WEBVTT 00:00:00.300 --> 00:00:02.540 This morning I want you to imagine something 00:00:02.540 --> 00:00:05.620 with me. I want you to picture two different 00:00:05.620 --> 00:00:08.380 relationships. So the first one I want you to 00:00:08.380 --> 00:00:11.820 picture is an employee with his boss. We've all 00:00:11.820 --> 00:00:13.699 worked for somebody at some point in our life. 00:00:14.240 --> 00:00:17.519 The employee shows up on time. He does what he's 00:00:17.519 --> 00:00:19.620 supposed to do. He follows his job description. 00:00:19.780 --> 00:00:22.219 He submits the reports that he's supposed to 00:00:22.219 --> 00:00:24.739 do. Gives the presentations. He does his job. 00:00:24.820 --> 00:00:28.500 Why? Well, because he has to. He needs a paycheck. 00:00:28.679 --> 00:00:32.700 He's motivated by a paycheck. And if he doesn't 00:00:32.700 --> 00:00:34.759 measure up, well, he knows that there's going 00:00:34.759 --> 00:00:38.259 to be consequences. He's going to get reprimanded, 00:00:38.259 --> 00:00:40.640 or he's going to get a dock in pay, or he may 00:00:40.640 --> 00:00:44.579 just completely lose his salary altogether. There's 00:00:44.579 --> 00:00:47.280 a certain level of respect, or what we would 00:00:47.280 --> 00:00:49.679 say is there's a certain level of fear there 00:00:49.679 --> 00:00:52.500 for the employee. But there's not really, there's 00:00:52.500 --> 00:00:55.450 not this intimacy. There's no intimacy between 00:00:55.450 --> 00:00:58.729 a boss and his employee, is there? Unless the 00:00:58.729 --> 00:01:01.070 boss is like the husband and the employee is 00:01:01.070 --> 00:01:03.549 the wife, right? There's no intimacy there. But 00:01:03.549 --> 00:01:06.709 I want you now to picture a little boy with his 00:01:06.709 --> 00:01:10.989 dad. Very different relationship. There's still 00:01:10.989 --> 00:01:14.010 an authority situation here. There are still 00:01:14.010 --> 00:01:16.430 rules that have to be followed and there's still 00:01:16.430 --> 00:01:19.969 discipline that has to be laid out. But the boy 00:01:19.969 --> 00:01:22.189 isn't handing his father a performance review 00:01:22.189 --> 00:01:25.989 at the dinner table. The boy isn't looking at 00:01:25.989 --> 00:01:28.450 his dad worried that he might get in trouble 00:01:28.450 --> 00:01:31.790 and get fired if he spills his milk. He's not 00:01:31.790 --> 00:01:33.689 worried that he's going to get kicked out if 00:01:33.689 --> 00:01:38.010 he doesn't make his bed. The boy has a relationship 00:01:38.010 --> 00:01:41.450 with his father that he can run into his dad's 00:01:41.450 --> 00:01:45.150 arms and he can have a hug and he can feel love. 00:01:45.909 --> 00:01:48.670 He can climb into his lap. He can throw the ball 00:01:48.670 --> 00:01:51.510 with him in the yard. He can talk to him about 00:01:51.510 --> 00:01:54.840 his deepest. darkest troubles. And when his dad 00:01:54.840 --> 00:01:57.120 comes home after a day of work, the little boy 00:01:57.120 --> 00:01:59.980 can run in and shout. And hopefully you've experienced 00:01:59.980 --> 00:02:03.280 this before and just grab him and say, Daddy, 00:02:03.400 --> 00:02:08.879 there's a difference. And I hope you can feel 00:02:08.879 --> 00:02:11.400 that as you picture these two relationships. 00:02:11.560 --> 00:02:14.520 One is motivated by fear and performance, and 00:02:14.520 --> 00:02:19.240 the other one is by love and belonging. And that's 00:02:19.240 --> 00:02:21.810 what we've been talking about. Since last week 00:02:21.810 --> 00:02:23.490 when we talked about this difference between 00:02:23.490 --> 00:02:27.330 being under the guardianship of the law and now 00:02:27.330 --> 00:02:31.210 being adopted into God's family. And here in 00:02:31.210 --> 00:02:34.629 Galatians 4, Paul makes another, well he makes, 00:02:34.750 --> 00:02:37.909 he kind of goes into more detail in this illustration. 00:02:38.469 --> 00:02:40.870 He's going to give us some understanding. So 00:02:40.870 --> 00:02:43.449 last week in chapter 3 we saw that in Christ 00:02:43.449 --> 00:02:46.409 we are adopted into God's family. We now have 00:02:46.409 --> 00:02:49.069 a place in his family. We've got a seat at the 00:02:49.069 --> 00:02:51.620 table. That's the legal side of things, where 00:02:51.620 --> 00:02:54.159 now you have the share in the inheritance, you 00:02:54.159 --> 00:02:56.139 have a home to sleep in, you have a provider. 00:02:56.759 --> 00:02:59.400 The adoption papers have been signed, basically. 00:02:59.460 --> 00:03:01.900 We talked about baptism being that moment where 00:03:01.900 --> 00:03:06.020 you accept the adoption of the father. And so 00:03:06.020 --> 00:03:09.900 we know, based on Galatians 3 now, that we are 00:03:09.900 --> 00:03:13.080 God's children with full rights. as children. 00:03:13.180 --> 00:03:15.759 But here in Galatians 4, Paul goes a little bit 00:03:15.759 --> 00:03:17.800 deeper. And what he's going to say is, I want 00:03:17.800 --> 00:03:20.020 you to show or I want to show you how adoption 00:03:20.020 --> 00:03:23.979 feels. I want you to know how this changes the 00:03:23.979 --> 00:03:26.460 way you relate to God. And so today's message 00:03:26.460 --> 00:03:30.740 is this. In Christ, we are not slaves under rules. 00:03:30.919 --> 00:03:33.419 We're not employees under a boss. We are now 00:03:33.419 --> 00:03:37.180 sons and daughters in relationship with a father. 00:03:38.280 --> 00:03:40.280 And that leads us to our text this morning in 00:03:40.280 --> 00:03:44.039 Galatians chapter 4, verses 1 through 7. Paul's 00:03:44.039 --> 00:03:46.719 explaining himself from Galatians 3. Remember, 00:03:46.979 --> 00:03:49.419 this is a letter, and so this wouldn't have been 00:03:49.419 --> 00:03:51.599 broken up into chapters. So Paul is talking about 00:03:51.599 --> 00:03:56.319 in Galatians 3 how we're now heirs to the father's 00:03:56.319 --> 00:03:59.219 inheritance. We're sons like Abraham. And so 00:03:59.219 --> 00:04:02.259 now we get to verse 4, and he says, I mean that 00:04:02.259 --> 00:04:05.599 the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different 00:04:05.599 --> 00:04:09.090 from a slave. Though he is the owner of everything, 00:04:09.250 --> 00:04:12.210 but he's under the guardians and managers until 00:04:12.210 --> 00:04:16.209 the date set by his father. In the same way, 00:04:16.209 --> 00:04:18.490 we also, when we were children, were enslaved 00:04:18.490 --> 00:04:21.990 to the elementary principles of the world. But 00:04:21.990 --> 00:04:25.269 when the fullness of time had come, God sent 00:04:25.269 --> 00:04:30.089 forth his son, born of a woman, born under the 00:04:30.089 --> 00:04:33.490 law, to redeem those who were under the law so 00:04:33.490 --> 00:04:38.319 that we might receive adoption. As sons. And 00:04:38.319 --> 00:04:41.339 because you are sons, God has sent the spirit 00:04:41.339 --> 00:04:46.279 of his son into our hearts crying, Abba, Father. 00:04:47.000 --> 00:04:51.800 So you are no longer a slave, but a son. And 00:04:51.800 --> 00:04:57.810 if a son, then an heir through God. See, Paul 00:04:57.810 --> 00:05:01.350 begins by comparing our old life to slavery and 00:05:01.350 --> 00:05:03.649 slavery. You know, that's a pretty strong word, 00:05:03.689 --> 00:05:06.709 right? He compares us to slaves. He says before 00:05:06.709 --> 00:05:09.350 Christ, you were like children under guardians. 00:05:09.449 --> 00:05:13.189 You had no freedom. You had restrictions. You 00:05:13.189 --> 00:05:16.810 were basically servants to the world's masters. 00:05:17.170 --> 00:05:20.430 And you were trying to obey the guardianship 00:05:20.430 --> 00:05:23.730 that was set for you under the law. And he uses 00:05:23.730 --> 00:05:25.829 that word slaves. And I want you to think a little 00:05:25.829 --> 00:05:29.189 bit about this. This morning, how does a slave 00:05:29.189 --> 00:05:33.689 obey? Does a slave obey because he wants to? 00:05:33.810 --> 00:05:36.089 Does he obey because there's something really 00:05:36.089 --> 00:05:39.050 good in store for him? Does he obey because he's 00:05:39.050 --> 00:05:41.370 going to get a really large portion of money 00:05:41.370 --> 00:05:47.990 and land after the job is done? No. A slave obeys 00:05:47.990 --> 00:05:52.000 out of fear of what will happen to them. A fear 00:05:52.000 --> 00:05:54.139 of punishment, a fear of rejection, a fear of 00:05:54.139 --> 00:05:57.060 not measuring up. A slave obeys because he knows 00:05:57.060 --> 00:06:01.019 the consequences. It's like your kid obeys when 00:06:01.019 --> 00:06:03.759 you say don't touch the hot stove because they've 00:06:03.759 --> 00:06:06.060 touched the hot stove before and they felt the 00:06:06.060 --> 00:06:09.259 burn. And now they know if I touch the hot stove, 00:06:09.339 --> 00:06:11.699 it's going to burn. The other night, Easton put 00:06:11.699 --> 00:06:13.319 his hand on the stove. He hasn't learned that 00:06:13.319 --> 00:06:16.100 lesson yet. He will. Luckily, the stove wasn't 00:06:16.100 --> 00:06:20.720 on. You obey out of fear when you're a slave. 00:06:22.279 --> 00:06:25.019 And the truth is, that is how so many people 00:06:25.019 --> 00:06:29.120 approach God, is it not? Christians, that's how 00:06:29.120 --> 00:06:31.920 so many of us have approached God over the years. 00:06:31.980 --> 00:06:34.779 And we know in our context, in the churches of 00:06:34.779 --> 00:06:38.120 Christ, we have approached God out of fear for 00:06:38.120 --> 00:06:42.060 so long. And what Paul is saying is, don't do 00:06:42.060 --> 00:06:44.939 that. We have this mindset of if I just pray 00:06:44.939 --> 00:06:48.339 enough, maybe God will accept me. Or if I will 00:06:48.339 --> 00:06:50.879 clean myself up before I come to God, maybe he 00:06:50.879 --> 00:06:54.379 won't give up on me. If I blow it again, I know 00:06:54.379 --> 00:06:58.500 God is going to be disappointed in me. We have 00:06:58.500 --> 00:07:02.100 this fear that we can do something, that we can 00:07:02.100 --> 00:07:05.439 do things, we can say things that take us away 00:07:05.439 --> 00:07:07.759 from the love of God. And that is slave thinking. 00:07:08.680 --> 00:07:11.240 That is slave thinking. That's rule based religion. 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:13.920 And I've got to tell you, I believe that's exhausting. 00:07:14.920 --> 00:07:18.319 It is an exhausting way to live, to think every 00:07:18.319 --> 00:07:21.879 time I mess up that God is just he's looking 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:25.079 to get me, that every time I mess up, God is 00:07:25.079 --> 00:07:27.339 sitting with his finger on the trigger waiting 00:07:27.339 --> 00:07:33.100 to smite me. It's an awful way to live. It's 00:07:33.100 --> 00:07:38.069 an anxiety inducing fear. driven way to live. 00:07:38.889 --> 00:07:42.430 And I want to pause here and just ask you, do 00:07:42.430 --> 00:07:45.110 you find yourself relating to God like that? 00:07:45.970 --> 00:07:48.829 Do you find yourself looking at God like he's 00:07:48.829 --> 00:07:52.110 a boss that's keeping score, that's filling out 00:07:52.110 --> 00:07:56.610 an employee evaluation every day? Do you look 00:07:56.610 --> 00:08:00.790 at God like if you make one wrong move, you're 00:08:00.790 --> 00:08:05.089 out, out the door, no longer a part of the family? 00:08:05.689 --> 00:08:08.649 No inheritance left for you. No food for you. 00:08:10.930 --> 00:08:13.850 Paul is trying to explain to the Galatian Christians, 00:08:14.110 --> 00:08:19.389 don't look at God like a slave owner. Don't look 00:08:19.389 --> 00:08:22.449 at God like a boss in an employee situation. 00:08:23.009 --> 00:08:25.990 What he wants you to see is that you are no longer 00:08:25.990 --> 00:08:28.670 slaves. You are no longer under the guardianship 00:08:28.670 --> 00:08:31.680 of this old law that was restrictive. Look at 00:08:31.680 --> 00:08:33.639 what he says in verse four. But when the fullness 00:08:33.639 --> 00:08:35.940 of time had come, remember, we've talked about 00:08:35.940 --> 00:08:39.720 God had a plan from the beginning to save his 00:08:39.720 --> 00:08:43.980 people because he knew we messed it up. He's 00:08:43.980 --> 00:08:46.059 got to save us because he wants relationship 00:08:46.059 --> 00:08:49.059 with us. So he looks at us and he said from the 00:08:49.059 --> 00:08:51.440 beginning of time, he's got a plan. And so now 00:08:51.440 --> 00:08:54.360 the plan is ready to go. When the fullness of 00:08:54.360 --> 00:08:57.500 time had come, God sent forth his son, born of 00:08:57.500 --> 00:09:00.139 a woman, born under the law, to redeem those 00:09:00.139 --> 00:09:02.799 who were under the law so that we might receive 00:09:02.799 --> 00:09:09.759 adoption as sons. I always want to find the gospel, 00:09:09.879 --> 00:09:12.279 that good news message of Christ's redemption. 00:09:12.460 --> 00:09:14.620 I want to find that in every sermon, every passage 00:09:14.620 --> 00:09:17.000 of scripture. And here's the gospel in one sentence. 00:09:17.139 --> 00:09:19.639 The son became a servant so that we could become 00:09:19.639 --> 00:09:24.919 sons. And that changes everything. Because if 00:09:24.919 --> 00:09:27.279 I'm not a slave anymore, if I don't view myself 00:09:27.279 --> 00:09:30.340 as a servant and I see myself as a son, that 00:09:30.340 --> 00:09:33.080 changes the way I relate to God. It changes the 00:09:33.080 --> 00:09:35.320 way I view God and it makes the message of scripture 00:09:35.320 --> 00:09:41.750 so much sweeter. Sons depend on their father. 00:09:42.610 --> 00:09:48.830 And sons know the love of a father. Sons respond 00:09:48.830 --> 00:09:51.730 differently than slaves. See, a son doesn't wake 00:09:51.730 --> 00:09:53.649 up wondering if today's the day that he's going 00:09:53.649 --> 00:09:55.950 to get kicked out of the family. A son doesn't 00:09:55.950 --> 00:09:59.850 wake up wondering, if I don't obey because I'm 00:09:59.850 --> 00:10:02.750 terrified of God's punishment, if I don't obey, 00:10:03.049 --> 00:10:09.309 I'm going to be smitten. Smitten? Smited? Smited. 00:10:09.309 --> 00:10:12.149 Smitten is like I'm smitten in love with her. 00:10:12.909 --> 00:10:17.250 I don't think that's the right word. Smote? We 00:10:17.250 --> 00:10:20.090 got an English teacher? Anybody? Yeah. English 00:10:20.090 --> 00:10:22.570 teacher said smote. So the son doesn't wake up 00:10:22.570 --> 00:10:24.450 wondering if today is the day that he's going 00:10:24.450 --> 00:10:28.830 to get smote by the father. A son wakes up wondering, 00:10:29.009 --> 00:10:34.269 what am I going to do with my father today? Are 00:10:34.269 --> 00:10:37.100 we going to throw the ball outside? Are we going 00:10:37.100 --> 00:10:39.820 to go fishing? Are we going to build something? 00:10:39.940 --> 00:10:42.899 A son wonders about the relationship. It doesn't 00:10:42.899 --> 00:10:45.980 worry about the consequence. And what Paul is 00:10:45.980 --> 00:10:48.340 challenging us to do is understand our security 00:10:48.340 --> 00:10:51.500 in our relationship with God because even when 00:10:51.500 --> 00:10:54.899 the son stumbles, he knows he's still in the 00:10:54.899 --> 00:11:00.299 family. And what happened in Galatia is these 00:11:00.299 --> 00:11:02.559 Christians were worried and they were buying 00:11:02.559 --> 00:11:05.519 into this false narrative that if you mess up, 00:11:05.690 --> 00:11:08.190 if you don't obey the law, if you don't measure 00:11:08.190 --> 00:11:12.070 up to the standard of God, you're out. And what 00:11:12.070 --> 00:11:14.389 Paul is saying is you're not looking at that 00:11:14.389 --> 00:11:17.830 kind of relationship. What you're in is a family, 00:11:17.870 --> 00:11:20.210 and a family sticks together. Remember, ohana 00:11:20.210 --> 00:11:23.730 means family, and family means nobody gets left 00:11:23.730 --> 00:11:27.570 behind. And God is not looking to leave you behind. 00:11:28.529 --> 00:11:32.129 God wants you. He set out on this long thousand 00:11:32.129 --> 00:11:35.730 year mission journey to bring you back into his 00:11:35.730 --> 00:11:38.289 family. And he's not going to kick you out just 00:11:38.289 --> 00:11:40.350 because you said the wrong thing to the guy in 00:11:40.350 --> 00:11:43.090 traffic. He's not going to kick you out because 00:11:43.090 --> 00:11:45.330 you voted the wrong way. He's not going to kick 00:11:45.330 --> 00:11:47.669 you out because you sang the song the wrong way. 00:11:47.769 --> 00:11:50.529 God wants you in his family. And if you will 00:11:50.529 --> 00:11:53.490 come to him, if you'll trust in him, he is going 00:11:53.490 --> 00:11:59.990 to forgive you and keep you in his family. Because 00:11:59.990 --> 00:12:03.870 that's what family does. And that's this adoption 00:12:03.870 --> 00:12:08.090 that God has offered. That's the amazing grace 00:12:08.090 --> 00:12:12.080 that God has extended to us. It's what Jesus 00:12:12.080 --> 00:12:14.399 came for. If you were here last week, you'll 00:12:14.399 --> 00:12:16.340 remember we talked about adoption in the legal 00:12:16.340 --> 00:12:19.279 sense of now that you're adopted, you've got 00:12:19.279 --> 00:12:21.259 a seat at the table. You have a share in the 00:12:21.259 --> 00:12:24.360 inheritance. Like we said, people sign the papers. 00:12:24.480 --> 00:12:26.700 The child officially belongs. That's Galatians 00:12:26.700 --> 00:12:30.000 3. But I want to add to that picture. I want 00:12:30.000 --> 00:12:33.539 you to imagine that same child that's been adopted 00:12:33.539 --> 00:12:37.659 now. For the first time in his life, the child 00:12:37.659 --> 00:12:40.399 has a family. For the first time in its life, 00:12:40.500 --> 00:12:45.840 the child has a home, a bed that is his, a room 00:12:45.840 --> 00:12:48.240 that is his, a seat at the table that is his. 00:12:48.460 --> 00:12:50.399 And you know what I mean because in some families 00:12:50.399 --> 00:12:53.879 you've got assigned seats at the table. The child 00:12:53.879 --> 00:12:59.480 has a place. But I want you to imagine after 00:12:59.480 --> 00:13:02.940 the papers are signed and the judge says you 00:13:02.940 --> 00:13:07.820 are now a part of this family. The child goes 00:13:07.820 --> 00:13:12.000 running into their new father's arms. And he 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:16.019 doesn't call the father, sir. He doesn't say, 00:13:16.179 --> 00:13:22.000 master. He doesn't say, mister. He calls him 00:13:22.000 --> 00:13:27.299 dad. And that's intimate, isn't it? That's a 00:13:27.299 --> 00:13:37.539 relational word. Dad. There's laughter. There's 00:13:37.539 --> 00:13:40.419 security. There's intimacy. There is belonging. 00:13:40.659 --> 00:13:42.580 That's what chapter four, that's what Paul's 00:13:42.580 --> 00:13:44.820 describing here. I don't want you to miss the 00:13:44.820 --> 00:13:46.559 beauty here because it is a beautiful thing. 00:13:46.659 --> 00:13:49.659 I want you to see that in Christ, we're not just 00:13:49.659 --> 00:13:52.340 adopted legally. We are welcomed relationally. 00:13:53.450 --> 00:13:56.629 We have a home. You're invited to live not as 00:13:56.629 --> 00:13:58.509 a slave but as a beloved child. Look at what 00:13:58.509 --> 00:14:01.029 verses 6 and 7 say because this is the heartbeat 00:14:01.029 --> 00:14:04.049 of this passage. Because you are sons, God has 00:14:04.049 --> 00:14:06.289 sent the spirit of his son into our hearts crying, 00:14:06.570 --> 00:14:12.120 Abba, Father. So you are no longer a slave, but 00:14:12.120 --> 00:14:14.799 a son. And if a son, then an heir through God. 00:14:14.879 --> 00:14:17.080 I want you to think about that. The Spirit Himself 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:20.559 teaches us how to relate to God. The Spirit comes 00:14:20.559 --> 00:14:22.840 into our lives and teaches us what it means to 00:14:22.840 --> 00:14:25.360 be a part of this family. It teaches us what 00:14:25.360 --> 00:14:28.820 it means to know love and to know care and to 00:14:28.820 --> 00:14:31.120 know security. And you know what I'm talking 00:14:31.120 --> 00:14:33.379 about because... You think about that image of 00:14:33.379 --> 00:14:35.299 the child that's been in foster care all its 00:14:35.299 --> 00:14:37.519 life or it's been in an orphanage. And it's only 00:14:37.519 --> 00:14:41.659 known this provider relationship. It's only known 00:14:41.659 --> 00:14:45.759 a security in the sense of you have a home, you 00:14:45.759 --> 00:14:48.399 have a bed, you have food, but it's not your 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:52.220 family. It's not your place. And now when you 00:14:52.220 --> 00:14:53.980 get into this home, you've kind of got to be 00:14:53.980 --> 00:14:56.480 taught what it means to be a child in that home, 00:14:56.519 --> 00:15:00.419 right? You got to learn that. The family loves 00:15:00.419 --> 00:15:02.299 you. I think a few weeks ago we used the example 00:15:02.299 --> 00:15:05.019 of a stray dog. When you take the stray dog in, 00:15:05.080 --> 00:15:06.940 it takes a little bit before the stray dog isn't 00:15:06.940 --> 00:15:09.259 scared of you anymore, right? Before it stops 00:15:09.259 --> 00:15:11.639 hiding in the corner. Before it gets nervous 00:15:11.639 --> 00:15:15.740 every time you raise your voice. It takes a little 00:15:15.740 --> 00:15:18.639 bit of teaching and a little bit of comfortability 00:15:18.639 --> 00:15:21.639 before the child learns what it means to be a 00:15:21.639 --> 00:15:22.840 part of the family. And that's what the Spirit 00:15:22.840 --> 00:15:25.519 does. It comes into our lives and it counsels 00:15:25.519 --> 00:15:27.559 us. Remember, Jesus said, I'm going to send to 00:15:27.559 --> 00:15:30.450 you the counselor. Some translations say the 00:15:30.450 --> 00:15:33.490 comforter. I'm going to send to you someone that's 00:15:33.490 --> 00:15:35.470 going to come into your life and it's going to 00:15:35.470 --> 00:15:37.289 teach you what it means to be a part of the family. 00:15:37.389 --> 00:15:39.909 The Spirit moves into our hearts and gives us 00:15:39.909 --> 00:15:44.950 the instinct to now cry out, Abba, Father. Abba 00:15:44.950 --> 00:15:48.190 is intimate language. It's like saying Dad or 00:15:48.190 --> 00:15:53.389 Papa or Daddy. It's what it means when the kid 00:15:53.389 --> 00:15:55.909 runs to the door and it screams and it gives 00:15:55.909 --> 00:15:59.019 you the biggest hug. And it's like... I'm so 00:15:59.019 --> 00:16:03.000 glad you're home. It's the very word Jesus used 00:16:03.000 --> 00:16:06.720 when he's praying to God in the garden. In Jesus' 00:16:06.860 --> 00:16:12.259 most terrified, trembling moment, he's speaking 00:16:12.259 --> 00:16:17.179 to God, Lord of the universe, and he calls him 00:16:17.179 --> 00:16:22.139 Dad. And what Paul says is now we get to call 00:16:22.139 --> 00:16:28.279 him Dad. Slaves don't use that word, do they? 00:16:29.460 --> 00:16:36.779 No. Orphans don't use that word. Employees don't 00:16:36.779 --> 00:16:42.600 use that word. Sons and daughters do. And I want 00:16:42.600 --> 00:16:44.500 you to notice the shift that Paul makes here. 00:16:44.600 --> 00:16:48.799 In chapter 3, Paul emphasizes the baptism, that 00:16:48.799 --> 00:16:51.580 legal process of becoming a part of the family 00:16:51.580 --> 00:16:55.409 of God. And then in chapter four, he emphasizes 00:16:55.409 --> 00:16:58.230 the spirit that we're gifted in baptism, this 00:16:58.230 --> 00:17:02.870 inward assurance and comfort and security of 00:17:02.870 --> 00:17:06.049 adoption. One of these is the paperwork and the 00:17:06.049 --> 00:17:08.990 other is the relationship. One of these says 00:17:08.990 --> 00:17:13.349 you belong. The other says you are loved. Don't 00:17:13.349 --> 00:17:16.710 miss this. The spirit's role is not just to give 00:17:16.710 --> 00:17:19.890 us new rules to abide by, but it is to give us 00:17:19.890 --> 00:17:24.819 a new confidence. A new security. It's to give 00:17:24.819 --> 00:17:27.200 us this comfort of knowing that it does not matter 00:17:27.200 --> 00:17:30.500 what I do, as long as I don't turn my back to 00:17:30.500 --> 00:17:33.900 God, I've got a piece of His family. I've got 00:17:33.900 --> 00:17:36.740 a seat at His table. And I love that phrase, 00:17:36.880 --> 00:17:39.279 seat at the table, because that means something. 00:17:40.299 --> 00:17:42.799 I grew up in a family, we didn't sit at the table 00:17:42.799 --> 00:17:45.880 and eat dinner. Even when I was in high school, 00:17:45.980 --> 00:17:49.079 and my grandma did a great job raising me. I 00:17:49.079 --> 00:17:52.599 think some of you may disagree. But when I was 00:17:52.599 --> 00:17:55.500 in high school, my grandma would cook and she 00:17:55.500 --> 00:17:58.400 made awesome meals. But it was just kind of like 00:17:58.400 --> 00:18:00.640 dinner's ready. You grab your plate and you went 00:18:00.640 --> 00:18:03.420 wherever you went to eat. And so I'd go in my 00:18:03.420 --> 00:18:05.380 room. I had a desk in my room and I'd eat dinner 00:18:05.380 --> 00:18:07.500 at my desk. And my grandma would eat dinner at 00:18:07.500 --> 00:18:10.519 the table and my aunt would eat in her chair 00:18:10.519 --> 00:18:12.980 or in her desk or whatever. We didn't eat together 00:18:12.980 --> 00:18:17.569 as a family. We didn't sit at the table. But 00:18:17.569 --> 00:18:20.690 now with Eliza and the boys, we eat at the table. 00:18:21.789 --> 00:18:26.490 And we try to have conversation. We try to be 00:18:26.490 --> 00:18:28.849 a loving family, but with a four and a two -year 00:18:28.849 --> 00:18:31.470 -old that are crazy, it's kind of hard. And you 00:18:31.470 --> 00:18:33.670 ask them, you know, how was your day? And they're 00:18:33.670 --> 00:18:36.150 like, I don't know. And I'm not kidding. We ask 00:18:36.150 --> 00:18:37.990 Easton what he did at school every day, and he 00:18:37.990 --> 00:18:40.289 just says, I don't know. Like, you don't know 00:18:40.289 --> 00:18:43.640 what you learned? I don't know. But he can tell 00:18:43.640 --> 00:18:45.359 you things that happened four years ago, but 00:18:45.359 --> 00:18:46.559 he doesn't know what happened at school today. 00:18:46.779 --> 00:18:50.279 But we had this time at the table, and I've grown 00:18:50.279 --> 00:18:52.339 to love it, even though we're wrestling and trying 00:18:52.339 --> 00:18:54.779 to get them to eat their food and just trying 00:18:54.779 --> 00:18:56.940 to get them to be civil for like five seconds 00:18:56.940 --> 00:18:59.859 and, hey, get the food in your mouth, not everywhere 00:18:59.859 --> 00:19:02.920 else. But it's this time that I've grown to love 00:19:02.920 --> 00:19:07.200 as a family, where we sit together, we pray over 00:19:07.200 --> 00:19:09.680 our food together, we eat food together, and 00:19:09.680 --> 00:19:13.740 we just... We live together for one moment because 00:19:13.740 --> 00:19:15.819 all the other hours of the day were everywhere 00:19:15.819 --> 00:19:18.660 else, right? But now we've got a seat at the 00:19:18.660 --> 00:19:20.079 table. And that's what I love about communion 00:19:20.079 --> 00:19:23.480 is every Sunday, while we don't have a physical 00:19:23.480 --> 00:19:27.480 table here, we gather around this meal together. 00:19:29.960 --> 00:19:34.660 That's what adoption brings us. That's what the 00:19:34.660 --> 00:19:37.799 Spirit assures us of, is you now have a seat 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:40.579 at my Father's table, and you can now partake 00:19:40.579 --> 00:19:49.740 in this meal with me. We're a family. So let 00:19:49.740 --> 00:19:53.279 me ask you plainly. In your life as a Christian, 00:19:53.380 --> 00:19:56.940 if you're in Christ, that is, in your life, do 00:19:56.940 --> 00:20:00.900 you live more like a slave, or do you live more 00:20:00.900 --> 00:20:04.650 like a son or a daughter? Because slaves are 00:20:04.650 --> 00:20:09.789 anxious, fearful, performance -based beings. 00:20:10.470 --> 00:20:14.430 I've got to get it right. I can't mess up. I 00:20:14.430 --> 00:20:16.829 can't do the wrong thing. Maybe God is done with 00:20:16.829 --> 00:20:19.210 me because I didn't do what he asked me to do. 00:20:19.710 --> 00:20:24.170 But sons and daughters, they're confident. They're 00:20:24.170 --> 00:20:27.289 secure. They're joyful in the father's love. 00:20:27.430 --> 00:20:29.470 And they're able to say things like, even if 00:20:29.470 --> 00:20:34.900 I stumble, I know my father loves me. Sons say 00:20:34.900 --> 00:20:37.660 things like, I want to obey, not to earn his 00:20:37.660 --> 00:20:42.740 love, but because I already have it. Or I want 00:20:42.740 --> 00:20:46.140 to be with my father and I want to be with his 00:20:46.140 --> 00:20:49.480 people because that's my family. I make fun of 00:20:49.480 --> 00:20:52.200 Eliza's family because they are a cult. They're 00:20:52.200 --> 00:20:55.130 a good cult, but they love being together. And 00:20:55.130 --> 00:20:57.670 they like to spend time together. I mean, every 00:20:57.670 --> 00:21:01.029 little holiday they're together. It could be 00:21:01.029 --> 00:21:03.769 Second Kingdom Come Memorial Day and they are 00:21:03.769 --> 00:21:06.170 getting together. It could be the fifth cousin 00:21:06.170 --> 00:21:08.529 twice removes birthday. They're getting together. 00:21:08.890 --> 00:21:11.549 They love being together. And I think that is 00:21:11.549 --> 00:21:15.349 crazy, but I also love it. Because that's what 00:21:15.349 --> 00:21:18.460 I want being a Christian to be like. I want my 00:21:18.460 --> 00:21:21.240 relationship with God and his people to be like 00:21:21.240 --> 00:21:24.119 a family that wants to be together. Please hear 00:21:24.119 --> 00:21:25.900 me when I say this. I don't want us to be a cult. 00:21:26.019 --> 00:21:28.519 That's not what I'm saying. I want us to enjoy 00:21:28.519 --> 00:21:31.519 being together. I want our relationship as a 00:21:31.519 --> 00:21:33.920 family to be more than just this. This is awesome. 00:21:34.880 --> 00:21:38.119 But if this is all church is, we have missed 00:21:38.119 --> 00:21:42.440 the point of adoption into God's family. What 00:21:42.440 --> 00:21:45.339 this should be like is on a random Tuesday night, 00:21:45.460 --> 00:21:47.359 I should want to have dinner with some of you. 00:21:47.759 --> 00:21:50.359 On a random Thursday, I should want to get together 00:21:50.359 --> 00:21:52.559 and go play pickleball with y 'all. I don't play 00:21:52.559 --> 00:21:56.460 pickleball, so don't invite me. This should be... 00:21:56.970 --> 00:22:00.549 One of those things where if I am doing something 00:22:00.549 --> 00:22:03.089 in my life that's important, if I'm having a 00:22:03.089 --> 00:22:05.910 kid, if I'm having a birthday, the first people 00:22:05.910 --> 00:22:08.650 I invite should be my church family because this 00:22:08.650 --> 00:22:11.049 is the family that I've been adopted into. This 00:22:11.049 --> 00:22:15.029 is the family that I sit at the table with. And 00:22:15.029 --> 00:22:19.029 I know that because the Spirit tells me and assures 00:22:19.029 --> 00:22:22.549 me. I know that because the Word tells me and 00:22:22.549 --> 00:22:24.630 assures me. And I know that because my Father 00:22:24.630 --> 00:22:28.539 tells me. And assures me that I am one of his 00:22:28.539 --> 00:22:33.160 sons. If you grew up in the church. And you went 00:22:33.160 --> 00:22:36.220 to VBS. Or maybe children's Bible study. You 00:22:36.220 --> 00:22:39.019 remember the song Father Abraham. Had many sons. 00:22:39.319 --> 00:22:42.119 Had many sons. And many sons had Father Abraham. 00:22:42.299 --> 00:22:44.680 And I am one of them. And so are you. So let's 00:22:44.680 --> 00:22:48.339 all praise the Lord. That's what Paul is saying. 00:22:49.579 --> 00:22:54.180 We are a part of this divine family. We're a 00:22:54.180 --> 00:22:58.400 part of this descendants of God. I've probably 00:22:58.400 --> 00:23:01.359 said this quote before in here, but I love what 00:23:01.359 --> 00:23:04.960 Nero's spy said to Nero when he had infiltrated 00:23:04.960 --> 00:23:07.339 the church. And Nero's like, so what's the deal 00:23:07.339 --> 00:23:09.240 with these Christians in the first century? Why 00:23:09.240 --> 00:23:11.140 is it that everybody wants to be a Christian? 00:23:11.259 --> 00:23:12.960 Why does everybody want to be a part of this 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:16.039 family of God? What is the big deal? And the 00:23:16.039 --> 00:23:19.079 spy says, I don't know, but I know there is something 00:23:19.079 --> 00:23:22.619 divine among them. Y 'all, if there is nothing 00:23:22.619 --> 00:23:26.359 divine among us, we are not the church. But I 00:23:26.359 --> 00:23:28.579 do believe there is something divine among us. 00:23:28.779 --> 00:23:32.059 I believe the Spirit has come to be a part of 00:23:32.059 --> 00:23:34.259 this gathering, to be a part of these people, 00:23:34.339 --> 00:23:38.740 and has said, be sons, be daughters, be a family 00:23:38.740 --> 00:23:42.819 that is together, that is partaking in the relationship 00:23:42.819 --> 00:23:48.039 that God has given you. So do you live more like 00:23:48.039 --> 00:23:52.349 slaves? Or do you live like sons? Which one describes 00:23:52.349 --> 00:23:54.789 your relationship with God? Be honest with yourself. 00:23:55.849 --> 00:23:59.250 Does your faith feel like fear? Does it feel 00:23:59.250 --> 00:24:03.329 like having to check the boxes and get all the 00:24:03.329 --> 00:24:07.410 things right? Or does it feel like family? Does 00:24:07.410 --> 00:24:10.289 it feel like a place where you belong? Where 00:24:10.289 --> 00:24:12.529 you share your struggles? Where you share in 00:24:12.529 --> 00:24:16.089 joy? I want to take you back to that picture 00:24:16.089 --> 00:24:21.759 of the little boy with his dad. Him running across 00:24:21.759 --> 00:24:24.319 the house or running across the yard because 00:24:24.319 --> 00:24:28.220 daddy's home. He grabs him and gives him the 00:24:28.220 --> 00:24:32.000 biggest, tightest hug. And the dad bends down, 00:24:32.079 --> 00:24:36.500 he scoops him up and he holds him close. You 00:24:36.500 --> 00:24:39.220 know, the reason the story of the gospel means 00:24:39.220 --> 00:24:43.160 so much to me. Is because I didn't have that. 00:24:43.779 --> 00:24:46.079 I've told some of you that before. I didn't have 00:24:46.079 --> 00:24:49.180 the dad that embraced me. I didn't have the dad. 00:24:49.720 --> 00:24:52.079 that scooped me up and gave me the big hug. I 00:24:52.079 --> 00:24:54.319 didn't have the dad that I could run to at the 00:24:54.319 --> 00:24:58.420 door and say, Dad's home. And so when I think 00:24:58.420 --> 00:25:01.440 about the father and this beautiful imagery of 00:25:01.440 --> 00:25:04.579 being adopted into his family, that's the good 00:25:04.579 --> 00:25:08.430 news for me. And we all know what it's like to 00:25:08.430 --> 00:25:10.690 want to belong. We all know what it's like to 00:25:10.690 --> 00:25:13.930 want to find our place in a family outside of 00:25:13.930 --> 00:25:16.410 the family we were born into because we do it. 00:25:16.430 --> 00:25:18.789 We go and find jobs. We get careers. We join 00:25:18.789 --> 00:25:21.470 clubs and we join teams and we join societies 00:25:21.470 --> 00:25:23.730 and all these things because we're trying to 00:25:23.730 --> 00:25:26.950 find a place where we belong, where people that 00:25:26.950 --> 00:25:31.329 don't have to want us want us. And that's what 00:25:31.329 --> 00:25:38.779 the family of God is. This is not just sentimental 00:25:38.779 --> 00:25:45.160 poetry. It's the good news. It's a story. It's 00:25:45.160 --> 00:25:50.900 our story in Christ of a family. And if you're 00:25:50.900 --> 00:25:52.880 in Christ today, you don't have to live like 00:25:52.880 --> 00:25:55.319 a slave. You don't have to keep trying to prove 00:25:55.319 --> 00:25:57.720 yourself. You don't have to wonder if you belong. 00:25:57.940 --> 00:26:01.990 You belong. Like I said last week, I heard a 00:26:01.990 --> 00:26:04.849 preacher down in Atlanta. He said, we are already 00:26:04.849 --> 00:26:06.930 united in Christ. It's just a matter of if we're 00:26:06.930 --> 00:26:10.170 going to live like it. Are we going to live like 00:26:10.170 --> 00:26:13.910 we're a part of this family? The Spirit of God, 00:26:13.990 --> 00:26:18.450 the Comforter, He lives in you. He lives in us, 00:26:18.710 --> 00:26:21.349 reminding us over and over and over again, you 00:26:21.349 --> 00:26:27.170 are loved, you are wanted, and you are His. No 00:26:27.170 --> 00:26:30.660 questions asked. Regardless of your faults and 00:26:30.660 --> 00:26:34.660 failures, you are His. And this message from 00:26:34.660 --> 00:26:38.079 Paul, hopefully for you, you feel it to be life 00:26:38.079 --> 00:26:41.539 -changing because I believe it is. Slaves obey 00:26:41.539 --> 00:26:45.619 out of fear, but sons respond out of love. Slaves 00:26:45.619 --> 00:26:48.319 don't know intimacy, but sons can cry out, Abba, 00:26:48.319 --> 00:26:51.559 Father. Slaves are uncertain about their place, 00:26:51.700 --> 00:26:54.779 their standing in the kingdom, but sons are secure. 00:26:56.119 --> 00:26:59.690 So as you go, Don't live like a slave wondering 00:26:59.690 --> 00:27:03.849 if you're good enough. Don't worry about the 00:27:03.849 --> 00:27:08.170 boxes. Did I check that box today? Live every 00:27:08.170 --> 00:27:11.230 day like a child of God, running into his arms, 00:27:11.309 --> 00:27:13.750 doing everything you can to be with him because 00:27:13.750 --> 00:27:16.680 he wants to be with you. And if you're not in 00:27:16.680 --> 00:27:18.799 Christ, if you are not a part of that family, 00:27:18.859 --> 00:27:22.319 if you've not done your part in accepting the 00:27:22.319 --> 00:27:25.160 free gift of salvation, if you've not been baptized 00:27:25.160 --> 00:27:27.920 for the remission of your sins, for the gift 00:27:27.920 --> 00:27:30.400 of the Holy Spirit, for the welcoming into the 00:27:30.400 --> 00:27:34.839 family of God, don't wait. Run to the Father. 00:27:36.059 --> 00:27:41.279 Because you are loved. You're wanted. And he 00:27:41.279 --> 00:27:43.440 has offered you, he's put out his hand, he's 00:27:43.440 --> 00:27:46.299 given the papers to be signed for your adoption. 00:27:46.960 --> 00:27:50.339 It's just a question of if you are going to be 00:27:50.339 --> 00:27:53.940 his. Church, we have been freed from the chains 00:27:53.940 --> 00:27:58.859 of slavery. We do not live under the guardianship 00:27:58.859 --> 00:28:05.519 of the law. We have been offered a place in the 00:28:05.519 --> 00:28:09.660 family, a seat at the table. Will you accept 00:28:09.660 --> 00:28:14.210 it? It's for you to decide. If you'd like to 00:28:14.210 --> 00:28:16.609 be a part of the family of God, if you need prayers 00:28:16.609 --> 00:28:18.670 from the church, whatever it is that you need, 00:28:18.869 --> 00:28:21.170 we do this every Sunday where after the sermon 00:28:21.170 --> 00:28:23.569 we offer an invitation. And I want to encourage 00:28:23.569 --> 00:28:26.990 you, whatever it is that you need, this invitation 00:28:26.990 --> 00:28:30.509 is a real one. You are invited to come and share 00:28:30.509 --> 00:28:32.970 your burdens, your struggles, request prayer, 00:28:33.190 --> 00:28:38.210 request salvation. And we as a church, as a family, 00:28:38.779 --> 00:28:41.019 We'll do whatever we need to do for you this 00:28:41.019 --> 00:28:45.480 morning. So consider what you need. And if you 00:28:45.480 --> 00:28:47.400 need anything, come as we stand and as we sing.