From Here To There
Galatians : Walking In The Gospel • Sermon • Submitted • Presented • 39:33
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You ever had one of those days that you just feel like a complete failure… and you think to yourself… Will I ever get traction in my spiritual life? You have a bad day… or a week maybe… and you just don’t feel like you’re living what God called you to be… and you feel like you’re just spinning your wheels? Maybe there’s a conflict with your spouse, or someone in your family… and after the dust settles, you think to yourself… When am I going to figure this out? When am I going to get some traction? When am I going to have that fullness and joy in Christ that I keep reading and hearing about? When will I stop feeling stuck?
Or a similar frustration that we can have… we can just feel like we’re on cruise control in our spiritual journey. Where’s there’s just not really any passion… there’s no Holy Spirit heat in my life. I just feel like and I’m on cruise control. I mean… I seem to have all my spiritual ducks in a row… but there’s just not much there. I go to church and I have this appearance of spiritual faithfulness… but deep down, I feel kind of dry inside.
Whether you’re in category 1 of feeling like you’ve got no spiritual traction in your life… or in category 2 where you feel like you’re just on cruise control… I think the answer can be found in Galatians chapter 3. So if you have your Bible, and I hope that you do, turn there with me. Galatians chapter 3.
The question is… how do we go from feeling stuck… or feeling like we’re just on cruise control… to having that fullness of life in Christ… this freedom that God has called us to? How do we get from here to there? How do we start… how do we continue… and how do we finish well in this journey of our faith?
Throughout our series through Galatians, I’ve said this key phrase multiple times… The gospel is the proclamation that Jesus is the solution for all that’s wrong in the world. That Jesus and His work on the cross… His death, burial, and resurrection… Jesus is the solution for all that is wrong in the world. The beauty of what we’ll look at today is… not only that true… not only is Jesus the solution for all that’s wrong in the world… but Jesus is the solution for all that’s wrong in me.
No matter if I feel stuck… like I’m spinning my wheels… or just on cruise control… completely dry on the inside… Jesus is the solution for all that’s wrong in me.
Before we read today, let’s just remind ourselves of what we’ve established so far. Paul has established this church in Galatia… he leaves to continue on his missionary journey… and some Jews move into the church while Paul is away… and they begin to teach the people that to be right with God, you need Jesus BUT… you still have to follow aspects of the ceremonial law. That’s how they were teaching you get from here to there… Jesus, and the law.
It’s also evident that the church, with their new beliefs and leaders, have begun to question the apostleship of Paul. So Paul explains the gospel to them… that you are saved by the grace of God, through Jesus Christ alone… that God worked through Jesus Christ to forgive us of our sins and justify us… make us right with God… through Christ’s work on the cross and nothing else. Nothing else can be added to it. That is the message of the gospel. And he explains that this gospel that he preaches came directly from the source… directly from Jesus Christ Himself.
So as we look at just 5 verses in Galatians 3 this morning, we’ll see that not only is Paul talking about justification… the idea that we’re made right with God… but also sanctification… how we get from here to there.
Paul is really intense here. It’s like he’s trying to get them… and us… to admit… ok… I’m spinning my wheels… I’m doing it all wrong… I’m on cruise control… I get it… I understand. Paul comes at them with these rhetorical questions… and he believes they know the answer to these questions, and he just wants them to verbalize the answers. So look at verse 1 of chapter 3 with me… as Paul gives his 1st question.
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
Paul is intense. Paul is serious about this. He’s not holding back. He’s coming out swinging. You fools! Who has bewitched you? Who’s put you under their spell?
When I was in high school, music was basically my life. I mean… I played all the time. I’d even take my guitar to school when they’d let me… because the girls would gather around when someone was playing guitar and singing… and that was the only way I could get girls to come around me. But I played all the time… and there were always other musicians coming over to my house to jam.
I have a few friends that have made a pretty decent name for themselves in Nashville… and they were in town and had come over to jam one night… and one of my other friends was there jamming as well. Well, when this guy met these guys from Nashville… he was just like a little kid in a candy store. I mean… he developed a serious man crush. And no kidding… that weekend, he got his hair cut like those guys… went and bought new clothes to look like those guys… started talking like those guys. It was weird! Almost like he was under their spell.
Paul’s saying… You fools! Who’s got you under a spell? You’re acting ridiculous! And we see why in the next sentence. He says…
You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.
Paul is pointing them back to when he came to Galatia and preached the gospel. He reminds them of when Jesus was clearly portrayed to them… his death, burial, and resurrection… the clear message of the Gospel. He says… I couldn’t have painted a more perfect picture of who Jesus was to you… what the gospel is… and here you are bewitched… under some kind of spell. You fools. Let’s keep reading. Verse 2… and Question # 2…
I would like to learn just one thing from you: Did you receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by believing what you heard?
Paul now points back to that moment when they 1st heard the gospel and believed. He asks… How did you receive the Holy Spirit? Was it when you believed the gospel? Or was it when you started following these new guys and adhering to the law? In other words… Did you receive the Holy Spirit by getting circumcised? The answer is obvious… Right? You receive the Holy Spirit when you believe the gospel… when you believe in Jesus.
And so, there’s little theology that Paul’s communicating here. When we believe in Jesus Christ, we are given the Holy Spirit. He indwells us. He moves into our life. Paul is saying… it’s foolish to think that you can get from here to there by works of the law. You were given the Holy Spirit… and THAT’s how you get from here to there.
Look at Paul’s next question in verse 3… Are you so foolish?
Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?
Paul wants them to acknowledge that if there is dependence on anything else other than Holy Spirit… he wants them… he wants us to acknowledge… yes… that’s foolish. It’s foolish to think that human effort… that my own strength can take me from here to there. Next question… still in verse 3…
Are you so foolish? After beginning by means of the Spirit, are you now trying to finish by means of the flesh?
On July 26th… my family and I are going on vacation to Branson. We’ll pack up the car… fill it to the brim with gas… and begin the 4 hour drive. Tell me how stupid it would be to say… We’re going to fill the car up with gas… and it should get us all the way there… but on the way back… when we run out of gas… we’re just going to push the car the rest of the way back home. How stupid would that be?
That’s what Paul is saying here. Have you started with the Spirit and now you want to continue on with the means of the flesh? Have you started with the Spirit when you believed… but now you’re trying to do it all in your own strength? You can’t! The Christian life is not some self-sustained spiritual journey where by something within me I can get from here to there. No! We are saved… and SUSTAINED by means of the Spirit.
Just like fuel is what moves along my vehicle… and when I try to do without the fuel, it’s all rooted in effort and me getting it done. No. Jesus is the solution. He gives us His Spirit… and that is how we get from here to there. That’s how we get past the spinning wheels and just living on cruise control. A life apart from the Spirit, is a life in our own strength. Verse 4… Question # 5…
Have you experienced so much in vain—if it really was in vain?
So, in this 5th question, Paul is pointing to persecution. You can read about when Paul 1st came to Galatia in Acts chapters 13 & 14, I believe it is. And those chapters tell about how when Paul came to the area, and started preaching, tons of people heard the gospel, and believed. But it also says that there were some Jews that didn’t like what Paul was doing… so they got a bunch of other people all riled up… and they began to persecute Paul… and the others that believed. So much so… that in chapter 14, when Paul goes to Lystra, they stone him. So, there’s persecution connected with the gospel.
Paul’s asking them… Have you experienced so much trouble that you’re willing to give it all up? He says… You went through so much at the beginning… and the Spirit of God is what got you through all of that. Why would you abandon the Spirit now for the law?
But notice there… Paul gives a little glimmer of hope. IF it really was in vain. He’s saying… hope is not all lost. I understand that you turned to the works of the law… but there’s hope.
And that’s encouraging for us today… because if you’re spinning your wheels… and you can’t get any traction… there’s hope. If you feel like you’re on cruise control… and you’re dry inside… there’s hope. And that hope comes through the Holy Spirit.
Verse 5… Paul’s final question.
So again I ask, does God give you his Spirit and work miracles among you by the works of the law, or by your believing what you heard?
And the obvious answer is… God’s power shows up in our lives by the Holy Spirit. God’s power and work in our lives does not come from human effort or trying to push our spiritual vehicle… it comes by the power of the Holy Spirit and He moves us where we need to be.
And so, How do we get from here to there in our spiritual walk? Through the work of the Holy Spirit.
Now… Let’s pack this all nice and neat. How do we know if we’re living by the means of the flesh and human effort… or if we’re living by the work of the Spirit in our lives? How do we know? Pastor Matthew is going to preach on this passage in Galatians 5, and I’m going to let him explain it all out… but I just want to peak at it real quickly. So turn a couple of pages over to Galatians chapter 5.
Starting in verse 13, Paul begins to show us what a life in the flesh and a life in the Spirit really looks like. And he uses 2 keywords here… Walk… and Sow. Paul calls us to keep our walk with the Spirit. Verses 13 through 21, really kind of talk about the fruit of the flesh… or what to expect to see if you’re walking by means of the flesh. Verses 22 and on talk about the fruit of the Spirit… or what you can expect to see if you’re walking by the Spirit. I just want to read the Spirit side… Pastor Matthew will cover both… but for now… how do we know if for walking by the Spirit? This is the evidence that we’ll see…
Paul says… The fruit of the spirit is love. You’ll see love in your life in extraordinary ways when you’re walking by the Spirit. You’ll be able to love the unlovable… You’ll be able to love in ways that you couldn’t naturally love.
The fruit of the Spirit is joy. That no matter the circumstances you find yourself in. No matter if your truck broke down and your dog died… there will be an unexplainable joy inside of you that nothing will be able to break.
The fruit of the Spirit is peace. You’ll have a deep and unique peace. You’ll be a peacemaker. You’ll be able to see by your actions and your words… was I a peacemaker today?
The fruit of the Spirit is… forbearance, or patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. I hope you’re getting this picture. This is the fruit… this is the result of walking by the Spirit.
Now… jump over the verse 7 of chapter 6.
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.
We often think about that verse in the negative sense. Like when we discipline our kids… we say… you reap what you sow! Negative behavior warrants consequence. But there are two sides to that coin. Look at verse 8…
Whoever sows to please their flesh, from the flesh will reap destruction; whoever sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life.
Can I tell you… every moment of every day… we need the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. So if you feel like your can’t get any traction in your spiritual life… you feel like you’re just spinning your wheels, but you’re going nowhere… examine yourself. Am I trying to do this on my own?
If you feel like you’re on cruise control… you feel dry inside… you’re just going through the motions… examine yourself. Have I done this for so long… that I’ve forgotten to walk by the Spirit? Somewhere down the line… did I just start doing this on my own strength?
Truth is… every single one of us… every single morning ought to start out with us before God saying… God… I can’t do this without you. I can’t get from here to where you want me to be on my own… I need your Holy Spirit’s work in my life today. I need your grace.
The Holy Spirit is given to us when we when we believe the gospel… when we put our faith and trust in Jesus Christ. But we also believe that we need the filling of the Holy Spirit… or the work of the Holy Spirit every day. And so… in a very straightforward way, let’s open ourselves up to the Spirit of God in this moment.
I want to encourage you as we pray… as kind of a symbol of openness and reception, pray with me with your hands open. Of course the altar is open if you want to come and pray… but if you choose to remain in your pew… let me encourage you to hold your hands up and open… and confess to God your need.
Pray with me…
Lord as a symbol of our need this morning and every day, our hands and our hearts are open to you. We confess that often our hands are turned the other way… that we try to walk through this life in our own strength… that we try to live independent of your Holy Spirit. We confess that at times, we think we’ve got it all together… we confess that that’s not good… and that’s not how you’ve called us to live. And so, as best as we know how, may we walk by your Spirit in new and fresh ways today… and everyday. We yield to the work of your Spirit in our lives. We invite your Spirit into every nook and cranny… into every conversation… into every step we take. We ask you to take us from here… where we are right now… to where you want us to be. We pray this in the name of Jesus… Amen.