FOR THE LOVE OF GOD

It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery. – Galatians 5:1.

If Galatians is the esteemed charter of Christian liberty, then Galatians 5:1 should most certainly be considered one of the key verses of the epistle. With the language of freedom and slavery still ringing in their ears from the analogy of Hagar and Sarah given in previous verses, the Galatians are now told by Paul: “Plant your feet firmly therefore within the freedom that Christ has won for us, and do not let yourselves be caught again in the shackles of slavery” (Phillips). This verse contains both an assertion, “For freedom . . . Christ has set us free,” and a command based upon it, “Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.”

The contrast of an indicative followed by an imperative is a common grammatical feature in Paul’s writings, as we see in much of his letters. The imperative, “Stand firm,” not only does not contradict the indicative, “Christ has set us free,” but in fact results from it. Because of who God is and what he has done for believers in Jesus Christ, Christians are commanded to “become what they are,” that is, to make visibly apparent in the earthly realm of their human existence that which God has already declared and sealed in the divine verdict of justification. When this enduring connection is forgotten or downplayed, the temptation for the believer, the disciple of Christ, to lapse into legalism on the one hand or into abject wantonness on the other, it then becomes a serious threat to Christian freedom/liberty.

The structure of the indicative/imperative formula in Paul also relates to the salvation-historical situation of the believer who must live out the Christian life in the eschatological (end times doctrine) tension between the No Longer and the Not Yet of this “present evil age” (Galatians 1:4). We have seen Paul struggling with this tension throughout Galatians, and it continues to shape his moral instructions found throughout the chapters of Galatians 5–6.

As the late German Protestant theologian, Walter Grundmann, has written:

“The Christian stands in the tension of a double reality. Basically freed from sin, redeemed, and reconciled . . . [yet] he is actually at war with sin, threatened, attacked and placed in jeopardy by it.”

The fact of justification propels the Christian into a world of struggle, an in-between time bounded by the great accomplishment of redemption in Christ’s finished work on the cross on the one hand and the yet-to-be-realized consummation of God’s redemptive purposes at the second advent of Christ on the other. In this real world of struggle and temptation, the sham gods of this present evil world, war against the people of God, ever seeking to subject them again to the yoke of bondage.

By the power of the Holy Spirit and His anointing, however, Christian believers are enabled and empowered to “stand firm” against the encroachment of such demonic forces. The indicative of their Christ-won freedom secures the imperative of their Spirit-led obedience and victory.

In the words of the Dutch theologian, Herman Ridderbos:

“Indicative and imperative [grammatical features] are both the object of faith, on the one hand in its receptivity, on the other in its activity. . . . The indicative represents the ‘already’ as well as the ‘not yet.’ The imperative is likewise focused on the one as well as the other.”

On the basis of the No Longer, Paul could say to believers that all things are theirs, and they are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s (see 1 Corinthians 3:22–23). On the basis of the Not Yet, he could command, forbid, warn, and even threaten, as he did here in Galatians 5–6. The object of Paul’s ethical and moral exhortations, then, is not just a final justification, as if the first application did not quite take, but rather an imperative towards the Christians’ growth in grace, their call to holiness, sanctification, and new life in Christ.

Christian freedom is the precious birthright of every believer, “An inestimable blessing,” Calvin called it, “for which we should fight even to the death. For we are not talking here about our hearths but about our altars.”

To Be Continued

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New American Standard Bible®, NASB © 2020 by The Lockman Foundation.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Matthew 16:13-25

3. The Singular Way in Which the Church Does Its Work

Immediately after announcing how He would build His church, Jesus explained that He must die and be resurrected. Not fully understanding, Peter objected. Jesus rebuked him and then announced the eternal principal for building a great Spirit-filled church: “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me” (Matthew 16:24).

A. Self-denial

The church prevails and is invincible when we deny self. This means that we enthrone Christ as we dethrone ourself. Christians should remember that we never bless unless we bleed. A candle never gives light until it is consumed. Water does not become steam until it is put under 212 degrees of heat. Grapes have to be crushed before they become juice. Wheat has to be ground before it becomes bread. Christ is the Savior because He died on the cross. Jesus taught that self-denial is the key that opens the door to success in Christian service.

B. Cross-bearing

Our Lord taught that the church prevails when we take up our cross. The Christian life is the sacrificial life. Luke, in his Gospel, added one word to this command: “Let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily” (Luke 9:23, italics mine). A life lived in the constant hourly awareness of the demands of God and the needs of others is more important than moments of sacrifice.

The great Christian Missionary, Sundar Singh was traveling with a Tibetan companion on a bitterly cold day. As they trudged through the mountain, they felt they could not survive the terrible experience. Reaching a steep precipice, they saw a man who had slipped over the edge. The man was almost dead on the ledge of the rock below. Sundar immediately went down to try to help the poor fellow to safety. The companion refused to help saying that it would be all they could do to save themselves and went on, leaving Sundar behind.

With great difficulty, Sundar managed to get the dying man up the slope and back on the road. He struggled along, holding the man up. Before long, they came upon the body of his former companion. The Tibetan was frozen to death.

On struggled Sundar, and gradually the dying man, receiving warmth from the friction of his body against that of his rescuer, began to revive. Sundar himself grew warm through his labor. At last, they reached the village and were safe. With a full heart, Sundar thought of the words of the Master, “Whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.”

The church will prevail and remain invincible only as we follow Christ. Jesus said, “Follow me” (Matthew 4:19; Mark 2:14) The Christian must render to Jesus Christ perfect obedience.

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture Reference: Matthew 16:13-25

2. The Church’s Effectual Relationship to Christ – Continued

Third, the church only prevails and is successful through the power of Christ Jesus. After Jesus told the disciples He would build a church, He made this great promise, “The gates of hell shall not prevail against it!” When I first read that statement, I thought of the church as being shut up like a fortress with the forces of hell attacking the church. Upon closer scrutiny, I discovered that the passage taught just the opposite. Jesus said that the gates of hell could not prevail against the church. The church is attacking the gates of Hades. As the church carries out its evangelistic ministry by sharing the gospel, we batter down the gates of hell and death. As the church preaches the gospel, we snatch the lost from a burning hell that they would receive if they rejected Christ as their Savior.

The Lord here is commanding us to be an attacking army sent from heaven. “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15). The theme song of the church is not “Hold the fort!” but rather, “Onward, Christian soldiers!”

It takes faith to make a church great. Faith is the confidence, the assurance, the belief in God and His power. We can become what God wants us to be. We can do what God would have us to do. When we set out to do what God would have us to do, there will be people at every crossroad on the highway of success who will say, “It can’t be done.” They do not have the faith, and they certainly don’t have the vision. We must not allow them to rob us of our faith and our vision to attack the gates of hell. Great things are possible if we dream great dreams for God.

I like to tell the story of three survivors of a wrecked ship in the Pacific and their spirit. These men landed on a lonely Pacific island. Scouting over the island, they found no other humans there. It was a barren sort of an island just a mile or so in diameter. When Sunday came, the three men met and had church. They discovered they were all Christians. Before they dismissed on Sunday, they set a goal to have four in church the following Sunday. I like that spirit. Great things can and will happen if we will believe.

“I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:19). Greek scholars call this a future paraphrastic construction. It means: Whatever we bind on earth shall have already been bound in heaven! Whatever we loose on earth shall have already been loosed in heaven! Jesus told us to receive our orders from God in heaven. We have the keys of the kingdom, and we can unlock the gates of hell. On the Day of Pentecost, Peter used these keys of the kingdom, and three thousand people were loosed from the gates of hell. In Acts 10, he used these keys again, and the household of Cornelius was converted.

In striking analogies, the New Testament describes the main task of the church. Jesus compared the Christian to light, salt, water, bread, and fire, and He told us that we have the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Now, what can light, salt, water, bread, fire, and keys have in common? Penetration is the one common denominator. Light penetrates darkness, and it disappears. Salt penetrates meat, and it is preserved. Water penetrates the ground, and a harvest springs forth. Bread penetrates the body and gives strength. A key penetrates a lock, and a door is opened. And fire is dependent on penetration for its very survival.

The church of Jesus Christ is God’s penetrating force in our society. As Christians move in society, they are to preach the gospel (Mark 16:15). We are to bring the world to the foot of the cross that men and women might know Christ as Lord and Savior. The church prevails and is invincible when it has this unique relationship to Christ.

To Be Continued

Unless otherwise noted, Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV © 1982 by Thomas Nelson.
Used by permission. All rights reserved.