LIBERTY IN CHRIST

 

GALATIANS 5:1-13

           The Galatian Church was a Gentile church that Paul established on his first missionary journey.  These Galatian Christians, like many gentile Christians were being bothered by Judiazers who believed and taught that covenant relationship with God was for the Jews only.  In this case, these were Christian Jews who believed that all God’s gifts were for Jews only.  They thus taught that if a Gentile wanted to become a Christian, he must first become a Jew.  This meant that he must be circumcised and take the whole burden of the Law upon himself.  To these Gentile Christians, Paul says in Galatians 1:6-7, I marvel that ye are so soon removed from him that called you into the grace of Christ unto another gospel: [7] Which is not another; but there be some that trouble you, and would pervert the gospel of Christ.   In other words Paul says I am astonished by how quickly you have allowed someone to come in a pervert the Gospel that has been taught to you.  In Chapter 3 he calls them foolish or unwise, saying that they were bewitched or confused resulting in there questioning salvation by grace and seeking to establish a relationship with God through the works of the flesh.  After explaining the error in this false doctrine that they were being taught, Paul comes to Chapter 5 and encourages them to stand firm in the freedom that Christianity allows, having already been delivered from the slavery of heathenism do not become tangled up with the slavery of the Law.  These Galatians were so confused that they were considering submitting to the teachings of these Jew and being circumcised. Paul’s response to this is:

Read Verses 2-6 -  Paul argues that if a man were circumcised he put himself under an obligation to do the whole law to which circumcision was only an introduction.  In accepting circumcision and the law, a man turns his back on grace and for him it is as if Christ never died.  Paul teaches that the Christian is not bound by the Law of Moses.  He has received relationship with God by grace through faith.  He told the Ephesians in Ephes. 2:8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.  In the book of Titus, Paul says inTitus 3:5  Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost.  So salvation Paul says comes not by keeping the law, but rather is God’s act of grace and mercy and the work of the Spirit of God in the heart of man. This relationship, Paul teaches has bought Liberty for the Christian.

With this in mind look at

2 Cor. 3:17 – Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty.  In other words, a life led by the Spirit of God is a life of liberty, not of bondage to the Law.  Paul’s doctrine of grace and liberty was felt to be dangerous by many Jews and enemies of Paul.  They feared that if Christians were free from the Law, they would live wicked lives.  Many wanted to use the Law to control the Christians. 

Though most who are saved today recognize that we are no longer bound by the Law of Moses, many still look to methods other than the Spirit of God to control one another.  Some and I dare say many ministers are afraid to teach on Christian liberty, and choose rather to teach on do’s and don’t in the scriptures and when they can’t find specific don’ts, they pull together a group of scriptures, often out of context, to support their view point.  But I am here to today to tell you that there is liberty in Christ.  Christianity is not based on laws but on a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.  The Christian faith is not founded on a book, but rather on a person; Jesus Christ.  The motivation of a Christian lifestyle should not be obedience to any law, but rather love for Jesus.

I Tim 1:9-10 – The righteous should not need a bunch of laws, rules or

regulations.  Why?  Because we are to develop such a relationship with

Jesus and the Spirit of God, that we are being led by the Spirit to walk

in the will of God.  Yes Christians must grow to learn how to walk in

the Spirit and to know the will of God.  But I believe as ministers and

mature Christians we often hinder this growth process in young

Christians. As ministers and mature Christians, we have a tendency to

instill in them a reliance upon us to interpret scripture and to set

standards for their lives.  We will even go so far, as to make standards

for what we ourselves call “gray areas’.  By this preoccupation with

rules, laws, do’s and don’ts, we downplay the need to develop a lifestyle

that is led by the Spirit of God.  In fact we, through our judging of one

another do not allow room for many to gain confidence in their ability

to hear from God, and to be led by the Spirit of God.   What am I

trying to say.  We are often so sure that we know what God is saying to

someone else on a particular issue, that we judge them in error, less

holy, rebellious, etc., because they do not respond in the manner that

we think they should.  We should ask ourselves, “Who made me Jr. Holy

Ghost”.  We must allow people to follow the Spirit of God as he is leading them,

especially those who are serious about their Christian walk.  Now I am not

concerned with those who are plying with God and not serious about a

relationship with Him.  They will give an account for that. 

Yes, even those who are serious about their walk with God will make some mistakes.  They will hear wrong, and make bad decisions, just as we did and if we entrust them to God, they will learn in the midst of their bad decisions, just as we did. 

What will be learned?

I Cor. 6:12 – They will learn temperance and self-control.  Not everything that is lawful and acceptable for me to do is profitable to my Christian walk.  They will learn that Christians must restrain themselves from doing even those things that are lawful and acceptable when they hinder spiritual growth and development.

Another thing that will be learned is that liberty in Christ is not without responsibility.  Though salvation by grace and through faith has made us free from the bondage of  law, it did not eliminate our responsibility to God and to one another.

I Cor. 10:31-33 (Do all to Glory of God).

Rom. 14: 5, 13-14, 23 (be fully persuaded, don’t be a stumbling block, whatever not of faith is sin).

Gal. 5: 13 (Our liberty is to be used in service to one another not as an opportunity to sin.

As Christians, both young and mature, we are no longer under the law and our focus should not be on a list of do’s and don’ts, but rather on a lifestyle that is led by the Spirit of God.  Our liberty should not be taken as an opportunity sin.  We must always remember that our freedom was purchased with the blood of Jesus and that we have been charged in liberty to act responsibly towards God and one another.