As we have seen, Paul does not understand why these backsliding Galatian Christians wanted to return to the bondage of the law.
In this appeal, he seems to appeal to their common sense, something that many in this country seem to have lost.
Illus: I saw this sad announcement and thought about many in this country, it reads like this: “Today we mourn the passing of an old friend, Common Sense. Common Sense lived a long life, but died in the United States from heart failure early in the new millennium. No one really knows how old he was, since his birth records were lost long ago in bureaucratic red tape.”
“He selflessly devoted his life to service in schools, hospitals, homes, and factories, helping folks get jobs done without fanfare and foolishness. For decades, petty rules, silly laws, and frivolous lawsuits held no power over Common Sense. He was credited with cultivating such valued lessons as to know when to come in out of the rain, why the early bird gets the worm, and that life isn't always fair.”
“Common Sense lived by simple, sound financial policies (don't spend more than you earn), reliable parenting strategies (the adults are in charge, not the kids), and it's okay to come in second.”
“A veteran of the Industrial Revolution, the Great Depression, and the Technological Revolution, Common Sense survived cultural and educational trends including body piercing, whole language, and ‘new math.’"
“In recent decades his waning strength proved no match for the ravages of well-intentioned but overbearing regulations. He watched in pain as good people became ruled by self-seeking lawyers.”
“His health rapidly deteriorated when schools endlessly implemented zero tolerance policies. Reports of a six-year-old boy charged with sexual harassment for kissing a classmate, a teen suspended for taking a swig of mouthwash after lunch, and a teacher fired for reprimanding an unruly student only worsened his condition. It declined even further when schools had to get parental consent to administer aspirin to a student but could not inform the parent when a female student was pregnant or wanted an abortion.”
“Common Sense lost his will to live when churches became businesses and social clubs, criminals received better treatment than victims, and federal judges stuck their noses in everything from the Boy Scouts to professional sports.”
“When an individual too stupid to realize that a steaming cup of coffee was hot was awarded a huge settlement, Common Sense threw in the towel.”
“Common Sense finally succumbed when, while the United States was fighting a war on terrorism, a federal judge declared the Pledge of Allegiance to be unconstitutional.”
“Common Sense was preceded in death by his parents, Truth and Trust; his wife, Discretion; his daughter, Responsibility; and his son, Reason. He is survived by two step-siblings: My Rights, and Ima Whiner.”
Not many attended his funeral because so few realized he was gone.
Listen, when COMMON SENSE disappears, you have chaos and confusion and that is exactly why we have chaos and confusion in the society in which we live.
Illus: Someone posed these problems, but if you had COMMON SENSE these problems would not exist.
• Why do you press harder on a remote-control when you know the battery is dead?
• Since Americans throw rice at weddings, do Asians throw hamburgers?
• Why are they called buildings, when they're already finished? Shouldn't they be called “builts”?
• When a man talks dirty to a woman on the telephone, its sexual harassment. When a woman talks dirty to a man on the telephone, it is going to cost the man $2.95 per minute.
• Why are they called apartments, when they're all stuck together?
• Why is a carrot more orange than an orange?
• If olive oil comes from olives, where does baby oil comes from?
• If it's tourist season, why can't we shoot them?
• How come Superman could stop bullets with his chest, but always ducked when someone threw a gun at him?
• Why is it lemon juice contains mostly artificial ingredients, but dish washing liquid contains real lemon?
• Why do we wash bath towels? Aren't we clean when we use them?
• Do married people live longer than single people, or does it just SEEM longer?
• If all those psychics know the winning lottery numbers, why are they all still working?
• Why is it no one has ever complained that their parachute did not open?
Common sense can solve many problems, but any time COMMON SENSE is not in existence, we are in trouble.
These Galatian Christians were in trouble because spiritually they had lost all of their common sense. They wanted to return to the very thing that brought them into bondage. But in this common sense approach that Paul is using, he tells them-
I. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE
Look at Galatians 5:1, we read, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”
Notice, Paul tells us to STAND, but he also tells us WHERE TO STAND. He says, “Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free…”
When a person is saved by the grace of God, he has been saved from the bondage of the law. The law condemns us, because it tells us we are not good enough. No matter how hard we try, no one could live up to the Mosaic Law. NONE OF US!
Illus: Those under the law remind me of so many who make New Year’s resolutions. They have good intentions, but no matter how hard they try to keep those New Year’s resolutions, within a couple of days they are doing the same old things again.
But once we are saved by the grace of God, we no longer have to worry about putting our trust in ourselves for salvation, because now we are trusting in the SINLESS SON OF GOD WHO CAME AND DIED FOR US.
• When God saw His Son on the cross dying for our sins, He saw all of our past sins, present sins, and future sins.
• When God sees us now, He sees us through the precious blood of Christ.
We are justified in Christ. When the Lord died on the cross:
• He secured our righteousness
• He took the penalty for our sins upon Himself
DOES THAT MEAN THAT CHRIST HAS SECURED SALVATION FOR EVERYONE?
I need to answer that with a Yes and a No!
• Yes! He paid the price for everyone
• No! Everyone has not accepted the price He paid for their sins
Those who have not accepted Christ as their Savior are still under the curse of the law. But we who have accepted the Lord as our Savior are FREE FROM THE BONDAGE OF THE LAW!
These Galatian Christians were going back into the bondage of the law, the very thing that once condemned them. This is why Paul says at the end of verse 1b, “…and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage.”
We are to STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE. Also, we are to-
II. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS REQUIRED
Look at Galatians 5:2-4, we read, “Behold, I Paul say unto you, that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law. Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”
For us to be justified in the sight of God, we must come God’s way.
WHAT IS GOD’S WAY?
As already stated, we are not justified through what we do. The Galatians were told by the false teachers that through the ritual of circumcision they would be saved.
Listen, there is no ritual that can save anyone. We have people these days:
• Sprinkling “holy water”
• Lighting candles for the dead
• Using prayer beads
• Praying to statues and etc.
But the fact is, rituals have never been God’s way for man to approach God. These people believe in MAGIC! That is, if they do certain things, Gazoom! It happens.
Illus: Speaking of MAGIC, did you hear about the woman that was out golfing one day and she hit her ball into the woods? She went into the woods to look for it and found a frog in a trap. The frog said to her, "If you release me from this trap, I will grant you 3 wishes."
The woman freed the frog and the frog said, "Thank you, but I failed to mention that there was a condition to your wishes-that whatever you wish for, your husband will get 10 times more or better!"
The woman said, "That would be okay," and for her first wish, she wanted to be the most beautiful woman in the world.
The frog warned her, "You do realize that this wish will also make your husband the most handsome man in the world, an Adonis that women will flock to."
The woman replied, "That will be okay because I will be the most beautiful woman and he will only have eyes for me." So, KAZAM - she's the most beautiful woman in the world!
For her second wish, she wanted to be the richest woman in the world. The frog said, "That will make your husband the richest man in the world and he will be ten times richer than you."
The woman said, "That will be okay because what is mine is his and what is his is mine." So, KAZAM she's the richest woman in the world!
The frog then inquired about her third wish, and she answered, “I'd like a mild heart attack."
The church today is full of magic and rituals. It is ridiculous.
Illus: Some will actually carry a rabbit’s foot in their pockets because they think it is good luck. If a rabbit’s foot is such good luck, why wasn’t it good luck for the rabbit?”
For example, some might be told:
• If they join a Baptist church, that will make them a Christian. It will make you a Baptist, and it will make you a Church member, but it will not make you a Christian.
• If they are baptized, that will make them a Christian. It might wash them physically but it will not wash them spiritually.
• If they go up front on Sunday morning and shake the preacher’s hand, that will make them a Christian. If that is true, you can shake a mule’s tail, and that will make you a mule.
There are no rituals that we can go through that will save us. NONE!
• Look at Romans 3:20, we read, “Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law is the knowledge of sin.”
• Look at Romans 10:2-5, we read, “For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge. For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth. For Moses describeth the righteousness which is of the law, That the man which doeth those things shall live by them.”
• Look at Ephesians 2:8-9, we read, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.”
The fact is, if a person approaches the Lord through rituals, he needs to accept two truths, such as:
(1) HE IS BOUND BY THE WHOLE LAW
Look at verse 3, we read, “For I testify again to every man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole law.”
He can not be selective and choose certain parts, he is bound by the WHOLE LAW. And while we might be able to live up to portions of the law, we CAN NOT live up to the WHOLE LAW.
Illus: If you are flying down the highway doing 90 miles an hour and the highway patrol pulls you over and he begins to write a ticket, and you tell him, listen:
• I have stopped for every red light
• I have stopped at every stop sign
Do you think he will be impressed and not write the speeding ticket?
No! He will tell you that he did not pull you over because you ran a red light or a stop sign, he pulled you over because you were speeding. You will get the ticket!
We can not be selective in which laws we are going to obey. And Paul said if you are going the route of being justified by the law, you are BOUND BY THE WHOLE LAW! And that is a problem for mortals, because the Law is perfect and we are not.
HE IS BOUND BY THE WHOLE LAW, but also-
(2) HE IS DOOMED BY THE WHOLE LAW
Look at verse 4, we read, “Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.”
Look at the last part of verse 4, we read these startling words, “…Ye are fallen from grace.”
WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?
Some use these five words to attack the eternal security of the Believer. However, to use these five words in this manner would contradict everything Paul says in the Book of Galatians. Why? Because the whole purpose of him writing to them is to show them that our eternal destination is determined by WHAT HE DID not what WE DO.
Paul is saying that if you are going to take the route of obeying the Law to be justified, you will have to OBEY THE WHOLE LAW, not selected portions.
In verse 4, he is saying that Christ is useless to you in clearing your sin debt by keeping those laws. In trying to do so you are lost from God’s marvelous grace.
When we try to approach God through our DEEDS we make Christ’s death USELESS! We have chosen to be LOST (fallen) from God’s grace.
We are to STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE, STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS REQUIRED, and we are to-
III. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DECLARED
Look at Galatians 5:5-6, we read, “For we through the Spirit wait for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision; but faith which worketh by love.”
Our hope is not like a “worldly hope” which may happen or may not happen. The hope we have in Christ is a SURE THING that is based on faith in Christ.
While many are placing their confidence in the deeds of the flesh, we have placed our hope in the beloved Son of God. We know such things as circumcision do not avail anything.
Conclusion:
I. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DONE
II. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS REQUIRED
III. STAND FAST BECAUSE OF WHAT THE LORD HAS DECLARED
