Freedom in Christ
Learning about the freedom that occurs from living with Christ.
George Write
Oct 20, 2019 33m
In this sermon Pastor George Wright opens a new series that is based on Galatians chapter 5. He teaches us about the freedom that occurs from living with Christ. When we live for ourselves or others we can become weighed down in life, but Christ wants us to be free. Video recorded at Columbia, South Carolina.
TranscriptionmessageRegarding Grammar:
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
This is a transcription of the sermon. People speak differently than they write, and there are common colloquialisms in this transcript that sound good when spoken, and look like bad grammar when written.
George Wright: 00:00 I would encourage you to grab a Bible so that you can follow along with us as we walk through this time this morning. You may have a Bible with you, you may have the Bible app on your phone. But if you don't have either of those, we've got Bibles spread out all around the room, and I would encourage you to go ahead and grab one of those so that you can see for yourself what the word of God is saying. Please don't just take our word for it, please read for yourself what the word of God is saying.
George Wright: 00:24 Today we're going to be in Galatians chapter 5, and we are kicking off a new series that will take us through the next few weeks ,that will be all out of Galatians chapter 5. We're going to walk through this great chapter verse by verse. And what we're going to see all throughout this chapter beginning today, is this incredible declaration of the word of God, that if you are in Jesus Christ, you have been invited into the gift of freedom. Jesus Christ has come to set us free, and so if you're here today, or perhaps you're joining us online, and you're wondering, can I really find freedom in this life? The Word of God is going to speak specifically to you. You may be here today wrestling with a situation in your life, wrestling with some heavy weight or some heavy burden, or maybe you're just here worn out because you've been trying really, really, really hard to do the right things and live the right way and you're just wondering, can I really be free? There is good news for us all, the Word of God speaks specifically to the gift that has come through Jesus Christ, and so I want to read just one verse to get us started here this morning. The first verse of Galatians chapter 5.
George Wright: 01:47 So would you stand with me? This is our custom at Shandon, we stand for the opening reading of God's word. So that we can be reminded all around the room, the Word of God is our authority, it is the foundation on which the people of God stand. And the word of God shows us, it reveals to us, what God says is right and good and true. So the Word of the Lord, Galatians 5 verse 1 declares this, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." I want to read it again, listen to the word of the Lord, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." This is the word of the Lord, the good news for you and for me.
George Wright: 02:50 Let's pray and ask God to use this in our lives. Father, as we now stand before you, it is my prayer that you would speak into our lives, that which we need to hear, that which we need to see, that which needs to transform our hearts from the inside out. And so we humbly come before you now, asking you to do what you alone can do in the power of your spirit, speak to us all individually as you speak to us collectively. Let us see the good news of freedom, and let us recognize that this beautiful gift of freedom is an invitation that has been given to us all through Jesus Christ. So we look to you and we ask you to speak, we ask you to move. In Christ' name I pray. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. Thank you for standing.
George Wright: 03:55 Justin [inaudible] in the front row, and I just got to say, man, what a privilege it is to get to baptize one of your kids. I was just loving that with you man. I've had the privilege of baptizing three of my four, I've got one more to go. We won't call him out, it's his birthday weekend, but we're hopeful that someday soon he will enter into the waters of baptism. But what a great gift, man, thanks for sharing that with all of us.
George Wright: 04:18 Hey, the letter to Galatians is a fascinating letter in the new Testament. Because in the letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul is writing this young church, this new church, with some very strong words. In fact, throughout this letter on several different occasions, the apostle Paul actually rebukes the church of Galatia. He issues them some warnings, and he's trying to get their attention. In a sense he's trying to shake this church and say, you need to hear the truth, because something has begun to happen in this church of the Galatians that is honestly very common among churches all around the world. What has happened? Well a group of people have begun to teach some of the believers of this Galatians church that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not enough to save you. In fact, they've begun to say to these new believers, this young church, hey, it's good that you are trusting Jesus. But if you really want to be right with God, you need to follow all the customs of Judaism, and you need to follow all of these rules, and you need to do all of these things, so that then you can be sure that God will be happy with you. And as a result, this Galatians church has begun to live their faith in such a way that their faith is really not about the gospel and what God already done, their faith is now about their works, and what they are trying to do to earn God's love and to earn God's favor.
George Wright: 06:09 So Paul writes this letter to the church knowing that many in this church have abandoned the gift of freedom that comes from the gospel, and now they have begun to live in this bondage that Paul calls slavery, to try and do the right things, so that God will love them. Instead of freedom in the finished work of Christ and what he alone can provide, they are trying to prove their worth to God through religious deeds and religious works. Paul says, hold on, I want to make this perfectly clear, I want to make this crystal clear. The good news of the gospel proclaims that if you are in Christ, you have been set free. Don't miss this church, it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. That is why Christ has set us free, so that we will live in freedom. Am I making myself clear? Paul is like, come on, don't miss the main point of the gospel here. Jesus is passionate about your freedom. Jesus wants you to live free. Jesus does not want your life to be a life of bondage or slavery to works. He wants your life to be free, so that the works of your life can be the overflow of what God has done for you. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 07:51 So why does Paul then say, "So stand firm and do not submit again to this yoke of slavery?" This is a a very important question for everyone who considers themselves religious. For every one of us today in church, for those who are joining us online, we must ask this question. If Jesus is all about our freedom, if Christ has come to set us free, then why are so many people in the church living in bondage? Why are so many people in the church exhausted, worn out, beaten down, by religion? Why are so many people in the church, not free in the joy of the Lord, but instead are just overwhelmed by the burdens of religion? The apostle Paul actually answers this question at the beginning of his letter to the Galatians, and this really sets the tone for all that we'll see in Galatians chapter 5.
George Wright: 08:58 We're going to walk through a few verses in the Book of Galatians to just help us be aware and prepared for what we're going to dive into here in Galatians chapter 5. So flip back to Galatians 1, if you're there in the scripture, verse 10. This is what the apostle Paul writes, this gives us insight into why so many people in the church, so many people in religion, are not in fact living in the freedom of Christ. It says, verse 10, "For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." Here the apostle Paul is addressing one of the biggest wrestling matches that we face in our life on an ongoing basis. Am I living my life for the approval of man, or am I living my life from the approval of God? Am I living my life to please man, or am I living my life in the good news of the gospel because God is pleased with me, not because of what I've done, but because of what Christ has done for me? Am I still seeking the approval of man or of God? Am I still trying to please man? Because if I'm trying to please man, then I can't be a true servant of Christ.
George Wright: 10:43 This is what Paul is alluding to in Galatians chapter 5 verse 1, living to please man leads to a yoke of slavery. It leads to a life of burden, a life of carrying a heavy weight, that we were never intended to carry. It puts us in bondage to the approval of man. We will never be free as long as we are living for the approval of man. And Paul is saying to the Galatians in chapter 5 verse 1, it's like you're returning to a yoke of slavery, instead of walking and resting and even running in the freedom that Christ alone can provide. You see, no matter how hard you try, no matter how hard I try to find our approval in pleasing man, we will never find what we're looking for. There will always be more to do, the work will never be finished. We will be striving for something that we cannot truly find. So are we living for the approval of man, or are we living from the approval of God? I love this quote from Dr. Henry Cloud, he writes this, "Since we ultimately answer to God for our decision, it behooves us to remember that he is the one we need to please. If ever we think of forgoing what is best in order to please another person, this is the truth we need to fall back on. If pleasing God is our compass, and if we know we will answer to him, our path will be much clearer." Are you living for the approval of man, or are you living to please God?
George Wright: 12:42 You see this path of living for the approval of man, or living to please man, can take two very different paths, but both paths actually flow from the same point. Let me explain what I mean. The first path that many people find themselves on as it relates to living for the approval of man, is actually the path of living to find pleasure in the things of this world. We're trying to be approved by man, and trying to please ourselves, we are the man that we're trying to please. And so we look to the things of this world, w we try to accomplish things, we try to achieve things, we try to acquire thing., And hold on tightly to the things of this world, so that we can feel fulfilled, so that we can feel good about the way that we are living, so that we can reach the status that we want to reach in the culture around us, and then we can hopefully be fulfilled. The scripture tells us in Galatians, that this is in fact the way the Galatians were living before they heard the good news of the gospel. They were living to find pleasure in the world around them, trying to please themselves by grabbing a hold of the things of the world.
George Wright: 14:03 Look at Galatians chapter 4, we see this laid out in the scripture. Galatians chapter 4, they are living for the approval of man by living to find fulfillment in the things of the world. Verses 8 and 9, Paul writes, "Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?" What is Paul saying here? Paul is saying something many of us can relate to about the Galatians, they are trying to find approval by acquiring the things of this world. The Galatians were Gentiles, they were not from the Jewish heritage. And so they were following these pagan gods, gods created by man, in an attempt to find pleasure in this world. And Paul is saying, is you're living your life to find pleasure in the things of this world, it's like you're living your life, carrying a weight with you everywhere you go, and for a time you might be able to do it. For a time, you might have been thinking, yeah, I'm strong, I can handle this, and I can do this, and I can find the pleasure that I'm looking for. But over time, I mean, this is only 30 pounds, but it gets heavy, right? And over time you can't really run at all, and then sooner or later you realize you're kind of just stumbling along because this weight is heavy. That's where some of you are today. You've been trying to please yourself, to please man, by finding the things in this world that you think will satisfy you. But the more you find them, the more you realize there's still a heavy burden, there's still a weight that you're carrying, you're not free.
George Wright: 16:17 So Paul says, but don't you remember, don't you remember what happened when you encountered Christ? The weight dropped. It's a good thing that this floor is concrete up here. The weight dropped. And Paul is saying, don't you remember that first time you recognized the good news of the gospel, and all of the sudden all that you were doing to try and please yourself, and all that you are doing to try and find fulfillment in the world and in the things around you, all of the sudden that weight fell. It fell at the foot of the cross, and you realized that Jesus had done for you what you can never do for yourself, Jesus had set you free. And for the first time you begin to experience this incredible gift, the grace and the mercy of God, the freedom of Christ. It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Don't you remember that? What does verse one say? So stand firm, do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. What happened in the life of many of the Galatians? They heard this good news of Jesus, they trusted the good news of Jesus, and then they began to listen to these false teachers who began to say, you've got to do all of these other things if you're really going to be right with God. I'm glad you've heard about Jesus, I'm glad that you've experienced the gift of Jesus, but here's this list of laws and rules of do's and don'ts. You better fulfill them all, or God's not going to be happy with you.
George Wright: 18:00 Listen to what Paul says in Galatians 4 verses 10 and 11, he says, "Now you observe days and months and seasons and years, (And then he makes this amazing statement.) I am afraid that I may have labored over you in vain." What is Paul saying? Paul saying, you dropped this weight of living for yourself and trying to find pleasure in the things of this world. And now as you listen to these false teachers telling you that the only way you will be approved by God is if you do all of these things, now you've walked over and you've picked up another weight. And now instead of walking free and living free in Christ, now all of a sudden you're living for the approval of man by trying to please others. You're trying to follow all the rules, you're trying to do everything that everybody else wants you to do and instead of being free, you've now picked up this other weight and it's just like the first. Paul is saying to the Galatians, and Paul is saying to you and to me, if you truly understand the gospel, you will understand that Jesus Christ is inviting you to drop the weight. You're not going to find fulfillment in living to please yourself. You're not going to find fulfillment in living for the approval of others. The only way you will find true freedom is when you fix your focus on Christ.
George Wright: 19:35 You see, here's the reality. Here's why both of these weights are similar, even though they're very different paths. One of them looks to be a path of the world, one of them looks to be a path of religion, but they both are paths that focus on me. And the more consumed I become with me, the less I will be free. You may be consumed with yourself by trying to find pleasure for yourself. You may be consumed with yourself by trying to find approval from others, and check all the boxes and do what everyone else expects of you. But either path is really just focusing on yourself instead of focusing on what Christ has already done. This is what author Paul Tripp calls spiritual navel gazing, you're constantly looking down at yourself instead of looking up to Christ, the one who truly invites us to a life of freedom. Do you find yourself on one of these paths this morning? If I'm honest with you, this morning as your pastor here at Shandon, it's important to be honest, right? Especially for the pastor in church, that's good, right? Check that box. Okay. That's on this path, check that box. Good. Right? If I'm honest, I find myself on both of these paths from time to time. Were there times in my life where I'm like, look, I've been set free. I can do whatever I want. It's not about anyone else, it's not about what anyone thinks. No, I can do whatever I want, and I get so self-focused and so self-consumed that I actually pick up a weight that was never meant to carry. And then there's other times, more often than I want to admit, quite honestly, where I pick up this weight of thinking okay, what are they going to think? What are they going to think about me if they hear this? What are they going to think about me if they hear actually had an argument with my wife? Or if they hear that I got upset with my kids? Or what are they going to think if I wear that to church? And this weight, the approval of others, gets heavier and heavier. And yet the invitation of the gospel, the invitation of Jesus Christ is freedom. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 22:13 And we see Paul write in Galatians 4 verses 4 through 7, this amazing statement reminding the Galatians of what they have been invited into in the freedom of the gospel. Verse 4, it says, "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God." Paul is saying, look, this is true freedom, this is the invitation to be truly free. It's not about what you have done to find fulfillment, it's not what you have done to try and please others. No, true freedom is found in what Christ has done for you. True freedom is found in the finished work of the gospel of Jesus Christ that says, Jesus took your place on a cross to die a death that you deserve. Jesus Christ rose from the grave, defeating sin and death, something that you and I could never do, to invite us into new life, into freedom in his mercy and his grace. It is for freedom Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 23:46 The more focused I am on me, the less I will be free, but the same is true when we focus on Jesus. On the other side of this equation, the more focused I am on Jesus, the more I will be truly free. So church, where is your focus? Where is your focus? There are a lot of people in the church, their life, and their faith, and their focus is all about me. And yet there is no freedom that will truly be found when you are the focus of your life. Jesus is inviting you to something so much better. Jesus is inviting you to look at what he has already done for you, and what he will do through you. Jesus is inviting us to lift up our eyes and to see the beauty of the gospel. This is what author Timothy Keller calls gospel humility, and I love that term, gospel humility. Gospel humility is where true freedom is put on display. You see, the gospel gives us confidence. That's the first part of that statement. The gospel gives us confidence to live free, but the call to humility gospel humility reminds us that freedom is not about me at all, freedom is all about what Christ has done for me. So I am confident in the gospel, but I am humble in what Christ has done for me, because this is not about how great I am, it's about how great he is. That is true freedom. Listen to what Keller writes about gospel humility. He says, "Gospel humility is not needing to think about myself, not needing to connect things to myself. True gospel humility means I stop connecting every experience and every conversation with myself. I can start to enjoy things that are not about me. I can actually enjoy things for what they are. They're not just for my resume. They're not just to look good on my college or job application. They're not just a way of filling up the emptiness. This is gospel humility, not thinking more of myself as in modern cultures, or less of myself as in traditional cultures, simply thinking of myself less." Imagine how free you would be if you simply thought of yourself less.
George Wright: 26:36 This is the beautiful invitation of Jesus Christ. Christ has to set us free. Christ is inviting us to truly live free. Christ is inviting us to lay down the weight, the weight that wears us out, the weight that consumes us, the weight that overwhelms us, the weight that prevents us from running in freedom in the good news of the gospel. Christ is inviting you to stop living for the approval of man, or living to try and fulfill yourself, but to look to what he has already done for you through the cross and the power of his resurrection. If you know the son, you will be truly free. For it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. Stop being consumed with yourself, stop being consumed with what others think of you, and look to Jesus and what he alone can provide.
George Wright: 27:49 I'm going to close with a great passage from Hebrews chapter 12, Hebrews chapter 12 verses 1 and 2, the amazing picture, the good news of Jesus. It says this, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight. (There it is. Drop the weight.) Lay aside the sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. (Looking where at ourselves? No.) Looking to Jesus, the founder, the Perfecter of our faith. Who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross despising the shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." You are invited to be free. You are invited to run with endurance, without the weight hanging you down. You are invited to trust in what Christ alone can provide. You are invited to look to Jesus and to see that he has done for you what you can never do for yourself. So where is your focus? Where's your focus? Are you trying to please yourself by finding fulfillment in the things of this world? Are you living for the approval of others trying to please others, finding fulfillment in doing what they want you to do? Or are you embracing the good news of the gospel? Are you fixing your eyes on Jesus? Are you living in the gift of freedom that he wants you to have? It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Trust him, look to him, and find the freedom that your heart so desperately longs for.
George Wright: 30:02 Let me have a word of prayer for us as we close our time here together this morning. Heavenly father, I am so very grateful that you are passionate about our freedom. I am so grateful for the good news of Jesus that says, to everyone who will listen and believe you can be free. This is not a freedom that we can achieve. This is not a freedom that we can deserve. This is a freedom that comes as a beautiful gift in the good news of the gospel. Jesus Christ has done for us what we could never do for ourselves. Lord. I believe there are some among us today who are longing to be free, but they've never truly experienced freedom in Christ. There are some who have been trying to find fulfillment in the world, and it is just more and more of a heavy weight and a burden on their shoulders, they're not free. There are some who have been trying to find freedom by doing everything the right way according to what everyone else says, and if they're honest, they are exhausted. And I pray that today would be the day that some trust in you, that they would bow their knee to say, Jesus, I need you. I cannot be free on my own. I cannot be free living for the approval of man. I am trusting you, my savior and my Lord, cover my sin. paint my life with your grace. Lord, I'm ready to run, run with endurance, not run away, but run to you and the good news of what you have done, the finished work of the cross, that is the beautiful message of the gospel. I'm ready to be free. And how thankful we are for the amazing declaration that if the Son sets you free, you are free indeed. I pray, Lord God, that we would be a people who live in the freedom of the gospel, and we would be a people that invite others into the freedom of the gospel. That we would not become obsessed with ourselves, but we would become consumed with you. And as a result, our lives would be a picture of what freedom is really all about. How thankful we are for what Jesus Christ has done. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen.
Recorded in Columbia, South Carolina.
George Wright: 00:24 Today we're going to be in Galatians chapter 5, and we are kicking off a new series that will take us through the next few weeks ,that will be all out of Galatians chapter 5. We're going to walk through this great chapter verse by verse. And what we're going to see all throughout this chapter beginning today, is this incredible declaration of the word of God, that if you are in Jesus Christ, you have been invited into the gift of freedom. Jesus Christ has come to set us free, and so if you're here today, or perhaps you're joining us online, and you're wondering, can I really find freedom in this life? The Word of God is going to speak specifically to you. You may be here today wrestling with a situation in your life, wrestling with some heavy weight or some heavy burden, or maybe you're just here worn out because you've been trying really, really, really hard to do the right things and live the right way and you're just wondering, can I really be free? There is good news for us all, the Word of God speaks specifically to the gift that has come through Jesus Christ, and so I want to read just one verse to get us started here this morning. The first verse of Galatians chapter 5.
George Wright: 01:47 So would you stand with me? This is our custom at Shandon, we stand for the opening reading of God's word. So that we can be reminded all around the room, the Word of God is our authority, it is the foundation on which the people of God stand. And the word of God shows us, it reveals to us, what God says is right and good and true. So the Word of the Lord, Galatians 5 verse 1 declares this, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." I want to read it again, listen to the word of the Lord, "For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery." This is the word of the Lord, the good news for you and for me.
George Wright: 02:50 Let's pray and ask God to use this in our lives. Father, as we now stand before you, it is my prayer that you would speak into our lives, that which we need to hear, that which we need to see, that which needs to transform our hearts from the inside out. And so we humbly come before you now, asking you to do what you alone can do in the power of your spirit, speak to us all individually as you speak to us collectively. Let us see the good news of freedom, and let us recognize that this beautiful gift of freedom is an invitation that has been given to us all through Jesus Christ. So we look to you and we ask you to speak, we ask you to move. In Christ' name I pray. Amen. Amen. You may be seated. Thank you for standing.
George Wright: 03:55 Justin [inaudible] in the front row, and I just got to say, man, what a privilege it is to get to baptize one of your kids. I was just loving that with you man. I've had the privilege of baptizing three of my four, I've got one more to go. We won't call him out, it's his birthday weekend, but we're hopeful that someday soon he will enter into the waters of baptism. But what a great gift, man, thanks for sharing that with all of us.
George Wright: 04:18 Hey, the letter to Galatians is a fascinating letter in the new Testament. Because in the letter to the Galatians, the apostle Paul is writing this young church, this new church, with some very strong words. In fact, throughout this letter on several different occasions, the apostle Paul actually rebukes the church of Galatia. He issues them some warnings, and he's trying to get their attention. In a sense he's trying to shake this church and say, you need to hear the truth, because something has begun to happen in this church of the Galatians that is honestly very common among churches all around the world. What has happened? Well a group of people have begun to teach some of the believers of this Galatians church that the gospel of Jesus Christ is not enough to save you. In fact, they've begun to say to these new believers, this young church, hey, it's good that you are trusting Jesus. But if you really want to be right with God, you need to follow all the customs of Judaism, and you need to follow all of these rules, and you need to do all of these things, so that then you can be sure that God will be happy with you. And as a result, this Galatians church has begun to live their faith in such a way that their faith is really not about the gospel and what God already done, their faith is now about their works, and what they are trying to do to earn God's love and to earn God's favor.
George Wright: 06:09 So Paul writes this letter to the church knowing that many in this church have abandoned the gift of freedom that comes from the gospel, and now they have begun to live in this bondage that Paul calls slavery, to try and do the right things, so that God will love them. Instead of freedom in the finished work of Christ and what he alone can provide, they are trying to prove their worth to God through religious deeds and religious works. Paul says, hold on, I want to make this perfectly clear, I want to make this crystal clear. The good news of the gospel proclaims that if you are in Christ, you have been set free. Don't miss this church, it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. That is why Christ has set us free, so that we will live in freedom. Am I making myself clear? Paul is like, come on, don't miss the main point of the gospel here. Jesus is passionate about your freedom. Jesus wants you to live free. Jesus does not want your life to be a life of bondage or slavery to works. He wants your life to be free, so that the works of your life can be the overflow of what God has done for you. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 07:51 So why does Paul then say, "So stand firm and do not submit again to this yoke of slavery?" This is a a very important question for everyone who considers themselves religious. For every one of us today in church, for those who are joining us online, we must ask this question. If Jesus is all about our freedom, if Christ has come to set us free, then why are so many people in the church living in bondage? Why are so many people in the church exhausted, worn out, beaten down, by religion? Why are so many people in the church, not free in the joy of the Lord, but instead are just overwhelmed by the burdens of religion? The apostle Paul actually answers this question at the beginning of his letter to the Galatians, and this really sets the tone for all that we'll see in Galatians chapter 5.
George Wright: 08:58 We're going to walk through a few verses in the Book of Galatians to just help us be aware and prepared for what we're going to dive into here in Galatians chapter 5. So flip back to Galatians 1, if you're there in the scripture, verse 10. This is what the apostle Paul writes, this gives us insight into why so many people in the church, so many people in religion, are not in fact living in the freedom of Christ. It says, verse 10, "For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ." Here the apostle Paul is addressing one of the biggest wrestling matches that we face in our life on an ongoing basis. Am I living my life for the approval of man, or am I living my life from the approval of God? Am I living my life to please man, or am I living my life in the good news of the gospel because God is pleased with me, not because of what I've done, but because of what Christ has done for me? Am I still seeking the approval of man or of God? Am I still trying to please man? Because if I'm trying to please man, then I can't be a true servant of Christ.
George Wright: 10:43 This is what Paul is alluding to in Galatians chapter 5 verse 1, living to please man leads to a yoke of slavery. It leads to a life of burden, a life of carrying a heavy weight, that we were never intended to carry. It puts us in bondage to the approval of man. We will never be free as long as we are living for the approval of man. And Paul is saying to the Galatians in chapter 5 verse 1, it's like you're returning to a yoke of slavery, instead of walking and resting and even running in the freedom that Christ alone can provide. You see, no matter how hard you try, no matter how hard I try to find our approval in pleasing man, we will never find what we're looking for. There will always be more to do, the work will never be finished. We will be striving for something that we cannot truly find. So are we living for the approval of man, or are we living from the approval of God? I love this quote from Dr. Henry Cloud, he writes this, "Since we ultimately answer to God for our decision, it behooves us to remember that he is the one we need to please. If ever we think of forgoing what is best in order to please another person, this is the truth we need to fall back on. If pleasing God is our compass, and if we know we will answer to him, our path will be much clearer." Are you living for the approval of man, or are you living to please God?
George Wright: 12:42 You see this path of living for the approval of man, or living to please man, can take two very different paths, but both paths actually flow from the same point. Let me explain what I mean. The first path that many people find themselves on as it relates to living for the approval of man, is actually the path of living to find pleasure in the things of this world. We're trying to be approved by man, and trying to please ourselves, we are the man that we're trying to please. And so we look to the things of this world, w we try to accomplish things, we try to achieve things, we try to acquire thing., And hold on tightly to the things of this world, so that we can feel fulfilled, so that we can feel good about the way that we are living, so that we can reach the status that we want to reach in the culture around us, and then we can hopefully be fulfilled. The scripture tells us in Galatians, that this is in fact the way the Galatians were living before they heard the good news of the gospel. They were living to find pleasure in the world around them, trying to please themselves by grabbing a hold of the things of the world.
George Wright: 14:03 Look at Galatians chapter 4, we see this laid out in the scripture. Galatians chapter 4, they are living for the approval of man by living to find fulfillment in the things of the world. Verses 8 and 9, Paul writes, "Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. 9 But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?" What is Paul saying here? Paul is saying something many of us can relate to about the Galatians, they are trying to find approval by acquiring the things of this world. The Galatians were Gentiles, they were not from the Jewish heritage. And so they were following these pagan gods, gods created by man, in an attempt to find pleasure in this world. And Paul is saying, is you're living your life to find pleasure in the things of this world, it's like you're living your life, carrying a weight with you everywhere you go, and for a time you might be able to do it. For a time, you might have been thinking, yeah, I'm strong, I can handle this, and I can do this, and I can find the pleasure that I'm looking for. But over time, I mean, this is only 30 pounds, but it gets heavy, right? And over time you can't really run at all, and then sooner or later you realize you're kind of just stumbling along because this weight is heavy. That's where some of you are today. You've been trying to please yourself, to please man, by finding the things in this world that you think will satisfy you. But the more you find them, the more you realize there's still a heavy burden, there's still a weight that you're carrying, you're not free.
George Wright: 16:17 So Paul says, but don't you remember, don't you remember what happened when you encountered Christ? The weight dropped. It's a good thing that this floor is concrete up here. The weight dropped. And Paul is saying, don't you remember that first time you recognized the good news of the gospel, and all of the sudden all that you were doing to try and please yourself, and all that you are doing to try and find fulfillment in the world and in the things around you, all of the sudden that weight fell. It fell at the foot of the cross, and you realized that Jesus had done for you what you can never do for yourself, Jesus had set you free. And for the first time you begin to experience this incredible gift, the grace and the mercy of God, the freedom of Christ. It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Don't you remember that? What does verse one say? So stand firm, do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. What happened in the life of many of the Galatians? They heard this good news of Jesus, they trusted the good news of Jesus, and then they began to listen to these false teachers who began to say, you've got to do all of these other things if you're really going to be right with God. I'm glad you've heard about Jesus, I'm glad that you've experienced the gift of Jesus, but here's this list of laws and rules of do's and don'ts. You better fulfill them all, or God's not going to be happy with you.
George Wright: 18:00 Listen to what Paul says in Galatians 4 verses 10 and 11, he says, "Now you observe days and months and seasons and years, (And then he makes this amazing statement.) I am afraid that I may have labored over you in vain." What is Paul saying? Paul saying, you dropped this weight of living for yourself and trying to find pleasure in the things of this world. And now as you listen to these false teachers telling you that the only way you will be approved by God is if you do all of these things, now you've walked over and you've picked up another weight. And now instead of walking free and living free in Christ, now all of a sudden you're living for the approval of man by trying to please others. You're trying to follow all the rules, you're trying to do everything that everybody else wants you to do and instead of being free, you've now picked up this other weight and it's just like the first. Paul is saying to the Galatians, and Paul is saying to you and to me, if you truly understand the gospel, you will understand that Jesus Christ is inviting you to drop the weight. You're not going to find fulfillment in living to please yourself. You're not going to find fulfillment in living for the approval of others. The only way you will find true freedom is when you fix your focus on Christ.
George Wright: 19:35 You see, here's the reality. Here's why both of these weights are similar, even though they're very different paths. One of them looks to be a path of the world, one of them looks to be a path of religion, but they both are paths that focus on me. And the more consumed I become with me, the less I will be free. You may be consumed with yourself by trying to find pleasure for yourself. You may be consumed with yourself by trying to find approval from others, and check all the boxes and do what everyone else expects of you. But either path is really just focusing on yourself instead of focusing on what Christ has already done. This is what author Paul Tripp calls spiritual navel gazing, you're constantly looking down at yourself instead of looking up to Christ, the one who truly invites us to a life of freedom. Do you find yourself on one of these paths this morning? If I'm honest with you, this morning as your pastor here at Shandon, it's important to be honest, right? Especially for the pastor in church, that's good, right? Check that box. Okay. That's on this path, check that box. Good. Right? If I'm honest, I find myself on both of these paths from time to time. Were there times in my life where I'm like, look, I've been set free. I can do whatever I want. It's not about anyone else, it's not about what anyone thinks. No, I can do whatever I want, and I get so self-focused and so self-consumed that I actually pick up a weight that was never meant to carry. And then there's other times, more often than I want to admit, quite honestly, where I pick up this weight of thinking okay, what are they going to think? What are they going to think about me if they hear this? What are they going to think about me if they hear actually had an argument with my wife? Or if they hear that I got upset with my kids? Or what are they going to think if I wear that to church? And this weight, the approval of others, gets heavier and heavier. And yet the invitation of the gospel, the invitation of Jesus Christ is freedom. It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 22:13 And we see Paul write in Galatians 4 verses 4 through 7, this amazing statement reminding the Galatians of what they have been invited into in the freedom of the gospel. Verse 4, it says, "But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, 5 to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 6 And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” 7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God." Paul is saying, look, this is true freedom, this is the invitation to be truly free. It's not about what you have done to find fulfillment, it's not what you have done to try and please others. No, true freedom is found in what Christ has done for you. True freedom is found in the finished work of the gospel of Jesus Christ that says, Jesus took your place on a cross to die a death that you deserve. Jesus Christ rose from the grave, defeating sin and death, something that you and I could never do, to invite us into new life, into freedom in his mercy and his grace. It is for freedom Christ has set us free.
George Wright: 23:46 The more focused I am on me, the less I will be free, but the same is true when we focus on Jesus. On the other side of this equation, the more focused I am on Jesus, the more I will be truly free. So church, where is your focus? Where is your focus? There are a lot of people in the church, their life, and their faith, and their focus is all about me. And yet there is no freedom that will truly be found when you are the focus of your life. Jesus is inviting you to something so much better. Jesus is inviting you to look at what he has already done for you, and what he will do through you. Jesus is inviting us to lift up our eyes and to see the beauty of the gospel. This is what author Timothy Keller calls gospel humility, and I love that term, gospel humility. Gospel humility is where true freedom is put on display. You see, the gospel gives us confidence. That's the first part of that statement. The gospel gives us confidence to live free, but the call to humility gospel humility reminds us that freedom is not about me at all, freedom is all about what Christ has done for me. So I am confident in the gospel, but I am humble in what Christ has done for me, because this is not about how great I am, it's about how great he is. That is true freedom. Listen to what Keller writes about gospel humility. He says, "Gospel humility is not needing to think about myself, not needing to connect things to myself. True gospel humility means I stop connecting every experience and every conversation with myself. I can start to enjoy things that are not about me. I can actually enjoy things for what they are. They're not just for my resume. They're not just to look good on my college or job application. They're not just a way of filling up the emptiness. This is gospel humility, not thinking more of myself as in modern cultures, or less of myself as in traditional cultures, simply thinking of myself less." Imagine how free you would be if you simply thought of yourself less.
George Wright: 26:36 This is the beautiful invitation of Jesus Christ. Christ has to set us free. Christ is inviting us to truly live free. Christ is inviting us to lay down the weight, the weight that wears us out, the weight that consumes us, the weight that overwhelms us, the weight that prevents us from running in freedom in the good news of the gospel. Christ is inviting you to stop living for the approval of man, or living to try and fulfill yourself, but to look to what he has already done for you through the cross and the power of his resurrection. If you know the son, you will be truly free. For it is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, therefore, do not submit again to the yoke of slavery. Stop being consumed with yourself, stop being consumed with what others think of you, and look to Jesus and what he alone can provide.
George Wright: 27:49 I'm going to close with a great passage from Hebrews chapter 12, Hebrews chapter 12 verses 1 and 2, the amazing picture, the good news of Jesus. It says this, "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight. (There it is. Drop the weight.) Lay aside the sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us. (Looking where at ourselves? No.) Looking to Jesus, the founder, the Perfecter of our faith. Who for the joy that was set before him, endured the cross despising the shame and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God." You are invited to be free. You are invited to run with endurance, without the weight hanging you down. You are invited to trust in what Christ alone can provide. You are invited to look to Jesus and to see that he has done for you what you can never do for yourself. So where is your focus? Where's your focus? Are you trying to please yourself by finding fulfillment in the things of this world? Are you living for the approval of others trying to please others, finding fulfillment in doing what they want you to do? Or are you embracing the good news of the gospel? Are you fixing your eyes on Jesus? Are you living in the gift of freedom that he wants you to have? It is for freedom that Christ has set you free. Trust him, look to him, and find the freedom that your heart so desperately longs for.
George Wright: 30:02 Let me have a word of prayer for us as we close our time here together this morning. Heavenly father, I am so very grateful that you are passionate about our freedom. I am so grateful for the good news of Jesus that says, to everyone who will listen and believe you can be free. This is not a freedom that we can achieve. This is not a freedom that we can deserve. This is a freedom that comes as a beautiful gift in the good news of the gospel. Jesus Christ has done for us what we could never do for ourselves. Lord. I believe there are some among us today who are longing to be free, but they've never truly experienced freedom in Christ. There are some who have been trying to find fulfillment in the world, and it is just more and more of a heavy weight and a burden on their shoulders, they're not free. There are some who have been trying to find freedom by doing everything the right way according to what everyone else says, and if they're honest, they are exhausted. And I pray that today would be the day that some trust in you, that they would bow their knee to say, Jesus, I need you. I cannot be free on my own. I cannot be free living for the approval of man. I am trusting you, my savior and my Lord, cover my sin. paint my life with your grace. Lord, I'm ready to run, run with endurance, not run away, but run to you and the good news of what you have done, the finished work of the cross, that is the beautiful message of the gospel. I'm ready to be free. And how thankful we are for the amazing declaration that if the Son sets you free, you are free indeed. I pray, Lord God, that we would be a people who live in the freedom of the gospel, and we would be a people that invite others into the freedom of the gospel. That we would not become obsessed with ourselves, but we would become consumed with you. And as a result, our lives would be a picture of what freedom is really all about. How thankful we are for what Jesus Christ has done. In Jesus' name we pray. Amen. Amen.
Recorded in Columbia, South Carolina.
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