Our Schoolmaster
Preached at singer Hill GBC, May 27, 2007
Today I will be giving a teaching that has been well received by strangers and friends who are not church going people. I have shared the fundamentals of it in the mall, at work, on the street, at my daughter’s sporting events, and at the drivers testing center many times fearlessly.
God has called His followers to obediently go and preach the Gospel to every creature; Mark 16:15. Ladies and gentlemen, that is what I am going to do this morning.
Galatians 3:24 says; Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.
Likewise, psalm 19:7-8 says; The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul: the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple. The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes.
What is our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ? The law is our schoolmaster. What is it that is perfect in converting the soul? The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul. The scripture is clear; the law of God plays an important role in God’s plan for your redemption.
Many of you are sitting here wondering what on earth I am talking about; maybe this illustration will help you to understand.
A knock comes at the door of a school bus driver at 3:00 am. Before he can even drag himself out of bed the police have knocked in his door and are heading toward him guns drawn. These guys mean business! They grab the bus driver, throw him to the ground, handcuff him, and take him to prison.
As the man begins to understand what is happening to him, while on his way to jail he asks; what’s going on? One of the police officers tells him that he is under arrest for running over 5 children and killing three of them who got off his bus at the last stop.
5 kindergarteners ran in front of your bus and you just drove right over them. We have many witnesses; you are in big trouble with the law!
That’s impossible, thought the bewildered bus driver! That’s when it all came to him.
You see, because it was the first beautiful day of spring, he had been preoccupied with getting home the day before to ride his motorcycle, and whenever he made his last stop he quickly shut the door and drove off, forgetting to check his mirrors or even look to see if the children were safely out of the buses way. And as he pulled away he didn’t pay attention to the noise made by the children as they went under his bus because the radio was playing and in his mind he could only hear the rumble his big motorcycle was soon going to be making on this first ride of spring.
Now, as the man was driven to the police station, he thought to himself, “stupid kids, serves them right, they should have never been in front of the bus, they knew better than that! Now I’m the one who has to suffer for their stupidity.”
Based on what you know about this story, how would you judge this man? Would you put him in prison? Would you send him to the gas chamber? How would you handle this man in your courtroom?
Now let’s take a look at some of the things that will be judged in God’s courtroom.
Exodus 20 lists the 10 commandments also known as the law of God. This is the standard by which you will one day be judged by God.
I beg you to listen very closely, and consider what I am about to say as though your life depends on it; because you will never hear anything that matters to you more!
Do you consider yourself a good person? Maybe you are according to the standards of men, but what about God’s standards? Let’s take a look.
{Go through each commandment at this point}
Isn’t it true that every time you lied, stole, or lusted, etc., you knew it was wrong? Yet you still did it.
Who of us can say we are not guilty of breaking these Commandments?
This is what the Bible means when it says, "All have sinned and fall short of the Glory of God."
Romans 2:14-16 says: When Gentiles who have not the [divine] Law do instinctively what the Law requires, they are a law to themselves, since they do not have the Law. They show that the essential requirements of the Law are written in their hearts and are operating there, with which their consciences (sense of right and wrong) also bear witness; and their [moral] decisions (their arguments of reason, their condemning or approving thoughts) will accuse or perhaps defend and excuse [them] On that day when, as my Gospel proclaims, God by Jesus Christ will judge men in regard to the things which they conceal (their hidden thoughts). Amplified Bible
Can you see your predicament? You are guilty of sinning against God Himself, and, because you have a conscience, ("con"=with, "science"=knowledge) you have sinned "with knowledge."
Does the fact that you have sinned against God concern you? It should.
You have actually angered Him by your sin.
John 3:36 says, His wrath abides on you, that you are an "enemy of God in your mind through wicked works."
Perhaps you think God is good and because of his goodness He will overlook your sins?
Let’s go back to the bus driver for a moment. What if one of the children that he ran over was yours?
How would you feel if the only defense he had for his crime was to ask the judge for mercy because he was a nice guy and this one little mistake shouldn’t ruin his life forever. He says, “Your honor, I can see that you are a good man and because you are a good man you should forgive me this one indiscretion and let me go.”
Would you expect the judge to listen to the murderer of your child and just let him off the hook? Would you say that he was a “good judge” if said to the bus driver, “You know what, this is your lucky day, you are free to go, but don’t let me see you in my courtroom ever again.” No you wouldn’t say that he is a good judge!
As a matter of fact you would expect the judge to look that criminal right in the eye and say, “You are right, I am a good judge, and because I am a good judge I am going to see to it that you are punished to the fullest extent of the law”.
In an even greater way God is a good judge, He is the Holiest of judges and has promised that all lawbreakers will be punished.
He will punish all the rapists, murderers, and thieves... But He won’t stop there. He will also punish all liars, the lustful, adulterers, idolaters, and blasphemers.
The place of eternal punishment is Hell. Eph 5:5-7, Rev 21:8, Romans 2:5
I’m sure some of you would like to come up here and turn off the microphone I am using. You may be thinking that I am off my rocker, because I haven’t said a word about grace, or love, or forgiveness.
“A wrong understanding of the harmony between Law and grace would produce ‘error on the left and the right hand.’” John Newton
Let me ask you a question in light of Newton’s statement. Would you rather be lied to if the lie will send you to an eternity of unbearable pain and sorrow; but made you feel comfortable right now? Or would you rather be told the truth right now, no matter how uncomfortable it made you at this moment, but saved you the pain of eternity in Hell if you obeyed the truth?
Let me summarize our discussion so far: God’s law has been broken; there is judgment to come; hell is the punishment that is deserved by, and will be meted out to the lawbreaker.
(Give the innocent a chance to leave.)
Now for those who are left, I will speak to you of grace, love, and forgiveness, because God does not want you to perish.
He is rich in mercy and compassion, and has provided a way for you to be forgiven. He has invited you to come to Him for a full pardon and receive the free gift of Eternal Life.
You cannot earn it, and you do not deserve it, but God is offering it to you as proof of His love for you.
Imagine you are standing in front of a judge, guilty of multiple serious crimes. All the evidence has been presented and there is no doubt about your guilt. Your apologies and good works cannot erase your crimes; therefore you must be punished. The fine for your crime is $250,000 or imprisonment, but you don’t have two pennies to rub together. The judge is about to pass sentence when someone you don’t even know steps in and pays your fine for you! The court accepts the money and declares that you are free to go. The law has been satisfied, your debt has been paid in full.
How would you feel toward that person? Would you be thankful? I hope so; because that stranger’s sacrifice was a demonstration of his love for you.
That’s what God did for you through the Blood of Jesus Christ.
The Bible says that the God of the Universe became a man (Jesus Christ), and suffered and died on the cross for your sins so that you could be set free. Then he rose again from the dead and defeated death! It’s as simple as this—you broke the Law, and Jesus paid your fine.
"God demonstrated His own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)
"Christ redeemed us from the curse of the Law, being made a curse for us." (Galatians 3:13)
(Isaiah 53:5) But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed.
Do you see God’s great love for you? Do you understand your need for His forgiveness? Do what He commands and “Repent…that your sins may be wiped out and times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” (Acts 3:19)
You must turn away from sin and turn to God. You must desire to have NOTHING to do with sin, and surrender your life to the only One who can save you.
Jesus died to set you free, and then he rose from death to be your Lord. Jesus said, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” If you will confess and forsake your sins (repent) and trust in Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord, God will forgive you and you’ll pass from death to life.
This is what it means to "put your faith in Jesus Christ." You personally trust in Jesus Christ and His payment for your sin in much the same way you’d trust in a parachute if you had to jump 25,000 feet out of an airplane.
You wouldn’t just "believe" in the parachute; you would put it on! In the same way, the Bible says, "Put on the Lord Jesus Christ..." and you will be saved. There are millions of people who "believe" Jesus exists . . . but they have not put on the Savior—there’s a BIG difference. And the difference will be obvious when you “jump” through the door of death.
Today, with all your heart—turn away from sin, and surrender your life to Jesus Christ. Please don’t put it off till later. You may die today and then it will be too late. You may not yet have all the answers to your questions, but better to put on the parachute first and then ask questions, then to pass through the door unprepared, grasping for the parachute when it’s too late.
Once you do, God will transform you from the inside out. You will think and feel differently as you learn to trust and obey Him. God will give you new strength to live right and love Him above all else. Then read your Bible daily and obey His Word.
You can trust God—He loves you and will always be faithful.
You can pray something like this—"Dear God, today I turn from all my sins (name them), and I put my trust in Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior. Please forgive me, and grant me your gift of everlasting life. Amen."
There is nothing magic about these words—it is the attitude of your heart that God cares about.
If you’ve decided to reject the gift of forgiveness and you die in your sins, there is no hope for you. There is no purgatory. There is no forgiveness. The wrath of God abides on you and you will spend eternity in Hell.
