Our culture is captivated by the before and after stories. Television networks such as DIY and TLC feed this frenzy. These networks feed our culture with a steady diet of extreme makeovers. Everything from people to houses is fair game to experience one of these extreme makeovers. At the end of the show when the before and after photos are displayed we are amazed by the transformation that has taken place. However all of these transformations pale in comparison to the transformation in the life of the believer as a result of faith in Jesus Christ. The apostle Paul never grew tired of rejoicing over the revolutionary change brought into the life of a believer by faith in Jesus Christ. In this passage Paul presents the ultimate before and after story. The transformation presented by Paul in our text is nothing short of unbelievable. Today I would like us to examine the contrasts that Paul presents between the pre-faith and post-faith existence.
I. The situation before faith came.
A. Law ruled before faith came.
1. The Law of Moses with its hundreds of commandments regulated every aspect of life: morality, society and religion.
2. God never intended the law to impart life or produce adequate righteousness. The job of the law is to reveal that mankind is dying from a lack of righteousness.
3. Before Christ all men were helpless prisoners. We were prisoners “of sin” and prisoners held “by the law”. In this sense, “sin” and “law” are practically synonymous, because the strength of sin is law.
4. Hopefully, men driven to the despair of ultimate doom and damnation will eventually realize their bankrupt spiritual state. Those who do recognize their own spiritual poverty are indeed “blessed” (Matthew 5:3), because they are the ones who will then turn to Christ.
5. When their legal plight drives them to seek refuge in Christ, putting all their hopes in him, the law will have performed its God-given task.
B. Guardians ruled before faith came.
1. Paul compares the role of the Law to that of the paidagōgos, a slave charged with the rearing and discipline of children.
2. In the world of the first century the paidagōgos was a cultured slave who was put in charge of the moral training of the sons of a free man as soon as they were old enough to leave their wet-nurse. (When the son reached the age of sixteen he was usually free from his paidagōgos).
3. The duties of this paidagōgos included four basic areas:
a. Protect the sons from harm, whether physical or moral.
b. To administer discipline when necessary.
c. To instill the virtues of manhood such us fearlessness and uprightness.
d. The escort the child to their instructor.
4. The law was set in place by God as a “custodian” or “child-leader” to lead us to Christ.
5. The law was never intended to be more than a temporary aid. From the very beginning the law was destined to be removed from having any authority, just as soon as the real Authority came.
C. Division ruled before faith came.
1. Paul writes a powerful statement: “There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female in Christ.”
2. There is a good possibility that here Paul is consciously using the threefold division of an ancient Jewish prayer: Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who hast not made me a gentile. Blessed art Thou … who hast not made me a slave. Blessed art Thou … who hast not made me a woman.”
3. This prayer, repeated each morning by the pious Jewish male, can be traced back at least as far as Rabbi Judah ben Elai around A.D. 150. At the time it was intended as a statement of reverence for the Torah, for those three classes of people were prevented by status or circumstance from studying it.
4. Paul does an excellent job here showing the divisions among people caused by legalism.
5. Legalism divides people into arbitrary segments; it deals with them according to what category they fall into and fails to respect them as individual persons.
6. For the Jew whose view was that there were Jews and everybody else this was a major barrier.
7. If this type of divisiveness exists unity is impossible.
D. Alienation ruled before faith came.
1. Wherever division reigns, alienation results. Those who are viewed as outsiders will inevitably be treated as strangers and aliens.
2. Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called “uncircumcised” by those who call themselves “the circumcision” (that done in the body by the hands of men)—remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. (Ephesians 2:11-13—NIV)
E. Superstition ruled before faith came.
1. Before Christ Paul shows that we were in slavery to the basic principles of the world.
2. These are the common set of beliefs and presuppositions by which a human culture governs and tries to save themselves.
3. All the principles only have the ability to enslave, it is impossible for them to set anyone free.
II. The situation after faith came.
A. The rule of freedom replaced the rule of law.
1. Concern for relationships replaced the constraints of regulation.
2. Salvation is only possible “through faith” to “those who believe.” This repetition enforces the truth that the Galatians needed so badly: men cannot earn their salvation, or even improve their chances by trying harder to live up to the law.
3. If we spend the majority of our time trying to live up to standards set by others we will never enjoy the blessings of freedom of choice and action.
4. Freedom should reign in the hearts of Christians, the true freedom that is based on love and grace.
B. The rule of faith replaces the tyranny of guardians.
1. God’s law in the Old Testament has served its purpose; it has prepared the world for Christ. Now it is taken out of the way.
2. The children have come of age; the guardian has been dismissed. Any attempt to force men to stay under the rule of the custodian is to doom them to immaturity.
3. Each Christian walks by faith in the Lord and is responsible to no human authority for their ultimate salvation.
4. We respect our earthly teachers, we follow the lead of ministers, but whenever we discover a conflict between their guidance and the Lord’s spoken will we follow the Lord. Our faith is in Him, not them.
C. Unity has taken place of division.
1. Gentiles, slaves, and women could not ordinarily inherit the land owned by Israelites. But in the new covenant all three are counted as “sons of God” and are heirs of salvation.
2. Whatever the roles people held in the secular world, in Christ they were equal. Both stood before God as unworthy; both were accepted in Christ as forgiven.
3. In Christ women come to faith, baptism, and salvation on the same terms with men. They are equally acceptable to God, and equally loved.
4. This does not, however, cancel out the separate and distinct roles of men and women in the home or in the church.
5. The Galatian believers, although Gentile in their ancestry, are united with Jewish believers in Christ. In the world, mankind will always be divided into warring camps over issues of race, nationality, creed, sex, and social status, but in the body of Christ all are equal. All have put on Christ; all look like Christ; all belong to Christ.
D. Adoption has done away with alienation.
1. Those who are “sons of Abraham” in verse 7 have an even higher status: they are “sons of God” as well. It is through faith, not through works, that they enter into this family relationship.
2. We are not automatically a son. In fact, we can become a son only through union by faith with that unique Son of God, Christ Jesus.
3. Those who are “in Christ” got into that position through faith, as expressed through the act of baptism.
4. In Christian baptism the believers “clothe themselves” in Christ. They will not stand before God in the filthy rags of their own attempts at goodness, but in the white robes of the righteousness of Christ
E. Confidence has overpowered superstition.
1. We believe in the one true God who has the power to accomplish all things including our salvation.
2. When you gain boldness from the realization that you have direct access to God you no longer have to be afraid of anything or anyone else. This causes us to live in confidence.
3. Nothing can ultimately harm you, even death itself. We are a child of the King, heir of everything He wants for you.
4. When we are certain of our adoption into God’s family, we live with confidence.
Mercedes Benz built only one car during the years of 1943 and 1944. This was a 1944 Mercedes Benz 770K. This was Adolph Hitler’s last car. The car was crafted totally by hand over a fifteen mount period and was delivered to him on March 17, 1944. The armor plated vehicle was designed for Hitler’s personal use at a cost of $2,000,000. The car weighed five and a half tons and its eight cylinder motor delivered over 400 HP. It averaged two and a half miles per gallon. The car’s wheels were bullet proof as well as its two inch thick windows. The floor of the car was mine proof and the doors had one inch armor plating and weighed 900 lbs each. The car was equipped with a self destruct mechanism that could be operated by turning a separate key on the dashboard. When activated it would send a spark and ignite the fuel in the 66 gallon fuel tank. When you consider this you really have to pity this man who once terrified the world. He lived his live in constant fear. He had the very best the world had to offer, he worshipped the basic principles of this world and they were not enough. All his power, his prestige, his military success, his adoration from the masses could not erase the terror in his heart. As a result Hitler spent his life cowering in an armor-plated car or hiding out in his specially equipped bunker.
