GRACE UNCOVERED 16

"FREEDOM"

June 29, 2008 - Kevin Hale EPC - JAX

Galatians 5:16-25

¹³For you, brethren, have been called to liberty; only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another. ¹⁴For all the law is fulfilled in one word, even in this: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."^£ 15But if you bite and devour one another, beware lest you be consumed by one another

¹⁶I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. ¹⁸But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: ^£adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹envy, ^£murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ²³gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. ²⁴And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. ²⁵If we live in (by) the Spirit, let us also walk in (by) the Spirit. 

 

Paul is now getting down to how we change and experience "freedom" and what it feels like.

Brave Heart is the great men's movie of all times.  And it is all about FREEDOM.  Mel Gibson/William Wallace 13^th Century Scotland

 

Freedom stories get all of our attention.  But Christianity does not seem to contribute anything to freedom. 
Read Unchristian - Many think that Christianity is anything BUT freedom but rules that oppose freedom.  Real Christianity should always reveal true freedom.

So many think that freedom is to do what I want any time I want to it.  Nothing hindering me from doing what I want.

What does freedom actually feel like?  We have asked do you experience joy and do you enjoy God and do you feel free?

Paul has been relentless in his desire to teach what freedom is in relation to grace.  What it means to experience and taste liberty or freedom.

Someone has said that freedom is what we experience when we live unhindered from our deepest desires.

So many think that freedom is do what they want and getting away with it.  That might feel like freedom but unless you are expressing the deepest desire of the heart it is not freedom.

Ill.  It is not living by whims/ speeding because you are late to work but that really is not freedom/ that would be to be on time so you did not have to speed.  Feel more like it.

• Freedom is when I am able to give myself consistently or unhindered to the things that matter most to me.

Now we must never forget that when Jesus saved us he gave us life.  We now have a thirst deep inside that wants to live the way God lives.  It is a longing or yearning (Seinfeld - Castansa - Kramer )  We do cravings but that is not what I mean.

Justification (chapter3) we are given His righteousness but he then asks did you not receive the Spirit?  Then you cannot in the flesh continue that.

You gave in to the Spirit and tasted freedom.  So Paul is dealing here with the experience of FREEDOM.

Galatians 5 keep all of the law...

You are free from death and sin and rules and free for life and to God and now keep on living there.

So many then say well that is not enough and we get sidetracked to trying to live another way or rule based living.

This is why our culture says there is not God so they can do what they want.  If there is a God then we must concede to His will so we say there is no God.

So the liberal side says "no God" and the conservative says, yes and if you do not do his will he will get you and do bad stuff to you.

I think both are wrong and certainly not the complete way to understand God's will.

The bible does not come at this issue like you must give up your freedom.

Jesus first sermon in the Temple to do the daily reading in the temple said I am here to set you free (Luke).  John 8 ...if the Son sets you free you are free indeed.

Living for your self is not freedom but then we must never say to them you had better live for God or else...  That is not the gospel but slavery.

Now what is this freedom and what does it look like in our modern day lives.

WE ARE FREE WHEN WE LIVE CONSISTANTLY WITH WHO GOD HAS CREATED US TO BE IN THE DEEPEST PART OF OUR HEART.

Now when we say today that freedom is doing whatever I want is freedom we overlook the fact that the heart is a very complex and multi faceted pot of competing desires or lusts.  All of these not work with the others.  Desires in conflict.

Ill. Most of us would say that we want to live a long healthy life right?  But I want to eat whatever I want to eat and I do not want to exercise much. 

I have desires that conflict with each other.  I want a very close family/marriage but I also want a successful career that pulls at my time as well.

• Now here is what I have leaned... much of what I want will not get me what I want most.

Inside me I have a lot of stuff that I want.  Now which desire is liberating and which one ruins my life in the end.

When is a glider or eagle free?  When it is in the air flying because it was built for that. 

So to say that I am free when I can do what I want cannot be so because we have so many conflicting desires and many that opposed to what God has built us for.

To want what I was created to do.  What does your heart go crazy for?  We are a complex being.  We live doing what we want but not what wanting what is in line with what our true nature is as believers.

• 1. Who am I?

As a person that is saved by grace through faith in Christ, who am I?  (Verse 17)

• 2. What environment is best for that person?
• 3. How do I live in that environment more and more?

What keeps me from doing what is want?

Describe my salvation and thought I was still sinful at the core.

When you believe you are completely changed (EZ. 36:26 a new heart I give you...)

Paul has said that immorality or morality counts for nothing.

¹⁶I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. ¹⁸But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

 

It is the DESIRE of the flesh and Spirit that battle.

Gal. 6:13 another way Paul puts it.  New creation we have been made.  At our core we want to live in line with what God has made us.  We want to be here and some are here because someone made you but most... are here to know God more.

The battle is between the desire and the Spirit not he flesh and the Spirit.  Your heart can be deceived and drawn away.  That is what is happen here in Galatians.

6:1  Believers can sin and do bad stuff.  It can be weighed down by the cares of this world. 

 

Lust is not a bad word but an over desire even if it good and become a god to me.  Your heart can take good stuff and make it more important than God.

I have a desire to have a close family and to be comfortable and to be successful in my work and a desire to be in control and a life free of clutter etc.  I want to make a difference in my work etc. Good stuff but my heart is more than capable OVER WANTING THEM TO THE POINT THE OVER TAKE GOD.  MY FLESH WILL DO SOME GOOD STUFF.  I can live as a spiritually dead person. (19-20) this is how a dead person lives.

James deals with be drawn away of our own lust or OVER DESIRE Tim Keller puts it.

We are spiritually motivated but our heart can take good desires and make them OVER DESIRES.  LUST is not a bad word it simply means desire.

¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: ^£adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, ²⁰idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, ²¹envy, ^£murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

He is not saying that you lose your salvation or you were never saved and this is the evidence.  He has been saying YOU YOU YOU and here he says THOSE.  He did not say IF YOU DO THESE THINGS...  and he could have say YOU.

He is describing those dominated by the flesh and those dominated by the spirit.

Kevin you are a new person and you so not have to live that way anymore.  You do not have to depend on the law anymore.  The law cannot make you spiritual or spiritually alive or holy.

When you walk in the spirit and live in the spirit Kevin here is what is looks like (the fruit of the Spirit).

The heart can be led away and tempted to live apart from God morally or immorally.

¹⁶I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 

Notice these are not two commands they happen together.

Now these go far beyond the law.  We are to live in the Spirit.

My true nature is built for love in the Spirit.  Sometimes I get jealous and envy and selfish and it feels right but I should think slavery, slavery etc.  I do not want a life dominated by selfish consumption.  Anyone here that knows Christ want to live that way?  I did not think so.

The law and rules will not get to this place.  Only being led and walking in the spirit will do it.  WHO IS IN CONTROL?

Your flesh will let you do good things as long as IT is in control.  Charities have robbed many believers because they make you feel good when God may not have anything to do with them.  Many treat the church like a charity and miss God's will and blessing.  Are you led by the Spirit?

It all comes down to TRUST.  God made us alive by His grace in the past and now we are to live by grace in the Spirit today.

Gal. 2:20  Rom. 8:28,32  Do you trust him?

Change comes as we are WITH Jesus not trying to be like Him.  You do not get the fruit of the Spirit by trying to do all of them.

As you live and are led and with the Spirit you become like the Spirit.

Be with Jesus is the way you change.

When a person is controlled and lived by the Spirit that person would be loving and holy.  And anyone that lives in the Spirit will experience freedom in the truest form.

The Spirit is our moral guide.

Now how does this happen? 

• You have to believe that the Spirit is enough to lead you into holy living.

Laws and rules will never go far enough.  Ill.  I am at the mall waiting on Connie and I am reading my sermon for Sunday.  An attractive lady walks by and I look and then look down but then look up again etc.

Why?  Because as a man when I was young I would desire that beautiful girls would look back at me as approval and it made me feel good.  If they smile that is great.  Maybe I am cool.  Of course they never look back.  Hard to be cool at 50.  It is easy for young people to be cool.

The Spirit of God then says to me, What are you doing?  Well I am studying my sermon Lord.  No, Kevin what are you doing?  Nothing, Lord.  Kevin, you are looking for approval from someone else other than me.  You already have my approval.

Then I simply acknowledge my OVER DESIRE and ask Him to forgive me.  I thank God that he lives in me and shows me these things because the law cannot reach that deep into my heart.  We always get away from rules but if you live in the Spirit he will show you the heart of all of these matters.  No law against what I did at the mall.  I thank Him for the gift of faith and the desire to repent and want to love and do right.

Men we can do this at home to our wives.  Connie asks me to do something and I do what I have to do but I do not love her I am just doing it because I have to.  God is not pleased with that. We are to love one another.  I then confess to god that I have been selfish and not loving to her.  There is no law that can deal with that. 

That what it means to walk or be led by the Spirit and true freedom.

Augustine, Love God and do what you want.  When walk in the Spirit you will do what you most want in the deepest core of your new heart.