WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:09.419 I want to talk to you today about Christian obedience, living out a holy life as a Christian. 00:00:09.800 --> 00:00:17.859 ! One of the accusations that people often throw at the Christian faith is that it leads to immoral behaviour. 00:00:17.859 --> 00:00:26.900 If the Christian life is all about Jesus paying for my sins, and it's all about grace and faith 00:00:26.899 --> 00:00:33.320 in what Jesus has done, not what I can do, then you're just encouraging immorality, aren't you? 00:00:34.159 --> 00:00:39.579 You're just encouraging spiritual and moral laziness, and you can kind of see the logic, can't you? 00:00:40.439 --> 00:00:48.439 Paul has said to us in Galatians that Christians are free from the law as a way of being right with God, 00:00:49.159 --> 00:00:52.780 and so we're accepted by God apart from my works. 00:00:52.780 --> 00:00:58.600 So you could think, couldn't you, my works don't matter, and I can do whatever I like. 00:00:59.760 --> 00:01:07.680 If you've understood the grace of the Gospel rightly, then actually that mistake should be really close in your mind. 00:01:08.640 --> 00:01:12.299 Martin Lloyd-Jones, in his commentary on Romans, said, 00:01:12.359 --> 00:01:16.620 if you're preaching a salvation that's not been misunderstood in that way, 00:01:17.379 --> 00:01:19.299 then you'd better re-examine your sermons. 00:01:19.299 --> 00:01:24.959 There is, he says, this kind of dangerous element of the doctrine of salvation, 00:01:25.859 --> 00:01:32.640 where God treats us graciously through Jesus, so I could end up living recklessly. 00:01:33.939 --> 00:01:37.000 It's one of the ways that Christian people are tempted, isn't it? 00:01:37.039 --> 00:01:39.679 To disobey God, I'm alright, I'm forgiven. 00:01:40.539 --> 00:01:43.140 It doesn't matter what I do, grace will cover it. 00:01:43.140 --> 00:01:50.620 And the risk of that kind of thinking has been building up in Galatians, a bit like a pressure cooker. 00:01:51.879 --> 00:01:56.819 And Paul is going to correct that mistake at last now, in this section. 00:01:57.540 --> 00:01:59.379 Have a look at verse 13 at the top. 00:01:59.379 --> 00:02:25.460 Now Paul is clear there, isn't he, that for the Christian, fulfilling the law still matters in the Christian life. 00:02:25.460 --> 00:02:35.360 The list of works of the flesh and fruits of the Spirit there, it shows us, doesn't it, that the way we live matters in the Christian life. 00:02:36.379 --> 00:02:44.400 Grace doesn't change whether you should obey God's law, but how you should obey God's law. 00:02:45.439 --> 00:02:47.860 And that is the big point of this passage. 00:02:47.860 --> 00:02:51.460 How do I approach obedience? 00:02:52.480 --> 00:02:54.320 And how does Paul teach me to do it? 00:02:54.760 --> 00:02:56.360 Well, he says three things here. 00:02:56.960 --> 00:03:00.720 First of all, he says, know your enemy in Christian obedience. 00:03:01.540 --> 00:03:02.360 Know your enemy. 00:03:04.040 --> 00:03:11.260 I wonder what you think the biggest barrier is to your Christian holiness and your obedience to God. 00:03:11.259 --> 00:03:15.919 It might be the kind of sins of others, the behaviour of others. 00:03:16.759 --> 00:03:19.419 It might be the circumstances of your life. 00:03:19.479 --> 00:03:22.099 If only my life was different and I'd be a better person. 00:03:23.719 --> 00:03:30.139 But actually, Paul says, doesn't he, that the greatest barrier to your personal obedience is much closer to home. 00:03:31.060 --> 00:03:35.099 Your greatest enemy is in fact you. 00:03:35.099 --> 00:03:38.180 Verse 16 and 17. 00:03:39.319 --> 00:03:45.079 I say, walk by the Spirit and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 00:03:46.259 --> 00:03:50.939 For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit. 00:03:52.560 --> 00:04:02.060 Paul says, the great enemy of God's influence, of the Holy Spirit's influence in your life, is the flesh. 00:04:02.060 --> 00:04:11.400 It's the natural human heart and mind and direction that we all have and that we all live without Christ, isn't it? 00:04:12.379 --> 00:04:19.379 That the flesh is the executive power in a person who does not have the Lord Jesus in their lives. 00:04:20.040 --> 00:04:24.019 And he says the flesh and its desires are against the Spirit. 00:04:25.600 --> 00:04:29.779 So the enemy of true obedience is within. 00:04:29.779 --> 00:04:34.859 An enemy who is unrelenting and merciless. 00:04:35.039 --> 00:04:38.379 Who assaults all of the time, all areas of your life. 00:04:38.759 --> 00:04:43.799 There are no ceasefires, there are no kind of agreements with the flesh to be made. 00:04:44.119 --> 00:04:48.159 No, the flesh, Paul says, opposes the Spirit. 00:04:49.519 --> 00:04:50.359 And that's that. 00:04:51.019 --> 00:04:52.019 That's what it does. 00:04:53.319 --> 00:04:59.359 And that opposition, he says, keeps you from doing what you want to do in Christian obedience. 00:04:59.779 --> 00:05:03.479 And we know what Paul means, don't we? 00:05:03.539 --> 00:05:07.779 If we're honest, we know that our worst enemy is us. 00:05:08.919 --> 00:05:14.059 The heaviest weight and the biggest problem we face in the Christian life is ourselves. 00:05:15.399 --> 00:05:16.479 And our own flesh. 00:05:17.699 --> 00:05:19.919 And the desires that lurk within. 00:05:19.920 --> 00:05:23.319 How does the flesh operate? 00:05:24.680 --> 00:05:29.780 Well, the flesh's main tactic is to oppose the Spirit of God. 00:05:29.920 --> 00:05:33.020 It's to push out the Spirit of God. 00:05:34.140 --> 00:05:37.139 And in Galatians, I think we've seen this already. 00:05:37.300 --> 00:05:39.680 The flesh does that in two ways. 00:05:39.819 --> 00:05:45.120 There are two things that the flesh really loves to do in your life. 00:05:45.120 --> 00:05:50.819 One is to encourage and foster spiritual laziness. 00:05:52.160 --> 00:05:53.139 Spiritual laziness. 00:05:53.560 --> 00:05:56.980 And the other is spiritual legalism. 00:05:57.939 --> 00:06:00.579 The two are the kind of opposite ends of the scale, aren't they? 00:06:00.600 --> 00:06:02.379 But the flesh does both of those things. 00:06:02.899 --> 00:06:05.959 Both of them are trademark tactics of the flesh. 00:06:05.959 --> 00:06:10.659 To push out and oppose God's presence in your life. 00:06:12.139 --> 00:06:15.560 So he'll create spiritual laziness, won't he? 00:06:15.639 --> 00:06:17.680 He'll use that old chestnut. 00:06:18.319 --> 00:06:20.740 Yeah, but God's grace will cover it. 00:06:21.740 --> 00:06:22.299 Won't it? 00:06:23.339 --> 00:06:29.679 The flesh will tell you it is far easier and better to watch a film for two hours. 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:32.060 Than to pray for two minutes. 00:06:32.060 --> 00:06:35.500 That the flesh will be your best friend. 00:06:36.420 --> 00:06:38.280 If you're going to be spiritually lazy. 00:06:39.019 --> 00:06:44.280 That the flesh will happily cuddle up to you on the sofa for days on end if you just want to watch TV. 00:06:45.300 --> 00:06:46.360 It'll be your best friend. 00:06:46.899 --> 00:06:49.060 It'll hug you and it'll be fine with you. 00:06:49.300 --> 00:06:51.480 Until someone says, let's pray. 00:06:52.180 --> 00:06:54.019 And the flesh wakes up, doesn't it? 00:06:54.860 --> 00:06:56.560 And it turns on you in that moment. 00:06:57.740 --> 00:07:00.959 Or you go to read the Bible and you want to do it. 00:07:00.959 --> 00:07:06.139 And as soon as you open up the page, the flesh wakes up and he starts attacking, doesn't he? 00:07:06.479 --> 00:07:08.039 And he spits at the spirit. 00:07:09.419 --> 00:07:13.379 And you drop off and your mind goes anywhere apart from what the passage is saying. 00:07:14.639 --> 00:07:17.240 The flesh, he wants you to be spiritually lazy. 00:07:18.519 --> 00:07:21.120 But then he swings the other way as well. 00:07:22.099 --> 00:07:25.139 He wants to lead you into spiritual legalism. 00:07:25.139 --> 00:07:27.419 And this is the really clever bit, isn't it? 00:07:27.740 --> 00:07:28.620 That the flesh does. 00:07:29.120 --> 00:07:34.219 He'll use God's law as a way to push God out. 00:07:35.979 --> 00:07:39.000 And that's what the flesh has been doing with the Galatians, isn't it? 00:07:40.120 --> 00:07:41.539 He says to them, no, no, no. 00:07:41.659 --> 00:07:43.519 You keep God's law. 00:07:45.419 --> 00:07:48.620 Get under God's law and make it about you. 00:07:48.620 --> 00:07:50.879 And your performance of it. 00:07:51.639 --> 00:07:54.620 Make your righteousness about ticking the boxes. 00:07:56.079 --> 00:07:57.959 Work at God's law yourself. 00:07:58.120 --> 00:08:00.439 It's a really common tactic that the flesh uses. 00:08:00.899 --> 00:08:03.959 And it gives the appearance of godliness, doesn't it? 00:08:04.399 --> 00:08:07.420 But Paul explains it actually has the opposite effect. 00:08:07.740 --> 00:08:08.079 Do you see? 00:08:08.180 --> 00:08:12.100 That the works of the flesh are evident, he says. 00:08:12.180 --> 00:08:13.439 Verse 19 to 21. 00:08:13.439 --> 00:08:14.620 All those things. 00:08:15.439 --> 00:08:19.540 Sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, envy, jealousy. 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:20.639 All of those things. 00:08:21.379 --> 00:08:24.540 They are what the Christian legalist actually ends up doing. 00:08:26.199 --> 00:08:29.920 So do you see the irony and the kind of cunningness of the flesh? 00:08:30.939 --> 00:08:35.139 The irony is that in your own strength in the flesh, 00:08:35.159 --> 00:08:37.840 you attempt to sort of pull your own socks up, don't you? 00:08:37.860 --> 00:08:39.019 And be a good person. 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:41.539 And be a righteous person. 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:44.980 But you are trying to fight fire with fire. 00:08:46.240 --> 00:08:51.139 You're trying to fight the flesh's desires with the flesh. 00:08:52.360 --> 00:08:54.819 And if the flesh tries to fight the flesh, 00:08:54.959 --> 00:08:57.579 then either way the flesh is going to win, isn't he? 00:08:58.779 --> 00:09:01.459 The flesh will always get what he wants. 00:09:02.179 --> 00:09:04.099 If you let the flesh lead you. 00:09:05.139 --> 00:09:07.019 Paul writes to the Colossians. 00:09:07.579 --> 00:09:10.879 And they're in a similar situation as the Galatians. 00:09:11.539 --> 00:09:12.659 He says to them, 00:09:12.759 --> 00:09:15.159 Why, as if you were still alive in the world, 00:09:15.259 --> 00:09:17.120 do you submit to regulations? 00:09:18.219 --> 00:09:20.659 Don't handle, don't taste, don't touch. 00:09:21.659 --> 00:09:22.120 He says, 00:09:22.259 --> 00:09:26.980 These have an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion, 00:09:27.099 --> 00:09:32.259 but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh. 00:09:32.259 --> 00:09:36.419 The flesh loves that kind of thing, doesn't he? 00:09:37.539 --> 00:09:41.200 He loves to get you to do stuff that looks godly, 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:43.679 in a legalistic way, 00:09:43.779 --> 00:09:46.139 so that he can push God out. 00:09:46.860 --> 00:09:48.559 That he can oppose God. 00:09:48.980 --> 00:09:51.539 So that he can indulge in what he wants. 00:09:51.539 --> 00:09:55.299 So he'll be just as comfy with you, 00:09:55.879 --> 00:09:57.500 taking a sacrament, 00:09:58.779 --> 00:10:01.019 as he would be with you in the cinema, 00:10:02.159 --> 00:10:03.439 as long as you're lazy, 00:10:04.339 --> 00:10:06.419 and you're legalistic about it. 00:10:07.379 --> 00:10:07.919 It's true. 00:10:08.779 --> 00:10:09.159 That God, 00:10:09.439 --> 00:10:10.219 the flesh, 00:10:10.279 --> 00:10:12.759 can use both of those things to push God out. 00:10:12.759 --> 00:10:15.480 So do you see, 00:10:15.580 --> 00:10:16.159 Paul is saying, 00:10:16.259 --> 00:10:16.439 isn't he, 00:10:16.500 --> 00:10:17.360 Christian obedience, 00:10:17.559 --> 00:10:18.939 it's a constant war. 00:10:19.819 --> 00:10:21.759 It's a constant war against an enemy, 00:10:22.879 --> 00:10:24.600 and the enemy is us. 00:10:25.360 --> 00:10:25.980 He's within. 00:10:26.620 --> 00:10:27.240 The flesh. 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:29.279 So know the enemy. 00:10:29.759 --> 00:10:30.120 Secondly, 00:10:30.299 --> 00:10:31.259 know the strategy. 00:10:32.399 --> 00:10:33.200 Know the strategy. 00:10:34.200 --> 00:10:35.200 Paul, helpfully, 00:10:35.319 --> 00:10:37.759 just gives us a really straightforward command, 00:10:38.580 --> 00:10:39.259 doesn't he, 00:10:39.360 --> 00:10:40.360 in verse 16. 00:10:41.600 --> 00:10:42.480 I say, 00:10:42.759 --> 00:10:44.419 walk by the spirit, 00:10:45.379 --> 00:10:48.639 and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 00:10:49.539 --> 00:10:50.620 Or verse 18, 00:10:50.980 --> 00:10:52.659 be led by the spirit. 00:10:53.580 --> 00:10:55.519 Or keep in step with the spirit, 00:10:55.639 --> 00:10:56.360 verse 25. 00:10:57.960 --> 00:11:00.679 The strategy that Paul presents, 00:11:01.460 --> 00:11:02.799 against the flesh, 00:11:02.939 --> 00:11:05.919 in all of its wily opposition to God, 00:11:06.000 --> 00:11:06.779 in your life, 00:11:07.319 --> 00:11:09.480 is to be under the influence, 00:11:09.819 --> 00:11:12.139 and under the command of the Holy Spirit. 00:11:13.620 --> 00:11:15.000 And since the flesh, 00:11:15.000 --> 00:11:16.080 never gives up, 00:11:16.159 --> 00:11:16.500 does he, 00:11:17.179 --> 00:11:19.179 in his war against the spirit, 00:11:19.379 --> 00:11:20.419 notice the word, 00:11:20.939 --> 00:11:21.539 walk. 00:11:22.740 --> 00:11:24.000 Walk by the spirit. 00:11:24.379 --> 00:11:25.539 It is a constant, 00:11:26.539 --> 00:11:27.000 daily, 00:11:27.259 --> 00:11:27.819 ongoing, 00:11:28.179 --> 00:11:29.539 continual submission, 00:11:29.539 --> 00:11:31.740 to the leading of the Holy Spirit. 00:11:31.740 --> 00:11:33.120 It's not a one-off thing, 00:11:33.199 --> 00:11:33.559 is it? 00:11:34.139 --> 00:11:35.179 When you kind of believed, 00:11:35.279 --> 00:11:38.240 and then it just happens the rest of your Christian life. 00:11:39.500 --> 00:11:41.019 It's a constant thing. 00:11:41.299 --> 00:11:41.299 00:11:41.439 --> 00:11:43.539 if you've not trusted, 00:11:44.299 --> 00:11:44.740 in, 00:11:44.860 --> 00:11:45.759 and are living for, 00:11:45.879 --> 00:11:46.579 Jesus Christ, 00:11:46.699 --> 00:11:48.079 we're really glad that you're here, 00:11:48.139 --> 00:11:49.199 and we want you to be here, 00:11:49.319 --> 00:11:49.959 every week. 00:11:49.960 --> 00:11:51.460 But really, 00:11:51.600 --> 00:11:52.440 this is something that, 00:11:52.460 --> 00:11:53.740 that you cannot do. 00:11:55.320 --> 00:11:57.860 You cannot resist the flesh. 00:11:59.200 --> 00:12:00.800 He is too strong for you. 00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:03.500 He is too deeply within you. 00:12:04.240 --> 00:12:05.240 You cannot do this, 00:12:05.240 --> 00:12:06.379 without the spirit. 00:12:07.940 --> 00:12:09.340 Paul has said elsewhere, 00:12:09.540 --> 00:12:10.680 that to be a Christian, 00:12:11.600 --> 00:12:12.820 to trust in Jesus, 00:12:12.820 --> 00:12:14.660 for your rightness with God, 00:12:14.740 --> 00:12:15.820 is to be transformed, 00:12:16.040 --> 00:12:17.000 when Jesus, 00:12:17.560 --> 00:12:19.000 indwells Christians, 00:12:19.140 --> 00:12:20.260 by his Holy Spirit. 00:12:21.760 --> 00:12:22.520 It's as if, 00:12:22.620 --> 00:12:23.700 Jesus himself, 00:12:23.860 --> 00:12:24.960 invades, 00:12:25.580 --> 00:12:26.400 the flesh. 00:12:27.640 --> 00:12:28.440 There is a kind of, 00:12:28.620 --> 00:12:29.220 D-Day, 00:12:29.340 --> 00:12:29.879 isn't it? 00:12:30.360 --> 00:12:31.900 On the beaches of your life. 00:12:33.120 --> 00:12:33.920 And the spirit, 00:12:34.080 --> 00:12:34.520 comes in, 00:12:34.640 --> 00:12:35.700 and takes back, 00:12:35.780 --> 00:12:36.440 occupation, 00:12:37.080 --> 00:12:37.900 of the heart. 00:12:38.500 --> 00:12:39.860 It's a power transfer, 00:12:39.860 --> 00:12:41.120 in the command center, 00:12:41.260 --> 00:12:41.880 of your heart. 00:12:41.879 --> 00:12:42.899 He becomes, 00:12:43.000 --> 00:12:44.480 the new liberating presence. 00:12:45.500 --> 00:12:46.159 Jesus says, 00:12:46.240 --> 00:12:47.580 we are born again, 00:12:47.740 --> 00:12:48.419 by the spirit. 00:12:48.720 --> 00:12:49.860 The spirit takes over. 00:12:51.740 --> 00:12:52.039 So, 00:12:52.399 --> 00:12:53.600 what does it look like, 00:12:53.639 --> 00:12:54.299 to walk, 00:12:54.759 --> 00:12:55.639 by the spirit? 00:12:55.779 --> 00:12:56.559 What is that? 00:12:58.139 --> 00:12:59.080 It is clear, 00:12:59.220 --> 00:12:59.639 that Paul, 00:12:59.759 --> 00:13:01.419 isn't describing here, 00:13:01.559 --> 00:13:02.179 a kind of, 00:13:02.259 --> 00:13:03.279 passive thing. 00:13:03.439 --> 00:13:03.679 Is it? 00:13:04.159 --> 00:13:04.779 And that you just, 00:13:04.939 --> 00:13:05.379 let happen. 00:13:05.559 --> 00:13:05.759 No, 00:13:05.820 --> 00:13:06.799 it's a walk. 00:13:06.799 --> 00:13:08.460 It involves you, 00:13:09.179 --> 00:13:09.980 in some way. 00:13:10.120 --> 00:13:10.840 It's active. 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:13.159 So, 00:13:13.360 --> 00:13:15.000 am I waiting for a feeling? 00:13:15.779 --> 00:13:16.059 Or, 00:13:16.240 --> 00:13:17.600 am I waiting for, 00:13:17.720 --> 00:13:17.960 kind of, 00:13:18.039 --> 00:13:18.439 impulse? 00:13:19.500 --> 00:13:19.820 Or, 00:13:19.919 --> 00:13:20.840 do I need to go on a, 00:13:20.840 --> 00:13:21.480 a pilgrimage, 00:13:21.799 --> 00:13:22.299 to some, 00:13:22.439 --> 00:13:23.519 spiritual place, 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:24.700 and feel the spirit, 00:13:24.840 --> 00:13:25.460 guiding me? 00:13:28.059 --> 00:13:28.299 Let's, 00:13:28.299 --> 00:13:29.059 let's break it down. 00:13:29.159 --> 00:13:30.439 To walk by the spirit, 00:13:30.440 --> 00:13:32.120 is, 00:13:32.120 --> 00:13:33.200 to actively, 00:13:33.400 --> 00:13:34.460 let yourself, 00:13:34.600 --> 00:13:35.280 be led, 00:13:35.360 --> 00:13:36.120 in the direction, 00:13:36.240 --> 00:13:37.140 he wants you to go, 00:13:37.200 --> 00:13:37.600 isn't it? 00:13:38.420 --> 00:13:39.940 Paul uses words like, 00:13:40.160 --> 00:13:40.480 led, 00:13:40.560 --> 00:13:41.240 and walk, 00:13:41.360 --> 00:13:42.460 and keep in step. 00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:45.620 To be led by the spirit, 00:13:45.700 --> 00:13:46.440 instead of where, 00:13:46.500 --> 00:13:47.920 the flesh wants you to go. 00:13:49.220 --> 00:13:50.020 And the path, 00:13:50.080 --> 00:13:50.900 he leads you on, 00:13:50.960 --> 00:13:51.680 is the path, 00:13:51.780 --> 00:13:52.120 actually, 00:13:52.220 --> 00:13:53.180 we've already been, 00:13:53.180 --> 00:13:54.000 walking on, 00:13:54.100 --> 00:13:54.820 and exploring, 00:13:55.040 --> 00:13:55.360 throughout, 00:13:55.360 --> 00:13:56.659 the letter of Galatians. 00:13:58.340 --> 00:13:58.860 First, 00:13:59.779 --> 00:14:00.860 he leads you, 00:14:00.899 --> 00:14:01.620 away, 00:14:01.820 --> 00:14:02.980 from your own, 00:14:03.279 --> 00:14:03.740 fleshy, 00:14:03.940 --> 00:14:04.580 law keeping. 00:14:06.220 --> 00:14:07.100 That's what Paul says, 00:14:07.180 --> 00:14:08.000 in verse 18, 00:14:08.259 --> 00:14:08.759 if you're, 00:14:08.980 --> 00:14:10.159 led by the spirit, 00:14:11.159 --> 00:14:12.159 you are not, 00:14:12.300 --> 00:14:13.320 under law. 00:14:14.860 --> 00:14:15.960 The flesh, 00:14:16.080 --> 00:14:16.820 will try, 00:14:16.919 --> 00:14:18.000 and push you, 00:14:18.100 --> 00:14:18.500 under, 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:20.159 the law of God, 00:14:20.259 --> 00:14:21.019 in the sense of, 00:14:21.159 --> 00:14:21.800 trying to do it, 00:14:21.860 --> 00:14:22.279 to work, 00:14:22.360 --> 00:14:23.379 to be right with God. 00:14:24.080 --> 00:14:25.060 He'll encourage, 00:14:25.059 --> 00:14:25.939 legalism. 00:14:27.659 --> 00:14:28.439 But notice, 00:14:28.519 --> 00:14:29.159 how Paul, 00:14:29.259 --> 00:14:29.859 intentionally, 00:14:30.099 --> 00:14:31.059 changes the word, 00:14:31.159 --> 00:14:31.959 that describes, 00:14:32.159 --> 00:14:32.699 what the flesh, 00:14:32.759 --> 00:14:33.439 and the spirit do. 00:14:33.519 --> 00:14:34.039 Did you notice, 00:14:34.159 --> 00:14:34.819 the flesh, 00:14:35.299 --> 00:14:36.919 does works, 00:14:37.639 --> 00:14:38.519 verse 19, 00:14:39.519 --> 00:14:40.799 but the spirit, 00:14:41.039 --> 00:14:42.479 produces fruit. 00:14:44.119 --> 00:14:44.339 See, 00:14:44.419 --> 00:14:45.299 that's the contrast, 00:14:45.399 --> 00:14:45.619 isn't it? 00:14:45.619 --> 00:14:46.379 The flesh, 00:14:46.379 --> 00:14:47.459 wants to make, 00:14:47.659 --> 00:14:48.259 Christianity, 00:14:48.479 --> 00:14:49.519 all about you, 00:14:49.639 --> 00:14:50.779 and your works, 00:14:51.519 --> 00:14:52.639 and your law keeping. 00:14:52.639 --> 00:14:55.860 But the spirit comes, 00:14:56.120 --> 00:14:56.960 and enters in, 00:14:57.019 --> 00:14:58.240 and produces fruit. 00:14:58.360 --> 00:14:58.899 It's different. 00:15:00.019 --> 00:15:00.960 The spirit comes and says, 00:15:01.019 --> 00:15:01.259 no, no, 00:15:01.340 --> 00:15:02.600 it's not that way. 00:15:03.539 --> 00:15:04.860 It's not about you, 00:15:05.120 --> 00:15:06.100 doing this stuff. 00:15:06.559 --> 00:15:07.120 Turn around, 00:15:07.240 --> 00:15:08.179 from what the flesh, 00:15:08.179 --> 00:15:08.759 is trying to do, 00:15:08.840 --> 00:15:10.220 and follow another way. 00:15:11.480 --> 00:15:12.580 So he leads you away, 00:15:12.580 --> 00:15:13.519 from works, 00:15:14.039 --> 00:15:15.139 towards fruit. 00:15:16.460 --> 00:15:16.899 Second, 00:15:17.039 --> 00:15:18.100 he leads you then, 00:15:18.159 --> 00:15:19.139 towards, 00:15:19.139 --> 00:15:21.919 and affects in you, 00:15:22.139 --> 00:15:23.419 Jesus Christ, 00:15:24.519 --> 00:15:25.580 as the source, 00:15:25.699 --> 00:15:26.559 of power, 00:15:26.679 --> 00:15:27.500 of your obedience, 00:15:27.779 --> 00:15:28.899 and power of your obedience. 00:15:29.980 --> 00:15:30.460 Now that's a, 00:15:30.460 --> 00:15:31.340 a long sentence, 00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:31.799 isn't it? 00:15:31.819 --> 00:15:32.460 It's simply, 00:15:32.600 --> 00:15:33.659 what we've been seeing, 00:15:33.779 --> 00:15:34.419 through the letter, 00:15:34.500 --> 00:15:35.199 of the Galatians. 00:15:36.620 --> 00:15:38.379 It is a walk of faith, 00:15:38.480 --> 00:15:39.480 in Jesus, 00:15:40.379 --> 00:15:41.039 rather than, 00:15:41.139 --> 00:15:42.360 in your own works. 00:15:42.699 --> 00:15:44.159 Paul has alluded to it, 00:15:44.159 --> 00:15:44.580 already, 00:15:44.700 --> 00:15:45.120 hasn't he? 00:15:45.399 --> 00:15:46.720 The life that he has, 00:15:46.819 --> 00:15:48.120 in union with Jesus, 00:15:48.120 --> 00:15:49.200 by the Holy Spirit. 00:15:49.399 --> 00:15:49.820 He says, 00:15:50.259 --> 00:15:51.539 it's no longer I, 00:15:51.659 --> 00:15:52.220 who live, 00:15:52.340 --> 00:15:52.860 but Christ, 00:15:52.960 --> 00:15:53.840 who lives in me. 00:15:55.000 --> 00:15:55.779 And Christ, 00:15:55.919 --> 00:15:56.720 does that, 00:15:57.240 --> 00:15:58.940 through the presence, 00:15:59.039 --> 00:16:00.179 of his Holy Spirit. 00:16:01.240 --> 00:16:03.120 Who unites us, 00:16:03.419 --> 00:16:04.039 to one, 00:16:04.200 --> 00:16:04.940 who has lived, 00:16:05.000 --> 00:16:06.039 a perfect life, 00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:07.639 and lets us share, 00:16:07.759 --> 00:16:08.360 in his credit. 00:16:10.100 --> 00:16:10.860 The flesh, 00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:11.379 says, 00:16:11.480 --> 00:16:12.580 look to yourself, 00:16:12.720 --> 00:16:13.600 and do it. 00:16:14.799 --> 00:16:16.060 The Spirit says, 00:16:16.220 --> 00:16:17.460 look to the Lord Jesus, 00:16:17.460 --> 00:16:18.639 who has done it. 00:16:19.980 --> 00:16:21.639 And as the Spirit, 00:16:21.740 --> 00:16:23.080 unites us, 00:16:23.660 --> 00:16:25.080 with the perfectly, 00:16:25.080 --> 00:16:26.700 obedient Jesus Christ, 00:16:26.860 --> 00:16:27.259 actually, 00:16:27.440 --> 00:16:28.560 what you will find, 00:16:29.519 --> 00:16:30.019 is that, 00:16:30.280 --> 00:16:31.480 true obedience, 00:16:32.019 --> 00:16:32.680 bears fruit, 00:16:32.800 --> 00:16:33.540 in your life. 00:16:35.480 --> 00:16:36.060 Freedom, 00:16:36.379 --> 00:16:37.340 from the demand, 00:16:37.639 --> 00:16:38.700 to do it, 00:16:39.620 --> 00:16:40.220 yourself, 00:16:40.560 --> 00:16:41.480 unexpectedly, 00:16:43.019 --> 00:16:44.220 helps the Christian, 00:16:44.379 --> 00:16:45.019 to start, 00:16:45.080 --> 00:16:46.420 really doing it. 00:16:46.419 --> 00:16:46.819 it's, 00:16:46.819 --> 00:16:49.240 it's counterintuitive. 00:16:50.839 --> 00:16:51.959 Calvin said, 00:16:52.740 --> 00:16:54.179 that when consciences, 00:16:54.299 --> 00:16:55.639 observe the law, 00:16:56.299 --> 00:16:57.199 not as if, 00:16:57.279 --> 00:16:59.039 constrained by the necessity, 00:16:59.039 --> 00:16:59.899 of the law, 00:17:00.199 --> 00:17:00.839 for righteousness, 00:17:01.839 --> 00:17:02.899 but freed, 00:17:02.899 --> 00:17:04.599 from the law's yoke, 00:17:05.639 --> 00:17:06.680 they willingly, 00:17:07.039 --> 00:17:08.339 obey God's will. 00:17:08.339 --> 00:17:10.439 And that is profound. 00:17:12.000 --> 00:17:13.399 Let me try and illustrate it, 00:17:13.459 --> 00:17:15.119 I've kind of given this story before, 00:17:15.220 --> 00:17:15.799 at home, 00:17:16.019 --> 00:17:17.359 our three year old boy, 00:17:17.439 --> 00:17:18.959 he does the hoovering, 00:17:19.919 --> 00:17:22.359 he has a go at it, 00:17:22.679 --> 00:17:23.959 he's not good at it, 00:17:24.000 --> 00:17:24.519 at all, 00:17:24.599 --> 00:17:25.519 but he does it, 00:17:25.659 --> 00:17:26.599 that is the crucial thing, 00:17:26.659 --> 00:17:27.339 he does it. 00:17:28.279 --> 00:17:29.679 And he does it freely, 00:17:30.199 --> 00:17:30.659 he'll just, 00:17:30.659 --> 00:17:32.159 kind of play with the hoover, 00:17:32.279 --> 00:17:33.299 and just kind of do it. 00:17:34.659 --> 00:17:35.740 He does it freely, 00:17:35.740 --> 00:17:37.339 because there is no sense, 00:17:37.460 --> 00:17:39.160 where he must meet, 00:17:39.259 --> 00:17:40.460 the rigorous demands, 00:17:41.259 --> 00:17:43.279 of his mum and dad's cleaning, 00:17:43.819 --> 00:17:44.799 or his mum's cleaning. 00:17:46.359 --> 00:17:48.240 He gets rewards, 00:17:48.380 --> 00:17:49.140 and pleasure, 00:17:49.140 --> 00:17:50.599 from the well done, 00:17:51.099 --> 00:17:52.259 and that is great, 00:17:52.420 --> 00:17:53.240 because in the end, 00:17:53.339 --> 00:17:54.859 it is dad or mum, 00:17:54.940 --> 00:17:55.839 who will do the cleaning, 00:17:55.940 --> 00:17:56.319 isn't it? 00:17:56.319 --> 00:17:58.679 And the fruit, 00:17:58.779 --> 00:17:59.779 of his obedience, 00:18:00.139 --> 00:18:02.139 comes from a liberation, 00:18:03.200 --> 00:18:04.919 of any oppressive law, 00:18:05.039 --> 00:18:06.299 demanding his obedience, 00:18:06.480 --> 00:18:07.599 to buy my, 00:18:07.720 --> 00:18:08.720 or his mother's love. 00:18:10.480 --> 00:18:11.619 And that is what it is, 00:18:11.679 --> 00:18:13.159 to walk by the spirit. 00:18:13.919 --> 00:18:15.379 The spirit leads us, 00:18:15.439 --> 00:18:16.859 into true obedience, 00:18:17.099 --> 00:18:17.879 in that way. 00:18:19.200 --> 00:18:20.599 So Paul adds at the end, 00:18:20.659 --> 00:18:20.960 doesn't he, 00:18:21.039 --> 00:18:22.240 that the list of the fruit, 00:18:22.299 --> 00:18:22.819 of the spirit, 00:18:22.960 --> 00:18:23.639 verse 23, 00:18:23.640 --> 00:18:25.200 against such things, 00:18:25.280 --> 00:18:26.320 there is no law. 00:18:27.700 --> 00:18:28.700 As if to say, 00:18:29.020 --> 00:18:30.820 those walking by the spirit, 00:18:31.020 --> 00:18:32.120 find themselves, 00:18:32.640 --> 00:18:34.520 in harmony with the law. 00:18:35.600 --> 00:18:36.280 At last. 00:18:37.440 --> 00:18:39.100 Actually fulfilling it. 00:18:40.460 --> 00:18:41.060 Precisely, 00:18:41.140 --> 00:18:41.940 because they aren't, 00:18:42.040 --> 00:18:42.960 following the flesh, 00:18:43.060 --> 00:18:43.960 with its legalistic, 00:18:44.040 --> 00:18:45.259 box sticking of the law. 00:18:46.000 --> 00:18:47.320 Through self justification. 00:18:48.820 --> 00:18:50.060 Spirit people, 00:18:50.420 --> 00:18:52.040 end up doing it, 00:18:52.039 --> 00:18:54.399 because the spirit, 00:18:54.559 --> 00:18:55.399 unites them, 00:18:55.480 --> 00:18:55.920 with the one, 00:18:56.019 --> 00:18:56.920 who has done it. 00:18:58.599 --> 00:18:59.420 And it has to be, 00:18:59.619 --> 00:19:00.339 an active, 00:19:01.159 --> 00:19:02.019 and constant, 00:19:02.319 --> 00:19:03.399 and continual thing, 00:19:03.460 --> 00:19:03.839 doesn't it? 00:19:04.299 --> 00:19:05.339 We've really got to, 00:19:05.379 --> 00:19:05.759 kind of, 00:19:06.480 --> 00:19:07.720 let the spirit do this. 00:19:07.940 --> 00:19:09.480 We can't let the flesh, 00:19:09.559 --> 00:19:10.740 take us back under the law. 00:19:12.059 --> 00:19:13.500 The flesh is the enemy, 00:19:13.819 --> 00:19:15.379 and he's always pulling us back, 00:19:16.220 --> 00:19:17.559 into self-justifying, 00:19:17.680 --> 00:19:18.200 law keeping, 00:19:18.339 --> 00:19:19.259 to buy God's love. 00:19:19.639 --> 00:19:20.420 So we need to know, 00:19:20.500 --> 00:19:21.240 the enemy don't we? 00:19:21.240 --> 00:19:22.539 We need to know the strategy. 00:19:24.220 --> 00:19:25.120 And as we close, 00:19:25.200 --> 00:19:26.980 we need to sense the victory, 00:19:27.720 --> 00:19:29.000 of Christian obedience. 00:19:29.279 --> 00:19:30.620 We need to sense the victory. 00:19:32.740 --> 00:19:34.779 The flesh is so cunning, 00:19:34.900 --> 00:19:35.319 isn't he? 00:19:36.019 --> 00:19:38.220 And he lingers deep within us. 00:19:38.220 --> 00:19:38.779 But, 00:19:39.120 --> 00:19:41.160 Paul wants to encourage us here, 00:19:42.299 --> 00:19:44.240 because if you think about it, 00:19:44.339 --> 00:19:45.299 the flesh, 00:19:46.339 --> 00:19:48.440 the old person, 00:19:48.440 --> 00:19:49.380 that was there, 00:19:50.019 --> 00:19:51.660 he kind of still hangs around, 00:19:51.740 --> 00:19:52.220 doesn't he, 00:19:53.039 --> 00:19:54.140 in a Christian, 00:19:55.220 --> 00:19:56.240 the flesh, 00:19:56.360 --> 00:19:57.180 has picked, 00:19:57.279 --> 00:19:57.860 a very, 00:19:58.019 --> 00:19:59.080 very difficult fight. 00:20:00.559 --> 00:20:01.460 The flesh, 00:20:01.620 --> 00:20:02.580 in the life of a Christian, 00:20:02.759 --> 00:20:03.539 has picked, 00:20:03.700 --> 00:20:05.460 an awesome adversary, 00:20:06.120 --> 00:20:06.940 to fight with. 00:20:07.880 --> 00:20:08.820 He's picking a fight, 00:20:08.880 --> 00:20:09.320 with someone, 00:20:09.420 --> 00:20:09.720 actually, 00:20:09.820 --> 00:20:11.019 that he can never defeat, 00:20:11.100 --> 00:20:11.660 in the end. 00:20:11.660 --> 00:20:14.360 He picks a fight, 00:20:14.460 --> 00:20:15.340 with the spirit. 00:20:17.040 --> 00:20:18.380 He opposes, 00:20:18.660 --> 00:20:19.400 the spirit. 00:20:20.880 --> 00:20:22.000 Who is the spirit? 00:20:23.560 --> 00:20:24.019 Well, 00:20:24.100 --> 00:20:24.860 he is God, 00:20:24.960 --> 00:20:25.380 isn't he? 00:20:27.140 --> 00:20:28.160 The flesh, 00:20:28.400 --> 00:20:28.880 look at him, 00:20:29.740 --> 00:20:30.279 spitting, 00:20:30.620 --> 00:20:31.279 lashing out, 00:20:31.540 --> 00:20:31.960 raging, 00:20:32.960 --> 00:20:34.320 bent on malice, 00:20:34.319 --> 00:20:35.599 against no one, 00:20:35.679 --> 00:20:36.240 no one, 00:20:36.339 --> 00:20:37.579 but God himself. 00:20:38.099 --> 00:20:39.399 He doesn't care about anyone else. 00:20:40.439 --> 00:20:41.379 God he hates. 00:20:42.720 --> 00:20:43.179 God, 00:20:43.319 --> 00:20:43.839 Christ, 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:46.019 living in you, 00:20:46.299 --> 00:20:47.279 by his Holy Spirit. 00:20:48.659 --> 00:20:49.879 He's saying to God, 00:20:49.919 --> 00:20:50.200 isn't he, 00:20:50.259 --> 00:20:51.000 come and have a go, 00:20:51.119 --> 00:20:52.299 if you think you're hard enough. 00:20:52.419 --> 00:20:53.579 And the battle is only, 00:20:53.579 --> 00:20:54.859 going to go one way. 00:20:55.839 --> 00:20:57.259 Notice the note of victory, 00:20:57.419 --> 00:20:58.319 in verse 24. 00:20:59.500 --> 00:21:01.139 Those who belong to Jesus, 00:21:01.299 --> 00:21:03.220 have crucified the flesh, 00:21:03.220 --> 00:21:05.460 with its passions and desires. 00:21:06.960 --> 00:21:08.920 The flesh is a formidable enemy, 00:21:09.039 --> 00:21:09.740 and we know it. 00:21:10.220 --> 00:21:11.839 But he is a defeated enemy. 00:21:12.420 --> 00:21:13.779 And the word crucify there, 00:21:13.839 --> 00:21:14.900 is really significant. 00:21:15.079 --> 00:21:17.120 As a person trusts in Jesus, 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:18.920 death and resurrection, 00:21:19.180 --> 00:21:20.539 in the crucifixion, 00:21:21.180 --> 00:21:22.980 he's experiencing there, 00:21:23.079 --> 00:21:25.000 the beginning of the demise, 00:21:25.839 --> 00:21:26.960 of his great enemy, 00:21:26.960 --> 00:21:27.759 the flesh. 00:21:29.860 --> 00:21:31.200 G.K. Chesterton, 00:21:31.460 --> 00:21:32.860 with characteristic wit, 00:21:32.859 --> 00:21:34.019 describes the flesh, 00:21:34.059 --> 00:21:35.519 like a bull in a china shop, 00:21:35.559 --> 00:21:35.979 or actually, 00:21:36.419 --> 00:21:37.619 a rhino in a restaurant. 00:21:37.839 --> 00:21:38.279 He says, 00:21:38.779 --> 00:21:39.659 if a rhinoceros, 00:21:39.859 --> 00:21:41.519 were to enter this restaurant now, 00:21:41.899 --> 00:21:43.000 there is no denying, 00:21:43.139 --> 00:21:44.799 that he would have great power here. 00:21:44.899 --> 00:21:45.879 You can imagine the scene, 00:21:46.000 --> 00:21:46.379 can't you? 00:21:47.319 --> 00:21:47.899 But he says, 00:21:47.979 --> 00:21:49.479 I should be the first to rise, 00:21:49.539 --> 00:21:50.399 and assure him, 00:21:50.859 --> 00:21:52.639 that he had no authority, 00:21:53.139 --> 00:21:53.659 whatsoever. 00:21:53.660 --> 00:21:59.840 There are notes of positivity, 00:22:00.080 --> 00:22:00.320 aren't they, 00:22:00.340 --> 00:22:01.100 in this passage. 00:22:02.259 --> 00:22:04.519 That while the flesh can cause havoc, 00:22:04.680 --> 00:22:06.320 his authority, 00:22:06.759 --> 00:22:07.820 in the life of believer, 00:22:08.040 --> 00:22:09.080 is removed. 00:22:10.420 --> 00:22:12.080 The assaults of the flesh, 00:22:12.200 --> 00:22:12.880 are merely, 00:22:13.420 --> 00:22:13.800 kind of, 00:22:13.900 --> 00:22:14.960 whimpering echoes, 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:17.860 of an embittered tyrant, 00:22:18.660 --> 00:22:20.460 who has lost his grip on power. 00:22:22.019 --> 00:22:22.880 The spirit, 00:22:23.120 --> 00:22:24.140 comes in, 00:22:24.299 --> 00:22:26.100 and the flesh has no authority. 00:22:27.840 --> 00:22:29.000 Notice how Paul says, 00:22:29.079 --> 00:22:30.600 he keeps you from doing, 00:22:30.600 --> 00:22:32.559 what you want to do. 00:22:33.360 --> 00:22:34.319 Which implies, 00:22:34.440 --> 00:22:34.740 doesn't it, 00:22:34.799 --> 00:22:35.000 that, 00:22:35.160 --> 00:22:37.220 at a fundamental level, 00:22:37.340 --> 00:22:38.920 the Christian has been transformed, 00:22:38.920 --> 00:22:40.640 and they are, 00:22:40.640 --> 00:22:41.220 allies, 00:22:41.560 --> 00:22:42.240 not with the flesh, 00:22:42.340 --> 00:22:43.200 but with the spirit. 00:22:44.140 --> 00:22:45.160 Against the flesh. 00:22:46.500 --> 00:22:47.620 There is no sense, 00:22:47.700 --> 00:22:48.759 where this battle, 00:22:48.900 --> 00:22:49.660 this opposition, 00:22:50.800 --> 00:22:51.500 is a, 00:22:51.500 --> 00:22:52.060 is a kind of, 00:22:52.220 --> 00:22:53.580 even sided battle. 00:22:54.740 --> 00:22:55.820 This is not a war, 00:22:55.900 --> 00:22:56.539 of attrition, 00:22:56.980 --> 00:22:57.779 where both sides, 00:22:57.820 --> 00:22:58.120 are sort of, 00:22:58.160 --> 00:22:59.140 taking pot shots, 00:22:59.240 --> 00:23:00.039 from the trenches. 00:23:01.320 --> 00:23:02.320 There is no sense, 00:23:02.380 --> 00:23:03.180 that the flesh, 00:23:03.560 --> 00:23:04.080 could kind of, 00:23:04.140 --> 00:23:04.680 come back, 00:23:04.759 --> 00:23:06.140 and overwhelm the person, 00:23:06.279 --> 00:23:07.860 and steal the person back, 00:23:07.940 --> 00:23:08.539 from the spirit. 00:23:08.920 --> 00:23:09.800 Not at all. 00:23:11.240 --> 00:23:11.480 No, 00:23:11.580 --> 00:23:12.420 the born again, 00:23:12.519 --> 00:23:13.100 man or woman, 00:23:13.279 --> 00:23:14.380 belongs to God. 00:23:15.420 --> 00:23:16.100 And so, 00:23:16.240 --> 00:23:16.759 for the flesh, 00:23:16.840 --> 00:23:17.680 the game is up. 00:23:19.060 --> 00:23:19.840 And the spirit, 00:23:19.840 --> 00:23:21.720 is shining the spotlight, 00:23:21.960 --> 00:23:22.920 on the flesh, 00:23:23.680 --> 00:23:24.920 as he lashes out, 00:23:25.039 --> 00:23:25.539 in the darkness, 00:23:25.700 --> 00:23:26.380 in your life. 00:23:27.080 --> 00:23:27.820 And it is, 00:23:27.920 --> 00:23:28.700 a miracle, 00:23:28.779 --> 00:23:29.019 isn't it, 00:23:29.019 --> 00:23:29.620 of the spirit, 00:23:29.700 --> 00:23:30.820 that you can know, 00:23:30.900 --> 00:23:31.320 the enemy. 00:23:32.380 --> 00:23:33.700 And that you're even aware, 00:23:34.460 --> 00:23:35.740 of what he's trying to do. 00:23:37.220 --> 00:23:38.640 You can sense him, 00:23:38.640 --> 00:23:39.600 and you can see, 00:23:39.600 --> 00:23:40.860 his corruptness, 00:23:41.660 --> 00:23:43.060 as he cuddles up to you, 00:23:43.120 --> 00:23:43.920 next to you, 00:23:43.960 --> 00:23:44.480 on the sofa. 00:23:45.920 --> 00:23:46.500 The spirit, 00:23:46.680 --> 00:23:47.900 shines the spotlight, 00:23:48.680 --> 00:23:49.540 on the flesh, 00:23:50.160 --> 00:23:51.160 as an enemy, 00:23:51.300 --> 00:23:51.980 who is defeated. 00:23:54.259 --> 00:23:55.340 Christina Rossetti, 00:23:55.520 --> 00:23:57.360 writes about her struggle, 00:23:57.620 --> 00:23:58.340 with the flesh. 00:23:58.480 --> 00:23:59.259 She says, 00:23:59.980 --> 00:24:01.080 or she prays, 00:24:01.079 --> 00:24:02.059 God, 00:24:02.179 --> 00:24:03.099 strengthen me, 00:24:03.179 --> 00:24:03.899 to bear, 00:24:04.299 --> 00:24:05.199 myself. 00:24:06.399 --> 00:24:07.639 To bear myself, 00:24:08.359 --> 00:24:09.759 that heaviest weight, 00:24:09.859 --> 00:24:11.000 of all to bear. 00:24:12.679 --> 00:24:13.199 Inalienable, 00:24:13.379 --> 00:24:14.339 weight of care. 00:24:15.859 --> 00:24:16.639 And we do know, 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:17.319 what she means, 00:24:17.419 --> 00:24:17.859 don't we? 00:24:19.139 --> 00:24:20.539 We are our own, 00:24:20.539 --> 00:24:21.159 worst enemy, 00:24:21.759 --> 00:24:23.539 in the Christian life. 00:24:23.539 --> 00:24:25.819 But we've got, 00:24:25.899 --> 00:24:26.859 a strategy here. 00:24:27.899 --> 00:24:29.059 And not only that, 00:24:29.599 --> 00:24:31.579 we've got God, 00:24:32.220 --> 00:24:32.920 himself, 00:24:33.659 --> 00:24:34.819 in our lives. 00:24:35.779 --> 00:24:36.480 So Paul says, 00:24:36.680 --> 00:24:38.059 walk by the spirit. 00:24:39.399 --> 00:24:40.700 Let him lead you, 00:24:40.759 --> 00:24:42.200 away from yourself, 00:24:43.259 --> 00:24:43.960 and your own, 00:24:43.960 --> 00:24:45.259 striving and law keeping, 00:24:45.259 --> 00:24:47.799 and be led, 00:24:48.379 --> 00:24:50.319 towards the Lord Jesus Christ, 00:24:50.400 --> 00:24:51.519 who has done it. 00:24:52.859 --> 00:24:53.400 And actually, 00:24:53.579 --> 00:24:54.960 you will find yourselves, 00:24:55.460 --> 00:24:56.379 doing it, 00:24:57.160 --> 00:24:57.900 in that freedom. 00:24:58.460 --> 00:24:58.960 Let's pray.