Galatians 3:23-29
23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith. 27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus. 29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.
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Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. [1]
Family resemblances can be startling. Take a grandfather’s picture from long ago and put it side-by-side with his grandson! If you’re the grandfather, it can be a surprise!
Josie Firstbrook and her husband had adopted their son, Eric, from Korea. When he was 5, they were having lunch at a restaurant, and Eric made conversation with a boy at the next table. At one point the boy asked Eric, “Why don’t you look like your mom?” “Cause she’s a girl,” he replied. [2]
The similarities of family resemblance aren’t all physical. In the “faith family” we also have some pretty important commonalities which draw us together. Here are three of them:
#1. Our Parent
Galatians 3:23-26
23 Now before faith came, we were imprisoned and guarded under the law until faith would be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our disciplinarian until Christ came, so that we might be justified by faith. 25 But now that faith has come, we are no longer subject to a disciplinarian, 26 for in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith.
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When you were born, you had a mother and father, who, through a physical process, brought you into this world. But the Bible shows us another birth process that leads to entrance into the faith family.
Of course, the “law”, of which Paul writes, is the first five books of the Bible. Contained in these are the 10 Commandments. Many people have tried to be right with God on the basis of keeping the commandments – being good! But Paul says, “That’s impossible – that was never the intention for the law, and it is what the law could never do.”
Beside that – there’s no way you can keep those commandments perfectly throughout your entire life! Have you never told even a little lie? Never stolen as much as a paper clip? Never coveted your neighbor’s new car? You just can’t do it!
But Paul says we become children of God through faith. We have a common parent in God when we trust that He loved us enough to die for us, and we place our faith in Him to forgive us and become our Heavenly Father. It is the second birth; the first by earthly parents, and the second a “faith-birth”.
#2. Our Parity
Galatians 3:27-28
27 As many of you as were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. 28 There is no longer Jew or Greek, there is no longer slave or free, there is no longer male and female; for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.
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When we come into the faith family there is a change that changes everything. Notice the “no longers” of verse 28 – no Jew or Greek, slave/free, male/female. Let’s put that in 21st century context. “No longer” means we put it away. Put away what? We put away the things which have typically divided us, and refuse to take them out again…
• Jew/Greek – ethnicity. Pride in ethnicity is put in the garbage can.
• Slave/Free – social or economic. Pride in social standing – in the can!
• Male/Female – No more gender power wars over who is in control…parity!
I have three children. Only one could be born first, and only one could be born in the middle, and one last; there are also two genders, and a mixture of ethnicity. Those are realities, just like ethnicity, socio-economic conditions and gender. But I love those three enough to give them my life. Our Heavenly Father loves each of his faith family children even better than that!
A true story illustrates just how important this parity is. Fred Craddock, while lecturing at Yale University told of going back one summer to Gatlinburg, Tennessee, to take a short vacation with his wife. One night they found a quiet little restaurant where they looked forward to a private meal - just the two of them.
While they were waiting for their meal they noticed a distinguished looking, white-haired man moving from table to table, visiting guests. Craddock whispered to his wife, "I hope he doesn’t come over here." He didn’t want the man to intrude on their privacy. But the man did come by his table.
"Where you folks from?" he asked amicably. "Oklahoma."
"Splendid state, I hear, although I’ve never been there. What do you do for a living?” "I teach homiletics at the graduate seminary of Phillips University."
"Oh, so you teach preachers, do you? Well, I’ve got a story I want to tell you." And with that he pulled up a chair and sat down at the table with Craddock and his wife.
Dr. Craddock said he groaned inwardly: Oh no, here comes another preacher story. It seems everyone has one.
The man stuck out his hand. “I’m Ben Hooper. I was born not far from here across the mountains. My mother wasn’t married when I was born so I had a hard time. When I started to school my classmates had a name for me, and it wasn’t a very nice name. I used to go off by myself at recess and during lunchtime because the taunts of my playmates cut so deeply. "What was worse was going downtown on Saturday afternoon and feeling every eye burning a hole through you. They were all wondering just who my real father was.
"When I was about 12 years old a new preacher came to our church. I would always go in late and slip out early. But one day the preacher said the benediction so fast I got caught and had to walk out with the crowd. I could feel every eye in church on me. Just about the time I got to the door I felt a big hand on my shoulder. I looked up and the preacher was looking right at me.
"Who are you, son? Whose boy are you?’ I felt the old weight come on me. It was like a big black cloud. Even the preacher was putting me down. But as he looked down at me, studying my face, he began to smile a big smile of recognition. "Wait a minute," he said, "I know who you are. I see the family resemblance. You are a son of God." With that he slapped me across the rump and said, "Boy you’ve got a great inheritance. Go and claim it."
The old man looked across the table at Fred Craddock and said, "That was the most important single sentence ever said to me." With that he smiled, shook the hands of Craddock and his wife, and moved on to another table to greet old friends. [3]
Parity isn’t an afterthought in the Father’s plan – it is central – we are all His, and of inestimable, and equal value. If there is a time in history in which that makes sense, it is certainly now, with the incredible struggles we see in our society.
There is an old saying that “blood is thicker than water”. The saying has family implications…our family will take precedence over other connections and issues. I am younger than my brother by four years, and he drove me crazy when we were kids. He would hold me down and tickle me until I couldn’t breathe. Despite the torture of an older sibling, I knew that blood was thicker…and if somebody else tried to hurt me, my brother would have beaten him to a pulp.
Take a look around you – the seats next to you and in front and behind. There is the blood that’s thicker than water. We came into this family by royal blood, shed on Calvary’s tree. That blood covers the faith family…and there’s NOTHING thicker!
#3. Our Promise
Galatians 3: 29
29 And if you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to the promise.
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To be an heir presupposes an inheritance – something that the parent is going to give to offspring. “Abraham’s offspring” is the faith family. In the New Testament Scriptures James tells us:
“Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness,” and he was called the friend of God.
James 2:23b (NRSV)
So, in what inheritance do we participate?
Simply put…everything that the Father is…we participate in Him.
• We participate in life eternal
• We participate in His kingdom
• We participate in His eternal goodness and power
There is one conditional word we can miss – “if”.
Paul says “And IF you belong to Christ…”
Do you belong to Him? Have you become a part of the faith family? Have you ever decided to simply take Jesus at His word that He will forgive your sins and make you His sister or brother?
Trust Him; become part of the faith family. That’s how to really celebrate a Father’s Day!
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ENDNOTES
1] Some parts of the outline of this sermon from Guy Caley on SermonCentral.com, “Welcome To the Family”
2] Paul Decker on SermonCentral.com “A Striking Family Resemblance”
3] Paul Decker on SermonCentral.com “A Striking Family Resemblance”
