Children of The Promise
Series: NO OTHER GOSPEL
Speaker: Adrian Wong
Date: 7th October 2017
00:00:00 --> 00:00:03 When Sam asked me to choose a week to preach,
00:00:03 --> 00:00:05 I just chose any week that was free.
00:00:06 --> 00:00:08 I didn't realize it was going to be on Hagar and Sarah.
00:00:09 --> 00:00:10 It's a pretty difficult passage.
00:00:11 --> 00:00:14 And I also remembered about three months ago,
00:00:14 --> 00:00:20 at heartbeat, Steve said that we should really dig into the Bible.
00:00:21 --> 00:00:23 And he read through the passage in Hagar and Sarah
00:00:23 --> 00:00:26 and found out something that he never found out before.
00:00:27 --> 00:00:29 So I've got double pressure now.
00:00:29 --> 00:00:33 Hard passage and Steve saying that he understood this clearly.
00:00:34 --> 00:00:36 So I feel a bit intimidated right now.
00:00:37 --> 00:00:41 I think it's more important that it's not just because that is a hard passage
00:00:41 --> 00:00:45 or what Steve has understood, because it's God's Word.
00:00:45 --> 00:00:49 So let us pray to help us understand it and help us to live in light of it.
00:00:49 --> 00:00:49 Let's pray.
00:00:51 --> 00:00:52 Dear God, we thank you for your Word.
00:00:53 --> 00:00:55 Pray that we will submit before your Word.
00:00:56 --> 00:00:58 Pray that you can help me to speak clearly
00:00:58 --> 00:01:00 and be faithful to your Word.
00:01:00 --> 00:01:02 And that we will live in light of what you say
00:01:02 --> 00:01:04 and believe in what it says.
00:01:05 --> 00:01:06 In Jesus' name we pray.
00:01:07 --> 00:01:07 Amen.
00:01:08 --> 00:01:09 Okay.
00:01:09 --> 00:01:11 So one of the great things about telling the Gospel
00:01:11 --> 00:01:14 to people that have never heard the Gospel before
00:01:14 --> 00:01:18 is that they have a very refreshingly different perspective.
00:01:18 --> 00:01:22 So I'll recall a time I was doing student ministry in China.
00:01:23 --> 00:01:26 I've just learned Mandarin for about three months or so.
00:01:27 --> 00:01:30 I was sharing the Gospel with a uni student in China.
00:01:31 --> 00:01:35 And then I read through a Gospel tract with him
00:01:35 --> 00:01:39 and I basically shared with him how you can become a Christian
00:01:39 --> 00:01:41 and probably quoted John 3.16
00:01:41 --> 00:01:45 and told him that if you believe this honestly
00:01:45 --> 00:01:47 and pray it in your heart with me
00:01:47 --> 00:01:49 then you can become a Christian.
00:01:50 --> 00:01:50 He says,
00:01:50 --> 00:01:52 I can't pray this and become a Christian.
00:01:53 --> 00:01:53 I can't believe in Jesus.
00:01:53 --> 00:01:54 I can't pray this.
00:01:55 --> 00:01:56 And I asked him why.
00:01:56 --> 00:01:57 And he said,
00:01:57 --> 00:01:59 because I have a lecture at 3 p.m.
00:01:59 --> 00:01:59 I said,
00:02:00 --> 00:02:03 how does a lecture at 3 p.m.
00:02:04 --> 00:02:06 affect your decision of becoming a Christian?
00:02:07 --> 00:02:07 He says,
00:02:08 --> 00:02:10 doesn't it say in your tract that 3.16, right,
00:02:10 --> 00:02:14 that you have to pray to believe in Jesus at 3.16?
00:02:15 --> 00:02:21 So you can actually see that maybe a few things.
00:02:21 --> 00:02:23 One thing is that I didn't tell the Gospel clearly.
00:02:23 --> 00:02:27 The other thing is that non-Christians
00:02:27 --> 00:02:30 or young Christians are very eager
00:02:30 --> 00:02:33 to pick up anything about the Christian faith.
00:02:34 --> 00:02:36 And we have to be clear in our communication.
00:02:37 --> 00:02:38 Sometimes it is Gospel
00:02:38 --> 00:02:42 and sometimes it's just my bad habits being transferred to him.
00:02:42 --> 00:02:45 So hopefully we need to communicate the Gospel clearly.
00:02:46 --> 00:02:49 But this is some of the pressures that the Galatians are facing.
00:02:50 --> 00:02:51 Remember the Galatians,
00:02:52 --> 00:02:53 they just believed in the Gospel,
00:02:54 --> 00:02:56 but they've been facing pressure
00:02:56 --> 00:02:58 from a group of false teachers
00:02:58 --> 00:02:59 from the Jewish background.
00:03:00 --> 00:03:02 They've been telling these Galatians
00:03:02 --> 00:03:04 that you have to be circumcised
00:03:04 --> 00:03:07 and you have to observe various fluid laws
00:03:07 --> 00:03:10 in order to receive God's promises.
00:03:11 --> 00:03:13 So it's under this background
00:03:13 --> 00:03:15 that Paul is preaching,
00:03:16 --> 00:03:18 writing this message.
00:03:19 --> 00:03:20 And just like a good sermon,
00:03:20 --> 00:03:22 this passage is in three parts.
00:03:23 --> 00:03:25 So I'll just break down each part for us
00:03:25 --> 00:03:26 and walk through it.
00:03:27 --> 00:03:29 So the first part of this passage
00:03:29 --> 00:03:32 is the history of Hagar and Sarah.
00:03:33 --> 00:03:35 We can see that in verses 22 to 23,
00:03:36 --> 00:03:39 where Paul recounts the history of Hagar and Sarah.
00:03:40 --> 00:03:42 And we know that he's recounting history
00:03:42 --> 00:03:44 by the way he introduces these verses.
00:03:45 --> 00:03:47 At the start of verse 22, he says,
00:03:47 --> 00:03:48 it has been written.
00:03:49 --> 00:03:51 So if you know your New Testament well,
00:03:51 --> 00:03:52 this is how Jesus
00:03:52 --> 00:03:54 and other New Testament writers
00:03:54 --> 00:03:56 quote the Old Testament.
00:03:57 --> 00:04:00 So they want us to look at the Bible carefully,
00:04:00 --> 00:04:02 so let's look through Genesis chapter 16
00:04:02 --> 00:04:04 and chapter 21.
00:04:05 --> 00:04:06 Before we read that on the screen,
00:04:07 --> 00:04:08 I'll just tell you a little bit of backstory
00:04:08 --> 00:04:11 of what led up to these passages.
00:04:11 --> 00:04:13 So in Genesis chapter 12,
00:04:14 --> 00:04:18 we recall that God made a promise to Abram
00:04:18 --> 00:04:21 saying that he will bless Abram
00:04:21 --> 00:04:23 and have a great nation through him.
00:04:24 --> 00:04:27 And Abram is challenged by that message
00:04:27 --> 00:04:28 because he doesn't have any kids.
00:04:29 --> 00:04:31 And in chapter 15,
00:04:32 --> 00:04:34 he basically had some doubts
00:04:34 --> 00:04:37 because God reaffirmed the promises to Abraham,
00:04:37 --> 00:04:40 but Abram said,
00:04:40 --> 00:04:43 I only have adopted heir, Eliezer.
00:04:43 --> 00:04:45 So I can't build a nation through that, right?
00:04:46 --> 00:04:47 But God reassured him
00:04:47 --> 00:04:49 and in chapter 15, verse 6,
00:04:49 --> 00:04:50 it's a very famous verse.
00:04:51 --> 00:04:53 Abraham believed in God
00:04:53 --> 00:04:55 and it was credited to him as righteousness.
00:04:56 --> 00:04:59 So let's look at what Abram did
00:04:59 --> 00:05:00 after that chapter.
00:05:01 --> 00:05:03 I'll read the first half of Genesis chapter 16.
00:05:03 --> 00:05:08 I'll start from Genesis chapter 16, verse 1.
00:05:09 --> 00:05:10 Now Sarah, Abram's wife,
00:05:11 --> 00:05:12 had borne him no children,
00:05:13 --> 00:05:15 but she had an Egyptian slave named Hagar.
00:05:16 --> 00:05:17 So she said to Abram,
00:05:18 --> 00:05:20 the Lord has kept me from having children.
00:05:21 --> 00:05:22 Go sleep with my slave.
00:05:23 --> 00:05:25 Perhaps I can build a family through her.
00:05:26 --> 00:05:28 Abram agreed to what Sarah had said.
00:05:29 --> 00:05:32 So after Abram had been living in Canaan for 10 years,
00:05:32 --> 00:05:34 Sarah, his wife,
00:05:34 --> 00:05:36 took the Egyptian slave Hagar
00:05:36 --> 00:05:39 and gave her to her husband to be his wife.
00:05:40 --> 00:05:42 He slept with Hagar and she conceived.
00:05:44 --> 00:05:46 When she knew that she was pregnant,
00:05:46 --> 00:05:48 she began to despise her mistress.
00:05:49 --> 00:05:50 Then Sarah said to Abram,
00:05:51 --> 00:05:53 you are responsible for the wrong I am suffering.
00:05:54 --> 00:05:55 I put my slave in your arms
00:05:55 --> 00:05:57 and now that she knows that she is pregnant,
00:05:57 --> 00:05:59 she despises me.
00:06:00 --> 00:06:01 May the Lord judge between you and me.
00:06:03 --> 00:06:04 Your slave is in your hands,
00:06:04 --> 00:06:05 Abram said.
00:06:05 --> 00:06:07 Do with her whatever you think best.
00:06:08 --> 00:06:10 Then Sarah mistreated Hagar,
00:06:10 --> 00:06:11 so she fled from her.
00:06:12 --> 00:06:14 The angel of the Lord found Hagar
00:06:14 --> 00:06:15 near a spring in the desert
00:06:15 --> 00:06:19 and it was the spring that is beside the road to Shur.
00:06:20 --> 00:06:20 And he said,
00:06:20 --> 00:06:22 Hagar, slave of Sarah,
00:06:22 --> 00:06:24 where have you come from
00:06:24 --> 00:06:25 and where are you going?
00:06:26 --> 00:06:28 I'm running from my mistress, Sarah,
00:06:28 --> 00:06:28 she answered.
00:06:28 --> 00:06:32 Then the angel of the Lord told her,
00:06:32 --> 00:06:34 go back to your mistress and submit to her.
00:06:35 --> 00:06:36 The angel added,
00:06:36 --> 00:06:39 I will increase your descendants so much
00:06:39 --> 00:06:41 that there will be too numerous to count.
00:06:41 --> 00:06:42 And we will stop the reading there.
00:06:43 --> 00:06:45 So one of the things that we should notice there
00:06:45 --> 00:06:48 is that God made a promise to Hagar
00:06:48 --> 00:06:52 that a great nation will be also built through her
00:06:52 --> 00:06:55 because she is the wife of Abram.
00:06:55 --> 00:06:59 So if you look at the history of Ishmael
00:06:59 --> 00:07:02 and you look at Islam in particular,
00:07:02 --> 00:07:05 Ishmael is recognised as the forefather of Mohammed.
00:07:06 --> 00:07:10 And Ishmael is head of several Arabian tribes.
00:07:11 --> 00:07:14 So you can actually see from one act of disobedience,
00:07:14 --> 00:07:17 not only did it cause family's drive
00:07:17 --> 00:07:18 between Sarah and Hagar and Abraham,
00:07:19 --> 00:07:22 it actually had a huge impact for the world,
00:07:23 --> 00:07:24 which we experience right now.
00:07:25 --> 00:07:28 Let's read through Genesis chapter 21.
00:07:29 --> 00:07:30 I'll start from the first one again.
00:07:31 --> 00:07:33 Now the Lord was gracious to Sarah,
00:07:34 --> 00:07:35 as he has said,
00:07:35 --> 00:07:37 and the Lord did for Sarah what he had promised.
00:07:38 --> 00:07:41 Sarah became pregnant and bore a son to Abraham
00:07:41 --> 00:07:42 in his old age.
00:07:43 --> 00:07:45 And at the very time God has promised him,
00:07:45 --> 00:07:48 Abraham gave the name Isaac to the son Sarah bore him.
00:07:48 --> 00:07:52 When his son Isaac was eight days old,
00:07:52 --> 00:07:53 Abraham circumcised him,
00:07:54 --> 00:07:55 as God commanded him.
00:07:56 --> 00:07:58 Abraham was a hundred years old
00:07:58 --> 00:07:59 when his son Isaac was born to him.
00:08:01 --> 00:08:02 Sarah said,
00:08:02 --> 00:08:03 God has brought me laughter,
00:08:04 --> 00:08:06 and everyone who hears about this will laugh with me.
00:08:07 --> 00:08:08 And she added,
00:08:09 --> 00:08:10 Who would have said to Abraham
00:08:10 --> 00:08:12 that Sarah would nurse children,
00:08:13 --> 00:08:16 yet I have born him a son in his old age?
00:08:16 --> 00:08:19 The child grew and was weaned.
00:08:20 --> 00:08:22 And on the day that Isaac weaned,
00:08:22 --> 00:08:23 Abraham held a great feast.
00:08:24 --> 00:08:27 But Sarah saw that the son whom Hagar the Egyptian
00:08:27 --> 00:08:29 had born to Abraham was mocking.
00:08:29 --> 00:08:31 And she said to Abraham,
00:08:31 --> 00:08:33 Get rid of the slave woman and her son,
00:08:34 --> 00:08:35 for that woman's son will never share
00:08:35 --> 00:08:37 in the inheritance with my son Isaac.
00:08:37 --> 00:08:43 You can see Hagar and Ishmael is driven away once again.
00:08:45 --> 00:08:46 And just as an aside,
00:08:46 --> 00:08:47 before we go back to Galatians,
00:08:48 --> 00:08:51 we actually want to look at this story as a side note.
00:08:52 --> 00:08:54 We can look at the story of Abraham and Sarah.
00:08:55 --> 00:08:59 The Bible isn't ashamed to hide their flaws.
00:09:00 --> 00:09:03 Abraham is the father of many nations,
00:09:03 --> 00:09:05 is called a man of faith.
00:09:05 --> 00:09:06 But yet in these passages,
00:09:07 --> 00:09:09 we can see that Sarah is the one wearing the pants.
00:09:10 --> 00:09:12 She told Abraham what to do.
00:09:12 --> 00:09:14 She told him to sleep with Hagar
00:09:14 --> 00:09:17 and take her as his wife.
00:09:17 --> 00:09:19 And she drove her away
00:09:19 --> 00:09:21 when things didn't work out.
00:09:22 --> 00:09:24 So if you were to write the Bible
00:09:24 --> 00:09:26 of one of your founding fathers,
00:09:27 --> 00:09:28 if I was to write the account,
00:09:29 --> 00:09:31 I would just write all the stuff,
00:09:31 --> 00:09:32 good stuff about him
00:09:32 --> 00:09:34 and just leave out all the bad stuff
00:09:34 --> 00:09:35 because it's embarrassing.
00:09:36 --> 00:09:37 But that's not what the Bible does.
00:09:38 --> 00:09:41 The Bible isn't ashamed to hide these flaws.
00:09:42 --> 00:09:44 And this is one of the many, many factors
00:09:44 --> 00:09:47 that contribute to the historicity
00:09:47 --> 00:09:48 and the realism of the Bible.
00:09:49 --> 00:09:50 So the Bible is true.
00:09:51 --> 00:09:53 So if you have questions about the Bible,
00:09:53 --> 00:09:55 please talk to me or Sam
00:09:55 --> 00:09:56 and one of the other leaders.
00:09:56 --> 00:09:58 And one of the things that you can talk to,
00:09:58 --> 00:09:59 talk to Ko as well.
00:10:00 --> 00:10:02 Ko loves talking about the historicity of the Bible.
00:10:03 --> 00:10:04 I talked to him a few weeks ago.
00:10:04 --> 00:10:05 He talked to me.
00:10:05 --> 00:10:06 I just sat there and listened for
00:10:06 --> 00:10:08 maybe 10 minutes or so.
00:10:08 --> 00:10:10 And I talked to him just before the service
00:10:10 --> 00:10:12 and listened a bit more again.
00:10:12 --> 00:10:14 So he loves to talk about the Bible.
00:10:14 --> 00:10:15 Please ask him.
00:10:15 --> 00:10:17 And he would love to tell you
00:10:17 --> 00:10:18 why the Bible is true.
00:10:19 --> 00:10:21 And throughout the series,
00:10:21 --> 00:10:22 let's go back to Galatians.
00:10:22 --> 00:10:23 Throughout the series,
00:10:23 --> 00:10:25 we've been talking a lot about the false teachers
00:10:25 --> 00:10:28 and what they have done to the Galatians.
00:10:28 --> 00:10:30 But we have not really explored
00:10:30 --> 00:10:32 their cultural heritage or their motives.
00:10:33 --> 00:10:36 So let's borrow from our vision series
00:10:36 --> 00:10:38 and I'll get the AV team to bring up the iceberg.
00:10:40 --> 00:10:41 The iceberg is,
00:10:41 --> 00:10:42 this is one of the things
00:10:42 --> 00:10:44 that hopefully we'll be exploring
00:10:44 --> 00:10:45 in the vision series.
00:10:46 --> 00:10:49 So one can use an iceberg
00:10:49 --> 00:10:51 to represent what people do.
00:10:51 --> 00:10:53 If you see people's behaviour,
00:10:54 --> 00:10:55 it's like the tip of the iceberg.
00:10:56 --> 00:10:58 It's just a tiny, tiny bit of
00:10:58 --> 00:11:01 what makes them tick.
00:11:02 --> 00:11:03 But beneath that,
00:11:03 --> 00:11:06 there are values and worldviews and beliefs.
00:11:07 --> 00:11:10 And it's those things that drive a person.
00:11:11 --> 00:11:14 So if you look at Genesis
00:11:14 --> 00:11:16 and look at the brief snapshot
00:11:16 --> 00:11:19 of what the false teachers are like,
00:11:19 --> 00:11:21 you can sort of basically tell
00:11:21 --> 00:11:22 what they've been doing.
00:11:23 --> 00:11:25 They've been pressuring the Galatians
00:11:25 --> 00:11:27 to circumcise and observe fruit laws.
00:11:27 --> 00:11:29 But let's explore why they do that.
00:11:31 --> 00:11:32 They would have believed
00:11:32 --> 00:11:34 that they were God's chosen people
00:11:34 --> 00:11:37 because they were descended from Abraham.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:40 They are Jews that are circumcised.
00:11:41 --> 00:11:43 Now they have believed in Jesus.
00:11:43 --> 00:11:44 So in some sense,
00:11:44 --> 00:11:46 you can almost imagine them saying
00:11:46 --> 00:11:48 that we are doubly blessed.
00:11:48 --> 00:11:50 We've got the best of the old
00:11:50 --> 00:11:51 and the best of the new.
00:11:51 --> 00:11:53 We've got both mixed together.
00:11:53 --> 00:11:54 So they believe that they've got
00:11:54 --> 00:11:56 a mix of Judaism and Christianity
00:11:56 --> 00:11:58 that they want to tell other people.
00:11:58 --> 00:12:00 They believe that that is the way
00:12:00 --> 00:12:00 to be blessed.
00:12:01 --> 00:12:02 And they don't want the Galatians
00:12:02 --> 00:12:03 to miss out.
00:12:03 --> 00:12:05 They want them to be circumcised
00:12:05 --> 00:12:07 and observe these laws.
00:12:07 --> 00:12:08 And on the flip side,
00:12:08 --> 00:12:09 they would have thought possibly
00:12:09 --> 00:12:13 that those that didn't undergo circumcision
00:12:13 --> 00:12:16 or observe the fruit laws,
00:12:16 --> 00:12:18 they would have been missing out on things,
00:12:19 --> 00:12:21 missing out on God's promises and blessings.
00:12:22 --> 00:12:24 So it is to this background
00:12:24 --> 00:12:26 that Paul is writing to the Galatians.
00:12:27 --> 00:12:30 And the way that he helps them to understand
00:12:30 --> 00:12:33 is to interpret the historical facts
00:12:33 --> 00:12:35 that we have read in Genesis
00:12:35 --> 00:12:38 as an allegory in verses 24 to 27.
00:12:39 --> 00:12:42 So when I heard the word allegory,
00:12:42 --> 00:12:43 I was a little bit shocked
00:12:43 --> 00:12:44 when I first read it
00:12:44 --> 00:12:47 as a Christian about 20 years ago.
00:12:47 --> 00:12:49 Because I've been taught that
00:12:49 --> 00:12:51 the right way to read the Old Testament
00:12:51 --> 00:12:52 is biblical theology.
00:12:53 --> 00:12:54 You have to read the Bible in context
00:12:54 --> 00:12:56 and you have to read the history
00:12:56 --> 00:13:00 and how it's real and fulfilled through Jesus
00:13:00 --> 00:13:03 and how this is real for us now.
00:13:03 --> 00:13:05 But why is Paul using an allegory?
00:13:06 --> 00:13:07 Is he reading the Bible wrong?
00:13:08 --> 00:13:09 So I guess the answer is,
00:13:09 --> 00:13:11 well, it's probably me, not him.
00:13:12 --> 00:13:13 So let's work out what this means for us.
00:13:14 --> 00:13:16 So let's put this allegory together
00:13:16 --> 00:13:20 and compare Hagar and Sarah side by side.
00:13:21 --> 00:13:24 We have two women, Hagar and Sarah.
00:13:25 --> 00:13:28 Two sons, Ishmael and Isaac.
00:13:29 --> 00:13:32 And this is a story we've just read about
00:13:32 --> 00:13:33 in Genesis 16 and 21.
00:13:35 --> 00:13:36 We also have two covenants,
00:13:37 --> 00:13:37 old and new.
00:13:39 --> 00:13:41 And there are two types of people,
00:13:41 --> 00:13:42 slaves and free.
00:13:43 --> 00:13:47 So Paul, if you look at the book of Galatians,
00:13:47 --> 00:13:49 Paul has already touched on
00:13:49 --> 00:13:51 what the old and new covenants are
00:13:51 --> 00:13:53 in Galatians chapters 2 and 3.
00:13:53 --> 00:13:56 The old covenant is for those
00:13:56 --> 00:13:58 that want to be right before God
00:13:58 --> 00:13:59 by observing the law.
00:14:00 --> 00:14:02 And it says in Galatians chapter 2 verse 10
00:14:02 --> 00:14:05 that clearly no one is justified
00:14:05 --> 00:14:05 from observing the law.
00:14:07 --> 00:14:08 In fact, those that are trying
00:14:08 --> 00:14:10 to establish a relationship with God
00:14:10 --> 00:14:11 through the law
00:14:11 --> 00:14:14 are cursed and are slaves to the law.
00:14:16 --> 00:14:18 The new covenant is through Jesus
00:14:18 --> 00:14:20 and what he has done for you on the cross,
00:14:20 --> 00:14:22 which gives us freedom.
00:14:24 --> 00:14:27 So imagine what the Jewish false teachers
00:14:27 --> 00:14:30 would have heard when they heard this allegory.
00:14:31 --> 00:14:33 They would have agreed with all these points.
00:14:33 --> 00:14:34 Yes, Hagar and Sarah,
00:14:35 --> 00:14:35 the first four points,
00:14:36 --> 00:14:36 Ishmael, Isaac,
00:14:38 --> 00:14:38 slave and free,
00:14:39 --> 00:14:39 old and new.
00:14:39 --> 00:14:43 If we were to say that there were two cities,
00:14:44 --> 00:14:45 what would you have thought
00:14:45 --> 00:14:48 their expected answer would be?
00:14:48 --> 00:14:50 They would have expected Paul to say
00:14:50 --> 00:14:51 and there are also two cities,
00:14:52 --> 00:14:54 one in Arabia and one in Jerusalem.
00:14:55 --> 00:14:56 The ones that are from Hagar,
00:14:57 --> 00:14:58 they're outside of God's promise.
00:14:59 --> 00:15:01 Whereas the ones that are descended from Sarah,
00:15:02 --> 00:15:05 they're the ones that are truly God's people.
00:15:06 --> 00:15:08 But that's not what Paul says in this passage.
00:15:08 --> 00:15:10 The last contrast is that
00:15:10 --> 00:15:12 there's the earthly Jerusalem
00:15:12 --> 00:15:14 and the heavenly Jerusalem.
00:15:16 --> 00:15:18 Those people that were the Jewish false teachers
00:15:18 --> 00:15:21 would have been shocked by this comparison.
00:15:23 --> 00:15:24 Because after all,
00:15:24 --> 00:15:26 if you think about their worldview,
00:15:26 --> 00:15:27 if you look at the iceberg,
00:15:28 --> 00:15:30 they would have believed truly about Judaism.
00:15:31 --> 00:15:33 They believe that they are God's people
00:15:33 --> 00:15:35 and they believe they are the free ones,
00:15:35 --> 00:15:36 they're the blessed ones.
00:15:36 --> 00:15:38 But what is Paul saying?
00:15:40 --> 00:15:42 The ones that are observing these laws
00:15:42 --> 00:15:44 are in fact slaves.
00:15:45 --> 00:15:46 They are not God's people.
00:15:47 --> 00:15:49 So that's exactly opposite
00:15:49 --> 00:15:51 of what they were expecting.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:55 Paul is implying that their belief system
00:15:55 --> 00:15:56 is completely false.
00:15:58 --> 00:16:01 And so if we understood this passage properly,
00:16:01 --> 00:16:05 we can see that Paul didn't interpret the Bible wrongly
00:16:05 --> 00:16:06 or forget his biblical theology.
00:16:07 --> 00:16:09 Rather, he's using concepts
00:16:09 --> 00:16:12 that are close to the hearts of these false teachers
00:16:12 --> 00:16:15 and what is said by them probably,
00:16:16 --> 00:16:20 that he's using these concepts
00:16:20 --> 00:16:22 to communicate to the Galatians
00:16:22 --> 00:16:23 and the false teachers
00:16:23 --> 00:16:25 and to tell them that
00:16:25 --> 00:16:28 what the false teachers have been preaching is wrong.
00:16:28 --> 00:16:31 So this is not bad exegesis.
00:16:32 --> 00:16:34 It's not bad understanding of the Bible.
00:16:34 --> 00:16:36 In fact, it's actually good communication.
00:16:37 --> 00:16:38 Paul is using things that are close
00:16:38 --> 00:16:40 to the Jewish people's hearts
00:16:40 --> 00:16:42 and turning it on them
00:16:42 --> 00:16:43 to make them understand the gospel.
00:16:45 --> 00:16:48 So having a look at what it means
00:16:48 --> 00:16:51 for the meaning of the allegory,
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 let's have a look at what it means for the Galatians.
00:16:54 --> 00:16:57 Paul returns to plain language
00:16:57 --> 00:16:59 in verses 29 to 31.
00:17:00 --> 00:17:01 He's not using the allegory anymore
00:17:01 --> 00:17:05 and he just tells the Galatians plainly what to do.
00:17:06 --> 00:17:07 Paul tells the Galatians
00:17:07 --> 00:17:09 to get rid of the false teachers
00:17:09 --> 00:17:12 and to get rid of the false teachings
00:17:12 --> 00:17:14 that they have been bringing to the Galatians.
00:17:16 --> 00:17:19 He quotes Genesis chapter 21, verse 10,
00:17:19 --> 00:17:20 in verse 30.
00:17:20 --> 00:17:23 Get rid of the slave woman and her son,
00:17:23 --> 00:17:25 for they will never share in the inheritance
00:17:25 --> 00:17:26 with a free woman's son.
00:17:28 --> 00:17:30 We can see that Paul is very serious here.
00:17:31 --> 00:17:33 He doesn't want the Galatians
00:17:33 --> 00:17:36 to mix Judaism and Christianity together.
00:17:37 --> 00:17:40 He doesn't want them to rely on both the law and Christ.
00:17:42 --> 00:17:43 So having had a look at,
00:17:43 --> 00:17:45 had a really brief snapshot
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 of having a look at what it means for the Galatians,
00:17:48 --> 00:17:49 let's look at what it means for us.
00:17:49 --> 00:17:51 So the way that we can help us
00:17:51 --> 00:17:52 to understand what something is,
00:17:53 --> 00:17:54 is to look at the flip side
00:17:54 --> 00:17:56 and to understand what it is not.
00:17:57 --> 00:17:58 So this passage,
00:17:59 --> 00:17:59 I think one of the things
00:17:59 --> 00:18:01 that it is not telling us to do
00:18:01 --> 00:18:04 is to get rid of our culture completely.
00:18:06 --> 00:18:07 Paul is not saying that
00:18:07 --> 00:18:08 to become a Christian,
00:18:08 --> 00:18:12 you must stop being Chinese or Australian or etc.
00:18:13 --> 00:18:13 I don't know.
00:18:14 --> 00:18:15 Yeah, I should say etc.
00:18:15 --> 00:18:16 But yeah,
00:18:17 --> 00:18:18 Paul is not saying for us
00:18:18 --> 00:18:19 to abandon our culture.
00:18:21 --> 00:18:21 After all,
00:18:21 --> 00:18:22 Galatians chapter 3,
00:18:22 --> 00:18:23 verse 28,
00:18:23 --> 00:18:26 says that there's neither male or female,
00:18:27 --> 00:18:27 Jews or Greek,
00:18:28 --> 00:18:29 slaves or free.
00:18:29 --> 00:18:30 We are all one in Christ Jesus.
00:18:31 --> 00:18:33 We are not to abandon our culture
00:18:33 --> 00:18:34 when we believe in Jesus,
00:18:34 --> 00:18:36 but we are to be joined together as one body.
00:18:37 --> 00:18:39 And it's also not telling us
00:18:39 --> 00:18:40 to abandon our history.
00:18:41 --> 00:18:42 He's not saying that
00:18:42 --> 00:18:43 the old covenant is bad
00:18:43 --> 00:18:44 because it's just old
00:18:44 --> 00:18:45 and the new covenant is good
00:18:45 --> 00:18:46 because it's new.
00:18:47 --> 00:18:48 If that was true,
00:18:48 --> 00:18:49 I think our last series
00:18:49 --> 00:18:51 is not very useful.
00:18:51 --> 00:18:52 We celebrated history.
00:18:52 --> 00:18:54 We celebrated the history
00:18:54 --> 00:18:55 of the Reformation.
00:18:56 --> 00:18:57 We celebrated the gospel truth
00:18:57 --> 00:18:58 that we've been preserving
00:18:58 --> 00:18:59 for the last 500 years.
00:19:00 --> 00:19:02 What this passage is saying though
00:19:02 --> 00:19:04 is there's one encouragement
00:19:04 --> 00:19:06 and one rebuke.
00:19:07 --> 00:19:09 So the encouragement here is that
00:19:09 --> 00:19:11 just like the Galatians,
00:19:11 --> 00:19:12 we are not Jewish,
00:19:13 --> 00:19:13 I don't think.
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 We don't have a Jewish background.
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 So what that means is that
00:19:18 --> 00:19:20 just like the Galatians,
00:19:20 --> 00:19:21 if you believe in the gospel,
00:19:22 --> 00:19:25 you can be just like Sarah's children.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:27 You will belong to the heavenly Jerusalem.
00:19:28 --> 00:19:29 You'll be part of God's people
00:19:29 --> 00:19:30 with his blessing.
00:19:31 --> 00:19:33 And I want to expand this point
00:19:33 --> 00:19:34 a little bit more
00:19:34 --> 00:19:36 by telling you of the stories
00:19:36 --> 00:19:37 that I've encountered
00:19:37 --> 00:19:38 when I've been running through
00:19:38 --> 00:19:41 the Investigating Christianity course,
00:19:42 --> 00:19:43 both once there
00:19:43 --> 00:19:44 and I've been running
00:19:44 --> 00:19:46 another instance on Friday nights.
00:19:46 --> 00:19:48 There have been quite a few ESL students
00:19:48 --> 00:19:49 that have been bringing their kids
00:19:49 --> 00:19:50 to Friday youth
00:19:50 --> 00:19:51 and their parents have been hanging around
00:19:51 --> 00:19:54 and they really want to hear the gospel,
00:19:54 --> 00:19:54 which is really great.
00:19:55 --> 00:19:55 That's why I've been running
00:19:55 --> 00:19:57 the course on Friday nights
00:19:57 --> 00:19:58 in the office.
00:19:59 --> 00:20:01 And both the September course
00:20:01 --> 00:20:01 and that one,
00:20:02 --> 00:20:03 most of the people
00:20:03 --> 00:20:05 are from a Chinese background,
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 from mainland China,
00:20:06 --> 00:20:07 and they have the same question.
00:20:09 --> 00:20:09 We think,
00:20:09 --> 00:20:11 they phrase a question like this.
00:20:12 --> 00:20:12 We think that
00:20:12 --> 00:20:14 the Christian faith
00:20:14 --> 00:20:15 is a Western religion.
00:20:16 --> 00:20:17 We from China
00:20:17 --> 00:20:18 have no exposure to this.
00:20:18 --> 00:20:20 We come from an atheist background
00:20:20 --> 00:20:21 and we have our Buddhism
00:20:21 --> 00:20:22 and Taoism
00:20:22 --> 00:20:23 and Confucianism.
00:20:24 --> 00:20:25 And I think it's just
00:20:25 --> 00:20:27 you have your Christian faith
00:20:27 --> 00:20:28 for the West
00:20:28 --> 00:20:29 and we have our own faith
00:20:29 --> 00:20:29 in the East.
00:20:30 --> 00:20:31 And it's really hard for us
00:20:31 --> 00:20:32 to believe in the gospel.
00:20:32 --> 00:20:34 The encouragement
00:20:34 --> 00:20:35 from this passage
00:20:35 --> 00:20:35 is that
00:20:35 --> 00:20:36 no matter
00:20:36 --> 00:20:38 what your ethnicity
00:20:38 --> 00:20:40 or your background,
00:20:40 --> 00:20:41 the Christian faith
00:20:41 --> 00:20:42 is for you.
00:20:43 --> 00:20:43 All you have to do
00:20:43 --> 00:20:44 is to believe
00:20:44 --> 00:20:45 in what Jesus has done
00:20:45 --> 00:20:46 for you.
00:20:47 --> 00:20:48 So if you want to know more
00:20:48 --> 00:20:49 about what it means
00:20:49 --> 00:20:50 to believe in Jesus,
00:20:50 --> 00:20:51 please talk to me
00:20:51 --> 00:20:52 or put it on the
00:20:52 --> 00:20:53 communication card.
00:20:53 --> 00:20:54 I would love to talk to you
00:20:54 --> 00:20:55 more about this.
00:20:56 --> 00:20:58 And it is that simple.
00:20:58 --> 00:20:59 No matter what your background is,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:01 you can come to know Christ.
00:21:02 --> 00:21:04 With this news,
00:21:04 --> 00:21:05 there's also,
00:21:05 --> 00:21:05 on the flip side,
00:21:05 --> 00:21:07 there's a reminder
00:21:07 --> 00:21:08 and a rebuke.
00:21:08 --> 00:21:09 So one of the things
00:21:09 --> 00:21:13 that Paul reminds the Galatians
00:21:13 --> 00:21:14 to think about
00:21:14 --> 00:21:15 is to get rid of the slave woman
00:21:15 --> 00:21:17 and to get rid of
00:21:17 --> 00:21:19 the false teachings
00:21:19 --> 00:21:21 and the false teachers.
00:21:22 --> 00:21:22 And one of the things
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 that we can do is,
00:21:23 --> 00:21:24 if you look at the iceberg,
00:21:25 --> 00:21:26 which has always been there,
00:21:27 --> 00:21:29 is that it's easy for us
00:21:29 --> 00:21:31 to have Christian behaviours.
00:21:32 --> 00:21:33 We'll go to church,
00:21:33 --> 00:21:34 we'll go to Bible study,
00:21:35 --> 00:21:36 and we'll pray
00:21:36 --> 00:21:37 and read the Bible.
00:21:38 --> 00:21:40 But sometimes we have to ask us,
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 what is the worldview
00:21:41 --> 00:21:43 beneath all these things?
00:21:43 --> 00:21:44 We might even have
00:21:44 --> 00:21:45 some of the values,
00:21:45 --> 00:21:46 like core values
00:21:46 --> 00:21:47 in this church,
00:21:47 --> 00:21:48 they're on the wall,
00:21:48 --> 00:21:49 outside the church.
00:21:50 --> 00:21:51 If you're going to pass away,
00:21:51 --> 00:21:52 you'll hear about the core values.
00:21:53 --> 00:21:53 These are important
00:21:53 --> 00:21:54 to our church
00:21:54 --> 00:21:55 and important to us.
00:21:57 --> 00:21:58 But we have to actually ask us,
00:21:58 --> 00:21:59 right at the bottom,
00:21:59 --> 00:22:00 our worldview.
00:22:00 --> 00:22:02 What is real for us?
00:22:03 --> 00:22:04 Because the great danger
00:22:04 --> 00:22:05 is for us
00:22:05 --> 00:22:05 to mix
00:22:05 --> 00:22:07 our Christian faith
00:22:07 --> 00:22:08 with something
00:22:08 --> 00:22:09 that we believe in.
00:22:10 --> 00:22:11 And I'll actually bring
00:22:11 --> 00:22:12 an illustration from,
00:22:12 --> 00:22:13 I've got one from
00:22:13 --> 00:22:14 the Chinese congregation
00:22:14 --> 00:22:15 I used in the morning.
00:22:16 --> 00:22:17 So,
00:22:18 --> 00:22:18 this is a story
00:22:18 --> 00:22:20 about a pastor,
00:22:20 --> 00:22:21 he's a Canadian Chinese,
00:22:21 --> 00:22:23 and his mum
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 who is involved
00:22:24 --> 00:22:25 in ancestor worship.
00:22:26 --> 00:22:26 And,
00:22:27 --> 00:22:28 actually this is,
00:22:28 --> 00:22:28 like,
00:22:28 --> 00:22:30 the matter of ancestor worship
00:22:30 --> 00:22:31 and paying respect
00:22:31 --> 00:22:32 to the elders
00:22:32 --> 00:22:33 is not that far
00:22:33 --> 00:22:34 from me.
00:22:35 --> 00:22:36 When I do certain ministry
00:22:36 --> 00:22:36 in China
00:22:36 --> 00:22:38 or when I have to go
00:22:38 --> 00:22:39 to funerals
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 for non-Christians
00:22:40 --> 00:22:41 in Hong Kong,
00:22:42 --> 00:22:43 we will be pressured
00:22:43 --> 00:22:44 to pay respect
00:22:44 --> 00:22:45 to our ancestors
00:22:45 --> 00:22:46 and to worship
00:22:46 --> 00:22:49 ancestors in the past.
00:22:51 --> 00:22:51 So,
00:22:51 --> 00:22:53 this particular pastor
00:22:53 --> 00:22:54 has a mum
00:22:54 --> 00:22:57 and his mum
00:22:57 --> 00:22:59 has lots of,
00:22:59 --> 00:22:59 like,
00:22:59 --> 00:23:00 Chinese idols
00:23:00 --> 00:23:01 and,
00:23:01 --> 00:23:02 like,
00:23:02 --> 00:23:03 a lot of ancestor
00:23:03 --> 00:23:04 worship places.
00:23:04 --> 00:23:04 I'm not sure
00:23:04 --> 00:23:05 whether you've seen them.
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 The little red things
00:23:07 --> 00:23:08 with the glowing lights
00:23:08 --> 00:23:09 and you put,
00:23:09 --> 00:23:09 like,
00:23:09 --> 00:23:10 rose pig
00:23:10 --> 00:23:10 and oranges
00:23:10 --> 00:23:12 and other things.
00:23:14 --> 00:23:14 And,
00:23:15 --> 00:23:17 she became a Christian
00:23:17 --> 00:23:18 but she didn't want
00:23:18 --> 00:23:19 to get rid of her,
00:23:19 --> 00:23:20 all her idols
00:23:20 --> 00:23:21 and all these
00:23:21 --> 00:23:22 worship places.
00:23:23 --> 00:23:23 And,
00:23:24 --> 00:23:25 she told her son
00:23:25 --> 00:23:25 this story.
00:23:26 --> 00:23:27 Imagine,
00:23:27 --> 00:23:28 if you've known
00:23:28 --> 00:23:29 your old friend
00:23:29 --> 00:23:30 for a long time
00:23:30 --> 00:23:32 and you've met
00:23:32 --> 00:23:32 a new friend
00:23:32 --> 00:23:33 who is better.
00:23:34 --> 00:23:35 Jesus is this
00:23:35 --> 00:23:35 better friend
00:23:35 --> 00:23:37 and,
00:23:37 --> 00:23:38 it would be really
00:23:38 --> 00:23:39 disloyal of you
00:23:39 --> 00:23:40 just to abandon
00:23:40 --> 00:23:41 all your old friends
00:23:41 --> 00:23:43 just because
00:23:43 --> 00:23:43 you've got a
00:23:43 --> 00:23:44 better friend.
00:23:45 --> 00:23:45 the best way
00:23:45 --> 00:23:46 to do it
00:23:46 --> 00:23:46 is to,
00:23:47 --> 00:23:47 why don't you
00:23:47 --> 00:23:49 just spend time
00:23:49 --> 00:23:50 with your old friends
00:23:50 --> 00:23:50 and spend time
00:23:50 --> 00:23:51 with your new friends
00:23:51 --> 00:23:51 and they'll be
00:23:51 --> 00:23:52 all fine.
00:23:53 --> 00:23:54 And,
00:23:54 --> 00:23:55 that's the way
00:23:55 --> 00:23:55 she thought about
00:23:55 --> 00:23:56 Christianity.
00:23:57 --> 00:23:57 And,
00:23:58 --> 00:23:59 although we won't
00:23:59 --> 00:23:59 laugh at this,
00:24:00 --> 00:24:01 we actually need
00:24:01 --> 00:24:01 to ask ourselves,
00:24:02 --> 00:24:03 is Christ
00:24:03 --> 00:24:04 just a little bit
00:24:04 --> 00:24:04 better
00:24:04 --> 00:24:06 on what you rely on?
00:24:07 --> 00:24:07 Or,
00:24:07 --> 00:24:08 is Christ
00:24:08 --> 00:24:09 at the centre
00:24:09 --> 00:24:10 of your world view?
00:24:11 --> 00:24:12 If Christ
00:24:12 --> 00:24:13 is at the centre,
00:24:13 --> 00:24:14 it will affect
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 everything else
00:24:15 --> 00:24:16 that you will do.
00:24:17 --> 00:24:18 The values
00:24:18 --> 00:24:18 that we have
00:24:18 --> 00:24:19 outside at the church,
00:24:19 --> 00:24:20 it won't be
00:24:20 --> 00:24:21 just
00:24:21 --> 00:24:23 something you put on,
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 it's not something
00:24:24 --> 00:24:25 that we are asked
00:24:25 --> 00:24:25 to do,
00:24:26 --> 00:24:26 it will be flowing
00:24:26 --> 00:24:27 out of your heart.
00:24:28 --> 00:24:29 If Christ
00:24:29 --> 00:24:29 is at the centre
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 of your world view,
00:24:30 --> 00:24:31 what is said
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 in Galatians chapter 2
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 will be true.
00:24:33 --> 00:24:34 It is not
00:24:34 --> 00:24:35 I that live
00:24:35 --> 00:24:36 but Christ
00:24:36 --> 00:24:36 that lives in me.
00:24:38 --> 00:24:39 If it is true,
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 our behaviours
00:24:40 --> 00:24:41 isn't just something
00:24:41 --> 00:24:41 that we do
00:24:41 --> 00:24:42 on Sundays.
00:24:43 --> 00:24:43 We wouldn't just
00:24:43 --> 00:24:44 come to church
00:24:44 --> 00:24:46 and at the first second
00:24:46 --> 00:24:46 we will just
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 dash out the door.
00:24:48 --> 00:24:48 I remember
00:24:48 --> 00:24:49 there was a
00:24:49 --> 00:24:49 traditional church
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 I went to
00:24:50 --> 00:24:52 about 20 years ago.
00:24:53 --> 00:24:53 The pastor
00:24:53 --> 00:24:54 is just standing
00:24:54 --> 00:24:54 at the door
00:24:54 --> 00:24:55 greeting people.
00:24:55 --> 00:24:56 He's expecting
00:24:56 --> 00:24:56 people to leave.
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 People are
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 wanting to get
00:24:59 --> 00:24:59 out of the church
00:24:59 --> 00:25:00 and spending
00:25:00 --> 00:25:01 time to do
00:25:01 --> 00:25:02 their own things.
00:25:02 --> 00:25:04 But if we are
00:25:04 --> 00:25:04 keen for the gospel,
00:25:05 --> 00:25:05 we would want
00:25:05 --> 00:25:06 to encourage
00:25:06 --> 00:25:07 our brothers and sisters.
00:25:08 --> 00:25:08 We would want
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 to tell people
00:25:09 --> 00:25:10 within church
00:25:10 --> 00:25:10 that doesn't
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 know the gospel yet
00:25:11 --> 00:25:12 how they can
00:25:12 --> 00:25:13 encounter Jesus.
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 So I actually
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 want to ask us,
00:25:17 --> 00:25:18 is there anything
00:25:18 --> 00:25:18 that you are
00:25:18 --> 00:25:19 placing along
00:25:19 --> 00:25:21 with Christ
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 right at the
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 bottom of the
00:25:22 --> 00:25:22 iceberg
00:25:22 --> 00:25:24 that is real
00:25:24 --> 00:25:24 for you?
00:25:25 --> 00:25:25 It's not,
00:25:26 --> 00:25:26 you're just thinking
00:25:26 --> 00:25:27 that Christ
00:25:27 --> 00:25:27 is a little bit
00:25:27 --> 00:25:28 better than
00:25:28 --> 00:25:28 what you have
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 here.
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 If there is,
00:25:31 --> 00:25:31 Paul would
00:25:31 --> 00:25:32 probably ask you
00:25:32 --> 00:25:33 to do the same
00:25:33 --> 00:25:33 thing.
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 Get rid of
00:25:34 --> 00:25:34 these things.
00:25:34 --> 00:25:35 Get rid of
00:25:35 --> 00:25:35 these things
00:25:35 --> 00:25:36 so that you
00:25:36 --> 00:25:36 can hold
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 on to Christ.
00:25:38 --> 00:25:38 Believe in
00:25:38 --> 00:25:38 Christ,
00:25:38 --> 00:25:39 hold on to
00:25:39 --> 00:25:39 Christ so
00:25:39 --> 00:25:40 that the
00:25:40 --> 00:25:41 things that
00:25:41 --> 00:25:41 we value,
00:25:41 --> 00:25:41 the things
00:25:41 --> 00:25:42 that we
00:25:42 --> 00:25:42 believe,
00:25:42 --> 00:25:43 the things
00:25:43 --> 00:25:43 that we
00:25:43 --> 00:25:44 do is
00:25:44 --> 00:25:44 actually
00:25:44 --> 00:25:46 flowing from
00:25:46 --> 00:25:46 what you
00:25:46 --> 00:25:47 hold dear
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 in your
00:25:47 --> 00:25:47 heart.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:48 And I hope
00:25:48 --> 00:25:49 that God
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 can help
00:25:49 --> 00:25:49 us to do
00:25:49 --> 00:25:50 that.