Your Redemption Value Series

04/29/2007

(The Divisions of the passage for this sermon were based on G. Walter Hansen’s Commentary on Galatians from the IVP NT Commentary series)

YOUR REDEMPTION VALUE (Gal 3:10-14)

The empty bottle and the squirrel – the hook

Has some markings on it

Tells us who made it, where it was made

Redemption value: 10cents in CA,

That means the maker of this bottle will buy it back from you

In this case so it can be filled back up with soda and re-sold

You and I are not bottles

Point is: This bottle has value to its maker (10c)

The maker of this bottle is willing to pay a price for it to buy it back, so this bottle can be useful to its maker.

Keep this in mind today as we talk about our passage today (tuck away in memory)

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Our major theme, our main backdrop for the book of Galatians is in full view again this week in our passage.

Our justification, our right standing before God does not come from works or the law, but by our faith in Christ by the grace of God

In fact Paul digs a little deeper into the issue of law verses faith as he brings the Galatians, and us with them to a sort of crossroads or fork , with a choice to be made

The way of the law, or the way of faith, with Jesus our redeemer staking out the true path with the cross, like a roadside billboard, a signpost, showing us the way to salvation.

Gal 3: 10-14 (NIV) 10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law." 11 Clearly no one is justified before God by the law, because, "The righteous will live by faith." 12 The law is not based on faith; on the contrary, "The man who does these things will live by them." 13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree." 14 He redeemed us in order that the blessing given to Abraham might come to the Gentiles through Christ Jesus, so that by faith we might receive the promise of the Spirit.

PRAY

When I read this passage I see a picture painted by the words of Paul to the Galatians

I see a crossroads, or actually a fork in the road – with a choice to be made

I see 4 sign posts – 2 for one path and 2 for the other

Each sign has a word on it, and some OT scripture quoted beneath the word

Paul follows a very good model here as he makes his argument – every statement he makes he backs up with scripture.

Today we use his words in this letter to the Galatians with the full authority of scripture because we know that God wrote these words down for us through Paul

But when the letter was first read in Galatia, it was the OT scriptures that already had the full authority as God’s Word, especially for the Jewish teachers.

The false teachers were calling Paul’s authority into question, so even though Paul had the full confidence of Peter and other church authorities, Paul wisely uses OT scriptures that the Jews would have to recognize as being the word of God.

OK – so 4 sign posts:

The 4 words and phrases are Cursed, Faith, Law, and the 4th sign is a cross, with the word Redeemer on it.

1rst sign is a warning “Cursed” v10

10 All who rely on observing the law are under a curse, for it is written: "Cursed is everyone who does not continue to do everything written in the Book of the Law."

Paul is quoting

Deut 27: 26 "Cursed is the man who does not uphold the words of this law by carrying them out."

When Paul says “all who rely on observing the law”, he is speaking about the Jewish false teachers in Galtatia and anyone like them

He points out the according to God in the OT, you are not allowed to pick and choose which parts of the law you wish to follow and which ones you will decide to ignore

“everything written” --- it is all or nothing! – 100% of it 100% of the time

If you are going to RELY on observing the law, big word RELY

IF that is how you plan to gain righteousness before God, by RELYing on observing the law, RELYING on what YOU CAN DO – YOU ARE RELYING ON YOUR MERITS

And you have a very tall order to fill.