The Gospel and religion

Father, pour out your Holy Spirit upon us that we might understand your word.

And this we ask in the name of Jesus, your Son and our Savior. Amen.

Please be seated.

So this week I was in a coffee shop and one of my friends is an Orthodox Jewish man.

And he came in and he said,

George, I'm really glad I found you here because I have a question that I want to ask you.

And I said, okay, well, it's actually sort of funny.

I'm just going to be really honest about this.

I was working on my sermon.

And, you know, in the sermon, I'm going to share the gospel with you.

And inwardly when he came and said, I'd like to ask you a question,

and he pulls a chair over to sit down.

I think to myself, I'm busy preparing a sermon to witness to Jesus.

I don't have time to witness to Jesus to this guy.

Like, I wish you weren't here.

That's what's going on in my mind, just to be completely honest and transparent with you.

And then I got the check in my spirit and I thought, okay, I'll close my Bible,

like close the book and just, I'm going to listen.

God's brought him here.

Anyway, so he says,

George, I don't know if you, you know, they're going to be legalizing marijuana, cannabis.

And I've been doing, I invest and I've been, the growth potential and financial returns potential from investing in the cannabis industry is huge.

And so what do you think?

Do you think I should invest in the cannabis industry?

He said, I'm going to be asking my rabbi about this tomorrow.

And he said, one of the, and then, you know, so we get talking a little bit.

I mean, we actually talked for about 25 minutes over a range of things.

But one of the things he said is because most of their products have been determined to be kosher.

So, but he, he's a great guy, by the way.

And I've had lots of conversations with him.

So I said, this is actually part of what I said to him right off the bat.

I said, you know, here's where we really need to learn from Jesus and the question that he asks.

And I said, the question that Jesus asks all the time is what does the Bible actually say?

I said, the problem for us human beings is that we try to follow God and then we develop traditions.

And before you know it, you develop a tradition based on the tradition.

And then you have a tradition based on the tradition based on the tradition.

And then you have, you know, whatever it is.

Like you just keep piling on traditions and you forget what the Bible says.

And he said, that's a very interesting thought.

And I said, so what is it?

Like I said, all of the dietary laws, like if you go back in the dietary laws, like, you know,

especially the book of Leviticus, right, the Pentateuch, the Torah.

And I said, what's the constant theme in the book of Leviticus?

And he said, and I said, he starts to think.

And I said, what it is, is be holy for I am holy.

And the purpose of the law is to prepare you to live a holy life so you can meet with a holy God.

And so I said, that has to be the concern behind everything you do.

So I had a bit more of a talk about it.

And I said, well, you know, it would be kosher and all.

I said, well, ask your rabbi, would it be all right for the men to all smoke a joint before they came in for the synagogue service?

And if it isn't, then, like, what are you investing in?

We talked about some other things, but you get the point.

And we had a very, very interesting conversation.

In fact, he said, depending on what his rabbi said, he'd like to try to have me and the rabbi get together and talk.

So you can pray about that, actually.

I don't know what the rabbi is going to say, but you can pray that maybe something will come out of that.

But that story, it's actually one of the things, because it actually is a perfect introduction for this very confusing text that Anne read.

So if you get your Bibles and look at Galatians 5, Galatians, sorry, Galatians chapter 4, verse 21.

Galatians 4:21

And some of you, if you are trying to follow it, it's a very, very complicated text of Scripture.

And let me tell you partly why it's very complicated, and it's not very flattering to you and me.

We're used to the quick soundbite.

For many people, the news in the metro newspaper is too many words, you know, where we get all of the news we need from listening to a few 15-second soundbites on radio.

And what you need to do when you read this text, and so actually, you know what, it's like, if you, later on during the coffee hour, with the parents' permission, try to find a two- or three-year-old, a little tyke who's just learning how to talk, and try having a conversation with them.

And one of the things which is so neat about talking to a little kid who's just learning language is I might ask a question of one of them or make a comment, and the little kid will look at, like, nobody can look with the intensity as a little kid can look at you.

Like, they can just look at you.

And you know that the little gerbils are working behind the eyes trying to figure it out.

And then I move on to another topic, and I move on to another topic, and then the child finally speaks.

But they haven't followed you with the new topic because they've been still thinking about the first thing that you said.

And they'll make a comment.

And what's the problem with this text that we're going to read is it's like a piece of poetry from John Donne or George Herbert,

where every two or three or four words, the image shifts, and the idea shifts.

And it happens very, very rapidly.

And we're used to just reading, and we sort of get caught up on the first idea,

and we haven't quite followed that the writer is moving from idea to idea,

from image to image, and linking them every couple of words.

And that's the problem with this text.

So that's why we find it hard, one of the reasons why we find it hard to read it.

But if you look at the very first verse in 21, it says, chapter 4, verse 21,

tell me, you who desire to be under the law, do you not listen to the law?

Like, that's exactly what I said to my friend.

Like, what does the Bible say?

Like, you want to be under the law?

Like, what does the Bible say as a whole?

Like, don't just think about your traditions.

Like, what does the Bible say?

So it's the same question.

And Paul, of course, it's the same question that Jesus asked the Pharisees

and the Sadducees all of the time.

Like, what does the Bible say?

Like, do you actually read it?

Like, go back to that.

Forget about your traditions for a second, but go back to that.

Just as a bit of an aside, and this is more of an Anglican confession moment.

And those of you who, the only Anglican church you've ever attended is this one.

You might not know it.

This, by the way, the problem of traditions isn't just something for it.

The problem of legalism is everywhere.

Do you know that in most Anglican churches in this city,

we're not part of the Anglican Church of Canada,

we're part of the Anglican Network in Canada,

but in most churches in this city,

you're not allowed to say hallelujah during Advent and Lent.

Like, what a stupid rule.

Like, isn't that just stupid?

Let me tell you, if I said that in synod,

like, everybody would be shocked.

Oh!

Well, moment, like, really, you know,

maybe the rule in Lent should be every hour we say hallelujah.

Like, I don't know.

Like, it should be the opposite.

But somehow or another, you get traditions on traditions on traditions,

and before you know it, like, you've forgotten what the Bible says.

Anyway, so I'm just going to read the text through making a couple of comments,

and I'm going to sort of get what's the big ideas that are going on behind it, okay?

So it's chapter 4, verse 21, and it begins like this.

It says,

Just pause here for a second.

Now, it's not saying that it is an allegory.

If you want to know what a good example of an allegory is,

if those of us who read all books,

if you've ever read Pilgrim's Progress, it's an allegory.

Every character, in fact, it's so obvious, you know,

they all have the names, so you can figure it out, right?

So Paul isn't saying that the story of Abraham and Isaac and Ishmael and Sarah and Hagar,

which you find in Genesis 16, 17, and 21, that it's an allegory.

He's not saying that it's an allegory.

He's saying, I want to think about this as if it's an allegory,

because there's, in fact, some symbolic and figurative meanings in this text,

which I want you to think about.

There's larger lessons from this text than a mere recounting of who slept with whom

and which baby came with which mom.

And so that's what he's saying.

So go back to verse 24.

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.

We would call it now Saudi Arabia.

That's where it is.

She corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery with her children.

And by the way, for the Jewish people who are listening to this text,

or if there were Jewish people in this room today listening to the text,

this would completely and utterly shock them and offend them.

Because Paul is saying that what we now call Saudi Arabia is where present Jerusalem is.

And they would see Jerusalem and the Jewish people as descending from Sarah, not Hagar.

Paul is making this very, very, very big claim that the present Jerusalem is really,

in a sense, outside of the promised land, outside of what God is doing in terms of new covenants.

It would have just shocked them.

And I'm going to explain it in a moment.

But it would have been a shocking thing to them.

Like, this would have been, like, an unimaginable type of comparison.

And note as well, just one thing.

He's not saying that it corresponds to Jerusalem in the Old Testament.

He's not rejecting the Old Testament.

Okay?

Paul never rejects the Old Testament.

In fact, he values the Old Testament.

He's opening it up to them.

And he's not putting down Moses.

He's not putting down the law.

He's talking about the present Jerusalem.

In other words, those who, even though they are raised Jewish,

and even though they have the Old, what we call the Old Testament,

they would call the Tanakh,

they have not recognized the Messiah

that all of the Old Testament is pointing to.

That's why he's saying present Jerusalem.

Verse 25 again.

Now, Hagar is Mount Sinai in Arabia.

She corresponds to the present Jerusalem,

for she is in slavery with her children.

Verse 26.

But the Jerusalem above is free,

and she is our mother.

He's now trying...

Remember, this is all a bit of an analogy between Sarah and Hagar.

And just pause here.

If you're wondering how on earth this idea comes about,

and this...

Part of the reason sometimes the Old Testament is hard to read

is that there's ideas in the Old Testament

that we're not that familiar with.

But there's a very important part in the book of Ezekiel.

I think it's chapters 40 through 48,

where Ezekiel has a long vision of heavenly Jerusalem.

And Ezekiel is a prophet during Jerusalem's exile.

Ezekiel is in exile in Babylon,

away from earthly Jerusalem,

and God gives him this vision of a heavenly Jerusalem.

And that was a very important piece of thought for Jews ever since.

And there's another piece of the Old Testament,

which is all the way through the Old Testament,

is that sometimes when the word...

When it talks about Zion,

and I know that's not just something from the Matrix movie series,

it's actually based in the Old Testament.

And sometimes when Paul talks...

When the Bible talks...

When the Old Testament talks about Zion,

it's referring to, in a sense, the fortress of King David.

But other times, it's obviously something more.

It's the place of true praise

in the presence of the true king.

It's something which is obvious from the context

that it's not talking about the current city,

that Zion is often an image for this heavenly place

where things are done the proper way,

which touches earth.

So Paul here is actually then...

He's moving around from this image to image to image.

And if you were Jewish,

this heavenly Jerusalem, you'd think,

Oh, Ezekiel.

Oh, you'd think of Zion.

Okay, but for us, we don't get it.

That's why I'm just telling you.

So go back.

We'll read verse 26 again.

I hope I haven't put you all to sleep,

but I'll unpack it more in a moment.

Verse 26.

But Jerusalem above is free.

And she is our mother.

In other words, Christians' true home is heaven.

And where heaven is, there is freedom.

And our home is there, in a sense,

our birth comes from heaven.

You can think of John 3.16,

For God so loved the world

that he gave his only begotten son to the end

that all who believe in him will not perish,

but have everlasting life.

Just pause here in this text.

This is another thing that happened on Friday morning

in the same Starbucks.

So I'm reading my Bible,

and an older guy,

a very nice older guy,

quiet older guy,

he comes up and he sort of taps me on the shoulders,

and he says,

Is my name in there?

The book I'm reading,

the Bible.

And I probably had a deer in the headlight moment

for a second,

and then I said,

Well, actually,

I almost said his name.

I'll call him Bob.

Actually, Bob it is.

He said,

Really?

I said,

Yeah.

I said,

Jesus says,

For God so loved the world

that whoever believes in his only begotten son

will not perish,

but have everlasting life.

And when it says whoever and all,

Jesus was thinking of you.

You are in the book.

And he just smiled a quiet smile

and said,

Well, that's really interesting.

And then he left the Starbucks.

So I pray for him.

You can pray for him too.

You can just call him Bob,

but God will figure out

where the prayer should go.

So verse 26 again,

But the Jerusalem above is free,

and she is our mother.

Verse 27.

And now he's going to quote

from the book of Isaiah,

Isaiah 54:1

chapter 54, verse 1.

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.

So Paul is once again saying

there's this other prophecy from Isaiah,

which is going to talk.

It's talking about the same type of image

of Sarah and Hagar and Isaac and Ishmael,

and it's talking about a particular type of birth

and how God works.

Verse 28.

Now you brothers and sisters,

and this is one of the key parts

of the whole part, okay?

I'm going to explain it in a moment.

But verse 28.

Now you brothers and sisters like Isaac

are children of promise.

That's each one of us who hear

who are a follower of Jesus.

We're like Isaac.

We are children of promise.

Verse 29.

But just as at the time

he who was born according to the flesh,

that's Ishmael,

persecuted him who was born

according to the spirit,

so also it is now.

Paul is being persecuted

by legalists.

Just pause here for a second.

He's not being persecuted by pagans.

He's being persecuted

from people within the church

who are legalists.

This is very, very, very...

I mean, other places he talks about

being persecuted by the state.

This is not a text about persecution

by atheists or the state.

This is by how the gospel

will often end.

People who believe the gospel

and try to be shaped by the gospel

will often be persecuted

by legalists.

Verse 30.

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.

So, brothers and sisters,

we are not children of the slave,

but of the free woman.

We're not children of the slave,

but of the free woman.

So, Andrew,

if you could put up the first point,

that would be great.

And we have to try

to figure this all out.

So those of you,

maybe,

who have been here

for several weeks

and I haven't put to sleep

and you remember

what I said,

what...

Here's the first thing.

The infinite God

made a promise

to bless

finite and fallen human beings.

The infinite God

made a promise

to bless

finite and fallen human beings.

That's really

how the story of Abraham

begins in Genesis chapter 12,

Genesis 12:1–3

verses 1 to 3.

Abraham at the time

is 75 years old

and his wife Sarah

is 65 years old.

This is very important

to the story.

Abraham is 75,

Sarah is 65.

Now, just because

Abraham lived

4,000 years ago

doesn't mean he's stupid.

He knows

when women

can stop having babies.

He doesn't have a PhD,

doesn't use a flush toilet,

doesn't use an iPhone,

but he's not stupid.

He understands

how natural cycles work,

in fact,

far better than us

people who think

that meat just comes

automatically in a grocery store

wrapped in plastic.

He knew how meat came.

He knew how to get it.

He knew the cycles.

His whole life

depended upon

reading the cycles.

So here he is

at 75 years of age.

His wife is 65.

They have no children.

They've been married

a long time.

They've never been able

to have a child.

And God says,

through you

and through your seed

as the story develops,

I'm going to bless

all the nations

of the world.

And one of the reasons

that Abraham's considered

to be a man of faith

is he believes God.

He's 75 years old

with a 65-year-old wife

and he's not polygamous.

He just has one wife

and he believes God.

Isn't that?

That's stunning.

And so one of the arguments

that Paul has been developing

is he's saying,

in a sense,

let's just think about this

for a second,

this promise that God makes

that he's going to bless.

He is going to bless

through Abraham

and through Abraham's seed

all of the nations.

Now just pause here

for a second.

This is a very important pause,

even if it puts me

a few minutes over

on my sermon.

For some people,

even me talking about this

is very painful

in another way

because there's probably

people in the church,

maybe women in the church

who long to marry

and have children

but were never able to marry.

And there are very likely

women in the church

who are married

or were married

and long to be able

to have a child

or many children

and weren't able

to have children.

And so to even read this text

can be painful

for some people.

And it's a very important aside,

but one of the wonderful things

about the Bible,

in fact,

part of the whole drama

of the text

is that in Abraham's day,

a woman who could not

produce children

was basically

of no value whatsoever.

And one of the wonderful things

about the Bible

is that that message

is never communicated

in the text.

In fact,

the opposite is communicated.

That a man's worth

and a woman's worth

and their value to God

does not depend upon

them being married.

That is an unbelievably

counter-cultural idea

throughout the entire time

the Old Testament

and the New Testament

was written,

and it's a counter-cultural

idea today.

And that not only

does a man and woman's value

not depend upon

them being able

to be married,

it also,

for a woman,

does not depend

for a moment

upon her ability

to have children.

She has a value

and a dignity

and a worth

before Almighty God

that is not connected

to her ability

to have procreation,

to have babies.

And so part of the drama

and the tragedy

of the story in Genesis

is around Sarah

and Abraham's inability

to have children,

but the text itself

is going to point

of how God loves Sarah

and loves Abraham

and he loves all

who are single,

all who are married,

all who are married

and have not been able

to have children,

that your worth

and your value

and your ability

to be used by God

to God's glory

is separate

from these things

that the culture says

are very important.

So let's go back

to this particular story.

So what happens

in this story?

So God has made

this promise,

the infinite God

made a promise

to bless finite

and fallen human beings.

Abraham at 75

with a 65-year-old wife

believes this

and begins to act on it.

Time goes by.

21 years later,

nothing's happened.

You add 21,

going to do the math

really quickly,

21 and 75 is 96,

21 and 65 is 86.

Nothing's happened.

Abraham and Sarah

aren't dummies.

Not many 86-year-old women

have babies.

In fact,

none of them do.

So what they decide to do

is that they're going

to take matters

into their own hand.

It sounds very,

very devout,

doesn't it?

God has said

that he's going to do this.

I'm going to be

very, very, very devout.

And because I'm going

to be very, very devout,

here's what we're going

to do.

In those days,

not only was it,

could people hold slaves,

but in those days,

men could also

have a concubine.

So in modern terms,

it would be that

I'm married to Louise,

that's untouchable,

and my heirs

come through Louise,

they're my legitimate children,

but I could also decide

to have, in a sense,

a legally accepted

sex object on the side.

Another woman,

a concubine,

that I can have sex with

as often as I want.

And that was legally

and culturally acceptable.

That's just the way

the world works.

Like, why wouldn't a man

be able to have

that ability?

And, you know,

in those days,

lots of, you know,

men still die younger

than women,

and lots of men

die in battle

and stuff like that,

and there might be

more women around,

or a man's just very rich

or very powerful

or very virile,

so he has his

legitimate wife,

and then he has

one or more concubines

on the side

so he can have sex

with them.

And Abraham and Sarah

go along with the culture.

And another thing

in the culture of that time

is that in that culture

of the time,

in a case like Abraham

and Sarah,

they can,

Sarah can say,

I am going to,

it's almost like

a legal contract,

I'm going to allow you

to have sex

with this woman

and whatever children

you produce

through having sex

with this woman,

we're going to count it

as if I had had the baby

and it will be the heir.

Legal,

culturally acceptable

way to do it.

And so Abraham

and Sarah,

knowing of God's promise,

they're 96

and they're 86,

and so Abraham

starts sleeping

with Hagar

and he produces

a son,

Ishmael.

96 years old,

he has a son.

So here's the,

if you could put up

the next point,

Andrew,

this is,

this is really

an important point

in,

in,

in Paul's argument

here in Galatians 4.

Religion,

because you see,

basically what Paul

is saying here

is the Bible

is saying here

is that the Bible

condemns legalism

and religion.

human beings

have to be saved

from religion.

And one of the things

I said to my,

my Jewish friend,

I,

I shared with my

Jewish friend

was that,

you know,

part of the problem

of,

of any community

is that we,

we start to lose

our way

with traditions

and rules.

and it's not just,

there can be other

types of legalism.

I,

I've given an example

of legalism

from Anglicanism,

but you know,

when I was very,

very active

in charismatic churches,

there's a different

type of legalism

in many charismatic churches.

You've got to get

the emotion going.

Holiness

is a particular emotion.

And if you don't

get that emotion,

the spirit wasn't there.

there's a famous story

of a person

who came up

to the praise musician

and said,

boy,

I really felt

the Holy Spirit fall

at this point in time

in your song.

And this guy said,

no,

that's when the bass

kicked in.

You were just having

an aesthetic experience.

That's all it was.

And it's a very subtle way

to take us away

from,

from the Bible

and dependence upon

the gospel

and dependence upon God

that we have to have

an aesthetic experience

or an emotional experience.

or some other type of thing.

There's very subtle ways

by which our focus

goes away from Jesus

and his word

and goes in other directions.

And so,

this text is a profound,

even though it's hard

for us to understand,

if we start to understand

how he's using the images,

he's showing here

how,

what does Abraham

and Sarah do?

It appears as if

they're devout.

God's made this promise.

Let's make this promise happen.

And how we're going

to make it happen?

Well,

let's look around

in our world,

in our culture,

the best of our culture.

And we're going to look

at the best of our culture.

We're going to look

at the best of our laws.

And we're going to,

we're going to do

the best thing

in our culture.

And so,

what's the best thing

in our culture?

I'm going to sleep

with Hagar

and I'm going to have

a baby.

So here's one of the problems

when we read the Bible.

You see,

one of the things,

if you start to read

the Old Testament,

never think that because

you read the Old Testament,

every time you read something,

God is giving it

two thumbs up.

Way to go.

No.

Abraham sins in this.

Why?

It's clear even before

Genesis 12

that you're not supposed to,

for a married man,

you don't sleep

with somebody

other than your wife.

Doesn't matter if it's legal.

Doesn't matter if it's cultural.

Doesn't matter if that's

what all the smart people say.

In the Bible,

it's wrong.

So what Paul has done,

I mean,

what Abraham and Sarah

have done

is they've been religious.

They've taken

the best of the culture,

the best of the law,

and they've done something

by their own imagination

and power

to accomplish something.

At the same time,

they've done something

which actually literally

goes against

what God has said to do.

And that's what religion

and spirituality do.

And so that's why

I put it here,

religion chooses presumption

and natural,

in quotation marks,

powers over a sovereign God

who promises

and works a miracle.

And in this particular case,

I said a miracle

because the miracle

is going to come

in the story of Isaac

and as we're going to see,

it's a miracle

that's replicated

in your life and mine

when we give our lives

to Jesus.

But religion

chooses presumption

and natural powers

over a sovereign God

who promises

and works a miracle.

So,

what happens?

So, Isaac,

sorry,

Abraham and Sarah,

they have a baby

through Hagar

and his name is Ishmael

and there begins to be,

you know,

one of the ways

that even the Old Testament

shows how God

does not bless polygamy

is that instantly

there's conflict.

There's conflict

now that Hagar

starts to look down

her nose at Sarah.

Sarah now resents Hagar.

There's conflict.

There ends up being

conflict as well

when Ishmael

and eventually

the child of promise

is born,

which ultimately leads

that Hagar

has to be sent away

to what we now call

Saudi Arabia.

Muslims,

by the way,

in the Quran,

rewrite this entire story

to make Ishmael

the hero,

just so you know.

If you ever try

doing this as a Bible study

with Muslims,

they'll say,

no, no, no,

the Bible's wrong.

It's corrupt.

No, the Bible's not wrong.

It's right.

But that's a separate story.

So what happens

is four years after

Abraham and Isaac,

Abraham and Sarah

have done this with Hagar.

God shows up again

and speaks to Abraham

and says,

I'm going to give you a child.

Abraham doesn't have

a flush toilet,

but he's not stupid.

100 years old,

Sarah's 90.

And Abraham's reaction

is to laugh at God.

See, one of the wonderful things

about the Bible,

you see,

if our relationship with God

was just magic,

you laugh at God,

it doesn't work.

You know,

because in magic,

you have to have

the right attitudes,

you have the right moves,

you have to be in the right groove,

you know.

But in the way God works,

in his economy,

it doesn't have anything

to do with us.

Like,

there's a really wonderful story

in,

I think it's John 5,

where,

and it's not often caught

by people who preach

and teach the Bible,

but basically,

there's a man

who's never been healed

and he's by the pool

in Bethesda,

and basically,

he's a grumpy,

disbelieving guy,

and Jesus heals him anyway.

Because it's not as if

faith is a type,

you know,

God,

faith is a type of way

of adding up merit

and if we get enough

good things about us

then God will do a miracle.

It's all about God

being sovereignly powerful.

He does the miracle.

Abraham,

so anyway,

Abraham's 100 years old,

Sarah's 90,

God says,

I'm now going to give you

a child,

and Abraham laughed,

Sarah earlier laughed

at God,

and Isaac's born.

Recognized as a miracle

back then,

has to be recognized

as a miracle now.

90-year-old woman

from a 100-year-old man,

they have a baby.

His name's Isaac.

Could you put up

the next point, please?

We'll have to see.

God keeps his promise

by performing a miracle.

See, religion has presumption

and natural powers.

But God performs a miracle.

And a miracle

is a supernatural act of God

that the natural order

cannot produce on its own.

I think even today,

medical science

could not have

a 90-year-old woman

have a baby.

It's a miracle.

So here's then

what is going on

in the story.

God has made a promise

to bless Abraham

and through Abraham

to be a blessing

that will touch

every people group

on the planet.

And religion

tries to fulfill that

by its own powers

and with its own presumptions.

It's a bit of an image

or a symbol

for how religion

and legalism

within Christianity

always works.

Using its own powers

and its own presumption.

And instead,

against this,

God performs

a miracle

in the birth

of Isaac.

It's completely

and utterly

shocking.

And look again now

at verse 28

in chapter 4.

We haven't looked

at the Bible as much.

We've been talking

about the Bible

without reading.

But look again

at verse 28

of chapter 4.

Now you,

brothers and sisters,

like Isaac,

are children

of promise.

This is a completely

stunning text.

I do not make myself

a Christian.

Next point.

I do not make myself

only a miracle

by God

can make a human being

into a child of God.

Every single person here,

whether we have

very, very, very weak faith,

intermittent faith,

not even sure

if we have any faith anymore

because life

has just seemed

to beat us up

so much

where we are struggling

so deeply

with shame.

What matters

isn't the strength

of our faith,

the strength

of the emotions

that go along

with faith.

What matters

is that we have

put our faith

and trust in God

and when we do that,

God creates

a miracle.

Every person here

who has given

their life to Jesus,

God did a miracle.

And if you are here

and have not yet

given your life

to Jesus,

there is nothing

that you have done

or nothing

that you have to do.

There's nothing

in you

that's so bad

or so broken

or so shameful

that God

will not do

a miracle

in your life

when you call out

to Jesus

and ask him

to be your Savior

and Lord.

He turns

no one away.

Could you put up

the next point?

We're going to go

through these

a little bit quicker.

We receive the miracle

by having faith

that God

will keep

his promise.

It's just really

in many ways

as simple as this.

If we had some kids here

and I was doing

a kids talk

and I would say

the first two people,

first two kids

who come up here,

I'll give you

a toonie.

And let's say

the kids believe me

and they came up.

All they have to do,

they have to believe

that if they come to me,

I'll give them

a toonie.

And how do they,

what happens?

They put out their hand.

That's all they do.

And I put out my hand

and I drop the toonie

into their hand.

I have two toonies

in my pocket.

That's why he said two.

And that's all

that the Christian life is.

God makes this

astounding promise

that he will do

a miracle

and in that miracle

he will take you

who are dead

and make you alive.

He will take you

who are filled with shame

and make you blameless.

He will take you

who has not been perfect

at following the law

and he will clothe you

with the righteousness

of Jesus.

He will take you

against whom

countless accusations

and sins have been made

and he will pay for them

in the person of his son.

He will take you

who are not even able

to touch the sandal

of Jesus

and he will make you

one to whom

Jesus will put

his arms around

and call you

his brother and sister

in Christ.

He does all of that

as a miracle.

And faith

is just putting out

our hand

because we believe

what God has said

and God is the one

who does the act.

Next point.

God accomplished

something once

for all

in history.

In Jesus

being conceived

in the womb of Mary

being born

his sinless life

his miracles

his teaching

but all leading

to his death

upon the cross

John's gospel

is Jesus

is introduced

humanly speaking

by John the Baptist

saying to his disciples

as Jesus walks by

behold the Lamb

of God

who takes away

the sin of the world.

That God

in history

accomplishes something.

See one of the things

that all religion does

all legalism does

is that in legalism

Jesus becomes

an example

in legalism

he becomes

a teacher

in legalism

he might become

your guru

but he is never

the savior

he is never

God

doing something

definitively

in history

that only

he can do

and accomplish

that we receive

by faith.

God

in Jesus

accomplished

something once

for all

in history.

Next point.

In salvation

I accomplish

nothing

I can only

receive

what he

accomplished

for me.

In salvation

I accomplish

nothing

I can only

receive

what he

accomplished

for me.

You know

that's why

Spurgeon said

the Christian faith

is one beggar

telling another beggar

where to find bread.

It's the same

analogy as me

with the coin.

It's like

street people

saying to another

street people

that that guy

over there

in that corner

has promised

to give you

bread if you're

hungry

and if you

believe

I'm just

telling that

other person

and I say

yeah if you

come here

I'll give you

bread

and you just

go over

and you put

your hand

out

and

God gives

you the

bread of life.

Next point.

I receive

and then I

live

and I live

out of

receiving.

See the way

the book of

Galatians is

structured

is the first

two chapters

are basically

biography

autobiography.

Paul tells

important things

about himself

so they'll

understand

why he is

what he's

saying is

authoritative

that ultimately

the autobiography

is to get

across the point

that ultimately

it's all

Paul is doing

is just telling

people what

Jesus said

and about who

he is and

what he did.

That's all he's

doing.

He got it right

from the horse's

mouth so to speak

and then chapters

three and four

are theology.

It's trying to

communicate to us

who it is that

Jesus is and

what it is that

he accomplished

on the cross.

And chapters

five and six

which we'll start

looking at next

week is how

do we live

after we've

received this

miracle.

That God

he does a

miracle when

Jesus everything

about Jesus is a

miracle.

His conception

his birth

his life

his miracles

his teaching

his death

his resurrection

his ascension

it's all one

miracle and

God accomplishes

a miracle in

us when we

put our hands

in faith and

he gives us

Jesus.

Jesus and what

he accomplished

on the cross.

God gives you

Jesus.

He gives me

Jesus.

And the

Christian life

begins when we

receive and is

lived out of

receiving.

God bless you

and what

God bless you

can you put up

the last point?

I think it's the

last point.

The important

thing about faith

is its object

not its own

strength.

Just want to

sort of very

closely

you don't have to

know a precise

moment that you

gave your life

to Jesus.

You don't have to

know the moment.

Like I don't

know.

Like if you asked

a little kid

when was the

moment you began

loving your mom?

Like what kid

would know the

answer to that

question?

They might know

they might be able

to say by the

way between the

ages of 12 and

17 I hated my

mom but then

something happened

and I started to

like her.

But you know

you ask a six

year old when

did you start

loving your mom?

It would be like

I don't know

like I've just

always loved her.

And so there

are many people

here who have

become Christians

that the receiving

of what Jesus

done is not a

moment that you

can remember

because you

can't remember

a moment when

you didn't

trust.

But you know

what?

Faith isn't

about knowing

the mechanisms

or the emotions

it's about the

object.

And some of

you might know

that I began

the year not

a Christian

and the end

of the year

I did become

a Christian

I don't

really know

when it

happened.

That's fine

you don't

have to know

the moment

because what

matters is the

object not

your faith

or how

emotionally

strong it

was or how

strong your

willpower is.

and once

Jesus does

this God

does this

miracle in

you to make

you his

you're his

forever.

He doesn't

undo the

miracle.

And you're

invited to

live in

really a

whole new

way to

understand that

God has

done a

miracle in

me and

in you.

And that

there's a

type now of

a security

and a hope

and a promise

that cannot

be taken

away.

And we're

invited to

live with

a type of

quiet confidence

and courage

that comes

out of

reception.

And the

same God

who performed

a miracle

can do a

miracle in

your friends

and he'll

do other

miracles in

your life

as well.

Please

stand.

I want to

just emphasize

again if

you are here

and you've

never put

out your

hand to

Jesus

I don't

know maybe

if you're

a very

visual person

just even

now just

put your

hands out

or at least

you can do

it out loud

or just in

your own

heart and

mind and

say Jesus

Father you've

promised that

if I put

my hand out

you will

give me

Jesus and

I put my

hand out

to you now

and give

me Jesus.

I want you

to do that

miracle in

my life to

make me your

child and

never let you

go and do

it in your

own words and

God will hear

that prayer and

answer it.

Let's bow

our heads.

Father many of

us struggle

people because

we hear

texts like

this but we

quickly forget

and we think

that salvation

is a result

of how

emotional we

are or how

good our

moral life

is or how

good our

devotional life

is or how

much things

we're accomplishing

for you or

Father we start

thinking it's all

about us and

what we

accomplished as

if you're

looking at all

of our

excellencies and

Father thank you

so much that

it's a miracle

Father that you

did a miracle in

Jesus and having

him born and

live and die on

the cross and

rise from the

dead and that

you invite us

to come and

receive what

he's accomplished

and you do a

miracle when we

put our hands

out to you

Father we

thank you

Father for

this help us

Father to live

our lives day

by day gripped

and remembering

what you have

done for us and

help us to live

our lives confident

in that miracle

that you will

never undo and

grateful for what

you have done

Father may our

lives be marked

by confidence and

gratitude in who

you are in the

power of Jesus

and your promise

to make us your

own forever all

this we ask in

Jesus's name

amen

discovery went

I want to

be