himself; he kindles a fire and bakes bread. Also he makes a god and worships it; he makes it an idol and falls down before it” (Isa. 44:13-15)
• I wanted to emphasize this, because of the contrast Paul makes
• our sinful nature produces works, the Spirit produces fruit
– we won’t go over every item on the list of works
• instead, there’s a specific theme I want to highlight
◦ for me, the words that stand out are:
◦ enmity, strive, rivalries, dissensions, and divisions
• the first picture we’re shown is of a divided person
◦ someone within whom a battle is raging
◦ the Spirit against the flesh and the flesh against the Spirit
▫ but the picture we’re shown now is a divided community

In my lifetime, I’ve never seen our country more divided
– never so much open hostility, aggressiveness and abusive speech
• the heartbreaker is I’ve never seen Christians more divided
◦ the fundamentalists have always criticized the liberals,
◦ and the liberals have often ridiculed the fundamentalists
• but there has never been so much open warfare and hate expressed openly
– I wish that the message in every Christian church today was:
“Remove the barriers, build a bridge, repair the broken relationship, love one another, love those on the right and those on the left, love everyone, even your enemy”
• Paul told the Christians in Rome,
“I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the teaching you have been taught; avoid them” (Ro. 16:17)
• be safe, avoid people who harm, upset, offend, and divide
◦ however, there may be another possibility

Thursday morning I was reading in 1 Peter and came to this:
“Finally, all of you, have unity of mind, sympathy, brotherly love, a tender heart, and a humble mind. Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing” (1 Pe. 3:8-12)
– immediate my reaction was:
“How could that possibly be achieved in a Church so radically divided as it is in the U.S. right now?”
• before I finished asking the question, an answer came:
“Look for unity of mind in a realm that transcends political and theological commitments and disagreements”
• if all we attempt is to force people to agree with us, we lose the kingdom of God, that transcends every earthly empire
– look again at what Paul says about the works of the flesh:
“I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God”

Fruit is grown on the other side of the fence
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires Galatians 6:22-24

There is not just one fruit (though the English word is singular)
– this is more like a fruit bowl
• the seeds of most fruits are carried inside the fruit
◦ so the DNA of love produces more love, and DNA of joy produces more joy, and so on
• so let’s ask, “What does the fruit of peace look like in practice or in a person?”
or the fruit of patience, kindness, etcetera
◦ and what does this person who is an entire fruit bowl look like?
– I can tell you this: Worse than death is a fruitless life
• this list ends with a statement like the previous list
• crucifixion is a brutal and gruesome image
◦ but it reveals the intensity and seriousness of Paul’s concern
“I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me” (Gal. 2:20)
“But far be it from me to boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world” (Gal. 6:14)

Paul closes the circle
If we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another Galatians 5:25-26

Paul tells us we do not have to live in frustration over the flesh
– we can go through our lives on another path – “live by the Spirit”
(Although I’m convinced that verse 26 actually belongs to the next chapter, there’s still something in it worth considering now)
• even at this point, we can still be sabotaged by conceit
• the Greek word suggests an empty glory
◦ maybe you take pride in winning an argument, but the cost of it is division
◦ it turns out to be a worthless victory

Conclusion: I don’t know if there’s been a more difficult time to walk in the Spirit than it is today

The entire world has become overwhelmingly materialistic
There are entire nations ruled by governments devoted to “dialectical materialism”
It would be naive to assume the Church has not been infected
But there is hope
We can go through life by a different path
It is possible to walk in the Spirit
and in the energizing power of his might
Turning to Jesus,
he never leaves us hanging out to dry
Rather, his promise is,
“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you”
And that promise is good for today

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, join us today

It is easy to say we are yours
That we follow you
That we carry your name in honor
Sacrifice
No turning back

But so many are afraid today
Terrified
Terrorized
They are unsure of what is real
Of what is true
And fear gains a footing in them

And some wander from the path
Hoping to find safety, shelter
In power and
In the power of violence

Protect us from those who manufacture fears
Who profit from fears
Who leverage fears
Protect us from those things
That are nurtured and encouraged in fear
Like resentments
And self-justification
And revenge
And contempt
And rage
And hate

Day by day
Moment by moment
Bring us back
To learning the way of love
Our focus and our practice
Our path for living
For abundance
For healing

So our words are not empty
When we claim that we are yours
And our lives bring you honor
Full of gratitude for your love
Always
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery Galatians 5:1

Intro: I assume most of us are familiar with The Message Bible

One of the more popular versions, and easiest to understand
– Eugene Peterson did not set out to write a new translation
• beginning in early 1980’s the U.S. economy went into a slump and mortgage interest rates were rapidly climbing
◦ people in his church were feeling the pinch, and reacting in the same way as people in town
Peterson, “Paranoia infected the small talk I would overhear on street corners and in barbershops. To my dismay, all of this seeped into my congregation without encountering any resistance.”
• to turn them from worldly concerns and find freedom in Jesus, he chose to immerse them in Galatians
Peterson, “Here I was laying the groundwork for a major renewal of Spirit-torched imagination in my congregation. Galatians, Paul’s angry, passionate, fiery letter that rescued his congregation from their regression to culture slavery was on the table and nobody was getting it. . . . I tried to imagine Paul as pastor to these people who were letting their hard-won freedom in Christ slip through their fingers. . . . I just wanted them to hear it the way I heard it”
– so he began translating Galatians, giving the sense of the words, but with contemporary expressions
• it was eye-opening for his Bible study group, and they began to feel Paul’s passion
◦ they were brought into the Bible in a new way
◦ in fact, his church wanted more of his translations of scripture – other people also wanted more
• that is what eventually led to The Message Bible
◦ and it began with Paul’s “angry letter” to the Galatians

From the founding of our nation, we have cherished freedom

But Paul’s idea looms much larger than political freedom
– we can live in a “free society” yet be inwardly enslaved
• many are mastered by fear, others by greed, hate, or longing for something they’ve never had
◦ in the New Testament, there’s always the danger of slavery to sin
“Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who practices sin is a slave to sin” (John 8:34)
◦ but Paul also saw the danger of a religious form of slavery
• this is one of the goals of Jesus’ work in our lives
“If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (Jn. 8:31-32
◦ it makes sense that once in awhile we would ask ourselves, “Am I free?”
◦ some of the things that control us are very subtle, so it pays to ask
– religious slavery reduces a person to law-keeping — a focus on jurisprudence rather than God
• there is very little joy in that – and not much life in it either
◦ rule-keeping doesn’t make anyone a good person
◦ but it can make a person self-righteous and judgmental
• Paul tells Christians, “Protect your freedom! Stand firm”
◦ there is an illusion that if you’re not in prison, then you’re free
◦ don’t let anyone strap a yoke of slavery on you–Again!

Before moving on, I have a question for you
– Paul doesn’t say “Jesus has set us free,” but “Christ” – Why?
• name of Jesus always feels warmer to me, more personal than “the Christ”
• but in these first four verses, Paul doesn’t use name, Jesus, but refers to Christ three times
◦ he’s the same person–Jesus and Christ–and in verse 6, Paul says, “Christ Jesus”
– I think the answer is “Christ” is specific to his role as the Savior
• Christ is his title – it reveals the work God gave him to do in us
◦ the Christ (“anointed one,” Messiah) is also the One true Ruler of God’s people
“For freedom Christ has set us free”

Paul projects a picture on the screen and says, “Look”
“Look: I, Paul, say to you that if you accept circumcision, Christ will be of no advantage to you. I testify again to every man who accepts circumcision that he is obligated to keep the whole law. You are severed from Christ, you who would be justified^[a] by the law; you have fallen away from grace” Galatians 5:2-4

Paul wants us to see what happens if we capitulate to legalistic religion
– there are four consequences:
First, Christ is no longer of any profit to us
– Paul’s use of “circumcision” is symbolic
• it refers to people who attempt to make themselves right with God through obeying the laws of Moses
• this is serious!
◦ if someone talks us into a legalistic form of Christianity, we lose Jesus – even if we still use his name
Second, you’re obligated to keep the entire law
– we’re signing up for everything in it
“For whoever keeps the whole law but fails in one point has become guilty of all of it. For he who said, ‘Do not commit adultery,’ also said, ‘Do not murder.’ If you do not commit adultery but do murder, you have become a transgressor of the law” (Jas. 2:10-11)
Third, we become cut-off, alienated from Christ
– we either go with Jesus and follow him, or we go on our own
Fourth, we’ve fallen out of grace – thrown ourselves overboard
– we pick up the backpack of religion and head out on our own — and God’s grace does not go with us

Here we learn what works and what doesn’t work
For through the Spirit, by faith, we ourselves eagerly wait for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love Galatians 5:5-6

What works: first of all, the Spirit
“For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as [children], by whom we cry ‘Abba! Father!’” (Ro. 8:15)
“it is God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us, and who has put his seal on us and given us his Spirit in our hearts as a down-payment” (1 Cor. 1:21-22)
– the Holy Spirit holds us in God throughout our lives
• his presence sustains our hope
Secondly, what works: faith, operating through love
– we shouldn’t be surprised to find these triplets in Paul’s letters — hope, faith, and love
“So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest is love” (1 Cor. 13:13)
(a strong statement is coming in verse 14)
What doesn’t work:
• neither circumcision nor uncircumcision if you make a big deal of it
• the critical factors are faith and love

Paul turns their attention again to the agitators among them
You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion is not from him who calls you. A little leaven leavens the whole lump Galatians 5:7-9

They were off to a good start, running well,
– so who tripped them up? Who refocused their attention
• carrying all the weight of religious legalism, they are unable to run well (if at all)
◦ they’ve veered off the track and away from “the truth”
• Paul can tell them who it was not that did this to them!
“This persuasion is not from him who calls you” – God did not put this on them!
– in some matters, even a slight turn, ruins everything
• “a little leaven leavens the whole lump”
• the significance of yeast as a symbol in the New Testament it is permeating influence

Finally we come to something positive
I have confidence in the Lord that you will take no other view, and the one who is troubling you will bear the penalty, whoever he is. But if I, brothers, still preach circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been removed. I wish those who unsettle you would emasculate themselves! Galatians 5:10-12

Paul expresses his confidence in the Lord regarding the Galatians
– he’s not so certain about their stability, but absolutely certain regarding God’s faithfulness
• at the same time that he trusts God for their welfare,
◦ he trust God to deal with the troublemakers
• this can be very liberating too!
◦ it’s not up to us to take action against cults and their leaders
– apparently, some were saying Paul still endorsed rule-keeping
• but he argues if he were, they wouldn’t be persecuting him
◦ what offended them was that the cross covered everything,
◦ leaving them no room to add any religious accomplishment of their own
“And you, who were dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with him, having forgiven us all our trespasses, by canceling the record of debt that stood against us with its legal demands. This he set aside, nailing it to the cross” (Col. 2:13-14)
– regarding the religious agitators, Paul suggests that they don’t stop with circumcision,
• instead, they should go the whole distance and castrate themselves
◦ I think this is the point Paul is making, is that if they were castrated, that if they would become infertile and incapable of producing offspring
◦ in other words, they would no longer be able to make new converts, and, therefore, no longer pose a problem

Paul closes this section by returning to freedom
For you were called to freedom, brothers. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” But if you bite and devour one another, watch out that you are not consumed by one another Galatians 5:13-15

Again Paul reminds them that they have freedom,
– but here he tells them not to misuse it
• it’s freedom from religious bondage and sin,
◦ but sin isn’t irrelevant and our freedom doesn’t void the law
◦ we still adhere to its ethical and moral guidance
• we use our freedom in loving and serving others
◦ and though we are not made right with God by the law,
◦ love fulfills the law (v. 14), we cannot say this enough
– this statement isn’t scripture, but it’s true, “All you need is love”
• Paul leaves s with this warning
– we have freedom, but don’t misuse it
• it’s freedom from religious bondage and sin,
◦ but sin isn’t irrelevant and our freedom doesn’t void the law
◦ we still adhere to its ethical and moral guidance
• we use our freedom in loving and serving others
◦ and though we are not made right with God by the law,
◦ love fulfills the law (v. 14), we can’t say this enough
– it isn’t scripture, but it’s true, “All you need is love”
• Paul leaves us with this warning–choose love in the community or it becomes a dog fight
And with all the biting and devouring, someone is going to be consumed by the others

Conclusion: We constantly need to practice spiritual disciplines that help create new habits

A good habit to develop would be to train ourselves to “think love”
That would mean, making the first step in every new encounter,
whether with other people in the world or in our Christian community, would be to think love
Reminding ourselves, “God placed me here to be his love in this situation
Then, feel God’s love
Inhale his love
Become his love
THINK LOVE

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, join us here today
Help us to step into your grace
Help us to be where you actually are
Not where we imagine you are
Or believe you ought to be
Or where someone else has said
You have been before

For this we will need to listen for you
So grant us the stillness to hear you

And we will need to be emptied
Of our expectations and theories
So grant us simplicity to receive
You as you choose to come to us

And we will need to turn toward you
So grant us a hope of a more and better
And fuller life in exchange for the life we have today

Call us Lord and
Let us come to you
Help us to swipe away
Every obstacle
And rest in your loving goodness
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

Tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? Galatians 4:21

Intro: If you ever decide to read the Bible all the way through,

At some point, you will find yourself struggling to understand it
– even if you’ve been a believer for a long time and read it before (or read a kiddie version)
• a passage will confuse you, trouble, or just seem wrong
◦ I’m fortunate to have many helpful resources
• however, when even those study aids leave me with questions
◦ then I resort to creative thought experiments; for instance, I ask, “what if”
◦ what if this were meant to frustrate? or be a puzzle? or experienced rather than studied?
– there have been occasions when these “off trail” ventures,
• have led me to surprising and edifying insights

Our reading in Galatians has me wondering if Paul used similar techniques
– I imagine Paul pouring over the story of Abraham and Sarah–again!
• we know that Abraham’s relationship with God was key to Paul’s theology
◦ God’s promise, Abraham’s faith, miracle of Isaac’s birth
• Sarah was his partner in all of this and also had an important role
◦ but her first attempt to fulfill it, misfired
◦ she offered her slave girl, Hagar, to Abraham to sire an heir through her
– as Paul reads, he suddenly catches a glimpse of something he’s never seen
• he re-reads the story, not as history, but through a dif. lens
◦ a truth comes to him in a new way
• and now, in his letter to the Galatians, it seems like the perfect way to demonstrate his point
◦ that’s what we’re heading into – Paul’s strangest use of scripture in all his writings

Paul begins with a challenge

The supposed “experts” . . .
(I apologize that I haven’t come upon the perfect title for them. The term “Judaizers” was once used, but many biblical scholars question its authenticity. Anyway, there is a wide range of legalistic Christians in the world these days, some of whom are in cults, some who think they’re experts in exposing cults, some who are doctrinarie, and some who have weird customs and rituals that make them consider themselves more advanced than other believers.)
The supposed “experts” had convinced the Galatians they were not true Christians
– that to be truly “saved,” they had to fully embrace Judaism; both the religion and culture
• they needed to practice a law oriented do-it-yourself righteousness
• so Paul asks these experts whether they had really listened to the law
◦ BTW, when Rabbis referred to law, or Torah, they included all of the first five books of the Bible
◦ so that included Genesis, where story of Abraham is found
– Paul asks if they really paid attention to what was there,
• because he intends to reveal insights they had never discovered

Paul gives a short and simple overview of the story
For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by a slave woman and one by a free woman. But the son of the slave was born according to the flesh, while the son of the free woman was born through promise. Galatians 4:22-23

What Paul makes absolutely clear, is that running through this narrative, is a binary division:
– two sons – two women – two classes (slave and free)
• and regarding the two sons, they arrived in two different ways:
Ishmael: “according to the flesh”; the normal, natural process of conception and birth
Isaac: “through promise” – God’s covenant with Abraham – a miracle baby
– so Paul has set the stage:
• he has introduced the players – the mothers and the sons
• and he has revealed their positions and roles in the storyline

This is where Paul gets creative . . .
Now this may be interpreted allegorically: these women are two covenants. One is from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; she is Hagar. Now Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia; she corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written,
“Rejoice, O barren one who does not bear;
    break forth and cry aloud, you who are not in labor!
For the children of the desolate one will be more
    than those of the one who has a husband” Galatians 4:24-27

Seriously creative! Unlike any of his other writing
– he continues to insist on the binary divisions
• two covenants – two places (Mt. Sinai and Jerusalem) – two mothers – and two sets of children
◦ and like before, two classes: those in “slavery” and those who are “free”
• but he expands the characters to represent more than the persons
– Paul adds to them specific associations
• Hagar, the slave he associates with Mt. Sinai (where the law was given)
• Sarah, the free woman and Jerusalem
◦ perhaps “free” because as God’s presence in the sanctuary was his gift to Israel
– at this point, Paul reveals the identities of these children
• the slaves were the imposters who imposed the law on the Galatians
• the free were the true believers, made right with God by faith
– he tacks on at the end a quote from Isaiah
• it doesn’t relate directly to Sarah, but her ordeal, and how it was replayed in Hannah’s story,
◦ became a set image in Israel’s poetry and prophecy
◦ it is the God’s promise to turn the barrenness of his people into abundant fertility

Paul has had to explain to the Galatians what he’s doing here

In other words, if you studied the Torah carefully all your life,
– you would have never come up with these meanings
• Paul informs us that he has used a specific method of reading the text
◦ allegory – this is an unusual category of literature
◦ a story is told in which everything has a double meaning
▫ there is the literal meaning, in which everything makes sense
▫ and there’s a hidden meaning that requires close observation (and imagination)
• this is not the usual way that we read scripture,
◦ nor is it the recommended way
◦ the majority of the Bible is to be taken at face value
(while noticing that many statements are idioms or metaphors)
– there are preachers who see the entire Old Testament as allegorical
• perhaps they have a hard time understanding the Old Testament,
◦ or making it relevant to believers today
◦ so they interpret as much of it as they are able, by treating it as a faint indication of what was to be revealed in the New Testament
• for some believers, this allegorical type of teaching sounds “deep,”
◦ as if they’re really going down into the spiritual truth of the Old Testament
◦ but the problem with allegory, as one scholar says, is that
“It is too easy to make things mean just what you want them to mean.” (William Neil)
– A friend has built almost his entire ministry on allegory,
• one time I teased him, “You ought to write a book: ‘Pastor J’s Fanciful Insights from the Word of God’”

Paul is not using allegory to prove his point, but to illustrate it
(he already proved it in the previous chapters)
– what I am noticing, is that he cannot overemphasize his concern
• the Galatians had been told they’re not good enough; that their faith in Jesu was not enough
◦ Paul says, “We were never good enough! Even with the law, Israel was never good enough”
• the Galatians were told they had to convert to Judaism
◦ Paul says, “Gentiles are only required to believe in Jesus and follow him and his teaching”
• the Galatians were told, the only way to be right with God is through the law
◦ Paul says,
“That never worked for Israel, and it will never work for you. Instead, that road will take you into a religious slavery in which you will never come to the freedom that is in Jesus Christ”
– having made these important points,
• Paul finds one more important lesson in his allegorical reading

What the Galatians have experienced is persecution
Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of promise. But just as at that time he who was born according to the flesh persecuted him who was born according to the Spirit, so also it is now. But what does the Scripture say? “Cast out the slave woman and her son, for the son of the slave woman shall not inherit with the son of the free woman” Galatians 4:28-30

Continuing to develop the allegory, Paul adds an episode
– Isaac was the miracle baby born to elderly Abraham and Sarah
• I don’t know whether parents generally celebrated a child’s weaning,
◦ but I wouldn’t doubt that Isaac was a little bit spoiled
• anyway, at the occasion of the event,
◦ Sarah caught Ishmael making fun of his half-brother (or so it appears)
◦ in Paul’s allegorical view, this behavior becomes persecution
– his message to the Galatians is that living by faith in Jesus will result in persecution
• they would face the wrath of the teachers who insisted on Gentile obedience to the law
◦ Paul was quite familiar with persecution
“Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. [I was in] danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at seas, danger from false brothers . . .” (2 Cor. 11:24-26)
◦ eventually he came to the conclusion that
“Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Tim. 3:12)
• I promise you, there are high-conflict Christians who, when they see your freedom in Christ,
will sharply criticize and condemn you for it

Paul asks what the Scriptures have to say about this, and answers,
“Cast out the slave woman and her son . . .”
– he doesn’t go on to make as strong application that to the Galatians,
• but he may imply that is what they need to do
– remove the hyper-religious, hyper-critical people from their spiritual community

Conclusion: We can finish this morning where the chapter ends
So, brothers, we are not children of the slave but of the free woman Galatians 4:31

Sometimes, when our circumstances don’t make sense,
or they’ve become overwhelming and we feel lost or hopeless,
we might want to consider shifting to allegory
(or use a different lens when reading scripture)
Maybe there’s a hidden message that will emerge when use an open ended reading style
At least, remember this:
Creativity thrives in freedom and freedom thrives in creativity

Podcast

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons Galatians 4:1-5

Intro: For the last month or two, I’ve noticed a trend
– people are using a “Jesus image” in a variety of video posts
• like a famous celebrity, he’s immediately recognizable
◦ there’s the trademark long hair and beard, the robe, and sandals
◦ his image is used to promote an ideal, or to criticize, ridicule, or make fun of something
• three observations immediately come to mind:
◦ first, the image is used for propaganda purposes
◦ second, they’re all impersonators
▫ third, not one of these characters is the real Jesus
– Galatians is Paul’s attempt to rescue his readers from impersonators
• all of the communities addressed in Galatia were new churches
◦ and all the believers were new Christians
◦ so they were susceptible to people posing as experts
• their message was, to be right with God, one had to obey his law
◦ but the spiritual effect on the Galatians was arrested development
◦ the point Paul makes here: you’ve outgrown the law

In the previous chapter, Paul presented an analogy that personified the law

The law was like an ultra-strict tutor or guardian
– the law served for a time in history when Israel’s religion was still a work in progress
• the law was necessary at that time, because people needed boundaries
• but now, in Jesus, the believers had come of age
◦ they no longer needed the law as a guardian
◦ they were made right with God through their faith in him
– Paul now adds to the analogy
• we could be heirs to a fortune, but not have access to it
◦ a will could be written to specify that heir had to reach a certain age before receiving the inheritance
◦ until then, they shared the same status of a household slave

Next, Paul explains the analogy, “in the same way . . .”
– in our spiritual immaturity, we were
“enslaved to the elementary principles of the cosmos”
• for the Jews, that refers to God’s laws
• for Gentiles, it refers to whatever forces they believed ran the universe (gods, mathematics, the push and pull of love and hate, and so on)
– I want to draw attention to one word: “under” – five times in these verses
• Greek is hupo, by looks like hypo (hypodermic is a combination of two Greek words under/hypo and skin/derma)
◦ in these verses “under” is a dark place where we can easily be trapped
• it is to be under the influence and control of someone or something,
◦ it is to be subject to the will of that person or condition
◦ it’s the opposite of freedom, of choice, of the opportunity to become our true selves

When did we reach the age that the inheritance became ours?
– the “fullness of time” (v. 4) corresponds with “date set by his father” (v. 2)
• that was when God sent his Son
◦ Paul says he was born as we were, “under the law”
◦ Jesus joined us where we were – to “redeem” us – to set us free
• something unexpected happens at this point
◦ Paul doesn’t say that we have come of age in Jesus,
◦ he says we were adopted!
“And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying ‘Abba! Father!’ “So you are no longer a slave, but as son, and if a son, then an heir through God” Galatians 4:6-7
similarly he wrote in Romans
“For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs–heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ . . . .” (Rom. 8:14-17)
• the cry, “Abba” is the marker of our transformation
– this entire world is an orphanage
• we’re all orphans who want to be chosen
◦ we want to belong to someone
◦ we look at every visitor with hopeful eyes
• God sent his Son Jesus into this orphanage
◦ he finds us and asks, “Do you want to come home with Me?”
“In my Father’s house there are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I do to prepare a place for you? And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also” (Jn. 14:2-3)

Next, Paul reminds the Galatians of their past lives (verses 8-11)

That can be uncomfortable, but it’s not a bad idea–to look back
– if the concept of having “a god” means a controlling influence over a life,
• then everyone has a god – maybe supernatural or material
◦ the god of some people may be their own self
• Paul reminds them that they were slaves of their non-gods
◦ that metaphor is easy to comprehend if we’re talking about drugs or alcohol
◦ slavery is exactly the nature of addiction
– more recently, the Galatians have come to know God
• to me, this is the most wonderful expression of our faith
◦ we know God – not perfectly, not completely,
◦ but still, it is a real and personal knowing (some day we will know him fully; 1 Cor. 13:12)
• but now Paul asks in disbelief,
“how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world . . . ?”
◦ as before the elementary principles: for Jews referred to the law, for Gentiles to the forces of nature
◦ only here, Paul points out that these principles are weak and worthless
– he bases his assessment of the Galatians on their observance of annual and seasonal rituals
• their use of ceremonies, offerings, and incantations, to influence God or other gods
• they have Paul worried that his work with them was futile

In verses 12-20, Paul attempts to restore the bond they once shared

He began this pointed criticism of their wrong turn, calling them “foolish Galatians”! (Gal. 3:1)
– now he addresses them as his brothers and sisters – and,
• instead of scolding them he begs them to meet him half-way
◦ he lets them know that they have not wronged him
◦ they don’t have to apologize to him
• he also reminds them, that when he first came to them,
◦ he had a physical disorder that was difficult for them manage
◦ but, even so, they did not avoid or mistreat him, instead
you “received me as an angel [or messenger] of God, as Christ Jesus”
– he asks them, “What happened to that? Where did that blessing go?
That radical kindness and generosity?”

Then Paul refers to something that we do not know much about:
“For I testify to you that, if possible, you would have gouged out your eyes and given them to me” (v. 15b)
– This is rather graphic! Did Paul have a reason for using this shocking expression?
• he could have said, “removed” or “traded an eye with me”
• but apparently that is not his point, because a surgical procedure like that was impossible anyway
– it seems that he uses this strong language to intensify the fact of their deep and sincere love for him

He wants to know if telling them the truth made him their enemy
– when he came t them, he presented the gospel of Jesus
• then the others showed up and told the Galatians Paul had misled them
◦ it seems that now he feels betrayed
• I imagine that is how the Old Testament prophets often felt (especially Jeremiah)
– all through this, Paul has had in mind the impersonators
• the troublemakers who came after Paul and contradicted him
“They treated you like you were a big deal, but with wrong motives. They wanted to lock you out of the grace I preached to you, and in such a way that you would think they were a big deal.”

Many years ago a young man approached me after a Sunday morning service. He had a letter in his hand that he showed me. It was from a famous television evangelist and faith healer. I could see that it was a form letter, but the young man did not know that. In the letter, the TV guy said, “The Lord has told me that you have a high calling.” The kid asked me, “What is a high calling?” He was sincere and truly concerned. He assumed God had some important work in mind for him, and he did not want to fail to fulfill it, only he did not know what a high calling meant. I felt very sorry for him, as I do for everyone who is taken in by religious scams like this one.

• every preacher, every lecturer, and public speaker knows,
◦ there’s a way to deliver a speech that glorifies the speaker

Paul didn’t see anything wrong in him thinking the Galatian believers were a big deal
– as long as he’s working for their sake and with a “good purpose”
• and he lets them know this is how he feels about them, always, and not only when he’s there with them
• before he finishes that thought, he adds a flourish of affection; now they are, “my little children”
– he finishes off this section with an apology
• if he were with them, he’d change his harsh tone
• but he’s treated them roughly, because they have him “perplexed”
◦ are they still with him and trusting in Jesus or are they not?

Conclusion: We’re done–except, I skipped a line in verse 19
“my little children, for whom I am again in the anguish of childbirth until Christ is formed in you!”

When Reflexion first began to host Sunday meetings,
I found in this verse the assignment God had given me
This inner formation of Jesus within us is not theoretical, but experiential
The witness of God’s Spirit, knowing Jesus, and the working of his person into our inner self is the essence of our new life in God
To assist others through this metamorphosis is the challenge of every pastor and spiritual director
The new self is the true self
The process is ongoing
Even in this very moment

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come, Lord, join us here today
This morning we pray for children
For the innocent
Those used
Abused
Neglected
And Forgotten
Those caught up in
ideologies of power
And greed
Used as pawns
In the attempts of some men
To dominate,
Control
To establish a kingdom on earth
In the name of their god
For their own satisfaction
While children are reduced
To collateral damage
Shamelessly
Wantonly
Carelessly

For those children
who are hungry, starving
We pray they will be fed
And cared for
And restored to health
And loved

For those children
taken from their homes
We pray for safe return
And a path to recover
And that they be made whole again
And loved

For those in fear
We pray for their peace
In hope that their suffering will end
And the freedom to grow and heal
And to be abundantly,
Profoundly loved

For those children who have died
We ask for mercy
And justice
And peace
Solace for their families and friends
And your continuing love

And for those with us
Whose wounded child
Still abides within
We ask for healing
And recovery
And freedom from fear
And to be made new

And that we might
find a way to help
In some little portion
Other children
Who are suffering
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

“To give a human example, brothers: even with a man-made covenant, no one annuls it or adds to it once it has been ratified” Galatians 3:15

Intro: In the first half of this chapter, Paul scolded the Galatians

You know how sometimes, as a parent,
– when you’re very worried about your child–maybe they did not arrive home on time
• when they finally show up, your worry turns to anger
◦ if ever our lectures were rougher than they needed to be,
◦ it was because we had agonized over their safety
• I think that’s a little piece of what is happening here
◦ Paul has called the Galatians “foolish” and asked “Who has bewitched you?”
◦ that is because they had him worried about the stability of their faith
– it is often the people who are most concerned with pleasing God,
• that are misled by false preachers and teachers
◦ they desire so much to be absolutely right with God that they fall victim to someone who seems knowledgeable
• anyway, Paul’ agitation rises to the surface in these short, clipped statements that barely say enough
– here in verse 15, he presents Abraham as an example of being true to a promise

Why Abraham? What is so important about him?

First, God’s covenant/s with Israel began with him
Second, Abraham predates the law by four centuries
Third, being chosen to represent God to the world,
Abraham became the spiritual “father of us all” (Ro. 4:16)

Perhaps it will be helpful for us to revisit Abram
(this was before God changed his name to Abraham)

In a vision, God told Abram, “I have a great reward for you”
Abe asked, “What reward, if I have no seed, no offspring, to inherit it?”
God answered, “Count the stars if you can. Your seed will be like that”
Again Abram disputed, “How can I know this is really going to happen?”
Instead of giving him an answer, God gave him specific instructions.

Later, that afternoon, Abram sacrificed a heifer, a goat, and a ram,
all three years old. He also prepared a turtle dove and pigeon.
He cut each animal in half, and laid the halves opposite each other in two rows,
with a path between them. – Then he waited.

As the sun set, Abram began to doze, but soon woke up in a cold sweat.
A darkness spread across the rough terrain–
an eerie dark that was more than just the absence of light,
and as it crept over Abram, it filled him with dread.
The voice of God came to him through the dark,
“Your descendants will be strangers in a foreign land; they will be slaves and mistreated for four hundred years. Then I will bring them back here, bringing great wealth with them. In the meantime, you will life to a ripe old age and die in peace.”
In the silence after God finished speaking, a light appeared,
like a fire burning in an oven or a bright torch,
and it moved along the path between the animal carcasses,
from one end to the other.
Then and there, the LORD made a covenant with Abram.

What this story describes is a formal ritual for enacting a covenant
– the sacrifice of the animals was an expensive investment
• but it’s believed that it was meant as a warning:
So may this be the punishment of one who violates the covenant
• “making a covenant” in Hebrew idiom, literally translated, is “cut a covenant”

Now we return to Galatians 3:15

When two people enter a contract agreement
– after it has been signed and notarized,
• neither one can go back and rewrite terms of their agreement
• that’s the first part of Paul’s point
– his application in verses 16-17, is that God sealed a contract with Abraham
• and from then on it could not be annulled or changed

But then Paul makes an odd observation
– when God extended the covenant to Abraham’s “seed,”
• Paul says seed is singular, and referred to one particular descendant
• I doubt that claim would be convincing today
◦ we are more technical in the way we use words
◦ but the style of rabbis followed the Hebrew Scriptures, which involve a lot of word-play
– we do not need to linger over what Paul does here
• we get what he is saying
• for Paul, that one seed refers to Jesus

The heart of Paul’s argument is that God sealed his covenant with Abraham
– and that covenant was based on a promise, “ratified” by God himself
• so the law, even though it came centuries later,
◦ could not alter or terminate that covenant of promise
• in a lengthier argument, Paul explained this to the Romans
“For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith” (Ro. 4:13)
– in verse 18, Paul says if God switched things up, if he changed the terms of the contract,
• so that now the inheritance came through the law,
◦ then it would no longer be based on his promise
• Paul insists that law and promise are two different types of covenant

So what is the point of the law? Why even bother?

The problem isn’t difficult to identify–humans are still human
– in fact, humans are still animals and the temptation is,
• to live according to our animal nature
◦ if we’re going to rise above that, we need law and order
◦ we need to know the rules and to be held accountable to obey them
• that’s the short answer to Why the law
◦ it was meant to hold our sinfulness in check until the fulfillment of the promise
– but here we find another difference between law and promise
• as the story goes, the law was given to Moses by angels (Acts 7:53)
• the promise was given by God directly to Abraham

We can see an obvious tension between the law and the promise
– so does one contradict the other? Paul says, “Certainly not!”
• IF there was a statute in the law that breathed its life into us,
◦ so that we were made righteous, then that is all we would have needed
• but that is exactly what the law does not do!
◦ it doesn’t heal or fix anything, but takes over everything (“imprisoned everything under sin”)
– the promise is the solution to the problems created by law
• it provides us a way to be right with God through Jesus
• this is what Paul means: made righteous by faith

Paul has one more point to make regarding the law

In Greek and Roman cultures, children were raised by guardians
– they provided training and discipline,
• but their main concern was to keep them out of trouble and have productive lives
• and the guardians main method of keeping children in line was severe punishment
– Paul uses the role of a guardian as an analogy for the law
• he says, in our immature youth, we didn’t know any better
◦ we needed strict discipline and that’s what the law provided
• but since Jesus has come, and brought us to maturity through faith,
◦ we no longer need the mean old nanny
◦ he says we’re all sons of God
This is inclusive of females, but Paul specifies sons, because the oldest son was a privileged role in the family
Once liberated, he became the master of his former guardians

The rite-of-passage for the Galatians, when they came of age spiritually
– was the threshold experience of their baptism
• that’s when they sloughed off the law and “put on Christ”
◦ the same way we put off the old self to put on new self
“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, [they are] a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (2 Cor. 5:17)
– it’s as if Paul says, “Now look around you; everything has changed!”
• the law identified all sorts of distinctions and divisions of people
• but that disappears in the promise where there
is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male or female, for you are all one in Christ” Galatians 3:28-29

Conclusion: When my son Will was two years old, he was constantly singing – all the time

Songs about his toys, songs about his mom and dad, songs about cats and dogs
One day I told him, “O Will, to you everything’s a song”
He immediately sang, “Everything’s a song”
We were in a restaurant one evening, when I noticed people at other tables looking over at us
It was then I realized Will was singing loudly–I’d gotten used to it
For me, that’s what it means to be “free to be me”
Paul tells us, through his message to the Galatians,
“You are free to be you. Don’t let anyone spoil it for you”
Sing your heart out to God – in Jesus, everything’s a song

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord join us here today.
Thank you for all the good in our lives
And thank you that our lives are ever changing
That people come and go
That situations arise and are resolved
That nothing is forever
Except for you.

For those among us who are tired and sick
Grant comfort
For those anxious and afraid
Grant peace
For those hurt and wounded
Grant healing
For those who are lonely
Grant companions

Lord grant us
the courage and strength
We need to follow you
Grant us
the humility and wisdom
to listen when you speak
Grant us
the patience and hunger
to wait on you

We are full of gratitude
for all you give
We look forward
for all to come
Knowing some days will be glorious
And some will be difficult
Trusting you and
Your great love
Amen

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? It was before your eyes that Jesus Christ was publicly portrayed as crucified. Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—just as Abraham “believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness”? Galatians 3:1-6

Intro: Do I need to mention that Paul does not try to hide his frustration with the Galatians?

To our ears, his language–“foolish” and “Who has bewitched you?” sounds offensive
– later on he will say, if they’ve truly taken this wrong path,
“You are severed from Christ . . . you have fallen away from grace” (Gal. 5:4)
• he doesn’t mince words, because he’s terrified for their sake
◦ he wants to make the strongest possible impression on them
• and this is just the beginning
– we’re going to spend some time in verse 1
• first, because the truth in it is so rich and enlightening
• second, because here Paul constructs a foundation for everything else

Paul begins laying into the Galatians with a question: “Who?”

Later in his letter he will press this question on them again
“You were running well. Who hindered you from obeying the truth?” (5:7)
– someone did this to them, cast a spell over them, was pulling their strings
• Paul isn’t demanding that they give him names
◦ he’s simply saying the Galatians did not come up with this on their own
◦ that is, others told them they were not true believers because did not follow the law
• he is alerting them to the fact that others had done this to them
◦ had influenced them, deceived and manipulated them
– when religious leaders manipulate vulnerable believers,
• it’s for one reason: that is, to control them
◦ perhaps Paul’s question could be a wake-up call for millions of American Christians
“Who did this to you? Who programmed you?”
• who caused you to become so terrified, so paranoid?
◦ of secular humanists? of New Age gurus? of Evolution?
◦ of liberated women? of immigrants? of a communist take-over?

Contrast the current worry and fear with Jesus’ instruction,
“Do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul” (Mt. 10:28)
and Paul’s confidence that,
“in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us” (Ro. 8:37)

At any rate, the answer regarding who bred these fears in believers is that it’s been going on for fifty years from Christian organizations that discovered fear is a stronger motivation than love for raising tax-free contributions
– so every newsletter they mailed us was peppered with warnings
• “Your freedom is being taken away, unless you support us”
◦ “They’ve taken prayer our of schools, and next they will take God out”
(as if such a thing were even possible)
• conspiracy theories have become profitable for the people who spin and publish them
– that is Paul’s first question, “Who has done this to you?”

Paul then reminds them of where their faith began and who it’s about

Now this is a fascinating claim that Paul makes
– the Galatians lived far from Jerusalem and most likely never been there
• yet the crucifixion of Jesus had been played out before their eyes
◦ this is a critical factor in being exposed to the Christian faith
◦ the truth is not merely information you can learn, it must be experienced
• but how can we experience something so distant in space and time as Jesus’ death and resurrection?
◦ the answer is “story”
◦ we can go anywhere in the world and time through a well-told story
– we read technical books for education, for information
• we read novels and poetry for an experience of people, places and events
◦ listen to how John introduced others to Jesus:
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life–the life was made manifest and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us–that which we have seen and heard we proclaim to you . . .” (1 Jn. 1:1-3)
• the Jesus we encounter in the story, is the one to whom we open our hearts
◦ the One we receive, follow, and to whom we remain faithful

The Galatians began their spiritual journey with Jesus
– that is what I miss most about the Jesus Movement
• Jesus was everything for this huge mass of human lives
• he was in our stories, our songs, our prayers, our every conversation — our lives
– that many allowed themselves to be drawn away from him is tragic
• Christianity is Christ–not politics, entertainment, commerce
• Paul was coaxing the Galatians to return to where they began

Paul builds an argument on logic and their own experience

His first argument: he draws a contrast between works of the law and faith in Christ
How did they receive the Spirit of God?
– was it by obeying the law of Moses that he entered their lives,
– or from hearing the message of Jesus and putting trust in him?
His second argument: he draws a contrast between the Spirit and the flesh
– here the point is, when they became Christians they were immediately mad alive in God by his Spirit
– so now, do they think they must use material means to complete the journey?
(Note: To be spiritually energized to God’s will is much more powerful than legal, moral, or ethical motivation)
His third argument: had they wasted their time following Jesus?
– apparently, they had suffered for their faith in Christ
– Paul as if now they considered their experience was “in vain”? – for nothing?
His fourth argument: God’s continued work in their community
– was it supernatural or the result of following rules and procedures?

Paul makes a sudden turn, and gives the answer to his questions (verses 9-14)

He reminds them of Abraham
– in the second half of the chapter, Paul will use Abraham as an example
• but here he summarizes what he sees as essential
• one moment in history is the exact point where Paul’s theology of our relationship with God begins
◦ it seems like a small parentheses in Abraham’s story,
◦ but for Paul, it reveals the essence of God’s love and acceptance
– God made extravagant promises to Abraham regarding his future progeny
“And he [Abraham] believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:6)
• here’s the point: How was Abraham made right-with-God?
◦ certainly not be the law, which had not yet been revealed
◦ but by faith and trust in God

What is God is after? What does he want from human persons?
– is there any gift we can give him? Any monument big enough?
– is there any accomplishment we can achieve?
• is he impressed by new inventions or space travel?
• can we be good enough for God?
– anything we can do for God he can do for himself (and infinitely greater)
• what he wants is what every lover wants!
◦ he wants us to choose him, to choose to love him
◦ and the way we show him our love is by placing our complete trust in him
• that’s why when Abraham believed, God said, “You’re right with me”
◦ the gift of love we present to God is our complete trust
– Paul says this is for Gentiles as well as Abraham’s descendants, because God told him,
“In you shall all the nations be blessed”

In verses 10-14, Paul sets the blessing of faith over against the curse of the law

Paul pulls out several verses from the Hebrew Scriptures to show how it fails us
1. a curse is pronounced on everyone who doesn’t obey it
• for Paul, this applies that to every single commandment
2. a prophecy of Habakkuk is proclaimed that reveals God’s will: “The righteous shall live by faith”
• Paul contrasts that with the Law, because the law is not of faith
• he supports this claim with another quote from the law: “The one who does them shall live by them”
3. another verse from the law explains how Jesus saves us from the curse (v. 13)
So, a blessing comes through Abe and a curse through the law (v. 14)

Conclusion: In the churches of my early youth, we sang a hymn, “There Shall Be Showers of Blessings”

First of all, I don’t believe it (life is often hard and our path is not always showered with blessings)
Secondly, I don’t need it
There is one necessary blessing, and that is being right with God
That is everything we need to carry us through life
It is also enough to open our hearts and minds to inspiration
We can find inspiration in all that is around us–the sky, the sea, every living thing
To feel it requires looking, and patience and a calm state of mind
And sometimes we feel the need to paint it, sing it, write its poetry
There are little imitations of inspiration (i.e., greeting cards)
But the real deal ultimately transcends expression
and can only be savored

Podcast

Welcome and Prayer: Jim Calhoun

Come Lord, join us today
Sometimes we have hard passages
And sometime our friends and family do.
Sometimes we see it in our neighbors
There are disappointments
Frustrations
Even suffering

And Suffering hasn’t gone out of fashion
Lord
It has grown
Become more abundant
in some places
Even calculated
Planned
Perpetrated
intentionally

And there are endings Lord
Losses to come
Lives that pass
And we ache for them
and for those we know
who are facing them
As we all will one day.

So we ask for compassion for those who suffer
Fill our hearts with mercy
Grant us the courage to not look away
Show us when
and how we can
Come alongside
Caring
Serving
Even sacrificing if need be
To ease the pain
Standing with others in patience
Gentleness
Kindness
Tenderly Lord
And steadfast
Unafraid
Not blinking
Like the lovers
You have made us to be.
Amen.

Morning Talk: chuck smith, jr.

But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God Galatians 2:17-19

Intro: Paul has shared with the Galatians a brief autobiography

He completed it with a story about his run-in with Peter
– when Peter first came to the Gentile church in Antioch,
• he allowed the wall between Jews and Gentiles to collapse
◦ but when rigid and dogmatic believers arrived from Judea,
◦ he broke away from close contact with Gentile believers
• how sad, when a person withdraws from generous gestures,
◦ ones that represents acceptance and camaraderie,
◦ and make the break for fear of being attacked by narrow-minded zealots
– somewhere along the way, Paul left off telling his story
• it was a backdrop for the point he wanted to make;
• namely, Jesus–and not the law–works God’s righteousness into believers

These verses are a bit tricky, and I tend to get lost in the labyrinth

Biblical scholars have different opinions regarding what Paul is saying
– what I’ll share with you is my interpretation
• I hope this helps make sense of this passage

Paul can imagine an argument a Pharisee might make
“It’s a sin for you, Paul, to say Gentile Christians do not have to follow God’s law”
– in his letter to the Romans, Paul clearly stated his teaching to Gentiles regarding the law
“For by works of the law no human being will be [made righteous] in [God’s] sight, since through the law comes knowledge of sin.” (Ro. 3:20)
• to the Pharisees, this sounded like Paul dishonored the law
◦ the Pharisee party that took a hard line on the law and considered Paul a heretic or rogue apostle
“some believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ‘It is necessary to circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses’” (Acts 15:5)
◦ in other words, they demanded that Gentiles convert to Judaism to become Christians
• what Paul hears them saying about him is something to the effect,
“You are saying that we are ‘sinners’ for trusting God to make us righteous through Jesus rather than through perfect obedience to the law”
– is this starting to make sense?

Before going on, I want to defend Paul’s respect for the law
“So the law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good.” (And later in the same chapter, “I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, but I see in my [body parts] another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my [body parts]” (Ro. 7:12 and 22-23)
– his deep respect for the law and for what it does is obvious
• namely, it separates light from darkness, good from bad, righteousness from wickedness
◦ the delineates clear boundaries, revealing what is sinful
“if it had not been for the law, I would not have known sin” (Ro. 7:7)
• I’m convinced this is how people in Old Testament viewed the law; that is,
as a relief from the moral confusion evident in other cultures
◦ so Psalm 19 sings the beauty and perfection of God’s law
◦ and the entire 176 verses of Psalm 119 praise the law
“Oh how I love your law!
It is my meditation all the day” (Ps. 119:97)
– in Romans, Paul argues that faith in Jesus supports the law
“Do we then overthrow the law by this faith? By no means! On the contrary we uphold the law” (Ro. 3:31)
• so here in Galatians 2:17, Paul asks this question, then answers it emphatically:
“If we’re sinning in our attempt to be made righteous in Christ, does that mean Christ is a servant of sin? Certainly not!”
• through Jesus, God does for us what the law could not do
◦ the law doesn’t change people, it doesn’t produce life
◦ it only shows us what we’re doing wrong

Next, in verse 18, Paul says that if he reverted to depending on the law,
– he would be rebuilding what he had torn down
• then he would be a sinner (transgressor)
• he would have given up on his faith in Jesus and shifted his confidence to himself

Humans do not have the capacity to be good enough
to earn or deserve the acceptance of the one true, holy God

◦ yet God loves us, so he provided a way to be right with him and others
◦ therefore Paul could not revert to a legalistic approach to righteousness
– much of Galatians seems to be a brief summary of Paul’s letter to the Romans
• for instance, verse 19 is the very conclusion he drew after the first seven chapters of Romans as he was building his argument
“if it were not for the law, I would not have known sin. . . . I was once alive apart from the law, but when the commandment came, sin came alive and I died” (Ro. 7:7-9)
◦ what the law tells us becoming righteous on our own is, “The bridge is out”
• but if the law kills us (as Paul says) that death of the old self becomes the birth of our new self

Modern Christianity has turned some of Paul’s remarkable theology into slogans

We joyfully confess that we are “saved by grace”
– we defend our freedom from the law, because we’re “justified by faith”
• we know “Christ died for our sins” and though “We’re not perfect, we’re forgiven”
◦ and so on and on, yet many believers barely understand what any of this truly means
• the theological foundation of Christian faith is profound and we may never understand its fullness,
◦ but we can still learn to appreciate its depth

Paul concludes the first big drive of his Galatian lectures
I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose Galatians 2:19-20

I’m going to jump over verse 20 for now, but come back to it
– this last sentence has the effect of a crescendo
• it is a daring statement – an “all or nothing” warning
First, we learn that God’s grace can be nullified in a person’s life
– to me, that is a terrifying thought
• especially, because it seems the Galatians were moving this direction without knowing it
Second, he repeats the problem at the heart of his entire argument
– the bogus idea that a person could keep the law perfectly — it can’t be done
Third, if that were possible, then “Christ died for no purpose”
– in the context of our Christian belief and all we know about the life and ministry of Jesus–
◦ that hits us like the greatest tragedy imaginable
• Jesus came to live among us, but also and especially, to give up his life to us

I think it’s obvious that Paul intended to disturb his readers
– he uses extreme statements to reveal the danger they face
– if they had been tempted to take the path of the law,
• they need to know what they were sacrificing

Now, coming back to verse 20, I want to change my tone

There is solid theology in this verse – but also something more
– I believe it’s important to recognize that this is mystical teaching
• in verse 19, Paul said he died to the law,
◦ but how did he die? and in what sense did he die?
◦ he was obviously still alive when he wrote these words
• he died by being “crucified with Christ”
◦ we could say this was a “symbolic” death,
◦ but I think Paul would argue, “No, it was more than that”
– there is a mystical death that occurs at the core of our being (Ro. 6:3-7)
• as we mature, we develop ideas about who we are
◦ we ask questions, like, “What is my purpose?”
◦ “What am I good at?” “Who am I?”
• when we come to Jesus, we present this “fabricated self” to Jesus
◦ he tells us to take that self to the cross. daily
◦ and become our new and true self in him

When Peter was able to identify who Jesus truly was,
– Jesus, in turn, revealed to Peter his true self (Mt. 16:16-18)
• becoming his new self was a process – the cross is not easy
• in Christian mysticism there is a teaching referred to as The Dark Night Of the Soul
(in my opinion, this is at times overplayed and gets more attention than it deserves)
◦ if the dark night enters our lives at all, it isn’t everything or always
◦ it may, however, be a stage or a path, but it is not a destination
• in some way, we need to recognize the dying for what it is
– Paul had this beautiful vision of “being-in-Christ” and Christ living in him
Albert Schweitzer, in The Mysticism of Paul the Apostle, wrote,
“The concept of being-in-Christ dominates Paul’s thought in a way that he not only sees in it the source of everything connected with redemption, but describes all the experience, feeling, thought and will of the baptized as taking place in Christ. Thus the phrase ‘in Christ Jesus’ comes to be added to the most varied statements, almost as a kind of formula.” (He then lists more than twenty instances in which Paul mentions being in Christ in different contexts)
“Certainly in this it is entirely different in character from the Hellenistic mysticism, which allowed daily life to go its own way apart from the mystical experience and without relation to it.” [emphasis added]
(Sadly this is what we see that Christianity has become today for too many people in our nation)
• too few believers seek the intimate, inward, and dynamic experience of the real presence of Jesus
◦ or communion with the Spirit of God from one day to the next

Conclusion: I only have enough time left to say this:

Our ongoing relationship with God is experiential
It is not imprisoned in our mind in the form of intellectual concepts or doctrines
God’s close friends who have walked this path before us invite us into the experience of God himself

“Oh, taste and see that the LORD is good” (Psa. 34:8)