WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:04.060 Galatians chapter 3 is where we are, so please come with me there. 00:00:05.000 --> 00:00:07.480 And here's what I want to do as we get into this this morning. 00:00:07.980 --> 00:00:12.580 I want to introduce us to the key words at the heart of this passage today. 00:00:14.019 --> 00:00:18.820 By telling you about the love-hate relationship I have with Indiana Jones. 00:00:20.920 --> 00:00:23.839 Love is in what's not to love about Harrison Ford, right? 00:00:25.179 --> 00:00:25.500 Right? 00:00:25.500 --> 00:00:30.780 Right? Actor of my childhood, the guy has not starred in a bad film. 00:00:30.859 --> 00:00:34.240 If you disagree with that, I will thumb-wore you at the back afterwards. 00:00:36.340 --> 00:00:38.000 That's my love, but here's my hate. 00:00:39.620 --> 00:00:46.320 Watching one of those films gave me a faulty understanding of the word that's at the heart of our passage today. 00:00:48.280 --> 00:00:49.280 Do you know what the word is? 00:00:50.200 --> 00:00:51.840 It's the word faith. 00:00:51.840 --> 00:00:56.060 That word comes up nine times in those 14 verses. 00:00:56.200 --> 00:00:58.280 You might have heard the rhythm of how this passage works. 00:00:58.380 --> 00:01:03.000 Question for you, what does it mean for somebody to have faith? 00:01:04.560 --> 00:01:12.340 Because there is that iconic scene in the Last Crusade, and 90s graphics here aren't the best for this kind of thing. 00:01:12.340 --> 00:01:24.740 But if you've ever seen this, there's this iconic scene in the Last Crusade, where Indy, in his pursuit of the Holy Grail, along with his dad, played by Sean Connery, one of his greatest acting feats, 00:01:25.219 --> 00:01:28.040 he comes to this uncrossable chasm. 00:01:28.040 --> 00:01:38.140 And to get across, he has to kind of convince himself that there is, in fact, a bridge there that he can stand on. 00:01:39.160 --> 00:01:46.960 And the whole thing is he needs to step out blindly, trusting that something's going to be there to catch him. 00:01:46.959 --> 00:01:53.699 And here's the faulty idea I had for so long of my life about what faith was based on that scene. 00:01:54.339 --> 00:01:57.679 Faith was blind trust. 00:02:00.079 --> 00:02:03.919 Sentiments echoed by the late physicist Dr. Stephen Hawking. 00:02:04.000 --> 00:02:04.500 He said this, 00:02:04.599 --> 00:02:07.239 Religion is a fairy tale for those afraid of the dark. 00:02:07.239 --> 00:02:13.460 Friends, in this passage, we're going to learn what true faith is according to the Bible. 00:02:14.960 --> 00:02:21.859 And whether you've been a follower of Jesus for decades, whether you've been a follower of Jesus for days, 00:02:21.939 --> 00:02:25.560 whether you're just here and you're scoping out this whole church Christianity stuff, 00:02:25.740 --> 00:02:28.340 we all need to know the answer to that question. 00:02:29.919 --> 00:02:31.280 Here it is in a nutshell. 00:02:31.439 --> 00:02:33.659 What is faith according to this passage? 00:02:33.659 --> 00:02:39.939 Faith according to this passage is hearing and believing. 00:02:41.719 --> 00:02:44.479 Hearing and believing. 00:02:47.439 --> 00:02:53.240 And remember, this comes in the context of the debate that's raging in this region of Galatia. 00:02:54.560 --> 00:03:01.159 Call it AD 50 or something like that, about how someone can be made right with God. 00:03:01.159 --> 00:03:14.139 The Jewish teachers are saying that Jesus is a great start, but you need to take that great start and you need to add to it your good works by starting to live like a Jewish person would live. 00:03:14.180 --> 00:03:17.539 And that's the bewitching language he's using there at verse 1. 00:03:17.659 --> 00:03:18.280 Do you notice it? 00:03:18.340 --> 00:03:19.099 Really strong. 00:03:21.199 --> 00:03:24.500 These teachers, according to Paul, they're like the bogus gas man. 00:03:24.500 --> 00:03:33.979 Their pitch to you is akin to that spam email from the businessman in the Caribbean promising you an investment for the ages. 00:03:35.740 --> 00:03:42.539 These guys have hoodwinked you, Galatians, and you need to see it because see in the language here in the first few verses, 00:03:42.539 --> 00:03:51.759 when we were with you initially, we put before you, your ears and your eyes, we put before you Jesus Christ and him crucified. 00:03:53.159 --> 00:03:55.000 So this is not novel for you. 00:03:55.060 --> 00:03:56.120 You know this stuff. 00:03:56.819 --> 00:04:01.659 We put it before you and you started so well to see in the verses there. 00:04:02.000 --> 00:04:06.299 You were even prepared to suffer for the fact that you thought it was Jesus alone. 00:04:06.300 --> 00:04:09.600 But now you have been completely bamboozled. 00:04:11.980 --> 00:04:19.020 And last week we took in the theological heart of this letter, verses 15 and 16, the middle of the Galatians mind map. 00:04:19.100 --> 00:04:20.080 Do you remember we thought about that? 00:04:20.460 --> 00:04:24.220 In the words of my good friend Liam Garvey down at Charlotte Chapel, here's the summary. 00:04:25.100 --> 00:04:28.980 You can't get into God's good books by doing good deeds. 00:04:30.980 --> 00:04:31.819 One night again. 00:04:31.819 --> 00:04:36.719 You can't get into God's good books by doing good deeds. 00:04:37.839 --> 00:04:47.040 We are justified in that word we thought about last week just means to be declared right in the sight of this God who created us and made us. 00:04:47.439 --> 00:04:51.659 We are right in his sight by faith, which begs the question, doesn't it? 00:04:51.740 --> 00:04:55.399 If that's how we've defined faith, hearing and believing. 00:04:56.120 --> 00:04:58.240 Faith in what? 00:04:58.240 --> 00:05:28.220 Faith in what? 00:05:28.220 --> 00:05:34.860 If we don't, what we drift into thinking is that God is just a bigger and better version of us. 00:05:35.160 --> 00:05:37.140 He operates on our terms. 00:05:37.260 --> 00:05:39.600 He is the biggest bully in the playground. 00:05:40.220 --> 00:05:45.240 And it works with him like it does at your work, performance related pay. 00:05:45.240 --> 00:05:51.220 Here's a great insight from Jen Wilkin in the States. 00:05:51.280 --> 00:05:54.939 If you've not read Jen Wilkin, then go and Google her afterwards or listen to her. 00:05:54.980 --> 00:05:55.300 She's great. 00:05:55.400 --> 00:05:56.139 Here's what she says. 00:05:56.139 --> 00:06:07.740 The first thing that comes to our minds when we think about God can sometimes be more heavily, heavily influenced by our background than by the Bible itself. 00:06:07.740 --> 00:06:08.300 Isn't she right? 00:06:08.300 --> 00:06:09.379 Isn't she right? 00:06:09.379 --> 00:06:11.300 Isn't she right? 00:06:11.300 --> 00:06:11.300 00:06:12.360 --> 00:06:16.840 More influenced by our background by the Bible itself. 00:06:16.839 --> 00:06:19.839 So here's my invitation to you, whoever you are here today, right? 00:06:20.099 --> 00:06:22.279 Don't settle for speculation. 00:06:22.279 --> 00:06:26.279 Don't entertain your imagination. 00:06:26.279 --> 00:06:32.379 Come to the Bible and revel in his revelation. 00:06:32.379 --> 00:06:38.860 Come and see that this God is both merciful and mighty. 00:06:39.819 --> 00:06:44.719 That he is the God who can and he is the God who cares. 00:06:46.040 --> 00:06:55.000 And in particular today, see today that he is the God who is in the business of making promises and keeping promises. 00:06:56.920 --> 00:06:58.879 So faith isn't blind. 00:06:58.879 --> 00:07:08.800 And faith, according to the Bible, is hearing and believing the promises of God, particularly as they center on Jesus. 00:07:09.019 --> 00:07:09.620 Now, you with me? 00:07:10.360 --> 00:07:10.620 Yeah? 00:07:12.019 --> 00:07:13.339 Okay, we're going to go with it. 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:16.759 Here's two things about faith that this passage tells us. 00:07:16.819 --> 00:07:18.779 The first one we take in is verses 1 to 9. 00:07:18.920 --> 00:07:19.719 Here's number one. 00:07:20.560 --> 00:07:22.819 Friends, faith is just always the way it's been. 00:07:24.159 --> 00:07:25.959 It's always the way it's been. 00:07:25.959 --> 00:07:29.799 And to make his point in genius fashion, Paul introduces us at verse 6. 00:07:29.879 --> 00:07:30.899 Do you see in the text? 00:07:31.579 --> 00:07:33.139 To an Old Testament legend. 00:07:35.079 --> 00:07:37.639 A man called Abraham. 00:07:37.919 --> 00:07:42.479 Now, if you're a Jew in this day and you went on Ancestry.com, just run with it. 00:07:43.319 --> 00:07:45.899 You traced your lineage all the way back physically. 00:07:46.779 --> 00:07:50.679 You'd eventually arrive at him. 00:07:50.979 --> 00:07:54.419 So Abraham is the granddaddy of them all, right? 00:07:54.420 --> 00:07:57.360 Two things you need to know this morning about Abraham. 00:07:57.580 --> 00:08:00.900 Two things that he was not when God called him. 00:08:02.020 --> 00:08:04.480 Number one, he was not a good man. 00:08:06.640 --> 00:08:08.100 Abraham was a nobody. 00:08:09.460 --> 00:08:14.080 In fact, more than that, he was a pagan nobody. 00:08:14.079 --> 00:08:23.759 So it's not as if Abraham, as we meet him in the Bible story, Genesis 12, it's not as if God picked him because he won a holiness competition. 00:08:24.079 --> 00:08:28.860 God is not Simon Cowell rewarding Abraham for his best pitch. 00:08:28.860 --> 00:08:38.300 He was a man with all sorts of baggage, all sorts of mess, all sorts of things going on in his background in life. 00:08:39.379 --> 00:08:46.919 And if you're here today and that resonates with you, can I invite you to let Abraham show you that your background is no barrier to faith? 00:08:46.919 --> 00:08:53.740 Second thing he was not, friends, he was not a young man. 00:08:55.000 --> 00:08:59.059 He's probably 75 when we first meet him in the Bible. 00:09:00.059 --> 00:09:05.299 Now listen, I realize that some of us here, and you tell me this all the time, you are not spring chickens anymore. 00:09:05.299 --> 00:09:17.519 I heard a term somebody use this week called people who are known as afternooners, which I think is the most British polite thing I've ever heard. 00:09:17.620 --> 00:09:20.379 I love it when we live up to our stereotypes, afternooners, right? 00:09:20.899 --> 00:09:27.019 But some of us are here and we're thinking, and I've heard people articulate this, that I haven't grown up in church. 00:09:27.439 --> 00:09:31.479 I've got no idea about all of this language, all of this Bible stuff. 00:09:31.479 --> 00:09:33.899 Listen, it is too late in the day for me. 00:09:33.899 --> 00:09:38.159 And let Abraham show you that your age is no barrier to faith. 00:09:39.759 --> 00:09:41.519 Here's the thing about Abraham. 00:09:41.860 --> 00:09:44.899 God made this nobody promises. 00:09:46.000 --> 00:09:50.879 He made him promises and promises that you can read about in Genesis 12 and 15. 00:09:52.699 --> 00:09:54.759 Promises of a people. 00:09:56.220 --> 00:09:58.720 And promises of a place. 00:09:59.480 --> 00:10:01.980 And promises that through him, 00:10:01.980 --> 00:10:06.159 all the families of the earth, 00:10:06.320 --> 00:10:08.220 all the peoples, 00:10:08.420 --> 00:10:10.720 all the nations would be blessed. 00:10:10.800 --> 00:10:11.759 Hold on to that thought. 00:10:13.080 --> 00:10:14.240 The ultimate promise, 00:10:14.320 --> 00:10:15.360 these all come together. 00:10:15.519 --> 00:10:17.560 He says in Genesis 15 to Abraham, 00:10:17.700 --> 00:10:18.019 Abraham, 00:10:18.539 --> 00:10:20.259 I am your great reward. 00:10:20.259 --> 00:10:30.139 So the blessing that's coming to Abraham is that through his line, people are going to know God himself. 00:10:31.799 --> 00:10:33.500 We're going to know God himself. 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:37.939 And God is the one who's going to do this. 00:10:38.799 --> 00:10:41.220 God is saying here, I'm going to do all this. 00:10:41.220 --> 00:10:42.399 In the words of Don Carson, 00:10:42.840 --> 00:10:45.379 he is the God who writes his own agreements. 00:10:47.480 --> 00:10:49.320 And right there in Genesis 12 and 15, 00:10:49.460 --> 00:10:51.660 Paul says, verse 8 of our text, 00:10:53.660 --> 00:10:55.279 God was preaching, 00:10:55.860 --> 00:10:56.940 do you see it? 00:10:57.700 --> 00:10:59.820 The gospel to Abraham. 00:10:59.820 --> 00:11:01.820 Wow. 00:11:01.820 --> 00:11:02.820 Wow. 00:11:05.040 --> 00:11:12.800 Which means that the seeds of how God will save people in generations to come, 00:11:13.800 --> 00:11:15.600 through sending his son Jesus, 00:11:15.780 --> 00:11:19.840 the seeds of that promise are right here. 00:11:20.780 --> 00:11:22.780 In Genesis 12 and Genesis 15. 00:11:22.860 --> 00:11:24.880 Now let that stretch you. 00:11:26.500 --> 00:11:29.060 It's not being so good, Galatians, for stretching us. 00:11:29.059 --> 00:11:31.539 For me, this is what this has done devotionally. 00:11:31.699 --> 00:11:33.779 Last week, the question is, 00:11:34.099 --> 00:11:35.539 how deep is your gospel? 00:11:36.339 --> 00:11:38.879 Paul said that Christ lives in me. 00:11:39.019 --> 00:11:41.139 I no longer live the life and I live in the body. 00:11:41.239 --> 00:11:44.319 I live by faith in the son of God who loved me and gave himself for me. 00:11:44.959 --> 00:11:45.319 Wow. 00:11:45.559 --> 00:11:47.319 How deep is your gospel? 00:11:47.439 --> 00:11:49.699 It transforms us internally. 00:11:49.979 --> 00:11:52.500 This week, how old is your gospel? 00:11:54.119 --> 00:11:58.459 Do you see here how this is no novel New Testament idea? 00:11:59.059 --> 00:12:03.299 It goes all the way back. 00:12:06.019 --> 00:12:07.099 Why is Paul using it? 00:12:07.179 --> 00:12:12.559 I imagine it's because the Judaizers in Galatia are likely saying to these young believers, 00:12:12.699 --> 00:12:13.479 hey, do you know what? 00:12:13.539 --> 00:12:14.919 See if you get circumcised. 00:12:15.919 --> 00:12:18.379 You can join Abraham's family tree too. 00:12:18.379 --> 00:12:23.240 That's what God told Abraham to do in Genesis 17, right? 00:12:23.340 --> 00:12:24.840 Isn't that the defining marker? 00:12:28.340 --> 00:12:31.980 And Paul's response really is like any good detective in a whodunit. 00:12:32.860 --> 00:12:36.299 If you're into murder mysteries like we are. 00:12:36.299 --> 00:12:39.639 It's all about working out the timing. 00:12:40.759 --> 00:12:40.939 Right? 00:12:41.039 --> 00:12:47.459 I've watched enough episodes of Murder, She Wrote, In My Time. 00:12:49.339 --> 00:12:51.620 And Death and Paradise to know it's all about the timing. 00:12:51.719 --> 00:12:54.199 It's all about working out who did what when. 00:12:54.859 --> 00:12:55.059 Right? 00:12:55.339 --> 00:12:56.439 Who did what when? 00:12:56.440 --> 00:13:00.020 Paul says it's a question of chronology here. 00:13:00.120 --> 00:13:00.200 Right? 00:13:00.320 --> 00:13:06.440 Is it faith or is it circumcision and keeping the law which justifies someone before God? 00:13:06.480 --> 00:13:07.200 That's the argument. 00:13:07.740 --> 00:13:12.240 Friends, what Paul is saying here is that that question is not akin to which came first, 00:13:12.320 --> 00:13:13.200 the chicken or the egg. 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:24.620 Paul says really simply, Genesis 12 comes before Genesis 17. 00:13:25.379 --> 00:13:26.440 It's as simple as that. 00:13:27.240 --> 00:13:30.160 And that's why he quotes Genesis 15 at verse 6. 00:13:30.280 --> 00:13:35.000 There's a lot of Old Testament quotes going on here, but that's what he's doing to show the chronology. 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:37.820 How was Abraham declared righteous before God? 00:13:38.220 --> 00:13:41.240 The answer is not by being circumcised. 00:13:41.240 --> 00:13:43.340 All right, it's not by being circumcised. 00:13:43.440 --> 00:13:44.399 Then when was it? 00:13:44.700 --> 00:13:48.019 He was declared righteous before God way before that. 00:13:51.480 --> 00:13:58.639 The moment he heard, and you see it in the text, and he believed God. 00:14:01.639 --> 00:14:04.419 The moment he heard God's promises and he thought to himself, 00:14:04.500 --> 00:14:04.840 do you know what? 00:14:04.899 --> 00:14:06.419 God is no flip-flop politician. 00:14:06.419 --> 00:14:13.240 I reckon you'll do exactly what he said you'll do. 00:14:15.719 --> 00:14:21.559 And because I conclude that, I'm going to walk in light of it. 00:14:21.559 --> 00:14:30.839 So how can anybody, anybody be part of Abraham's family? 00:14:30.959 --> 00:14:33.319 Not by circumcision, not by keeping the law, 00:14:33.759 --> 00:14:39.219 but by following the example of Abraham, the man of faith. 00:14:41.519 --> 00:14:42.699 Always been about faith. 00:14:42.779 --> 00:14:44.359 Now here's the thing, friends, as we apply. 00:14:44.360 --> 00:14:48.840 Do you realise today, if you've got faith in this Jesus, who you are related to? 00:14:52.279 --> 00:14:54.200 Do you realise who we're related to? 00:14:55.440 --> 00:14:57.840 We're related to Abraham, but it's better than that. 00:14:57.919 --> 00:15:00.960 Do you see who we are related to? 00:15:01.019 --> 00:15:03.060 It's the wonderful thing about the Christian faith. 00:15:03.059 --> 00:15:06.819 It is both exclusive and it's inclusive. 00:15:08.599 --> 00:15:11.479 Exclusive in that there is only one way, friends. 00:15:11.579 --> 00:15:13.679 There's only one way to be right with God. 00:15:14.339 --> 00:15:19.059 Jesus said that he is the way, the truth, and the life. 00:15:19.139 --> 00:15:21.159 Not our way, our truth, and our life. 00:15:22.239 --> 00:15:24.779 No one comes to the Father except through him. 00:15:25.599 --> 00:15:27.119 It's an exclusive claim. 00:15:27.259 --> 00:15:30.039 This is not, I'll take the high road, and you take the low road, 00:15:30.039 --> 00:15:32.419 and I'll be in heaven with you. 00:15:33.059 --> 00:15:38.919 Friends, any road that we're attempting to travel on that isn't marked Jesus 00:15:38.919 --> 00:15:41.799 is a dead end. 00:15:41.959 --> 00:15:46.479 And we're going to see why there could only be one way to be right with God in a minute. 00:15:46.819 --> 00:15:52.099 But make no mistake, this is so radically inclusive. 00:15:54.479 --> 00:15:56.719 It's one of the buzzwords of our day, isn't it? 00:15:57.139 --> 00:15:57.579 Inclusivity. 00:16:00.799 --> 00:16:02.699 Friends, see God's heart here. 00:16:03.059 --> 00:16:05.919 God's heart here is for the nations. 00:16:07.739 --> 00:16:09.019 Who are you related to? 00:16:09.099 --> 00:16:10.739 Do you understand who we're related to? 00:16:10.799 --> 00:16:12.500 By faith, by Abraham, yes. 00:16:12.579 --> 00:16:17.879 But everyone who follows in Abraham's footsteps. 00:16:18.299 --> 00:16:22.500 This God's heart here is for the peoples of the world. 00:16:22.500 --> 00:16:26.840 This offer really is, if I could nick the name of a mobile phone company. 00:16:26.960 --> 00:16:29.360 It is really for everybody everywhere. 00:16:31.139 --> 00:16:34.059 It is the most beautiful thing about Christianity. 00:16:35.840 --> 00:16:39.019 And if you're a believer today, this is for you. 00:16:39.179 --> 00:16:44.259 Friends, if there was a red dot for every Christian on the world map, 00:16:44.259 --> 00:16:51.240 you would see that this is not geographically centered. 00:16:52.240 --> 00:16:56.899 You would see Christians from every continent, 00:16:57.399 --> 00:17:00.919 from every people, speaking every language, 00:17:01.080 --> 00:17:04.579 from every ethnicity, from every social status. 00:17:04.579 --> 00:17:07.059 Think more about that in the next half of the chapter. 00:17:07.059 --> 00:17:14.119 Do you understand by faith who we're related to today? 00:17:14.119 --> 00:17:18.839 Do you know what passed on the Royal Mile the other day? 00:17:21.419 --> 00:17:23.119 Ye old Christmas shop. 00:17:25.059 --> 00:17:25.839 You know the one? 00:17:26.739 --> 00:17:29.379 Which is always a bold business strategy, I think, 00:17:29.439 --> 00:17:30.719 going for the old Christmas shop. 00:17:30.859 --> 00:17:33.359 Every other Christmas shop in the world, 00:17:33.439 --> 00:17:36.079 you're hot for maybe one month, maybe two months of the year. 00:17:36.219 --> 00:17:39.599 That Christmas shop seems to be hot every month of the year. 00:17:39.599 --> 00:17:42.679 See if you look in the old Christmas shop, 00:17:42.779 --> 00:17:46.299 here's what you'll see in the front window. 00:17:47.879 --> 00:17:49.579 You will see snow globes. 00:17:52.139 --> 00:17:54.039 Have you ever thought about what a snow globe is? 00:17:55.759 --> 00:17:59.639 It is this miniature Christmas scene. 00:18:00.399 --> 00:18:04.339 It is Christmas in microcosm form. 00:18:04.439 --> 00:18:05.119 What does it do? 00:18:05.299 --> 00:18:06.859 We're meant to look at it and we think, 00:18:06.859 --> 00:18:12.039 I'm yearning for the ultimate taster of what Christmas is, right? 00:18:13.740 --> 00:18:14.599 Microcosm of Christmas. 00:18:14.599 --> 00:18:17.240 Friends, have you ever thought about the fact that that's 00:18:17.240 --> 00:18:23.240 what the local church is? 00:18:28.359 --> 00:18:30.179 It is a microcosm. 00:18:30.639 --> 00:18:31.879 Just look around today. 00:18:33.079 --> 00:18:34.319 Look around today. 00:18:34.479 --> 00:18:36.240 What is it that unites us together? 00:18:37.419 --> 00:18:38.839 From every people, 00:18:39.079 --> 00:18:40.079 every ethnicity, 00:18:40.399 --> 00:18:41.259 every skin colour, 00:18:41.399 --> 00:18:42.599 every social status. 00:18:42.719 --> 00:18:44.259 What is it that unites us together? 00:18:45.699 --> 00:18:46.599 It's our... 00:18:46.599 --> 00:18:51.179 It's our faith in Jesus. 00:18:51.339 --> 00:18:53.859 Have you ever thought about the fact that the local church 00:18:53.859 --> 00:18:55.859 is a microcosm, 00:18:55.979 --> 00:18:57.199 it is a snow globe 00:18:57.199 --> 00:19:00.839 of what we read about in Revelation 7? 00:19:02.979 --> 00:19:03.919 Just look around. 00:19:03.920 --> 00:19:06.539 Look around. 00:19:06.539 --> 00:19:06.700 Look around. 00:19:08.200 --> 00:19:10.340 What do we see in Revelation 7? 00:19:10.460 --> 00:19:14.100 We see a people worshipping the Lamb who was slain. 00:19:15.039 --> 00:19:16.360 And they're gathered. 00:19:16.359 --> 00:19:23.319 a people from every tribe, 00:19:23.319 --> 00:19:25.799 every tongue, 00:19:26.139 --> 00:19:27.919 every nation. 00:19:27.920 --> 00:19:31.080 God has gathered them together. 00:19:31.080 --> 00:19:33.980 We won't all be speaking English in glory. 00:19:35.519 --> 00:19:38.960 He's gathered them together under the banner of his son, 00:19:38.960 --> 00:19:42.440 and he's transformed them into worshippers. 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:45.799 Friends, 00:19:45.840 --> 00:19:48.200 do you see who we're related to this morning? 00:19:49.660 --> 00:19:52.340 And how our church is a wonderful microcosm 00:19:52.340 --> 00:19:54.980 of the ultimate thing that God is doing. 00:19:55.140 --> 00:19:55.299 Listen, 00:19:55.420 --> 00:19:56.360 the greatest thing, 00:19:56.460 --> 00:19:57.840 the most exciting thing 00:19:57.840 --> 00:20:01.120 that is happening according to heaven right now on earth 00:20:01.119 --> 00:20:03.359 is Jesus building his church 00:20:03.359 --> 00:20:10.459 made up of believing Jew and Gentile. 00:20:10.579 --> 00:20:13.859 This people gathered through the ages to worship him. 00:20:14.379 --> 00:20:16.279 This is a snow globe 00:20:16.279 --> 00:20:18.500 right here 00:20:18.500 --> 00:20:21.139 of that scene that we will be part of 00:20:21.139 --> 00:20:22.659 and we will see not by faith, 00:20:22.779 --> 00:20:24.979 but with sight at the end of the age. 00:20:25.619 --> 00:20:25.839 Friends, 00:20:25.839 --> 00:20:27.220 do you see God's heart 00:20:27.220 --> 00:20:29.359 is to draw out for himself, 00:20:29.619 --> 00:20:32.079 create one people of God? 00:20:33.980 --> 00:20:35.379 One people of God 00:20:35.379 --> 00:20:37.740 made up of believing Jew and Gentile. 00:20:37.879 --> 00:20:40.839 One people animated by their love for Jesus 00:20:40.839 --> 00:20:42.500 gathered together. 00:20:42.639 --> 00:20:44.959 Do you see how radically inclusive 00:20:44.959 --> 00:20:47.919 the Christian faith is? 00:20:51.439 --> 00:20:52.299 Can I breathe? 00:20:55.839 --> 00:20:57.359 Here's the second thing about faith. 00:20:57.439 --> 00:20:58.319 This will be a lot quicker. 00:20:58.459 --> 00:20:59.559 Verses 10 to 14. 00:20:59.799 --> 00:21:00.639 Oh, there's my snow globe. 00:21:03.879 --> 00:21:04.279 Friends, 00:21:04.379 --> 00:21:06.259 faith is the only way that works. 00:21:08.399 --> 00:21:09.879 You know that scene in the Matrix 00:21:09.879 --> 00:21:11.599 where Neo is presented 00:21:11.599 --> 00:21:13.779 with the whole blue pill or red pill decision? 00:21:16.379 --> 00:21:17.819 God's people in the Old Testament 00:21:17.819 --> 00:21:20.019 are always presented with a similar decision. 00:21:21.539 --> 00:21:24.539 And it's obedience or disobedience. 00:21:24.539 --> 00:21:25.119 It is, 00:21:25.500 --> 00:21:26.139 if you obey, 00:21:26.299 --> 00:21:28.079 God promises blessings. 00:21:29.240 --> 00:21:30.359 But if you disobey, 00:21:30.480 --> 00:21:32.819 God promises you curses. 00:21:35.359 --> 00:21:37.039 And given Paul's Jewish background, 00:21:37.220 --> 00:21:39.740 he'd have been so familiar with that choice 00:21:39.740 --> 00:21:41.980 and about how God's people down the ages 00:21:41.980 --> 00:21:43.139 got it wrong 00:21:43.139 --> 00:21:44.180 and chose the wrong thing. 00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:45.720 And that's what he's talking about 00:21:45.720 --> 00:21:46.399 in these verses. 00:21:46.519 --> 00:21:47.639 Do you see verse 10? 00:21:48.980 --> 00:21:49.799 He said, 00:21:50.500 --> 00:21:51.480 cursed be everyone 00:21:51.480 --> 00:21:52.480 who does not continue 00:21:52.480 --> 00:21:53.599 to do everything written 00:21:53.599 --> 00:21:54.719 in the book of the law. 00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:56.459 Now, right there is the problem. 00:21:59.259 --> 00:22:01.159 Because none of us keep it perfectly. 00:22:03.159 --> 00:22:05.439 We're not law keepers by default. 00:22:05.579 --> 00:22:07.579 We are law breakers. 00:22:08.019 --> 00:22:09.079 So what does that mean? 00:22:09.079 --> 00:22:09.079 00:22:09.079 --> 00:22:09.980 We're not law breakers. 00:22:10.079 --> 00:22:11.619 Both Jew and Gentile 00:22:11.619 --> 00:22:13.619 are facing according to this passage. 00:22:15.059 --> 00:22:17.119 They are facing God's curse. 00:22:19.379 --> 00:22:20.339 And what he's saying 00:22:20.339 --> 00:22:21.740 in the context of the Galatians, 00:22:21.740 --> 00:22:23.799 see if you turn back to the law 00:22:23.799 --> 00:22:26.099 and trying to earn God's favor, 00:22:26.299 --> 00:22:29.160 you are turning back to that curse. 00:22:29.620 --> 00:22:30.640 Because if you try to do it, 00:22:30.640 --> 00:22:32.039 you'll just realize that you can. 00:22:35.480 --> 00:22:37.400 And verse 13 is the good news 00:22:37.400 --> 00:22:40.980 for law breakers and curse deservers like us. 00:22:42.680 --> 00:22:44.920 Verse 13 is the good news that we need today. 00:22:45.019 --> 00:22:45.859 Do you see what it's saying? 00:22:45.859 --> 00:22:51.039 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law. 00:22:51.799 --> 00:22:52.199 How? 00:22:54.359 --> 00:22:58.159 By becoming a curse for us. 00:22:58.179 --> 00:23:00.359 And there's that for us language again. 00:23:00.539 --> 00:23:03.119 We met it right at the start of chapter one. 00:23:04.299 --> 00:23:05.240 And what this says is 00:23:05.240 --> 00:23:08.139 it is a commentary 00:23:08.139 --> 00:23:11.919 on what's happening at the cross of Christ. 00:23:11.920 --> 00:23:15.259 Now if you're an Old Testament Jew, 00:23:15.380 --> 00:23:17.700 you know Deuteronomy 21. 00:23:19.380 --> 00:23:22.980 Cursed is anyone who is hanged on a pole. 00:23:24.220 --> 00:23:27.180 So no wonder that people in Jesus' day 00:23:27.180 --> 00:23:29.440 looked at him suspended on that cross. 00:23:29.519 --> 00:23:30.680 And what did they conclude? 00:23:31.660 --> 00:23:34.060 They married what they're seeing in front of them 00:23:34.060 --> 00:23:36.279 with that quote from Deuteronomy. 00:23:36.279 --> 00:23:40.019 And they conclude that Jesus is receiving what? 00:23:41.740 --> 00:23:42.740 God's curse. 00:23:45.000 --> 00:23:46.980 And Paul writes here 00:23:46.980 --> 00:23:50.440 that they were absolutely right to conclude that. 00:23:50.519 --> 00:23:51.720 But the question is, 00:23:52.059 --> 00:23:55.099 whose curse is he taking? 00:23:56.579 --> 00:23:58.299 Because it can't be his. 00:23:58.460 --> 00:23:59.839 His life was perfect. 00:24:00.559 --> 00:24:03.180 He deserves the blessings of God, 00:24:03.319 --> 00:24:04.420 not the curses. 00:24:04.420 --> 00:24:06.460 And yet he's there suspended. 00:24:10.180 --> 00:24:11.320 What is going on? 00:24:11.420 --> 00:24:13.400 He has taken the curse that we deserved 00:24:13.400 --> 00:24:15.440 on himself in our place. 00:24:19.100 --> 00:24:20.019 And in turn, 00:24:20.100 --> 00:24:21.779 the blessing that he alone deserves 00:24:21.779 --> 00:24:22.840 through his victory, 00:24:24.320 --> 00:24:25.840 he now shares with all those 00:24:25.840 --> 00:24:26.800 who would have faith in him. 00:24:29.220 --> 00:24:30.640 And this answers the question, 00:24:30.680 --> 00:24:32.420 just in case it's one that you're thinking about. 00:24:32.420 --> 00:24:35.380 It answers the question of 00:24:35.380 --> 00:24:37.720 how were people in the Old Testament saved? 00:24:40.800 --> 00:24:42.360 Is it different from the way 00:24:42.360 --> 00:24:44.200 that people in the New Testament are saved? 00:24:46.500 --> 00:24:49.220 Friends, Abraham and every Old Testament saint 00:24:49.220 --> 00:24:52.220 is saved in exactly the same way that we are. 00:24:52.960 --> 00:24:54.880 The only difference is that 00:24:54.880 --> 00:24:57.720 Abraham and the Old Testament saints, 00:24:57.720 --> 00:24:59.660 they looked forward by faith 00:24:59.660 --> 00:25:01.299 into the future 00:25:01.299 --> 00:25:03.620 and believed that God would send 00:25:03.620 --> 00:25:05.620 the Messiah to save them. 00:25:06.620 --> 00:25:08.079 And we, by faith, 00:25:08.160 --> 00:25:09.860 are looking backwards 00:25:09.860 --> 00:25:11.759 to the Messiah God sent, 00:25:12.339 --> 00:25:14.279 except that we have way more information. 00:25:15.559 --> 00:25:17.420 And we know that his name was Jesus. 00:25:17.420 --> 00:25:21.560 So if you're asking yourself, 00:25:21.700 --> 00:25:23.560 how can anyone be justified 00:25:23.560 --> 00:25:25.620 before the throne of God? 00:25:26.300 --> 00:25:28.840 How can anyone be made righteous 00:25:28.840 --> 00:25:30.340 in the sight of God? 00:25:31.060 --> 00:25:32.880 How can anyone be filled 00:25:32.880 --> 00:25:35.039 with the Spirit of God? 00:25:35.840 --> 00:25:37.539 How can anyone be adopted 00:25:37.539 --> 00:25:39.380 into the family of God? 00:25:39.840 --> 00:25:41.779 How can anyone hope to have 00:25:41.779 --> 00:25:44.279 an eternal future with God? 00:25:44.279 --> 00:25:48.160 How can we know the blessings of God? 00:25:48.259 --> 00:25:49.839 All of that is contained 00:25:49.839 --> 00:25:51.599 in the answer at verse 14. 00:25:53.740 --> 00:25:57.099 By hearing and believing. 00:25:59.660 --> 00:26:00.859 Hearing and believing. 00:26:00.980 --> 00:26:01.720 That's what faith is. 00:26:01.839 --> 00:26:04.119 Hearing and believing. 00:26:04.259 --> 00:26:04.960 And in that moment, 00:26:05.119 --> 00:26:05.819 we receive, 00:26:06.799 --> 00:26:07.720 what do we become? 00:26:07.839 --> 00:26:08.339 Because, Blinken, 00:26:08.420 --> 00:26:09.720 you might miss the preposition 00:26:09.720 --> 00:26:11.759 that tells us who we are 00:26:11.759 --> 00:26:12.920 and how we know those blessings. 00:26:13.039 --> 00:26:13.559 Do you see it? 00:26:13.559 --> 00:26:15.159 It's the word in. 00:26:16.679 --> 00:26:19.399 In Christ Jesus. 00:26:20.220 --> 00:26:21.119 United to him. 00:26:21.200 --> 00:26:21.779 That's how we know 00:26:21.779 --> 00:26:22.679 the blessings of God. 00:26:22.839 --> 00:26:24.159 He takes our curse. 00:26:24.700 --> 00:26:26.419 We share his blessings. 00:26:26.559 --> 00:26:28.299 We are declared righteous before God. 00:26:29.419 --> 00:26:31.759 Those blessings are only ours 00:26:31.759 --> 00:26:33.559 by hearing about 00:26:33.559 --> 00:26:36.179 and believing in him. 00:26:36.180 --> 00:26:41.400 And that brings me just as we close 00:26:41.400 --> 00:26:45.460 to the most annoying question 00:26:45.460 --> 00:26:46.500 you can be asked 00:26:46.500 --> 00:26:48.580 on a car journey. 00:26:48.579 --> 00:26:52.899 As a family, 00:26:52.899 --> 00:26:54.980 we so often do that whole 00:26:54.980 --> 00:26:58.980 M6, M5 drive 00:26:58.980 --> 00:27:00.659 down from Edinburgh to Bath 00:27:00.659 --> 00:27:01.519 and we don't make it 00:27:01.519 --> 00:27:02.859 30 minutes to bigger 00:27:02.859 --> 00:27:04.679 before that inevitable question 00:27:04.679 --> 00:27:05.919 comes from way at the back 00:27:05.919 --> 00:27:06.460 of the car. 00:27:06.539 --> 00:27:07.240 Do you know what it is? 00:27:08.419 --> 00:27:09.740 Are we there yet? 00:27:09.740 --> 00:27:14.339 We found the trick really simply. 00:27:14.500 --> 00:27:15.720 It's a thing called audio books. 00:27:15.799 --> 00:27:16.180 It's great. 00:27:16.839 --> 00:27:17.819 Works for about an hour 00:27:17.819 --> 00:27:18.720 and then we're back 00:27:18.720 --> 00:27:19.880 to that question. 00:27:20.740 --> 00:27:21.559 Friends, here's the thing. 00:27:21.660 --> 00:27:22.859 See the life of faith 00:27:22.859 --> 00:27:25.019 that Paul is wooing the Galatians 00:27:25.019 --> 00:27:26.539 and us to embrace. 00:27:26.539 --> 00:27:28.779 That's actually a question 00:27:28.779 --> 00:27:30.079 that we should never stop 00:27:30.079 --> 00:27:31.139 asking each other. 00:27:33.059 --> 00:27:35.019 Not in a perplexed, 00:27:35.200 --> 00:27:36.940 frustrated kind of way, 00:27:37.940 --> 00:27:39.940 but in an encouraging 00:27:39.940 --> 00:27:41.740 kind of way. 00:27:42.579 --> 00:27:43.500 And here's what I mean. 00:27:43.559 --> 00:27:45.339 Do you know what Hebrews 11 00:27:45.339 --> 00:27:46.920 tells us about Abraham? 00:27:48.859 --> 00:27:50.339 It tells us 00:27:50.339 --> 00:27:52.339 about the place 00:27:52.339 --> 00:27:53.440 that God promised him. 00:27:53.519 --> 00:27:54.420 That he wasn't hoping 00:27:54.420 --> 00:27:55.720 in a bit of real estate 00:27:55.720 --> 00:27:56.720 in the Middle East. 00:27:57.600 --> 00:27:58.980 No, he was looking forward 00:27:58.980 --> 00:27:59.900 to a city 00:27:59.900 --> 00:28:01.819 with eternal foundations. 00:28:02.720 --> 00:28:04.240 A city designed 00:28:04.240 --> 00:28:05.579 and built by God. 00:28:05.839 --> 00:28:06.400 In other words, 00:28:06.620 --> 00:28:08.539 Abraham was living by faith 00:28:08.539 --> 00:28:10.339 in heaven. 00:28:14.180 --> 00:28:14.980 And friends, 00:28:15.079 --> 00:28:16.360 we too are looking forward 00:28:16.360 --> 00:28:17.420 and walking by faith, 00:28:17.600 --> 00:28:19.180 trusting in the promises of God 00:28:19.180 --> 00:28:20.400 for that future. 00:28:22.220 --> 00:28:24.120 And it's such a helpful question 00:28:24.119 --> 00:28:26.959 to keep asking each other, 00:28:27.059 --> 00:28:27.979 are we there yet? 00:28:28.019 --> 00:28:28.719 And here's why. 00:28:28.799 --> 00:28:30.279 Because for this life of faith, 00:28:30.379 --> 00:28:31.979 many of us will be limping 00:28:31.979 --> 00:28:33.219 towards it. 00:28:34.419 --> 00:28:36.039 Carrying all sorts of scars, 00:28:36.259 --> 00:28:37.879 dealing with all sorts of baggage, 00:28:39.419 --> 00:28:41.179 suffering from all kinds of grief, 00:28:41.879 --> 00:28:43.579 struggling with our mental health. 00:28:43.639 --> 00:28:44.519 All of these things 00:28:44.519 --> 00:28:45.919 we are making it towards. 00:28:46.439 --> 00:28:47.819 And that question of, 00:28:48.019 --> 00:28:49.159 are we there yet? 00:28:49.160 --> 00:28:52.180 The answer is no. 00:28:52.340 --> 00:28:53.000 But you know what? 00:28:53.040 --> 00:28:53.660 In Christ, 00:28:54.700 --> 00:28:55.960 it's ahead of us. 00:28:57.000 --> 00:28:58.279 Truly because of this, 00:28:58.340 --> 00:28:59.380 we can say in faith 00:28:59.380 --> 00:29:00.180 that the best 00:29:00.180 --> 00:29:01.680 is yet to come. 00:29:01.759 --> 00:29:02.720 When our King returns 00:29:02.720 --> 00:29:04.040 that we've been singing earlier, 00:29:04.980 --> 00:29:06.100 all of these things 00:29:06.100 --> 00:29:07.340 become a distant memory. 00:29:08.640 --> 00:29:09.720 Death will be banished. 00:29:10.180 --> 00:29:12.080 Sin will be banished. 00:29:12.259 --> 00:29:13.540 Tears will be wiped away. 00:29:13.800 --> 00:29:15.100 Evil will be dealt with. 00:29:15.140 --> 00:29:16.120 Are we there yet? 00:29:16.119 --> 00:29:19.119 No, we're not. 00:29:21.500 --> 00:29:22.000 And so friends, 00:29:22.039 --> 00:29:23.079 if you're walking by faith, 00:29:23.119 --> 00:29:24.279 I want you to know this morning 00:29:24.279 --> 00:29:25.879 in walking by faith in Jesus, 00:29:26.059 --> 00:29:27.379 then not only are you standing 00:29:27.379 --> 00:29:28.119 in the footsteps 00:29:28.119 --> 00:29:31.599 of a long and beautiful tradition, 00:29:32.539 --> 00:29:34.859 but know that you are part 00:29:34.859 --> 00:29:37.579 of the most multi-generational, 00:29:38.239 --> 00:29:39.219 multinational, 00:29:39.839 --> 00:29:41.119 multilingual people 00:29:41.679 --> 00:29:43.759 that there will ever be. 00:29:43.939 --> 00:29:44.739 And one day, 00:29:44.740 --> 00:29:46.359 on that day, 00:29:47.500 --> 00:29:48.279 will see it. 00:29:50.819 --> 00:29:52.039 Because Father Abraham 00:29:52.039 --> 00:29:53.359 did have many sons. 00:29:54.660 --> 00:29:55.539 By faith, 00:29:55.599 --> 00:29:56.400 I am one of them 00:29:56.400 --> 00:29:57.220 and so are you. 00:29:58.900 --> 00:29:59.920 And so let's all 00:29:59.920 --> 00:30:02.180 praise the Lord. 00:30:02.180 --> 00:30:06.539 Psalm 67, 00:30:06.840 --> 00:30:08.420 may the nations be glad 00:30:08.420 --> 00:30:09.779 and sing for joy, 00:30:10.480 --> 00:30:12.120 for you rule the peoples 00:30:12.120 --> 00:30:12.820 with equity 00:30:12.820 --> 00:30:15.420 and guide the nations 00:30:15.420 --> 00:30:16.160 of the earth. 00:30:17.380 --> 00:30:18.400 May the peoples 00:30:18.400 --> 00:30:19.779 praise you, God. 00:30:20.580 --> 00:30:22.400 May all the peoples 00:30:22.400 --> 00:30:24.000 praise you. 00:30:24.960 --> 00:30:25.140 And Lord, 00:30:25.160 --> 00:30:26.019 we thank you today 00:30:26.019 --> 00:30:26.860 really simply 00:30:26.860 --> 00:30:28.720 that you are a God 00:30:28.720 --> 00:30:30.000 with an international heart. 00:30:30.000 --> 00:30:32.960 and we thank you, 00:30:33.160 --> 00:30:33.200 Father, 00:30:33.259 --> 00:30:34.240 for sending your son 00:30:34.240 --> 00:30:37.019 who did it all 00:30:37.019 --> 00:30:39.359 on that cross. 00:30:39.480 --> 00:30:40.279 Thank you that he 00:30:40.279 --> 00:30:41.400 is no longer dead, 00:30:41.460 --> 00:30:42.859 but he lives at your right hand 00:30:42.859 --> 00:30:43.799 and he is gathering 00:30:43.799 --> 00:30:46.299 from all of the generations, 00:30:46.460 --> 00:30:47.079 all of the nations, 00:30:47.180 --> 00:30:47.720 a people 00:30:47.720 --> 00:30:49.640 who will worship him. 00:30:49.640 --> 00:30:51.380 And so Father, 00:30:51.420 --> 00:30:52.040 we thank you 00:30:52.040 --> 00:30:53.340 for each other today. 00:30:53.960 --> 00:30:54.560 We thank you 00:30:54.560 --> 00:30:55.520 for the stories, 00:30:55.660 --> 00:30:56.500 the many stories 00:30:56.500 --> 00:30:57.060 of faith 00:30:57.060 --> 00:30:57.740 that we will have 00:30:57.740 --> 00:30:58.320 between us. 00:30:58.380 --> 00:30:58.800 And so Lord, 00:30:58.840 --> 00:30:59.320 I pray 00:30:59.320 --> 00:31:00.460 that this morning 00:31:00.460 --> 00:31:01.920 would be a great encouragement 00:31:01.920 --> 00:31:02.860 to many of us, 00:31:02.960 --> 00:31:03.400 particularly, 00:31:04.120 --> 00:31:04.240 Lord, 00:31:04.280 --> 00:31:04.880 if we're here today 00:31:04.880 --> 00:31:05.660 and we're struggling 00:31:05.660 --> 00:31:08.040 in many ways. 00:31:08.180 --> 00:31:09.300 May your spirit today 00:31:09.300 --> 00:31:10.280 remind us 00:31:10.280 --> 00:31:11.400 of the future 00:31:11.400 --> 00:31:12.980 that Jesus 00:31:12.980 --> 00:31:13.600 has won 00:31:13.600 --> 00:31:14.480 for us. 00:31:15.380 --> 00:31:16.220 May the peoples 00:31:16.220 --> 00:31:16.800 praise you, 00:31:16.900 --> 00:31:17.060 Lord. 00:31:17.180 --> 00:31:17.940 May the peoples 00:31:17.940 --> 00:31:19.060 praise you. 00:31:19.640 --> 00:31:20.240 Amen.