1 00:00:00,000 –> 00:00:02,440 Well please open your Bible at Galatians 2 00:00:02,440 –> 00:00:06,740 and chapter six, the last in our series today 3 00:00:06,740 –> 00:00:09,480 entitled Grasping the Gospel. 4 00:00:10,720 –> 00:00:13,880 We’ve been learning together that many Christians 5 00:00:13,880 –> 00:00:16,360 understand that the gospel is about forgiveness 6 00:00:16,360 –> 00:00:20,440 for past sins and security for the future in heaven, 7 00:00:20,440 –> 00:00:23,780 but often we have not grasped as clearly 8 00:00:23,780 –> 00:00:25,120 the power and the presence 9 00:00:25,120 –> 00:00:28,360 of Jesus Christ in our lives today. 10 00:00:28,799 –> 00:00:31,120 We’ve seen that God has provided for us 11 00:00:31,120 –> 00:00:32,740 in that regard in the scriptures 12 00:00:32,740 –> 00:00:34,720 through this wonderful letter of Galatians 13 00:00:34,720 –> 00:00:37,560 because these believers in the early church 14 00:00:37,560 –> 00:00:40,279 were in a similar position. 15 00:00:40,279 –> 00:00:41,959 They had grasped forgiveness, 16 00:00:41,959 –> 00:00:44,599 they had grasped their security for the future, 17 00:00:44,599 –> 00:00:46,680 but they were looking for help 18 00:00:46,680 –> 00:00:51,680 as to how to live in the challenges of their daily lives. 19 00:00:52,480 –> 00:00:55,439 Paul writes this letter to help them 20 00:00:55,900 –> 00:00:59,520 and us also better grasp the gospel. 21 00:00:59,520 –> 00:01:01,759 And the central message that we’ve been learning together 22 00:01:01,759 –> 00:01:04,320 is that the gospel is more than forgiveness and heaven, 23 00:01:04,320 –> 00:01:08,660 it is indeed the ongoing work of Jesus Christ in your life 24 00:01:08,660 –> 00:01:12,360 and in mine today by his Holy Spirit. 25 00:01:12,360 –> 00:01:14,080 So Galatians we’ve been seeing then 26 00:01:14,080 –> 00:01:16,040 is about the sufficiency 27 00:01:16,040 –> 00:01:20,199 and therefore the centrality of Jesus Christ, 28 00:01:20,199 –> 00:01:22,480 not only for the past, and for the future, 29 00:01:22,480 –> 00:01:23,800 but for every challenge 30 00:01:23,820 –> 00:01:27,040 that you face in your life today. 31 00:01:27,040 –> 00:01:30,519 Christ died for me on the Cross, 32 00:01:30,519 –> 00:01:35,519 Christ lives in me as a Christian believer by the Spirit. 33 00:01:35,660 –> 00:01:37,959 And we’ve summarized the gospel in a way 34 00:01:37,959 –> 00:01:40,320 that I hope makes it memorable for us, 35 00:01:40,320 –> 00:01:45,080 that it’s about grace and life, and it’s for the world. 36 00:01:45,080 –> 00:01:47,040 And we’ve noticed as we’ve gone through Galatians, 37 00:01:47,040 –> 00:01:49,820 I think that many Christians have the idea 38 00:01:49,820 –> 00:01:53,440 that it’s grace and it’s law and it’s for the world, 39 00:01:53,459 –> 00:01:56,500 and that’s deeply ingrained in our minds, 40 00:01:56,500 –> 00:01:58,500 the idea that somehow, you know, 41 00:01:58,500 –> 00:02:00,699 we’re forgiven but then you have to make a good show 42 00:02:00,699 –> 00:02:02,379 of living the Christian life 43 00:02:02,379 –> 00:02:04,580 and then share it with others. 44 00:02:04,580 –> 00:02:08,100 And of course, it is not grace, law, and for the world. 45 00:02:08,100 –> 00:02:10,820 It’s grace, life, and for the world, 46 00:02:10,820 –> 00:02:12,779 Christ lives in me. 47 00:02:12,779 –> 00:02:14,860 That’s the very heart of Galatians, 48 00:02:14,860 –> 00:02:17,059 chapter two and verse 20. 49 00:02:17,059 –> 00:02:19,139 I have been crucified with Christ, 50 00:02:19,240 –> 00:02:23,720 and I no longer live but Jesus Christ lives in me. 51 00:02:26,020 –> 00:02:27,139 And we’ve seen therefore, 52 00:02:27,139 –> 00:02:29,320 that the gospel gives you the spirit 53 00:02:29,320 –> 00:02:32,240 and when the presence of Jesus comes into your life 54 00:02:32,240 –> 00:02:35,000 by the Holy Spirit, you are indeed free. 55 00:02:35,000 –> 00:02:36,559 You once were a slave. 56 00:02:36,559 –> 00:02:38,419 You now are a Son. 57 00:02:38,419 –> 00:02:40,880 This transformation has already taken place 58 00:02:40,880 –> 00:02:41,779 for two reasons. 59 00:02:41,779 –> 00:02:44,020 First, that God sent his son into the world. 60 00:02:44,020 –> 00:02:45,899 That’s Christmas. 61 00:02:45,899 –> 00:02:48,899 And second, that God sent his spirit into our hearts. 62 00:02:48,919 –> 00:02:51,279 That’s what happened at your conversion. 63 00:02:52,460 –> 00:02:53,740 And we saw last week then, 64 00:02:53,740 –> 00:02:56,220 that since Christ lives in us by the spirit, 65 00:02:56,220 –> 00:02:58,300 as Christian believers we are therefore 66 00:02:58,300 –> 00:03:00,300 to live by the spirit. 67 00:03:00,300 –> 00:03:03,440 That’s chapter five and verse 16. 68 00:03:03,440 –> 00:03:05,619 And we saw that that means waging war 69 00:03:05,619 –> 00:03:07,679 against the flesh on the one hand 70 00:03:07,679 –> 00:03:10,860 and sowing to the spirit on the other. 71 00:03:10,860 –> 00:03:12,619 And your freedom in Jesus Christ means 72 00:03:12,619 –> 00:03:14,220 that you are able to do these things 73 00:03:14,220 –> 00:03:16,059 as a Christian believer. 74 00:03:16,059 –> 00:03:18,740 You are not a kind of prisoner of war 75 00:03:18,740 –> 00:03:21,539 in the spiritual conflict that you have in the flesh, 76 00:03:21,539 –> 00:03:23,660 tied up and not able to do anything. 77 00:03:23,660 –> 00:03:26,960 You are like an armed soldier on the field of battle, 78 00:03:26,960 –> 00:03:30,399 so you can engage in a sustained warfare 79 00:03:30,399 –> 00:03:32,279 against the resistance of the flesh 80 00:03:32,279 –> 00:03:35,339 to the rule of Jesus Christ in your life. 81 00:03:35,339 –> 00:03:37,380 You can weaken the position of the flesh 82 00:03:37,380 –> 00:03:40,479 as you sow to the spirit and as you do these things, 83 00:03:40,479 –> 00:03:43,000 you will bear the fruit of the presence 84 00:03:43,000 –> 00:03:45,600 of Jesus Christ in your life. 85 00:03:46,619 –> 00:03:48,539 Now I hope it’s therefore becoming clear 86 00:03:49,160 –> 00:03:51,419 to us that as Tim Keller put it, 87 00:03:51,419 –> 00:03:53,160 and we used this quote before, 88 00:03:54,100 –> 00:03:55,619 the gospel is not just the ABCs 89 00:03:57,339 –> 00:04:00,259 but the A to Z of the Christian life. 90 00:04:00,259 –> 00:04:02,020 It’s not just the beginning. 91 00:04:02,020 –> 00:04:04,119 It’s not just what you grasp by the camp fire 92 00:04:04,119 –> 00:04:05,580 when you made a profession of faith 93 00:04:05,580 –> 00:04:07,240 or in that rally where you went forward 94 00:04:07,240 –> 00:04:08,860 when you made a decision, whatever it was. 95 00:04:08,860 –> 00:04:11,720 The gospel is not just the ABCs, 96 00:04:11,720 –> 00:04:15,720 it is the A to Z of the Christian life. 97 00:04:15,720 –> 00:04:18,679 Christ for me, Christ in me, 98 00:04:18,679 –> 00:04:20,640 sufficient for everything 99 00:04:20,640 –> 00:04:23,160 all the way from here to the day 100 00:04:23,160 –> 00:04:25,679 when I see him face to face. 101 00:04:27,440 –> 00:04:29,200 I want to wrap up this series today 102 00:04:29,200 –> 00:04:32,899 with this marvelous theme from Galatians in chapter six, 103 00:04:32,899 –> 00:04:35,720 the gospel glorifies God. 104 00:04:37,679 –> 00:04:38,720 And I want to link together 105 00:04:38,720 –> 00:04:40,500 the beginning and the end of Galatians, 106 00:04:40,500 –> 00:04:42,600 and I hope we’ll see how this brings together 107 00:04:42,600 –> 00:04:45,200 the main theme of this marvelous letter. 108 00:04:45,200 –> 00:04:47,899 At the end, our focus will be on verse 14. 109 00:04:47,899 –> 00:04:49,739 Chapter six in verse 14, 110 00:04:50,920 –> 00:04:54,160 may I never boast, 111 00:04:54,160 –> 00:04:55,459 never boast 112 00:04:56,440 –> 00:05:00,559 except in the cross 113 00:05:00,559 –> 00:05:02,540 of our Lord Jesus Christ. 114 00:05:04,279 –> 00:05:05,679 It’s the center of my life 115 00:05:05,679 –> 00:05:07,119 as a believer, Paul is saying. 116 00:05:07,119 –> 00:05:10,420 It’s the center of my ministry as an apostle, 117 00:05:10,420 –> 00:05:13,720 and it is the very center of the life 118 00:05:13,720 –> 00:05:15,679 of the Church of Jesus Christ. 119 00:05:16,679 –> 00:05:20,559 May nothing ever take his place. 120 00:05:22,239 –> 00:05:23,459 Now, that’s where Paul ends. 121 00:05:23,459 –> 00:05:26,480 If you flick back a couple of pages to the beginning, 122 00:05:26,480 –> 00:05:29,000 you’ll see that, indeed, that’s where he began as well. 123 00:05:29,000 –> 00:05:31,359 In chapter one in verse six, 124 00:05:31,359 –> 00:05:33,959 he says, I’m astonished 125 00:05:33,959 –> 00:05:37,119 that you are so quickly deserting 126 00:05:37,119 –> 00:05:39,440 the one, that is, Jesus who called you 127 00:05:39,440 –> 00:05:41,320 by the grace of Christ 128 00:05:41,359 –> 00:05:45,200 and are turning to a different gospel, 129 00:05:45,200 –> 00:05:48,559 which is really no gospel at all. 130 00:05:48,559 –> 00:05:49,440 That’s where he started. 131 00:05:49,440 –> 00:05:50,459 This is where he ends. 132 00:05:50,459 –> 00:05:52,160 I mean, you’ve experienced the power 133 00:05:52,160 –> 00:05:54,119 of Jesus Christ in your lives. 134 00:05:54,119 –> 00:05:55,820 You have been trusted with bringing 135 00:05:55,820 –> 00:05:57,440 this gospel to the world. 136 00:05:57,440 –> 00:06:00,500 Why would you be turning from this gospel? 137 00:06:00,500 –> 00:06:01,859 Why are you turning away 138 00:06:01,859 –> 00:06:04,799 from the centrality of Jesus Christ? 139 00:06:04,799 –> 00:06:07,619 And why is it happening so quickly? 140 00:06:08,440 –> 00:06:11,000 I want us to see this morning 141 00:06:11,000 –> 00:06:14,100 that throughout the history of the church, 142 00:06:14,100 –> 00:06:15,820 there have always been, are today, 143 00:06:15,820 –> 00:06:16,940 and I guess always will be, 144 00:06:16,940 –> 00:06:18,940 three versions of Christianity. 145 00:06:20,500 –> 00:06:23,500 One that centers on the individual, 146 00:06:23,500 –> 00:06:25,640 that is what you can do for yourself, 147 00:06:26,880 –> 00:06:28,859 one that centers on the church, 148 00:06:28,859 –> 00:06:30,820 that is what we can do for each other 149 00:06:32,260 –> 00:06:34,299 and one that centers on Jesus Christ, 150 00:06:34,380 –> 00:06:38,000 that is what God does for us in the gospel. 151 00:06:39,179 –> 00:06:40,179 Now when Paul says, 152 00:06:40,179 –> 00:06:44,579 may I never boast except 153 00:06:44,579 –> 00:06:48,420 in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, 154 00:06:48,420 –> 00:06:51,619 by raising this issue of boasting at the end, 155 00:06:51,619 –> 00:06:53,619 he’s really asking the question, 156 00:06:53,619 –> 00:06:56,420 who gets the glory? 157 00:06:56,420 –> 00:06:57,260 That’s really the question 158 00:06:57,260 –> 00:07:00,160 at the end of Galatians 6, 159 00:07:00,160 –> 00:07:01,380 who gets the glory? 160 00:07:02,619 –> 00:07:04,019 If we ask that question 161 00:07:04,019 –> 00:07:06,600 of the three versions of Christianity 162 00:07:06,600 –> 00:07:08,459 that have existed over the years, 163 00:07:08,459 –> 00:07:10,380 the answer is pretty obvious. 164 00:07:11,459 –> 00:07:15,339 In the self-centered gospel, you do, 165 00:07:15,339 –> 00:07:17,040 I do, the individual does. 166 00:07:18,399 –> 00:07:22,019 In the church-centered gospel, we do. 167 00:07:22,019 –> 00:07:23,700 The people of the church do. 168 00:07:23,700 –> 00:07:25,239 What a great church we are. 169 00:07:27,579 –> 00:07:30,140 In the Christ-centered gospel, he does. 170 00:07:31,260 –> 00:07:32,260 So you ask the question, 171 00:07:32,260 –> 00:07:33,100 who gets the glory, 172 00:07:33,100 –> 00:07:36,140 it’s either gonna be you, us, or him. 173 00:07:37,359 –> 00:07:39,500 It’s either gonna be me, us, or him. 174 00:07:42,140 –> 00:07:43,660 That’s really the central question 175 00:07:43,660 –> 00:07:47,019 at the end of this marvelous letter. 176 00:07:47,019 –> 00:07:50,140 And I hope that seeing the three versions of Christianity 177 00:07:50,140 –> 00:07:52,760 clearly this morning will help us to say with Paul 178 00:07:52,760 –> 00:07:57,760 from our hearts, may I never boast except 179 00:07:57,760 –> 00:08:00,100 in the cross of our Lord, Jesus Christ, 180 00:08:00,100 –> 00:08:04,359 and may we never boast except 181 00:08:04,359 –> 00:08:07,720 in the cross of our Lord, Jesus Christ. 182 00:08:08,839 –> 00:08:11,119 First then, the self-centered gospel. 183 00:08:12,399 –> 00:08:15,399 Now the self-centered gospel has a very simple message. 184 00:08:15,399 –> 00:08:17,600 It’s about what you can do for yourself 185 00:08:17,600 –> 00:08:20,839 and the messages that you can accomplish your own salvation. 186 00:08:21,799 –> 00:08:25,320 Of course it takes discipline, it takes accountability, 187 00:08:25,320 –> 00:08:30,079 it takes effort, all self-help goes down this road. 188 00:08:30,100 –> 00:08:33,380 What you have to do is to change your patterns of behavior 189 00:08:33,380 –> 00:08:35,200 and when you do this, you can become 190 00:08:35,200 –> 00:08:36,340 all that God wants you to be 191 00:08:36,340 –> 00:08:39,880 or all that you want to be, whichever version it is. 192 00:08:39,880 –> 00:08:42,479 Now this always sounds very attractive. 193 00:08:42,479 –> 00:08:44,500 If you ask the question who gets the glory, 194 00:08:44,500 –> 00:08:46,119 the answer is obvious, you do. 195 00:08:47,539 –> 00:08:49,760 Now we’ve seen how Paul answers this, 196 00:08:49,760 –> 00:08:52,479 especially in chapter two and verse 16. 197 00:08:52,479 –> 00:08:55,919 If you glance back there, we know, says Paul, 198 00:08:55,960 –> 00:09:00,359 that a man is not justified by observing the law. 199 00:09:00,359 –> 00:09:03,059 In other words, he’s not justified by his own efforts, 200 00:09:03,059 –> 00:09:05,239 his own righteousness, his own initiative, 201 00:09:05,239 –> 00:09:06,780 or his own improvement. 202 00:09:08,799 –> 00:09:12,219 And when Paul wrote Galatians, the self-centered gospel 203 00:09:13,580 –> 00:09:17,159 revolved around what you can do. 204 00:09:18,520 –> 00:09:21,340 It’s interesting as you trace the story through history 205 00:09:21,340 –> 00:09:25,440 that a new version of the self-centered gospel evolved 206 00:09:25,440 –> 00:09:27,859 some years later, which was not so much 207 00:09:27,859 –> 00:09:31,059 about what you can do, but about what you can discover. 208 00:09:31,059 –> 00:09:33,880 I think both forms are still with us today. 209 00:09:35,419 –> 00:09:37,599 The discovery version went like this. 210 00:09:37,599 –> 00:09:40,080 The truth lies within you. 211 00:09:41,760 –> 00:09:46,760 And salvation, therefore, lies in discovering yourself. 212 00:09:49,500 –> 00:09:53,520 And I went to the dentist this week. 213 00:09:53,520 –> 00:09:58,520 I picked up this week’s copy of US News and World Report. 214 00:09:59,719 –> 00:10:02,080 By the way, this isn’t the dentist’s copy. 215 00:10:02,080 –> 00:10:07,080 I did go out and buy my own copy afterwards. 216 00:10:08,400 –> 00:10:12,760 But you see the title there, 217 00:10:12,760 –> 00:10:15,159 In Search of the Real Jesus, 218 00:10:15,159 –> 00:10:16,280 and it’s subtitled, 219 00:10:16,280 –> 00:10:20,520 New Research Questions whether He Was more Teacher 220 00:10:20,520 –> 00:10:21,739 than Savior. 221 00:10:22,619 –> 00:10:24,340 It’s fascinating the new research, 222 00:10:24,340 –> 00:10:25,340 when you read the article, 223 00:10:25,340 –> 00:10:28,320 turns out to be a book that was written in 1979. 224 00:10:28,320 –> 00:10:30,440 That’s when I was at college. 225 00:10:30,440 –> 00:10:31,900 But apparently, it’s new research 226 00:10:31,900 –> 00:10:33,539 and the title of the book 227 00:10:33,539 –> 00:10:36,419 is The Gnostic Gospels. 228 00:10:36,419 –> 00:10:39,859 It was written by Elaine Hegels. 229 00:10:39,859 –> 00:10:43,679 And this idea of Gnosticism 230 00:10:43,679 –> 00:10:46,659 is really salvation by self-discovery, 231 00:10:46,659 –> 00:10:49,739 salvation from within yourself. 232 00:10:50,299 –> 00:10:51,859 I smiled when I looked at this 233 00:10:51,859 –> 00:10:55,260 because I remember studying Gnosticism at college 234 00:10:55,260 –> 00:10:56,359 and thinking to myself, 235 00:10:56,359 –> 00:10:58,679 how in all the world is this relevant, 236 00:10:58,679 –> 00:11:01,039 I want to go and be a pastor. 237 00:11:01,039 –> 00:11:03,119 And here it is, 25 years later 238 00:11:03,119 –> 00:11:08,119 on the front page of US News and World Report. 239 00:11:08,380 –> 00:11:11,140 The article says this, and I quote from it, 240 00:11:11,140 –> 00:11:12,700 Among the promoters, 241 00:11:12,700 –> 00:11:14,979 that is of this Gnostic Christianity, 242 00:11:14,979 –> 00:11:18,020 salvation from within yourself, 243 00:11:18,020 –> 00:11:21,919 none has been more influential than Elaine Pagels, 244 00:11:21,919 –> 00:11:25,520 now a professor of religion at Princeton University, 245 00:11:25,520 –> 00:11:28,479 but only a junior faculty member at Barnard College 246 00:11:28,479 –> 00:11:32,679 when she published her hugely popular 1979 book, 247 00:11:32,679 –> 00:11:35,359 The Gnostic Gospels. 248 00:11:35,359 –> 00:11:38,960 In fact, it is fair to say that Pagels’ bestseller 249 00:11:38,960 –> 00:11:43,960 set the stage for the runaway success of the Da Vinci Code. 250 00:11:45,640 –> 00:11:47,140 That’s why it’s back in vogue. 251 00:11:48,000 –> 00:11:51,760 The writer of this article then interviewed a priest 252 00:11:51,760 –> 00:11:56,580 from a Gnostic congregation in Canada, would you believe, 253 00:11:56,580 –> 00:11:58,239 and I think very perceptively said 254 00:11:58,239 –> 00:12:00,159 that talking to this particular priest 255 00:12:00,159 –> 00:12:04,020 felt like talking to a Buddhist. 256 00:12:04,020 –> 00:12:06,280 Well of course, because you see, 257 00:12:06,280 –> 00:12:10,679 if a priest teaches that salvation is by self-discovery, 258 00:12:10,679 –> 00:12:12,260 that is exactly what he would sound like 259 00:12:12,260 –> 00:12:14,380 because that is what Buddhism teaches. 260 00:12:15,340 –> 00:12:17,440 The thing is that it finds its way 261 00:12:17,440 –> 00:12:21,479 subtly into the church without us realizing it. 262 00:12:21,479 –> 00:12:25,919 So for a response, they went to a professor N.T. Wright, 263 00:12:25,919 –> 00:12:28,739 a distinguished academic and an Anglican bishop 264 00:12:28,739 –> 00:12:32,119 and very perceptively he makes this remark. 265 00:12:32,119 –> 00:12:37,119 America, he says, has a particularly strong case 266 00:12:38,119 –> 00:12:41,419 of the Gnostic bug. 267 00:12:41,460 –> 00:12:45,840 Because the default position 268 00:12:45,840 –> 00:12:50,840 of American religion is discovering who you really are 269 00:12:52,200 –> 00:12:55,640 as opposed to being saved by grace 270 00:12:55,640 –> 00:12:58,760 which reaches you from somewhere else. 271 00:13:00,260 –> 00:13:03,020 Now, I find that statement to be absolutely huge 272 00:13:03,020 –> 00:13:05,919 in terms of clarifying freshly for me 273 00:13:05,919 –> 00:13:08,880 the challenge of believing the gospel in our culture, 274 00:13:08,880 –> 00:13:10,359 the default position. 275 00:13:10,400 –> 00:13:12,840 What we just instinctively always go back to 276 00:13:12,840 –> 00:13:17,539 in our culture is the idea that basically 277 00:13:17,539 –> 00:13:20,080 we’re saving ourselves and that religion 278 00:13:20,080 –> 00:13:22,979 is basically about me discovering who I really am 279 00:13:22,979 –> 00:13:26,280 rather than salvation by grace that reaches me 280 00:13:26,280 –> 00:13:30,000 from somewhere, or rather someone else. 281 00:13:30,919 –> 00:13:33,960 You see, these are obviously two entirely different things. 282 00:13:33,960 –> 00:13:37,840 They are different gospels, or to use Paul’s phrase, 283 00:13:37,840 –> 00:13:40,099 the idea of being saved from within yourself 284 00:13:40,099 –> 00:13:43,179 is really no gospel at all, chapter one in verse seven. 285 00:13:45,239 –> 00:13:48,440 See, if salvation comes from within you 286 00:13:49,559 –> 00:13:53,619 then Jesus Christ died for nothing at all. 287 00:13:53,619 –> 00:13:56,659 That’s what he says in chapter two in verse 21. 288 00:13:56,659 –> 00:13:58,760 Jesus died for no reason 289 00:13:58,760 –> 00:14:01,099 if we’re able to accomplish our own salvation. 290 00:14:02,299 –> 00:14:05,580 If Christianity is really about discovering 291 00:14:05,580 –> 00:14:06,760 who you actually are, 292 00:14:07,599 –> 00:14:09,419 then you don’t really need a savior, 293 00:14:09,419 –> 00:14:10,960 you don’t need Christmas. 294 00:14:13,940 –> 00:14:15,380 If the answer lies within you, 295 00:14:15,380 –> 00:14:19,900 you need enlightenment, a teacher, a guide, a mentor. 296 00:14:19,900 –> 00:14:21,719 You see some people are much more comfortable 297 00:14:21,719 –> 00:14:25,979 with positioning Jesus as a teacher than a savior. 298 00:14:27,380 –> 00:14:29,659 Because the real offense of the cross and the gospel 299 00:14:29,659 –> 00:14:32,700 is that it tells us that there’s something wrong within us 300 00:14:32,700 –> 00:14:34,820 that we cannot fix ourselves. 301 00:14:34,820 –> 00:14:36,739 And our pride hates that. 302 00:14:37,659 –> 00:14:40,020 That’s the offense of the gospel. 303 00:14:40,020 –> 00:14:42,979 That’s why the world is always angered by it. 304 00:14:44,960 –> 00:14:46,760 Now I hope that it’s clear that Paul 305 00:14:46,760 –> 00:14:49,340 rejected the self centered Gospel. 306 00:14:49,340 –> 00:14:51,380 I mean this is run right throughout Galatians. 307 00:14:51,380 –> 00:14:53,419 Far from holiness lying within me, 308 00:14:53,419 –> 00:14:56,460 he says my flesh desired what is contrary to the spirit, 309 00:14:56,460 –> 00:14:58,619 and if it wasn’t for the death of Jesus for me, 310 00:14:58,619 –> 00:15:00,299 and the life of Jesus is in me, 311 00:15:00,299 –> 00:15:03,859 I would still be sin’s slave, because that is what I want. 312 00:15:03,859 –> 00:15:06,219 And your great need is not for enlightenment, 313 00:15:06,219 –> 00:15:09,340 not for self discovery, but for salvation. 314 00:15:09,340 –> 00:15:12,979 So thank God that the angels could say to the shepherds, 315 00:15:12,979 –> 00:15:17,979 today in the town of David, a savior is born to you. 316 00:15:20,039 –> 00:15:22,840 Joseph, call his name Jesus, 317 00:15:23,979 –> 00:15:28,979 because he will save his people from their sins. 318 00:15:29,179 –> 00:15:34,179 And he accomplished that, this Lord Jesus Christ, 319 00:15:36,520 –> 00:15:38,380 who came into the world at Christmas 320 00:15:38,380 –> 00:15:41,820 by going to a cross and coming under, 321 00:15:41,820 –> 00:15:43,239 Paul says in Galatians, 322 00:15:43,239 –> 00:15:45,520 a curse for us. 323 00:15:47,080 –> 00:15:48,780 So that bearing the curse, 324 00:15:48,780 –> 00:15:53,780 we may find forgiveness from God and life from God. 325 00:15:55,780 –> 00:15:57,739 And Paul says, 326 00:15:57,739 –> 00:16:00,940 in a world of other gospels 327 00:16:00,940 –> 00:16:04,260 that turn out not to really be any gospel at all 328 00:16:04,260 –> 00:16:07,119 because there’s really no good news if it’s down to you. 329 00:16:08,940 –> 00:16:10,840 May I never boast 330 00:16:11,979 –> 00:16:15,119 except in the cross 331 00:16:16,140 –> 00:16:20,140 of our Lord Jesus Christ. 332 00:16:22,820 –> 00:16:25,460 Now, you see that first aberration of the gospel? 333 00:16:25,479 –> 00:16:27,659 It’s always been with us, the self-centered gospel. 334 00:16:27,659 –> 00:16:30,719 It’ll always be there, watch for it. 335 00:16:30,719 –> 00:16:33,640 Remember the default position of American religion. 336 00:16:35,419 –> 00:16:37,700 Let us take our stand with the apostle Paul. 337 00:16:39,820 –> 00:16:42,700 Now, there’s another version that’s equally subtle. 338 00:16:44,539 –> 00:16:47,640 That’s the church-centered gospel. 339 00:16:48,760 –> 00:16:50,440 Here, let’s focus in a little more closely 340 00:16:50,440 –> 00:16:53,880 on the passage that was read in Galatians in chapter six 341 00:16:53,900 –> 00:16:57,099 because this is really the central theme. 342 00:16:57,099 –> 00:16:59,200 You notice, if you have the New International Version, 343 00:16:59,200 –> 00:17:01,599 that the last section of Galatians is entitled 344 00:17:01,599 –> 00:17:06,599 not circumcision but a new creation. 345 00:17:08,599 –> 00:17:12,079 I want you to notice, because it’s really very striking, 346 00:17:12,079 –> 00:17:17,079 that every verse, from verse 12 through to verse 17, 347 00:17:19,260 –> 00:17:23,739 is about circumcision, except for verse 14, 348 00:17:23,760 –> 00:17:26,020 where Paul holds out the cross 349 00:17:26,020 –> 00:17:28,140 in opposition to circumcision 350 00:17:28,140 –> 00:17:31,739 as the center of the Gospel and the Christian life. 351 00:17:31,739 –> 00:17:34,579 Every verse, and even really verse 14, 352 00:17:34,579 –> 00:17:38,300 because it is holding out the cross in opposition. 353 00:17:39,900 –> 00:17:40,979 Look at that with me, please. 354 00:17:40,979 –> 00:17:43,319 Verse 12. 355 00:17:43,319 –> 00:17:45,040 Those who want to make a good impression 356 00:17:45,040 –> 00:17:46,660 are trying to compel you, what? 357 00:17:46,660 –> 00:17:48,859 To be circumcised. 358 00:17:48,859 –> 00:17:49,680 Verse 13. 359 00:17:49,680 –> 00:17:51,439 They want you to be circumcised 360 00:17:51,439 –> 00:17:53,560 so that they may boast about your flesh. 361 00:17:54,520 –> 00:17:55,359 Verse 15. 362 00:17:55,359 –> 00:17:58,239 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything. 363 00:17:58,239 –> 00:17:59,900 What counts is a new creation. 364 00:18:01,060 –> 00:18:01,900 Verse 16. 365 00:18:01,900 –> 00:18:04,199 Peace and mercy to all who follow this rule. 366 00:18:04,199 –> 00:18:05,040 What rule? 367 00:18:05,040 –> 00:18:05,920 That rule he’s just mentioned, 368 00:18:05,920 –> 00:18:08,979 that neither circumcision or uncircumcision means anything. 369 00:18:09,920 –> 00:18:10,859 Verse 17. 370 00:18:10,859 –> 00:18:12,520 Let no one cause me trouble 371 00:18:12,520 –> 00:18:16,699 for I bear on my body the marks of Jesus. 372 00:18:16,699 –> 00:18:19,040 Hey, folks, I do have some scars, 373 00:18:19,040 –> 00:18:21,199 Paul is saying, that do mean something. 374 00:18:21,260 –> 00:18:22,099 But they are the wounds 375 00:18:22,099 –> 00:18:24,979 and the scars that have come from the persecution 376 00:18:24,979 –> 00:18:28,140 I have suffered for the sake of Jesus 377 00:18:28,140 –> 00:18:30,099 who was crucified for me. 378 00:18:31,339 –> 00:18:33,660 It’s very clear then what the theme 379 00:18:33,660 –> 00:18:36,180 of these closing verses of Galatians is, 380 00:18:36,180 –> 00:18:38,339 the obvious question is what in all the world 381 00:18:38,339 –> 00:18:40,739 does this have to do with us today? 382 00:18:42,459 –> 00:18:44,380 Now remember what happened in Galatia, 383 00:18:45,660 –> 00:18:47,599 Paul had preached the gospel 384 00:18:47,599 –> 00:18:49,880 and people had come to faith in Jesus. 385 00:18:50,859 –> 00:18:55,140 After he left, some very zealous missionaries 386 00:18:55,140 –> 00:18:59,599 arrived from Jerusalem with their particular program. 387 00:19:01,020 –> 00:19:02,920 Their message was something like this. 388 00:19:03,859 –> 00:19:05,239 It’s really great that your sins 389 00:19:05,239 –> 00:19:07,280 have been forgiven by God’s grace, they said, 390 00:19:07,280 –> 00:19:08,839 but what you really need to do now 391 00:19:08,839 –> 00:19:11,599 is to learn to live the Christian life. 392 00:19:11,599 –> 00:19:14,040 We will show you how to do that. 393 00:19:14,040 –> 00:19:15,900 We will walk you through everything that you need 394 00:19:15,900 –> 00:19:18,099 in order to live an authentic Christian life 395 00:19:18,099 –> 00:19:19,319 in the world today. 396 00:19:20,239 –> 00:19:23,060 We will show you how to develop spiritual disciplines, 397 00:19:23,060 –> 00:19:25,760 how to grow spiritually through festivals. 398 00:19:25,760 –> 00:19:29,319 We will even teach you diets for a healthy life. 399 00:19:29,319 –> 00:19:31,079 In fact, we’re going to give you everything 400 00:19:31,079 –> 00:19:33,520 that you need to live an authentic Christian life today 401 00:19:33,520 –> 00:19:36,319 and all of this is really biblical 402 00:19:36,319 –> 00:19:38,619 because you will find all of it in the Old Testament 403 00:19:38,619 –> 00:19:40,439 and the way in which it will be initiated 404 00:19:40,439 –> 00:19:41,680 into all that we now offer you 405 00:19:41,680 –> 00:19:43,660 in this program is circumcision. 406 00:19:43,660 –> 00:19:45,260 That’s basically what they said. 407 00:19:46,319 –> 00:19:47,680 And I put it like that, you see, 408 00:19:47,680 –> 00:19:51,800 because I can see how some of the folks in Galatia 409 00:19:51,800 –> 00:19:53,880 were drawn into their message 410 00:19:53,880 –> 00:19:56,079 and it sounds so bad when you put it like that. 411 00:19:59,060 –> 00:20:00,859 But just see what has happened. 412 00:20:02,859 –> 00:20:06,880 The central focus has moved with the arrival 413 00:20:06,880 –> 00:20:08,699 of these teachers from Jerusalem. 414 00:20:10,260 –> 00:20:13,260 It is no longer Christ for me on the cross 415 00:20:13,260 –> 00:20:15,199 and Christ in me by the spirit, 416 00:20:15,199 –> 00:20:19,839 the focus is now on what these people can do for me 417 00:20:19,839 –> 00:20:22,479 by giving me the spiritual tools I need. 418 00:20:24,099 –> 00:20:26,959 It’s no longer Christ for me and Christ in me, 419 00:20:26,959 –> 00:20:29,300 it’s these people who have the answer 420 00:20:29,300 –> 00:20:31,819 and I need what they now offer to me. 421 00:20:35,880 –> 00:20:38,579 Now you can trace this subtle movement 422 00:20:38,579 –> 00:20:42,060 of the church replacing the savior throughout history, 423 00:20:42,920 –> 00:20:46,739 of the church as it were nudging the Lord Jesus Christ 424 00:20:46,739 –> 00:20:49,660 out of the center of the picture 425 00:20:49,660 –> 00:20:51,739 by drawing the focus and the attention 426 00:20:51,739 –> 00:20:54,619 to what we are able to do for people. 427 00:20:57,540 –> 00:21:01,500 We have the tools, we’ll give them to you, 428 00:21:01,500 –> 00:21:04,760 we’ll show you if you join us. 429 00:21:05,560 –> 00:21:09,219 The tools vary. 430 00:21:10,959 –> 00:21:14,680 It may be circumcision and separation, 431 00:21:16,479 –> 00:21:21,000 it may be confession, penance, absolution. 432 00:21:22,380 –> 00:21:26,959 It might be accountability groups or ministry programs, 433 00:21:28,199 –> 00:21:29,540 but at the end of the day, 434 00:21:29,540 –> 00:21:32,680 what is coming across to the people 435 00:21:32,680 –> 00:21:36,479 is not so much Christ for me and Christ in me, 436 00:21:36,479 –> 00:21:38,520 but what certain people can do for me 437 00:21:38,520 –> 00:21:40,739 if I sign up to their program. 438 00:21:40,739 –> 00:21:42,339 That was the problem in Galatia. 439 00:21:44,839 –> 00:21:47,160 And when it’s about what the church offers, 440 00:21:47,160 –> 00:21:48,560 guess who gets the glory? 441 00:21:49,739 –> 00:21:50,579 We do. 442 00:21:53,199 –> 00:21:56,000 You see, I found it very, very helpful 443 00:21:57,520 –> 00:22:01,579 to apply verse 15 of Galatians chapter six 444 00:22:03,040 –> 00:22:08,040 to any program and activity of the local church. 445 00:22:10,359 –> 00:22:12,540 And I think if you do that, 446 00:22:12,540 –> 00:22:17,540 it will consistently bring you back to what really matters 447 00:22:17,619 –> 00:22:21,040 and will help us from getting hung up on the wrong issue. 448 00:22:22,219 –> 00:22:23,939 Now, you can pick whatever program, 449 00:22:23,939 –> 00:22:25,219 whatever activity you want, 450 00:22:25,219 –> 00:22:28,699 you can plug it into Galatians 6 in verse 15 451 00:22:28,699 –> 00:22:31,300 and it will set you straight on where the center of gravity 452 00:22:31,640 –> 00:22:33,319 for the church needs to be. 453 00:22:34,719 –> 00:22:36,979 And there is a wonderful freedom here. 454 00:22:37,900 –> 00:22:39,660 Look at that verse. 455 00:22:39,660 –> 00:22:44,660 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything. 456 00:22:46,339 –> 00:22:49,640 What counts is a new creation. 457 00:22:51,000 –> 00:22:53,780 See, Paul was quite happy to circumcise Timothy 458 00:22:53,780 –> 00:22:54,900 if it was going to be helpful 459 00:22:54,900 –> 00:22:57,300 for the ministry of outreach to the Jews. 460 00:22:58,300 –> 00:23:00,420 He was vigorous in opposing the imposition 461 00:23:00,420 –> 00:23:03,000 of circumcision on Titus or anyone else 462 00:23:03,000 –> 00:23:05,060 if it was being laid out as a rule 463 00:23:05,060 –> 00:23:06,619 for all of these new converts 464 00:23:06,619 –> 00:23:08,400 in Galatia or anywhere else. 465 00:23:10,540 –> 00:23:12,979 He wasn’t taking a great kind of position 466 00:23:12,979 –> 00:23:15,319 on this issue, he was saying, 467 00:23:15,319 –> 00:23:17,119 look, if you’re hung up on that issue, 468 00:23:17,119 –> 00:23:19,020 you’re just hung up on the wrong issue. 469 00:23:20,939 –> 00:23:24,160 Neither circumcision nor uncircumcision 470 00:23:24,160 –> 00:23:25,280 counts for anything. 471 00:23:27,699 –> 00:23:30,819 What matters, whether it’s the ministry 472 00:23:30,819 –> 00:23:32,619 of the church in Jerusalem or Antioch 473 00:23:32,619 –> 00:23:33,959 or whether it be here in Galatia, 474 00:23:33,959 –> 00:23:36,180 what matters is is there new life, 475 00:23:37,500 –> 00:23:38,619 is there new creation? 476 00:23:41,780 –> 00:23:43,060 You see, this always delivers us 477 00:23:43,060 –> 00:23:44,920 from slavery to program, doesn’t it? 478 00:23:46,260 –> 00:23:47,760 You can take things at random. 479 00:23:47,760 –> 00:23:49,099 Let me take things that have been 480 00:23:49,099 –> 00:23:50,800 areas of discussion for us. 481 00:23:53,859 –> 00:23:55,300 Neither being in a small group 482 00:23:55,380 –> 00:23:57,680 nor not being in a small group means anything. 483 00:23:59,339 –> 00:24:02,800 What counts is a new creation. 484 00:24:02,800 –> 00:24:03,819 It’s the new life in you. 485 00:24:03,819 –> 00:24:05,339 I’m not asking what program you’re in, 486 00:24:05,339 –> 00:24:07,040 I’m asking is the new life in you. 487 00:24:08,199 –> 00:24:10,560 That’s what matters, is the new life 488 00:24:10,560 –> 00:24:12,819 being manifest in us and among us, 489 00:24:14,699 –> 00:24:15,640 whatever its form? 490 00:24:19,060 –> 00:24:20,880 Neither having a traditional service 491 00:24:20,880 –> 00:24:22,900 nor a contemporary service means anything. 492 00:24:22,900 –> 00:24:24,400 What counts is a new creation. 493 00:24:25,880 –> 00:24:28,020 That the life of the spirit is with us in the sanctuary 494 00:24:28,020 –> 00:24:30,280 and the life of the spirit is with us in the gym. 495 00:24:30,280 –> 00:24:31,959 That’s all that matters. 496 00:24:31,959 –> 00:24:32,920 All that matters. 497 00:24:37,599 –> 00:24:39,880 Nor the meeting in one venue, nor in five venues, 498 00:24:39,880 –> 00:24:41,760 or however many venues, means anything. 499 00:24:41,760 –> 00:24:42,880 It doesn’t count for anything. 500 00:24:42,880 –> 00:24:45,500 What counts is a new creation. 501 00:24:47,859 –> 00:24:51,119 It’s new life that flows from Christ, 502 00:24:51,119 –> 00:24:52,859 crucified by the Spirit, 503 00:24:52,859 –> 00:24:55,239 coming into Christian believers 504 00:24:55,239 –> 00:24:57,599 and coming to those who are not yet Christian believers 505 00:24:57,599 –> 00:24:59,640 so they become Christian believers. 506 00:24:59,640 –> 00:25:03,160 Is that new creation evident among us. 507 00:25:03,160 –> 00:25:04,599 It’s all that matters, Paul says. 508 00:25:04,599 –> 00:25:05,719 It’s all that matters. 509 00:25:08,640 –> 00:25:10,760 You see, Galatians 6.15 will save us 510 00:25:10,760 –> 00:25:12,439 from getting hung up on the wrong issue. 511 00:25:12,439 –> 00:25:15,040 It will bring us back to the right center of gravity 512 00:25:15,040 –> 00:25:17,079 for the life of the church, which is the Gospel. 513 00:25:17,079 –> 00:25:19,959 The only thing that matters is the new creation. 514 00:25:19,959 –> 00:25:22,319 New life in Christ by the Holy Spirit, 515 00:25:22,319 –> 00:25:25,900 that is the message of Galatians. 516 00:25:27,479 –> 00:25:29,400 And you see how subtle it is 517 00:25:30,520 –> 00:25:32,640 that whether it be the self-centered Gospel 518 00:25:32,640 –> 00:25:36,979 in which the individual seeks to subvert Christ 519 00:25:36,979 –> 00:25:39,599 and draw the glory to him or herself 520 00:25:39,599 –> 00:25:42,020 or the church that corporately seeks 521 00:25:42,020 –> 00:25:44,760 to take the central place away from Jesus Christ 522 00:25:44,760 –> 00:25:47,780 so that the glory comes to us into our programs, 523 00:25:47,780 –> 00:25:49,579 there is always this temptation 524 00:25:49,839 –> 00:25:51,020 for us individually and together 525 00:25:51,020 –> 00:25:53,619 to subvert the position of Jesus Christ 526 00:25:53,619 –> 00:25:56,459 and therefore to become distracted from the Gospel. 527 00:25:56,459 –> 00:25:59,180 And we have to get back to this question. 528 00:25:59,180 –> 00:26:00,680 Does the new life live in you? 529 00:26:02,280 –> 00:26:05,380 Not asking have you lived a moral life, a successful life, 530 00:26:05,380 –> 00:26:08,579 not asking if you feel part of the church or its programs, 531 00:26:08,579 –> 00:26:12,339 I’m asking is the life of Jesus Christ within you? 532 00:26:12,339 –> 00:26:15,560 Can you say I’ve been crucified with Christ 533 00:26:15,560 –> 00:26:18,739 and I no longer live but Jesus Christ lives within me 534 00:26:18,739 –> 00:26:21,619 and the life I live in the body I live by faith 535 00:26:21,619 –> 00:26:24,979 in the son of God who loved me and gave Himself for me. 536 00:26:24,979 –> 00:26:29,979 Where people are coming to that reality God gets the glory. 537 00:26:32,359 –> 00:26:34,420 The church can’t give you spiritual life. 538 00:26:35,579 –> 00:26:38,040 Your individual search will never in itself 539 00:26:38,040 –> 00:26:39,420 lead you to spiritual life. 540 00:26:39,420 –> 00:26:43,180 Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has life in Himself 541 00:26:45,260 –> 00:26:48,439 and He came that you may have that life 542 00:26:48,479 –> 00:26:50,599 and He offers Himself to you today 543 00:26:50,599 –> 00:26:54,479 and all of God’s blessings are found in Him. 544 00:26:54,479 –> 00:26:58,119 Those who receive Him, those who believe in His name, 545 00:26:58,119 –> 00:27:03,119 to them He givesthe right to become children of God. 546 00:27:05,280 –> 00:27:09,319 So the self-centered gospel, the church-centered gospel 547 00:27:09,319 –> 00:27:11,119 and finally, of course, where we want to be, 548 00:27:11,119 –> 00:27:13,219 the Christ-centered gospel. 549 00:27:13,219 –> 00:27:16,459 May I never boast. 550 00:27:16,540 –> 00:27:21,540 Never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. 551 00:27:27,959 –> 00:27:30,000 Now, notice by the way, the contrast there 552 00:27:30,000 –> 00:27:32,359 with verse 13 just before, 553 00:27:32,359 –> 00:27:34,520 where Paul says what they want to do, 554 00:27:34,520 –> 00:27:37,300 that is the circumcision group, 555 00:27:37,300 –> 00:27:38,859 they want you to be circumcised 556 00:27:38,859 –> 00:27:41,839 that they may boast about your flesh 557 00:27:42,000 –> 00:27:45,060 in their flesh but may I never boast 558 00:27:45,060 –> 00:27:50,060 except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. 559 00:27:51,180 –> 00:27:52,479 They’re interested in how many people 560 00:27:52,479 –> 00:27:53,640 are in their program. 561 00:27:55,839 –> 00:27:59,739 My interest is in the cross of Jesus, Paul says. 562 00:28:01,199 –> 00:28:02,420 Now, having gotten to the letter 563 00:28:02,420 –> 00:28:04,479 I find myself going back to the beginning. 564 00:28:04,479 –> 00:28:05,780 It’s funny, when you get to the end 565 00:28:05,780 –> 00:28:07,339 of studying a letter in the New Testament 566 00:28:07,339 –> 00:28:09,000 you feel like I must go back to the beginning 567 00:28:09,160 –> 00:28:10,660 if I understand it now. 568 00:28:10,660 –> 00:28:12,560 And it’s come freshly to me 569 00:28:12,560 –> 00:28:15,020 just looking at verse three and four again. 570 00:28:15,020 –> 00:28:16,280 Grace and peace to you. 571 00:28:16,280 –> 00:28:17,479 Chapter one, verse three and four. 572 00:28:17,479 –> 00:28:20,619 From God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ 573 00:28:20,619 –> 00:28:22,479 Who gave himself for our sins 574 00:28:22,479 –> 00:28:25,300 to rescue us from the present evil age 575 00:28:25,300 –> 00:28:28,819 according to the will of our God and Father. 576 00:28:28,819 –> 00:28:30,280 Now you see that’s the gospel. 577 00:28:30,280 –> 00:28:32,300 Right there at the beginning. 578 00:28:32,300 –> 00:28:35,719 It’s what Christ did for me, then on the cross 579 00:28:35,719 –> 00:28:37,920 that is he gave himself for my sins. 580 00:28:37,920 –> 00:28:41,180 It’s what Christ does for me now by the spirit 581 00:28:41,180 –> 00:28:46,180 he rescues us from the present evil age. 582 00:28:46,420 –> 00:28:48,180 That’s the gospel. 583 00:28:48,180 –> 00:28:49,540 Now notice who gets the glory. 584 00:28:49,540 –> 00:28:52,540 Verse five, according to the will of God our Father 585 00:28:52,540 –> 00:28:57,380 to whom be glory forever and ever, amen. 586 00:29:00,119 –> 00:29:02,979 You see if Christianity is about what you do for God 587 00:29:02,979 –> 00:29:03,959 you get the glory. 588 00:29:04,920 –> 00:29:08,760 If Christianity becomes about what we do for each other 589 00:29:09,920 –> 00:29:11,180 then we get the glory. 590 00:29:12,400 –> 00:29:14,680 But if Christianity is about what God 591 00:29:14,680 –> 00:29:18,540 does for us in Jesus Christ then God gets the glory. 592 00:29:20,319 –> 00:29:22,739 And on that night when Jesus was born 593 00:29:22,739 –> 00:29:27,739 the angels sang, glory to God in the highest. 594 00:29:29,920 –> 00:29:31,660 Why? 595 00:29:31,699 –> 00:29:34,300 Because God did for us what we could never do 596 00:29:34,300 –> 00:29:37,140 for ourselves and what none of us could do for each other. 597 00:29:38,900 –> 00:29:42,739 He sent his son into the world, born of a woman, 598 00:29:42,739 –> 00:29:46,260 to redeem those under the law that we might receive 599 00:29:46,260 –> 00:29:48,859 the full rights of sons. 600 00:29:49,880 –> 00:29:54,180 And this Christ bore the curse in his body 601 00:29:54,180 –> 00:29:55,719 through his death on the cross, 602 00:29:55,719 –> 00:29:59,300 he graciously receives all who will come to him, 603 00:29:59,319 –> 00:30:04,140 forgives, makes you a son of God, an heir of God, 604 00:30:04,140 –> 00:30:07,260 gives you the spirit and therefore makes his home with you, 605 00:30:07,260 –> 00:30:10,180 facing every circumstance of your life with you. 606 00:30:11,619 –> 00:30:16,619 May I never boast, except in the cross 607 00:30:18,099 –> 00:30:19,819 of our Lord, Jesus Christ. 608 00:30:21,699 –> 00:30:26,619 Where is the center of your interest and affection? 609 00:30:27,219 –> 00:30:31,800 Is it yourself and your experience? 610 00:30:33,239 –> 00:30:37,199 Is it the church and her ministry? 611 00:30:39,020 –> 00:30:43,000 Is it Christ and his gospel? 612 00:30:44,060 –> 00:30:46,859 I’m persuaded to the core of my being that 613 00:30:47,959 –> 00:30:50,800 what is so desperately needed in our time 614 00:30:50,800 –> 00:30:52,579 is gospel-centered Christians 615 00:30:52,579 –> 00:30:54,699 and gospel-centered churches, right? 616 00:30:55,339 –> 00:30:57,719 Not self-centered, not church-centered. 617 00:30:57,719 –> 00:30:59,079 Gospel-centered. 618 00:31:00,260 –> 00:31:02,459 Folks who are obsessed 619 00:31:02,459 –> 00:31:04,920 not with what we can do for ourselves 620 00:31:04,920 –> 00:31:06,619 nor what we can do for each other 621 00:31:06,619 –> 00:31:09,359 but for what God is able to do for us 622 00:31:09,359 –> 00:31:11,119 and with us and through us 623 00:31:11,119 –> 00:31:15,219 for his own glory by his son, Jesus Christ. 624 00:31:16,420 –> 00:31:17,479 That’s our ministry. 625 00:31:18,459 –> 00:31:19,300 That’s our life. 626 00:31:19,560 –> 00:31:20,400 Study. 627 00:31:24,260 –> 00:31:28,579 Some years ago when I was serving church in London, 628 00:31:29,819 –> 00:31:31,459 I spent a day at a conference 629 00:31:31,459 –> 00:31:34,739 that had been called by the local authority 630 00:31:34,739 –> 00:31:36,780 to bring together representatives 631 00:31:36,780 –> 00:31:40,099 of various caring professions. 632 00:31:40,099 –> 00:31:41,939 They came in pairs. 633 00:31:41,939 –> 00:31:44,020 Almost a comedy this thing, really, 634 00:31:44,020 –> 00:31:45,619 but you had two doctors. 635 00:31:45,619 –> 00:31:47,939 You had a couple of social workers, 636 00:31:47,939 –> 00:31:50,819 educators, counselors, health care professionals 637 00:31:50,819 –> 00:31:54,819 and, of course, to complete the number, two pastors. 638 00:31:54,819 –> 00:31:57,619 Well, I didn’t know the other pastor well, 639 00:31:57,619 –> 00:31:59,060 but it was soon clear to me 640 00:31:59,060 –> 00:32:02,420 that he was well at home in this environment. 641 00:32:02,420 –> 00:32:06,380 What I mean by that was he had an opinion about everything 642 00:32:06,380 –> 00:32:08,540 and he wasn’t afraid to share it. 643 00:32:08,540 –> 00:32:09,699 You know what I mean. 644 00:32:09,699 –> 00:32:11,739 He waxed eloquent with opinions 645 00:32:11,739 –> 00:32:15,199 about politics and about psychology 646 00:32:15,239 –> 00:32:17,800 and about educational theory. 647 00:32:17,800 –> 00:32:20,739 He had ideas on how to change the schools, 648 00:32:20,739 –> 00:32:23,839 how to change the family, how to change everything. 649 00:32:24,760 –> 00:32:27,319 Now, you know how it is, the awkwardness, 650 00:32:27,319 –> 00:32:28,780 when there is someone in a group 651 00:32:28,780 –> 00:32:30,459 who is speaking way too much 652 00:32:30,459 –> 00:32:32,420 and they themselves are the only person 653 00:32:32,420 –> 00:32:34,099 who doesn’t know it? 654 00:32:34,099 –> 00:32:38,060 Well, the more he went on, honestly, 655 00:32:38,060 –> 00:32:39,959 the more tiresome he became 656 00:32:39,959 –> 00:32:41,800 and because I was the other pastor, 657 00:32:41,839 –> 00:32:45,260 personally, I kind of felt some embarrassment about it all. 658 00:32:46,520 –> 00:32:49,520 Well, eventually, one of the social workers 659 00:32:49,520 –> 00:32:51,699 reached the end of his patience 660 00:32:52,880 –> 00:32:54,400 and midway through the afternoon, 661 00:32:54,400 –> 00:32:55,920 when we were all getting a little dozy, 662 00:32:55,920 –> 00:32:58,640 he wakened us up with a rather stirring question. 663 00:32:59,680 –> 00:33:02,260 He said to the pastor, you know, 664 00:33:02,260 –> 00:33:06,199 you have been making many contributions to this discussion 665 00:33:07,520 –> 00:33:09,500 and I’d like to ask you a question. 666 00:33:10,359 –> 00:33:15,359 What exactly is your professional expertise? 667 00:33:17,780 –> 00:33:19,579 There was a bit of tension in the room. 668 00:33:21,020 –> 00:33:23,880 Well, he said I kind of do a bit of everything, really. 669 00:33:24,859 –> 00:33:26,599 A bit of what all of you do. 670 00:33:29,599 –> 00:33:32,199 And I really do anything that I can to help people. 671 00:33:35,560 –> 00:33:37,959 So the social worker who asked the question said, 672 00:33:37,959 –> 00:33:43,739 so, what you’re saying is that you do a bit of what all of us do, 673 00:33:43,739 –> 00:33:46,680 except that you’re not professionally qualified for any of it. 674 00:33:51,199 –> 00:33:52,939 And then he turned to me 675 00:33:54,939 –> 00:33:59,939 and he said what exactly is your professional expertise? 676 00:34:00,420 –> 00:34:02,420 What exactly is your professional expertise? 677 00:34:06,119 –> 00:34:07,880 I took a deep breath and I said, 678 00:34:10,879 –> 00:34:13,520 I am a minister of the gospel of Jesus Christ. 679 00:34:15,439 –> 00:34:17,560 And that means that I believe that 680 00:34:17,560 –> 00:34:20,520 God has made himself known to us in the Bible. 681 00:34:22,719 –> 00:34:25,820 And, so my task, my calling 682 00:34:25,820 –> 00:34:30,820 here is to show people in the Bible 683 00:34:32,139 –> 00:34:34,719 what God has said about himself. 684 00:34:36,340 –> 00:34:40,860 So that, by turning to him through Jesus Christ, 685 00:34:42,340 –> 00:34:44,899 people can find forgiving from God 686 00:34:46,879 –> 00:34:49,899 and power to live a new life 687 00:34:49,899 –> 00:34:52,399 that’s pleasing to God in this world. 688 00:34:53,979 –> 00:34:55,500 And then after they die 689 00:34:56,280 –> 00:35:00,199 they see an everlasting life in his presence. 690 00:35:03,979 –> 00:35:05,100 Now that’s the gospel. 691 00:35:06,739 –> 00:35:08,659 By which you are saved, 692 00:35:10,879 –> 00:35:14,580 on which we have taken our stand. 693 00:35:17,280 –> 00:35:22,219 May God give us grace to grasp it 694 00:35:22,399 –> 00:35:25,820 and to live it 695 00:35:27,820 –> 00:35:30,939 and to bring it, communicate it 696 00:35:30,939 –> 00:35:34,379 in every way possible to a lost world. 697 00:35:37,139 –> 00:35:39,639 And all for the sake of Jesus Christ 698 00:35:41,500 –> 00:35:45,379 and for his ultimate glory. 699 00:35:46,620 –> 00:35:49,600 And all God’s people together said, Amen. 700 00:35:50,159 –> 00:35:51,040 Father, 701 00:35:53,679 –> 00:35:57,439 we thank you that you have come to do for us in Jesus Christ 702 00:35:57,439 –> 00:35:59,179 what we could not do for ourselves 703 00:35:59,179 –> 00:36:01,000 and what we cannot do for each other. 704 00:36:03,000 –> 00:36:05,560 We thank you today that you are far more 705 00:36:05,560 –> 00:36:08,360 than our teacher, our prophet, our priest, 706 00:36:08,360 –> 00:36:10,179 more even than our King. 707 00:36:11,560 –> 00:36:13,520 Thank you that you are our savior. 708 00:36:15,840 –> 00:36:18,419 Father when angels say his name will be Jesus 709 00:36:19,060 –> 00:36:21,600 because he will save his people from their sins, 710 00:36:21,600 –> 00:36:24,560 we rejoice because we know this to be our greatest need. 711 00:36:26,379 –> 00:36:28,379 When we hear that his name is Emmanuel, 712 00:36:28,379 –> 00:36:32,699 we rejoice because we need your presence in our lives 713 00:36:32,699 –> 00:36:34,659 and we rejoice today because of it. 714 00:36:36,540 –> 00:36:39,500 When we hear that the savior of the world was born, 715 00:36:39,500 –> 00:36:42,860 we thank you that there is good news for every person 716 00:36:42,860 –> 00:36:45,939 and that it is been trusted to your people. 717 00:36:48,699 –> 00:36:51,219 And so, with the angels, we would say glory be 718 00:36:51,219 –> 00:36:52,979 to God in the highest. 719 00:36:54,780 –> 00:36:59,540 May we never seek to draw one small part 720 00:36:59,540 –> 00:37:03,239 of your glory to ourselves individually or together. 721 00:37:04,780 –> 00:37:06,820 Rather, receive this Christmastime. 722 00:37:06,820 –> 00:37:10,199 The worship of our hearts cause us to be faithful 723 00:37:10,199 –> 00:37:13,360 to this gospel and oh God in your mercy, 724 00:37:14,300 –> 00:37:18,419 make us fruitful for this gospel in a lost world 725 00:37:19,760 –> 00:37:21,260 to which Christ has come. 726 00:37:23,780 –> 00:37:25,360 For these things we ask. 727 00:37:26,620 –> 00:37:29,219 In Jesus’ name, amen.