SUBJECT

DELIVERIES: Date Hour Place

San Angelo, TX

:J,AA/ I 7J<

E.F.

CLASSIFICATION:

--BIOGRAPHICAL --TEXTUAL - -TOPICAL

Results and Comments:

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CALLED TO FREEDOM!

SCRIPTURE: Galatia ns 5 : /0 I/ INTRO: HIGH ATOP THE UNI TED WASHINGTON STANDS THE STATUE LADY, " ALMOST 20 FEET HIGH. CREST OF STARS. A SHIELD OF HER LEFT HAND.

STATES CAPITOL DOME IN OF THE STATELY "FREEDOM HER FACE IS FRAMED BY A STARS AND STRIPES IS IN

THE SCULPTURED EREEDOM LADY WAS BROUGHT ROME DURING A FIERCE STORM, AND THE CAPTAIN ORDERED SOME CARGO THROWN OVERBOARD. THE SAILORS WANTED TO IN­CLUDE THE HEAVY STATUE, BUT THE CAPTAIN REFUSED,

ABOVE THE WIND , "NO! NEVER! WE'LL FLOUNDER BEFORE WE THROW 'FREEDOM' AWAY . "

THIS IS PAUL'S MESSAGE TO US FROM THE BEGINNING

But who is e ' That's the o f Eve r erson regardless of age, edu­

cation, cul ture, who is in God ' s family, and no one h a s more freed om than another . We all have eq u a l fre edom.- - Never forget the of your c a lling .

Sentence : > But there i s a da nge r ous p o tent i aJ. l p r ob lem--that we will fall from the high purpose o f our calling into a ervers i on o f our

II. THE PERVERSION OF YOUR CALL --Gal . 5:13b "Only d o n o t turn y ou r freedom in to an opportuni t y f o r the flesh."

- -NOTE: Paul ' s theology always ran one I f h E / declared that the end of the reign of law had come,

that the time of the reign of grace had arrived , OF THIS LETTER TO NOW--"NEVER THROW FREEDOM AWAY!"

THAT YOU HAVE BEEN CALLED TO FREEDOM!"

THE PURPOSE OF YOUR CALL --Gal. 5:1 3a "For you were calle d to FREEDOM"

it wa s alway s po ssib l e f o r s ome de libe r a t e misin­·> t e r p rete r t o say, "Then, that means can do

wha t I like ; that all the restraints are lifted, and I can follow my ' nclinations, my passions , my de­sire s , my emo tions whe r ever they lead me . Law is gone and grace ensures forgiveness - -NOTE: Pau l i s s aying, were called to freedom--

t ha t's a fac t!" But of He answers this in verse one of t hi s cha p­

t e r was for of) free do a set us free ." purpose is that you

might live like free men- -not g rov e ling in "the dirt-­n o t fr om t he lega lisw - not suo j ecting yourse lf · t o tl:ie o s a ver y ! '

What is this Freedom? Freedom from t he ov er ower­i ng power o f sinf and the devil - -you never had tha b e f o re Cnrist. in Christ you now have it . Free to obey the commands of Christ. We were never free t o do that be f or e Christ . But the fact is that now, with Christ's liv ing in us we have the p owe r a nd f r eedom t o obey . Free from e te r na l puni shment--Free from condemnation . You ' ll hear the eternal J ud ge say , "You are c ondemned f or e t e rnity . Because

You may ask the Romans 6: 1 question, "Shal continue in sin that grace may abound?" Quickly Paul answers this question (Rom. 6 : 2) "God f orbid! How shall we , wh o a r e dead t o s i n , live any longer

the Apostle of Grace and Freedom s peaking . He is it never be."

--ILLUS: old hymn does not say, "Free from the Law , O, h appy condition , Sin all you want , for there is r emission. "

Sinning that grace may abound is not liberty but l icense ...J Our calling to freedom our

~ fal l ins into the b o ndage o f The of gr a c e is not f r eedom to s in b u t f reedom f r om

Paul could never nY, us our liberty Christ. He doe s not attempt to do so here. But he does call us to "l imi t our libert y ." He is asking us to grow

i n Jesus Christ and "in here · o i.;;.,.;.;,;;.;:.=.,..,t~_....· """- You are free i ve without guilt , without fear , without an accusing conscience. You are free t o come boldly to your Father in prayer- ­Isn ' t that great ?--We all have been called to this "Freedom" as chi ldre n of God.

up. "Fiesh" - - Our f a lle n

"base of a l a unc h i n g po i n t for an

ed to freedom.'

Much of the exercise of our liberty is really the exercise of our pr ide . "I want my way, I want it fully, I want it now and I don ' t wa n y ou to get in

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my way as I 'do my ·- · That this is not God's lan is made by I

else Paul has to say.

\ rrr. THE PROOF OF YOUR CALL 5: 13c "But through LOVE, SERVE one another."

- -NOTE: could never b e calle d a legalist. He literally gave his life the liberty that is ours Christ. But les& we get this whole doc­trine out of perspective, on occasions he illustrates the real proof and evidence of our

~ponding to our call to freedom . He says tha the maturing Christian will not flaunt his freedom but rather he will o

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--Romans ! 3-21 [Read] ~ ~/ h

- -J 9: 19-22 --An d Peter a dds I Pe:ter 2: "Act as free ~, and

not se your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God."

--NOTE: of your calling is

t:hrough love serve one anotner"-- "Christian fr eedom i s not freedom to exploit others!"

When love really floods my soul my whole concept myself changes--From wanting to cont:rol others

to wanting to serve them.

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.. / rv . THE PINNACLE OF YOUR CALL

-Gal. 5:14 - - Paul draws this from the statement of Christ in w I 9

There is no higher expression of your call to f reedom than for you to use it in such a way as to demonstrate that you really do "lov ~our neighbor

rself. " •

In this of Christ ( ·l 1 we are commanded to love There is nothing noble, or spiritual about demeaning yourself. BeforE you can love others as you should, you must learn to love yourself . And you should love yourself. You

1 are someone very special. You are a creation of You are the object of His Love . And it was fo:

y ou tha t His Son died! A person who does not love others--does not love

h imself . .J The est expression of your call to freedom•­

the pinnacle of your call is to "l neighbor = - _._..o......,rself."

/ THE PROHIBITION OF YOUR CALL V - -Gal. 5:15 do ",

Freedom in Christ does not mean a "free for all" in the The way some church members behave in business, deacons or committee meetings y ou would think that was their interpretation of Christian freedom .

- - ILLUS: My experience in such a church t=NOTE: Freedom in Christ prohibits us from turning

'V people things to be used or objects to be a ttacke d. Love comes in and says, "A person is too

, valuable to b e tak e n advantage o f . " '> Paul warns that if we disregard this prohibition we shall self destruct (Gal. ,

it- -GUIDELINES· If you are like I am you would appre­some guidelines for balance in this matter of

the proper and Christ-like use of our freedom. Per­h a ps the question i n my mind is in yours also.

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my love restrain my are the occasions when I purposely do not go right on, regardless?"

A very helpful answe is found in that passage we read in Romans 4--let's there again. I want to caution those of you w o have been Christians just long enough to be dangerous--you have go tten your first taste of liberty an its "let h~r r i p " kind o L _me n ta l. ity . Don't ut on this truth. --Rom. 14:1-2 (The taboo in those days was not going to a movie, or drinking a glass of wine, or dipping snuff or playing cards or going with girls who did those things. The taboo was eating meat had been sacr i ficed to idols. ' After it was offered on a pagan altar it was then taken and sold in the market place at a reduced price. The question was, "Shall a Christian eat that meat?") --Rom. 14:3 (There is a ord of exhortation for both sides.) --Rom. 14:13 (Let's get to the point). One does not purposely throw out a stumbling block and simply say,

he will have to used tD it, because that's ·ust the way I am!" -FIRST GUIDELINE: iberty can hurt m brother I You see how he put it in

15 (Read) Several years ago a national air­lines ad read "When you've got it--flaunt it!" Paul is saying just the opposite. "When you've got it, DON'T f launt it!"

1 He is not saying, "Never enjoy your liberty." He is saying, "Don't offend your brother . . so you must use ,wisdom in exercising your liberty. ).'l'I,,/ ANY J

SECOND GUIDELINE: Rom. 14:16-18--Now here is the guideline 19-20). When my liberty would hinder_ God's work I No, I won't get more specific than that. You have to answer it for yourself. To go further is to tell you how to run your private life, and when I do I become a legalist and you will never grow up. When the Spirit speaks to vou. then you start or stop. ~ THIRD GUIDELINE: creates unrest in

I see this in verses 2 my conscience moved by the

Holy Spirit will not me to do what, otherwise, I would be free to do. The Love of Christ con-

us."

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CON: If your liberty is being exercised as a ":u.e.g_ for all," you have a whole lot to learn about love.

not really helping the family of God if you are running roughshod over others. If you are determined to do that, don't call it "liberty," for this is unbridled license. It is, in the words of

the very perversion Paul warns us against, "turning your freedom into an opportunity for the flesh." · · · P~oo.f P 1

V~., II J 1./--4,. PRAYER

y ouR.seL.F

SOURCES: Barclay, William, The Letters to the Galatians and Ephesians, Westminster Press, Philadelphia, 1954.

Tan, Paul Lee, Th.D., Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustra­tions: Signs of the Times, Assurance Publishers, Rockville, Maryland, 1979.

, K (.V:!S ,

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CALLED TO FREEDOM!

USED: FBC, San Angelo, Texas, 2/ 17 / 8 5 A.M

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A Study of Galatians Called to Freedom

Galatians 5:13-15 Pew Bible page 1011

I. The Purpose of Your Call -Galatians 5:13a "For you were called to FREEDOM" -+ The purpose is that you might live like free men--not

groveling in the dirt--not taking orders from the legalists.

What is this Freedom? Freedom from the overpowering power of sin

But who is included--"Brethren" (vs. 13) That's the family of God.

-+But there is a dangerous potential problem--that we will fall from the high purpose of our calling into a deadly perversion of our calling.

II. The Perversion of Your Call --Galatians 5:13b "Only do not tum your freedom into

an opportunity for the flesh."

The Perversion says: can do what I like; that all the restraints are lifted, and I can follow my inclinations, my passions, my desires, my emotions wherever they lead me. Law is gone and grace ensures forgiveness anyway.

that grace may abound is not liberty but license.

-+ The goal of grace is not freedom to sin but freedom from sin.

"Flesh"--Our fallen nature. "Opportunity"-Military term a launching point for an assault. . ."

Ill. The Proof of Your Call -Galatians 5:13c "But through LOVE, SERVE one

another." The maturing Christian will not flaunt his freedom but rather he will limit his freedom for the good of others.

-I Corinthians 6: 12 -Romans 14:13-21 -I Corinthians 9:19-22 -I Peter 2:16

IV. The Pinnacle of Your Call -Galatians 5:14 "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one

word, in the statement, you shall love your neighbor as yourself.

this quotation of Christ (Matt. 19:19), we are commanded to love ourselves! A person who does not love others--does not love himself . ..

I

V. The Prohibition of Your Call - Galatians 5: 15 "But if you bite and devour one another,

take care that you are not consumed by one another." in Christ does not mean a "free for all" in the

church.

GUIDELINES: 1. When my liberty can hurt my brother I yield (Rom.

14:13). 2. When my liberty would hinder God's work I yield

(Rom. 14:16-18). 3. When my liberty creates unrest in my own con­

science, I yield (Rom. 14:22b-23).