The Law & The Gospel Life
Series: NO OTHER GOSPEL
Speaker: Steve Jeffrey
Date: 17th September 2017
00:00:00 --> 00:00:08 We're in Galatians 3. When Sam first launched us in Galatians, he told us about evangelism
00:00:08 --> 00:00:17 explosion and the two diagnostic questions in this training course. And last week, Deb
00:00:17 --> 00:00:23 mentioned the same questions, and so I felt like I didn't want to be left out, and so
00:00:23 --> 00:00:31 I should mention them too. The first question is, imagine you were to die now. Would you
00:00:31 --> 00:00:36 be certain that you would go to heaven? And so what that question does is it raises the
00:00:36 --> 00:00:43 issue of whether or not we are assured of our salvation and our eternal future. The second
00:00:43 --> 00:00:50 question is, imagine you were to die and ended up in front of God, and he was asked you, why
00:00:50 --> 00:00:58 should I let you into heaven? What would you say? And that question highlights the source
00:00:58 --> 00:01:04 of our assurance, or lack of it. What is the, where are we putting our hopes in? Where are
00:01:04 --> 00:01:10 we pinning our hopes on? And so like Deb and like Sam, I was trained in this course many,
00:01:10 --> 00:01:14 many years ago, and I remember an opportunity to use those questions in the very early days
00:01:14 --> 00:01:20 of me doing the training. It was one night, and it was about 20-odd years ago. It was the
00:01:20 --> 00:01:26 end of a Carols by Candlelight event, and I got into a lengthy discussion with this guy
00:01:26 --> 00:01:31 that I knew from high school. It was a lengthy discussion about the gospel of the Christian
00:01:31 --> 00:01:42 faith, and let's say this particular guy, academics wasn't his strongest point, and relational, he
00:01:42 --> 00:01:49 had relational challenges. In fact, he didn't have a lot of strong points, and I used the
00:01:49 --> 00:01:55 questions on him in this evening, and he didn't understand the point of the questions at all,
00:01:56 --> 00:02:02 or even how they related to the discussion we were having. Couldn't make the connection
00:02:02 --> 00:02:09 at all. Anyway, about a week later, I'm lining up in the supermarket, you know, to buy groceries,
00:02:09 --> 00:02:15 that's what you do there, and this is a small country town, right? And over from the other
00:02:15 --> 00:02:22 side of the supermarket, I hear this person call out, hey, Fox. Now, that was a nickname
00:02:22 --> 00:02:29 for me at school, Fox. I had red hair, and, you know, it's a country thing, and it was just
00:02:29 --> 00:02:35 a whole lot better than Bunsen burner, which is what I initially had. But this guy yells out,
00:02:35 --> 00:02:45 hey, Fox, I need your help to get to heaven. And it's like, you know, everyone in the supermarket
00:02:45 --> 00:02:51 hears it, and everyone now is looking around, who best suits the description of Fox in this
00:02:51 --> 00:02:59 room, you know? And he came over to me, and, you know, you're kind of wanting to have a quiet
00:02:59 --> 00:03:05 conversation at this point, but it's fairly loud. And he said to me, those two questions
00:03:05 --> 00:03:11 that you asked me the other night, what were your answers? I need to know your answers.
00:03:12 --> 00:03:18 And so I repeated the questions and repeated the answers. Then he said, can I have your shopping
00:03:18 --> 00:03:23 list? Okay, so I gave him a shopping list. And have you got a pen? Yeah, I've got a pen.
00:03:23 --> 00:03:32 He said, now, just say it again slowly so I can write it down. Okay, you know, so I'm
00:03:32 --> 00:03:35 writing it down. I'm just kind of wondering where this is going to go. At the end of it,
00:03:36 --> 00:03:40 hands my pen back and starts to walk away, and I kind of grave, I've got to know, you know,
00:03:40 --> 00:03:44 what are you doing? He's folding it up, puts it in his pocket, and he said, this is brilliant.
00:03:45 --> 00:03:51 He said, like you say, if I was to die right now, I've got the answers about how to get into
00:03:51 --> 00:03:57 question, into heaven. He said, this is brilliant. He said, I could die right now and be guaranteed
00:03:57 --> 00:04:01 to go into heaven. He said, I'm going to keep these answers with me always. He said, this
00:04:01 --> 00:04:11 is so easy. I'm like, oh, forget it. I didn't know what to do at that moment. He totally, totally
00:04:11 --> 00:04:19 missed the point of the questions. And yet, he did have a point. Is it really that easy?
00:04:19 --> 00:04:25 You see, whenever you hear the radical claims of the Christian gospel of salvation by grace,
00:04:26 --> 00:04:35 we should be prompted in some way to think the same. Is it that easy? That easy to be saved?
00:04:37 --> 00:04:43 You know, where does effort, obedience, work, where does that fit in with all this?
00:04:43 --> 00:04:51 Or to put it bluntly, if I'm always saved only by Christ's performance and not my own,
00:04:52 --> 00:04:59 why would I even bother living a holy life? Who cares about that? Just go on living as I am and just,
00:04:59 --> 00:05:05 you know, have salvation attached in some way. See, I think there's no more practical question than
00:05:05 --> 00:05:11 that of the relationship between the Christian and the law of God and the commands of God.
00:05:11 --> 00:05:17 All of our questions about how to live the Christian life, marriage relationship, sexual ethics,
00:05:18 --> 00:05:22 use of money, retirement, church attendance, raising kids, and the plethora of other things
00:05:22 --> 00:05:29 that we deal with are all linked to that central, central question. What is the relationship
00:05:29 --> 00:05:37 between the gospel, the Christian gospel, and the law of God?
00:05:37 --> 00:05:42 Now, let me just do a little bit of announcement over here. This is a very short book, which is
00:05:42 --> 00:05:50 attractive to most people. Is forgiveness really free? It's written by Michael Jensen. It's cheap,
00:05:50 --> 00:05:56 it's accessible, easy to read, short chapters, big words. So there shouldn't be anyone who wouldn't
00:05:56 --> 00:06:01 want to read that. That's a really helpful little book if you want to delve into it a little bit deep
00:06:01 --> 00:06:04 and a bit longer than what I'm going to deal with it tonight. Is forgiveness really free?
00:06:05 --> 00:06:10 So let's get back to this text. This is the question which is before us. Is forgiveness
00:06:10 --> 00:06:16 really free? What's the relationship between the Christian and the law of God? Now, the first thing
00:06:16 --> 00:06:26 Paul does in Galatians 3 here is he outlines again for us what the law does not do. And Paul's been
00:06:26 --> 00:06:30 working on this right throughout Galatians. He's already established that we are saved,
00:06:30 --> 00:06:37 we are justified, we are redeemed only by faith in Jesus Christ, not through any righteousness of
00:06:37 --> 00:06:42 our own, not through any effort on our behalf. And he pushes the point again. Let's have a look at
00:06:42 --> 00:06:48 verses 15 to 18. Brothers and sisters, let me take an example from everyday life. Just as no one can
00:06:48 --> 00:06:54 set aside or add to a human covenant that has been duly established, so it is in this case. The promises
00:06:54 --> 00:07:02 were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. Scripture does not say, and to seeds, meaning many people,
00:07:02 --> 00:07:09 but to your seed, meaning one person who is Christ. What I mean is this, the law introduced 430 years
00:07:09 --> 00:07:16 later does not set aside the covenant previously established by God and thus do away with the
00:07:16 --> 00:07:23 promise. For if the inheritance depends on the law, then it no longer depends on the promise.
00:07:23 --> 00:07:32 But God, in his grace, gave it to Abraham through a promise. So he says, let me just try and help you
00:07:32 --> 00:07:39 understand this from an everyday example, everyday life. The example he uses is human contracts and the
00:07:39 --> 00:07:45 way that they are binding, the way that they are difficult, if not impossible to avoid. He says,
00:07:45 --> 00:07:51 no one can set aside or add to a human covenant that is being duly established. And the word he uses
00:07:51 --> 00:08:02 there for covenant is the word that is the term for a legal will, you know, like parents in terms of
00:08:02 --> 00:08:09 writing wills for kids and everything else. You see, once a will is made, it is normally considered
00:08:09 --> 00:08:16 binding no matter what circumstances happen, no matter changes in circumstances. The only person
00:08:16 --> 00:08:24 who can overturn a will is the person who wrote the will in the first place. And so it is with the
00:08:24 --> 00:08:32 promises of God. So let me try and capture this for us. Imagine there's a woman, she's got two daughters,
00:08:32 --> 00:08:38 one is extremely wealthy, one is extremely wealthy, and one is really poor. And so she decides in her
00:08:38 --> 00:08:45 will to leave the really poor daughter, the bulk of her estate, and the really rich daughter,
00:08:46 --> 00:08:53 the cat and the dog, you know, and a bit of furniture or something like that. She's trying to help the
00:08:53 --> 00:09:01 poor daughter without recognizing the rich one doesn't need it so much. And that will is legally binding
00:09:01 --> 00:09:14 legally binding, even if circumstances change. So imagine the day after that woman dies,
00:09:15 --> 00:09:23 the really wealthy daughter loses her entire wealth. The will still stands. New circumstances
00:09:23 --> 00:09:27 don't change the will. It's still legally binding. And that's what Paul's saying here.
00:09:27 --> 00:09:37 Paul knows that some might see that the law was introduced by Moses 450 years after God's promise of
00:09:37 --> 00:09:45 salvation to Abraham and conclude, well, this changes everything. New circumstances. If we are to get the
00:09:45 --> 00:09:54 blessing of Abraham, we now have to obey the law of Moses. And Paul shows us here that's a false
00:09:54 --> 00:10:04 conclusion. He does it in verse 17. The law cannot turn God's promise to Abraham into anything else but
00:10:04 --> 00:10:15 what it is, and that's a promise. It's a powerful argument. If the law of Moses came as a way of salvation,
00:10:15 --> 00:10:23 it means that God ultimately has changed his mind about us needing a savior, and that he would now
00:10:23 --> 00:10:33 give us his blessing on the base of performance and not promise. And if the Old Testament law functioned in that way,
00:10:34 --> 00:10:44 notice what verse 17 says, it does away with the promise. And the basic idea is that the very concepts of promise
00:10:44 --> 00:10:55 promise and law are mutually exclusive. You don't add law to a promise to make it a better promise. You at that point
00:10:55 --> 00:11:05 negate it. You nullify it as a promise once you add law to it. They're two different ideas. Just indulge me for a moment here.
00:11:05 --> 00:11:15 For a promise to bring a result, all it needs to be is believed. But for a law to bring a result,
00:11:16 --> 00:11:25 it has to be obeyed. So imagine, for example, I say to you, I've got $20 behind this pillar right here,
00:11:25 --> 00:11:31 and I'm willing to give it to you. And I'm willing to give it to you. And the only way that you will fail
00:11:31 --> 00:11:37 to receive that $20 is by failing to believe the claim, failing to believe the promise.
00:11:38 --> 00:11:46 Yes, it does. That's the only way that you would fail to receive it. But imagine I say to you,
00:11:46 --> 00:11:58 I've got $20 behind this pillar, and I will give it to you, providing you massage my feet and cut my toenails.
00:12:01 --> 00:12:08 You would need to fulfill the requirement in order to receive the $20. You've got to obey the
00:12:08 --> 00:12:12 requirement in order to receive $20. And at that point, you've got to go through cost-benefit analysis
00:12:12 --> 00:12:20 and go, my goodness, I'm not doing that for $20. You know, no way. You see, a gift promise
00:12:20 --> 00:12:27 needs only to be believed. You just need to believe it in order to receive it. But a law wage
00:12:27 --> 00:12:31 must be obeyed in order to receive it. They're two very different concepts.
00:12:33 --> 00:12:41 And if the law of Moses was intended to be a means of salvation, then the promise to Abraham
00:12:41 --> 00:12:47 is not a promise. It's nullified. It's removed. It's gone.
00:12:49 --> 00:12:53 But this promise, as Paul says in verse 15,
00:12:53 --> 00:12:57 is sealed with a covenant. It's sealed with a legal deal.
00:12:59 --> 00:13:02 Just as no one can set aside or add to a human covenant
00:13:02 --> 00:13:07 that has been duly established, so it is in this case.
00:13:07 --> 00:13:12 And what Paul's referring to here is he's taking us back to Genesis 15.
00:13:13 --> 00:13:19 Back there in Genesis 15, in verse 8, Abraham says to God,
00:13:20 --> 00:13:26 how can I be sure that you are going to fulfill this promise of blessing to me?
00:13:26 --> 00:13:27 How can I be sure of that?
00:13:29 --> 00:13:30 What does God tell him to do?
00:13:30 --> 00:13:31 You see how you can be sure?
00:13:31 --> 00:13:37 Verse 9, bring me a heifer, a goat, a ram, each three years old,
00:13:37 --> 00:13:39 along with a dove and a young pigeon.
00:13:40 --> 00:13:45 Notice, God doesn't give Abraham any more instructions
00:13:45 --> 00:13:46 than to go and get these animals.
00:13:48 --> 00:13:53 Verse 10, Abraham gets them and it says,
00:13:53 --> 00:14:08 In other words, Abraham knew exactly what he needed to do
00:14:08 --> 00:14:12 when he grabbed these animals and birds.
00:14:13 --> 00:14:15 And now this is really strange for us what's going on here,
00:14:15 --> 00:14:18 but in Abraham's day, this is how a covenant,
00:14:19 --> 00:14:22 this is how a legal agreement was signed.
00:14:23 --> 00:14:27 It's fairly grueling, but this is how they did it.
00:14:28 --> 00:14:31 That's why God didn't need to give Abraham any more instructions
00:14:31 --> 00:14:33 because he knew exactly what's required here.
00:14:34 --> 00:14:36 They would get the animals, they would cut them in half,
00:14:36 --> 00:14:39 they would lay them on either half on either side.
00:14:39 --> 00:14:40 You'd kind of find a walkway in between
00:14:40 --> 00:14:44 and everyone who's making this agreement,
00:14:44 --> 00:14:47 everyone who is signing this legal deal
00:14:47 --> 00:14:52 would walk between the two halves of the carcasses
00:14:52 --> 00:14:55 and as they walk between it,
00:14:55 --> 00:14:57 they are saying as a covenant maker,
00:14:58 --> 00:15:00 if I break this agreement,
00:15:00 --> 00:15:03 may I turn out like these carcasses.
00:15:04 --> 00:15:07 May I die and be cut in two like these carcasses
00:15:07 --> 00:15:09 if I break this agreement.
00:15:09 --> 00:15:12 You seal it with your life is what you do.
00:15:15 --> 00:15:18 And what's astonishing here in this covenant
00:15:18 --> 00:15:21 between God and Abraham
00:15:21 --> 00:15:24 is that Abraham never walks between the halves.
00:15:26 --> 00:15:29 Abraham, it says, falls into a deep sleep
00:15:29 --> 00:15:31 and the only thing that passes through, verse 17,
00:15:31 --> 00:15:35 is a smoking fire pot with a blazing torch appeared
00:15:35 --> 00:15:37 and passed between the pieces.
00:15:37 --> 00:15:39 But we are told in verse 18,
00:15:39 --> 00:15:42 on that day, the Lord made a covenant with Abraham.
00:15:44 --> 00:15:46 The promise to bless Abraham
00:15:46 --> 00:15:51 is not reliant upon Abraham.
00:15:53 --> 00:15:57 It's got nothing to do with his obedience at all.
00:15:57 --> 00:16:02 And what God was saying in this moment in Genesis 15,
00:16:02 --> 00:16:07 I would die before I break my promise
00:16:07 --> 00:16:08 to bless Abraham and his descendants
00:16:08 --> 00:16:14 and through him and through one particular descendant,
00:16:14 --> 00:16:18 his seed to offer blessing to the whole world.
00:16:18 --> 00:16:20 I will die before I break that covenant promise.
00:16:20 --> 00:16:25 And in the end, this seed did die on a cross
00:16:25 --> 00:16:29 as the man Jesus Christ in order to fulfill
00:16:29 --> 00:16:34 the promise of blessing to all who trust in God
00:16:34 --> 00:16:35 as Abraham did.
00:16:36 --> 00:16:41 That's what it took for the promise to be fulfilled.
00:16:41 --> 00:16:46 So Paul is just simply pointing out here to the Galatians
00:16:46 --> 00:16:51 the impossibility of God adding obedience demands
00:16:51 --> 00:16:54 to his covenant promise.
00:16:54 --> 00:16:57 God had guaranteed that he would keep his promise.
00:16:59 --> 00:17:02 And so the first thing that Paul's doing here
00:17:02 --> 00:17:04 is he's just reminding us,
00:17:04 --> 00:17:09 we need to be really clear about the purpose of the law,
00:17:09 --> 00:17:10 what it does.
00:17:11 --> 00:17:13 Otherwise, and for us, it's really crucial for this,
00:17:13 --> 00:17:14 for the Galatians and for us,
00:17:14 --> 00:17:16 we get the whole Christian life totally wrong.
00:17:17 --> 00:17:19 Totally wrong if we're not clear on this.
00:17:19 --> 00:17:21 Everything God created has a purpose
00:17:21 --> 00:17:23 and as such is a good thing.
00:17:23 --> 00:17:26 And as you know, even good things can become bad things
00:17:26 --> 00:17:29 when we use them for something that they're not intended.
00:17:30 --> 00:17:33 I love Charles Spurgeon, the 19th century preacher.
00:17:34 --> 00:17:37 He had a really unique way of capturing this
00:17:37 --> 00:17:39 as he does with most things.
00:17:40 --> 00:17:41 He liked to say,
00:17:41 --> 00:17:43 a hand saw is a good thing,
00:17:43 --> 00:17:45 but not to shave with.
00:17:45 --> 00:17:47 A hand saw is good for cutting wood,
00:17:47 --> 00:17:48 but not facial hair.
00:17:49 --> 00:17:51 If you put your hand saw to that sort of use,
00:17:51 --> 00:17:53 you'll wind up losing more than hair.
00:17:53 --> 00:17:56 A good thing is not good when it's out of place.
00:17:56 --> 00:17:59 And if we turn to the law as a means of salvation,
00:17:59 --> 00:18:01 it's out of place, it's not a good thing.
00:18:01 --> 00:18:02 And you lose everything.
00:18:02 --> 00:18:08 If the law does not save,
00:18:08 --> 00:18:10 then it must have a different purpose.
00:18:10 --> 00:18:14 And let's see now what this law does.
00:18:14 --> 00:18:19 At last, verse 19, Paul tells us what the point of the law is.
00:18:19 --> 00:18:20 What then was the purpose of the law?
00:18:21 --> 00:18:24 It was added because of transgression until the seed
00:18:24 --> 00:18:27 to whom the promise referred had come.
00:18:27 --> 00:18:32 So the law didn't come to tell us about salvation,
00:18:32 --> 00:18:36 but about sin.
00:18:38 --> 00:18:39 That's the purpose of the law,
00:18:39 --> 00:18:41 to tell us about sin.
00:18:42 --> 00:18:45 Its main purpose is to show us our problem,
00:18:46 --> 00:18:48 not to solve our problem.
00:18:48 --> 00:18:52 It shows us that we are law breakers
00:18:52 --> 00:18:57 and to prove to us that our obedience as law breakers
00:18:58 --> 00:19:01 could not possibly be the solution for salvation
00:19:01 --> 00:19:05 because we are not perfect law keepers.
00:19:09 --> 00:19:13 Paul picks this idea up again and again and again
00:19:13 --> 00:19:14 and again and again.
00:19:16 --> 00:19:18 Does it in verse 21?
00:19:19 --> 00:19:21 If the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God,
00:19:21 --> 00:19:23 is the law, therefore, opposed to the promises of God?
00:19:23 --> 00:19:24 Absolutely not.
00:19:25 --> 00:19:28 For if a law had been given that could impart life,
00:19:29 --> 00:19:31 then righteousness would certainly have come by the law.
00:19:32 --> 00:19:37 So God never intended for the law to impart life.
00:19:38 --> 00:19:40 In fact, verse 22 says,
00:19:40 --> 00:19:43 the scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin.
00:19:43 --> 00:19:46 In fact, the original language is even more vivid than that.
00:19:46 --> 00:19:52 It is literally scripture imprisoned all the world to sin.
00:19:55 --> 00:20:02 The law shows us that we do not just fall short of God's will,
00:20:02 --> 00:20:05 requiring just a little bit more effort on our behalf
00:20:05 --> 00:20:06 to do a little bit better,
00:20:06 --> 00:20:12 but that in fact we are completely under sin's power
00:20:12 --> 00:20:15 and that we require a rescue.
00:20:16 --> 00:20:20 The law has the power to show us that we are not righteous,
00:20:20 --> 00:20:23 but it cannot give us the power in order to be righteous.
00:20:25 --> 00:20:26 Ironically,
00:20:26 --> 00:20:31 if we think that we can be righteous by obedience to the law,
00:20:32 --> 00:20:35 we've missed the entire point of the law.
00:20:35 --> 00:20:44 The law does its work to lead us towards recognition of our need for salvation by grace.
00:20:44 --> 00:20:50 That is, the law points to the promise.
00:20:52 --> 00:20:55 The law points to the need for the promise.
00:20:56 --> 00:21:00 The law does not oppose the promise of salvation by grace through Jesus Christ,
00:21:00 --> 00:21:02 but rather it supports it.
00:21:02 --> 00:21:07 It points out to us our desperate need of salvation by grace.
00:21:07 --> 00:21:12 And Paul uses two metaphors here in the next few verses
00:21:12 --> 00:21:14 to characterize the way the law works.
00:21:15 --> 00:21:18 The first one is in verse 23.
00:21:19 --> 00:21:19 It says,
00:21:19 --> 00:21:21 The law is a guard.
00:21:22 --> 00:21:23 Before this faith came,
00:21:23 --> 00:21:26 we were held prisoners by the law,
00:21:27 --> 00:21:30 locked up until faith should be revealed.
00:21:32 --> 00:21:35 This verse carries the idea
00:21:35 --> 00:21:38 that we are being guarded by military guards.
00:21:38 --> 00:21:39 We're in prison.
00:21:39 --> 00:21:40 We're locked.
00:21:40 --> 00:21:41 We need freedom.
00:21:42 --> 00:21:42 And we can't get freedom
00:21:42 --> 00:21:48 because the law is keeping us imprisoned to our sin.
00:21:49 --> 00:21:52 And the second metaphor he uses
00:21:52 --> 00:21:54 to show us how the law points to the promise
00:21:54 --> 00:21:56 is the tutor-student relationship.
00:21:56 --> 00:21:57 Verse 24.
00:21:58 --> 00:22:01 So the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ
00:22:01 --> 00:22:03 that we might be justified by faith.
00:22:03 --> 00:22:05 Now that faith has come,
00:22:06 --> 00:22:07 we are no longer under the supervision of the law.
00:22:09 --> 00:22:11 So the law is a supervisor.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:11 It's a tutor.
00:22:11 --> 00:22:15 It's a babysitter under whose instruction we live.
00:22:15 --> 00:22:19 The law was put in charge over us to lead us to Christ.
00:22:20 --> 00:22:23 See, in the homes of Paul's day,
00:22:23 --> 00:22:24 1st century Palestine,
00:22:25 --> 00:22:27 the tutor or the guardian
00:22:27 --> 00:22:30 was usually a slave
00:22:30 --> 00:22:35 who supervised the children on the parents' behalf.
00:22:36 --> 00:22:37 And the interesting thing is
00:22:37 --> 00:22:39 when you look at both of these metaphors,
00:22:39 --> 00:22:40 the guard and the tutor,
00:22:40 --> 00:22:42 we see that what the law does
00:22:42 --> 00:22:44 is it removes our freedom.
00:22:45 --> 00:22:47 Both metaphors reveal
00:22:47 --> 00:22:48 that our relationship with the law
00:22:48 --> 00:22:50 is not an intimate one or a personal one.
00:22:50 --> 00:22:52 Both metaphors reveal
00:22:52 --> 00:22:53 that our relationship with the law
00:22:53 --> 00:22:55 is based on rewards and punishments.
00:22:56 --> 00:22:56 Both metaphors reveal
00:22:56 --> 00:22:57 that our relationship with the law
00:22:57 --> 00:23:00 means that we are treated like kids.
00:23:02 --> 00:23:04 There is, however, a difference between the two.
00:23:06 --> 00:23:07 The guard metaphor
00:23:07 --> 00:23:10 represents human effort religion.
00:23:10 --> 00:23:14 And it's characterized by bondage,
00:23:15 --> 00:23:17 an impersonal relationship with the divine,
00:23:18 --> 00:23:20 and motivated by a desire for reward
00:23:20 --> 00:23:22 and a fear of punishment.
00:23:23 --> 00:23:25 That's the guard metaphor.
00:23:26 --> 00:23:29 The tutor metaphor, on the other hand,
00:23:29 --> 00:23:31 shows us that the law's true purpose
00:23:31 --> 00:23:34 is in fact instructive.
00:23:34 --> 00:23:36 In the same way, a tutor's role
00:23:36 --> 00:23:39 is to prepare children for lives
00:23:39 --> 00:23:41 as adults,
00:23:42 --> 00:23:43 as free persons,
00:23:44 --> 00:23:45 as grown-up, matured persons.
00:23:46 --> 00:23:46 And in that sense,
00:23:46 --> 00:23:48 the law points to a life of freedom,
00:23:49 --> 00:23:49 not confinement.
00:23:50 --> 00:23:52 The law points to a personal relationship
00:23:52 --> 00:23:53 with God rather than impersonal.
00:23:53 --> 00:23:56 The law points to maturity of character
00:23:56 --> 00:23:57 rather than immaturity.
00:23:58 --> 00:24:00 That's what the law does.
00:24:00 --> 00:24:03 It points to the promise.
00:24:04 --> 00:24:05 Now, I think it's worth quoting here
00:24:06 --> 00:24:09 at some length the great John Stott.
00:24:09 --> 00:24:11 This is from his commentary in Galatians.
00:24:11 --> 00:24:14 I think it just sort of sums up
00:24:14 --> 00:24:15 this second point so well.
00:24:17 --> 00:24:19 After God gave the promise to Abraham,
00:24:19 --> 00:24:21 he gave the law to Moses.
00:24:21 --> 00:24:21 Why?
00:24:23 --> 00:24:24 He had to make things worse
00:24:24 --> 00:24:26 before he could make them better.
00:24:26 --> 00:24:29 The law exposed sin.
00:24:29 --> 00:24:30 It provokes sin.
00:24:31 --> 00:24:32 It condemns sin.
00:24:32 --> 00:24:33 And the purpose of the law
00:24:33 --> 00:24:35 was to lift the lid
00:24:35 --> 00:24:39 of humanity's respectability
00:24:39 --> 00:24:40 and disclose
00:24:40 --> 00:24:43 what they really are underneath.
00:24:44 --> 00:24:46 Sinful, rebellious,
00:24:46 --> 00:24:47 guilty,
00:24:47 --> 00:24:48 under the judgment of God,
00:24:49 --> 00:24:50 and helpless to save themselves.
00:24:51 --> 00:24:53 And the law must be allowed
00:24:53 --> 00:24:55 to do its God-given duty today.
00:24:56 --> 00:24:57 One of the great faults
00:24:57 --> 00:24:58 of the contemporary church
00:24:58 --> 00:24:59 is the tendency
00:24:59 --> 00:25:01 to soft-pedal sin and judgment.
00:25:01 --> 00:25:04 We must never bypass the law
00:25:04 --> 00:25:05 and come straight to the gospel.
00:25:06 --> 00:25:08 To do so is to contradict
00:25:08 --> 00:25:09 the plan of God
00:25:09 --> 00:25:09 in biblical history.
00:25:10 --> 00:25:11 No person has ever
00:25:11 --> 00:25:13 appreciated the gospel
00:25:13 --> 00:25:14 until the law
00:25:14 --> 00:25:15 has first revealed
00:25:15 --> 00:25:16 to them
00:25:16 --> 00:25:18 themselves.
00:25:18 --> 00:25:21 It is only against
00:25:21 --> 00:25:22 the inky blackness
00:25:22 --> 00:25:23 of the night sky
00:25:23 --> 00:25:24 that the stars
00:25:24 --> 00:25:25 begin to appear.
00:25:25 --> 00:25:26 It is only against
00:25:26 --> 00:25:28 the dark background
00:25:28 --> 00:25:29 of sin and judgment
00:25:29 --> 00:25:30 that the gospel
00:25:30 --> 00:25:32 shines forth.
00:25:33 --> 00:25:34 That's what the gospel does.
00:25:36 --> 00:25:37 It locks us up
00:25:37 --> 00:25:40 until the gospel reveals
00:25:40 --> 00:25:44 justification by faith
00:25:44 --> 00:25:45 in the Lord Jesus
00:25:45 --> 00:25:47 for salvation.
00:25:48 --> 00:25:51 not until the law
00:25:51 --> 00:25:52 has bruised us
00:25:52 --> 00:25:53 and broken us
00:25:53 --> 00:25:55 will we admit
00:25:55 --> 00:25:56 our need for the gospel
00:25:56 --> 00:25:57 in order to heal our wounds.
00:25:58 --> 00:26:00 Not until the law
00:26:00 --> 00:26:00 has arrested
00:26:00 --> 00:26:01 and imprisoned us
00:26:01 --> 00:26:02 will we long
00:26:02 --> 00:26:03 for Christ
00:26:03 --> 00:26:04 to set us free.
00:26:05 --> 00:26:06 Not until the law
00:26:06 --> 00:26:07 has condemned us
00:26:07 --> 00:26:07 and killed us
00:26:07 --> 00:26:09 we will call out to Christ
00:26:09 --> 00:26:10 for justification
00:26:10 --> 00:26:11 and life.
00:26:11 --> 00:26:12 Not until the law
00:26:12 --> 00:26:13 has driven us
00:26:13 --> 00:26:15 to despair
00:26:15 --> 00:26:16 of ourselves
00:26:16 --> 00:26:17 and our effort
00:26:17 --> 00:26:20 will we ever believe
00:26:20 --> 00:26:23 in the grace
00:26:23 --> 00:26:24 of the Lord Jesus Christ.
00:26:25 --> 00:26:26 Not until the law
00:26:26 --> 00:26:27 has humbled us
00:26:27 --> 00:26:28 even to hell
00:26:28 --> 00:26:29 will we turn
00:26:29 --> 00:26:30 to the gospel
00:26:30 --> 00:26:31 to raise us to heaven.
00:26:32 --> 00:26:34 That's how
00:26:34 --> 00:26:35 the law
00:26:35 --> 00:26:36 and the promise
00:26:36 --> 00:26:36 work together.
00:26:38 --> 00:26:38 So,
00:26:39 --> 00:26:39 verse 25
00:26:39 --> 00:26:41 how the law
00:26:41 --> 00:26:41 and the gospel
00:26:41 --> 00:26:42 life
00:26:42 --> 00:26:43 how this works
00:26:43 --> 00:26:44 together for us.
00:26:45 --> 00:26:45 Verse 25
00:26:45 --> 00:26:47 says that once faith
00:26:47 --> 00:26:47 comes
00:26:47 --> 00:26:49 we are no longer
00:26:49 --> 00:26:50 under the supervision
00:26:50 --> 00:26:51 of the law.
00:26:52 --> 00:26:53 Our effort
00:26:53 --> 00:26:54 to gain
00:26:54 --> 00:26:55 God's approval
00:26:55 --> 00:26:57 by obedience
00:26:57 --> 00:26:58 to the law
00:26:58 --> 00:27:00 shows us
00:27:00 --> 00:27:01 that we need
00:27:01 --> 00:27:01 to go
00:27:01 --> 00:27:02 beyond the law
00:27:02 --> 00:27:04 to find that approval.
00:27:04 --> 00:27:06 and when we see
00:27:06 --> 00:27:06 that
00:27:06 --> 00:27:08 and we allow
00:27:08 --> 00:27:08 Christ
00:27:08 --> 00:27:09 to be our saviour
00:27:09 --> 00:27:11 we learn
00:27:11 --> 00:27:12 the lesson
00:27:12 --> 00:27:12 that the law
00:27:12 --> 00:27:13 sought to teach us
00:27:13 --> 00:27:14 as our tutor.
00:27:16 --> 00:27:16 Okay?
00:27:17 --> 00:27:18 So what now
00:27:18 --> 00:27:19 for the Christian?
00:27:20 --> 00:27:21 Does this mean
00:27:21 --> 00:27:22 we now forget
00:27:22 --> 00:27:22 about the law?
00:27:23 --> 00:27:24 Don't need any more?
00:27:25 --> 00:27:25 Don't need these commands
00:27:25 --> 00:27:26 from Jesus
00:27:26 --> 00:27:26 and
00:27:26 --> 00:27:28 don't need that
00:27:28 --> 00:27:29 anymore?
00:27:29 --> 00:27:30 Don't need standards
00:27:30 --> 00:27:31 values?
00:27:31 --> 00:27:33 Paul would say
00:27:33 --> 00:27:35 don't be ridiculous.
00:27:39 --> 00:27:40 Don't be ridiculous
00:27:40 --> 00:27:41 because you don't
00:27:41 --> 00:27:41 forget the law.
00:27:43 --> 00:27:44 Let me just draw out
00:27:44 --> 00:27:44 just for a little bit
00:27:44 --> 00:27:45 the analogy
00:27:45 --> 00:27:46 of the
00:27:46 --> 00:27:48 tutor over the child
00:27:48 --> 00:27:48 or maybe
00:27:48 --> 00:27:49 you know
00:27:49 --> 00:27:50 parent-child relationship
00:27:50 --> 00:27:51 might be better for us.
00:27:53 --> 00:27:54 I don't do this
00:27:54 --> 00:27:55 so I can't imagine
00:27:55 --> 00:27:55 any parent
00:27:55 --> 00:27:57 designs their
00:27:57 --> 00:27:58 child rearing.
00:27:59 --> 00:27:59 I don't think
00:27:59 --> 00:28:00 I can't imagine
00:28:00 --> 00:28:00 any parent
00:28:00 --> 00:28:02 that designs
00:28:02 --> 00:28:03 their child rearing
00:28:03 --> 00:28:04 in such a way
00:28:04 --> 00:28:05 that when that child
00:28:05 --> 00:28:07 grows to maturity
00:28:07 --> 00:28:09 that they cast off
00:28:09 --> 00:28:11 all of their values
00:28:11 --> 00:28:12 that have been instilled
00:28:12 --> 00:28:12 in them
00:28:12 --> 00:28:14 and live
00:28:14 --> 00:28:15 a totally different life.
00:28:15 --> 00:28:15 I can't imagine
00:28:15 --> 00:28:17 there's a single parent
00:28:17 --> 00:28:18 who thinks
00:28:18 --> 00:28:18 that that is
00:28:18 --> 00:28:19 ultimately the goal
00:28:19 --> 00:28:20 of child rearing.
00:28:20 --> 00:28:27 that is
00:28:27 --> 00:28:27 I'm assuming
00:28:27 --> 00:28:29 that every parent
00:28:29 --> 00:28:30 when they're instilling
00:28:30 --> 00:28:31 values in their children
00:28:31 --> 00:28:32 they're instilling values
00:28:32 --> 00:28:33 that they think
00:28:33 --> 00:28:34 that their child
00:28:34 --> 00:28:35 needs in order
00:28:35 --> 00:28:35 to flourish
00:28:35 --> 00:28:36 in all of life
00:28:36 --> 00:28:37 not just while
00:28:37 --> 00:28:37 they're a child.
00:28:38 --> 00:28:39 Is that correct?
00:28:39 --> 00:28:40 Am I stupid here?
00:28:41 --> 00:28:42 Well I mean
00:28:42 --> 00:28:42 don't answer that one.
00:28:44 --> 00:28:46 If all goes well
00:28:46 --> 00:28:46 and I'm assuming
00:28:46 --> 00:28:47 this for my own children
00:28:47 --> 00:28:48 if all goes well
00:28:48 --> 00:28:49 the adult child
00:28:49 --> 00:28:51 is no longer
00:28:51 --> 00:28:53 coerced into obedience
00:28:53 --> 00:28:54 as before
00:28:54 --> 00:28:56 but over the course of time
00:28:56 --> 00:28:58 they have internalized
00:28:58 --> 00:28:59 the basic values
00:28:59 --> 00:29:00 which have been instilled
00:29:00 --> 00:29:00 in them
00:29:00 --> 00:29:01 and they live
00:29:01 --> 00:29:02 in a similar manner
00:29:02 --> 00:29:03 not necessarily
00:29:03 --> 00:29:04 a total same manner
00:29:04 --> 00:29:04 but they live
00:29:04 --> 00:29:05 in a similar manner
00:29:05 --> 00:29:06 because that's what
00:29:06 --> 00:29:07 they actually want to do
00:29:07 --> 00:29:08 the values have been instilled
00:29:08 --> 00:29:09 they've been internalized
00:29:09 --> 00:29:10 within them.
00:29:10 --> 00:29:16 Paul isn't saying here
00:29:16 --> 00:29:16 that the Christian
00:29:16 --> 00:29:17 can
00:29:17 --> 00:29:19 no longer
00:29:19 --> 00:29:21 has any relationship
00:29:21 --> 00:29:22 you know
00:29:22 --> 00:29:23 the law's there
00:29:23 --> 00:29:24 the word of God's there
00:29:24 --> 00:29:25 the command of God's there
00:29:25 --> 00:29:26 you found salvation
00:29:26 --> 00:29:26 and grace
00:29:26 --> 00:29:27 and now you don't need
00:29:27 --> 00:29:28 any relationship
00:29:28 --> 00:29:29 with that stuff at all
00:29:29 --> 00:29:30 I don't think that's
00:29:30 --> 00:29:31 what Paul's saying here
00:29:31 --> 00:29:31 at all
00:29:31 --> 00:29:37 what he's saying is
00:29:37 --> 00:29:38 we no longer
00:29:38 --> 00:29:42 view that system
00:29:42 --> 00:29:43 of the law
00:29:43 --> 00:29:45 for salvation
00:29:45 --> 00:29:46 the law
00:29:46 --> 00:29:48 no longer
00:29:48 --> 00:29:49 forces obedience
00:29:49 --> 00:29:50 through coercion
00:29:50 --> 00:29:51 and fear
00:29:51 --> 00:29:53 that's what he's saying
00:29:53 --> 00:29:55 the gospel means
00:29:55 --> 00:29:55 we no longer
00:29:55 --> 00:29:56 obey the law
00:29:56 --> 00:29:57 out of fear
00:29:57 --> 00:29:57 rejection
00:29:57 --> 00:29:58 or the hope of salvation
00:29:58 --> 00:29:59 by performance
00:29:59 --> 00:30:01 when we grab hold
00:30:01 --> 00:30:02 of salvation
00:30:02 --> 00:30:03 by promise
00:30:03 --> 00:30:04 salvation by grace
00:30:04 --> 00:30:05 in Christ alone
00:30:05 --> 00:30:07 our hearts are filled
00:30:07 --> 00:30:07 with gratitude
00:30:07 --> 00:30:10 and a desire
00:30:10 --> 00:30:11 to please
00:30:11 --> 00:30:11 and
00:30:11 --> 00:30:13 to be like
00:30:13 --> 00:30:14 our saviour
00:30:14 --> 00:30:17 and the way
00:30:17 --> 00:30:18 that we live
00:30:18 --> 00:30:19 like our saviour
00:30:19 --> 00:30:20 the way we be like
00:30:20 --> 00:30:21 our saviour
00:30:21 --> 00:30:21 the way we seek
00:30:21 --> 00:30:23 to please our saviour
00:30:23 --> 00:30:26 is through the way
00:30:26 --> 00:30:26 he's described
00:30:26 --> 00:30:28 as life should be lived
00:30:28 --> 00:30:30 through the law
00:30:30 --> 00:30:33 when you come
00:30:33 --> 00:30:34 to the law
00:30:34 --> 00:30:35 and it's totally
00:30:35 --> 00:30:35 different for the
00:30:35 --> 00:30:36 Christian
00:30:36 --> 00:30:37 for the person
00:30:37 --> 00:30:38 who's been saved
00:30:38 --> 00:30:38 by grace
00:30:38 --> 00:30:39 totally different
00:30:39 --> 00:30:40 approach to the law
00:30:40 --> 00:30:42 when you come
00:30:42 --> 00:30:43 to the law
00:30:43 --> 00:30:44 motivated by gratitude
00:30:44 --> 00:30:46 because of grace
00:30:46 --> 00:30:48 we are better
00:30:48 --> 00:30:49 in our obedience
00:30:49 --> 00:30:49 to the law
00:30:49 --> 00:30:50 much better
00:30:50 --> 00:30:51 why is that
00:30:51 --> 00:30:52 firstly
00:30:52 --> 00:30:54 it's because
00:30:54 --> 00:30:54 when we think
00:30:54 --> 00:30:55 that the law
00:30:55 --> 00:30:56 obedience
00:30:56 --> 00:30:57 will save us
00:30:57 --> 00:30:57 we tend to
00:30:57 --> 00:30:58 by nature
00:30:58 --> 00:30:59 lower
00:30:59 --> 00:31:00 the standards
00:31:00 --> 00:31:01 of the law
00:31:01 --> 00:31:02 that's what the Pharisees
00:31:02 --> 00:31:03 did in Jesus' time
00:31:03 --> 00:31:04 it's like
00:31:04 --> 00:31:05 it's almost like
00:31:05 --> 00:31:06 we become
00:31:06 --> 00:31:07 emotionally
00:31:07 --> 00:31:08 incapable
00:31:08 --> 00:31:10 of admitting
00:31:10 --> 00:31:11 just how
00:31:11 --> 00:31:11 searching
00:31:11 --> 00:31:12 and demanding
00:31:12 --> 00:31:13 and penetrating
00:31:13 --> 00:31:14 the law
00:31:14 --> 00:31:15 actually is
00:31:15 --> 00:31:16 in our life
00:31:16 --> 00:31:18 it's almost become
00:31:18 --> 00:31:19 we just
00:31:19 --> 00:31:20 by nature
00:31:20 --> 00:31:21 give me
00:31:21 --> 00:31:21 ten simple rules
00:31:21 --> 00:31:22 to live by
00:31:22 --> 00:31:22 and that'll do
00:31:22 --> 00:31:25 and the law
00:31:25 --> 00:31:26 is so
00:31:26 --> 00:31:27 penetrating
00:31:27 --> 00:31:28 in every aspect
00:31:28 --> 00:31:29 of our life
00:31:29 --> 00:31:30 for instance
00:31:30 --> 00:31:31 Matthew 5
00:31:31 --> 00:31:32 21-22
00:31:32 --> 00:31:33 Jesus says
00:31:33 --> 00:31:35 that to resent
00:31:35 --> 00:31:35 someone
00:31:35 --> 00:31:36 is a form
00:31:36 --> 00:31:36 of murder
00:31:36 --> 00:31:38 and we sit
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 in a culture
00:31:38 --> 00:31:38 and say
00:31:38 --> 00:31:39 murder
00:31:39 --> 00:31:40 nothing worse
00:31:40 --> 00:31:40 ta ta
00:31:40 --> 00:31:41 murder
00:31:41 --> 00:31:42 and Jesus said
00:31:42 --> 00:31:42 you resent
00:31:42 --> 00:31:43 someone
00:31:43 --> 00:31:44 that's a form
00:31:44 --> 00:31:44 of murder
00:31:44 --> 00:31:46 you've broken
00:31:46 --> 00:31:47 the command
00:31:47 --> 00:31:47 do not
00:31:47 --> 00:31:48 commit murder
00:31:48 --> 00:31:50 and frankly
00:31:50 --> 00:31:50 it's quite
00:31:50 --> 00:31:51 possible
00:31:51 --> 00:31:52 that
00:31:52 --> 00:31:54 a good majority
00:31:54 --> 00:31:54 of us
00:31:54 --> 00:31:55 sitting here
00:31:55 --> 00:31:55 right now
00:31:55 --> 00:31:56 has resented
00:31:56 --> 00:31:57 someone in our hearts
00:31:57 --> 00:31:58 you've committed
00:31:58 --> 00:31:59 that sin
00:31:59 --> 00:32:02 Jesus made
00:32:02 --> 00:32:02 the law
00:32:02 --> 00:32:04 so penetrating
00:32:04 --> 00:32:05 and only
00:32:05 --> 00:32:06 if we know
00:32:06 --> 00:32:07 that we cannot
00:32:07 --> 00:32:08 keep it
00:32:08 --> 00:32:08 completely
00:32:08 --> 00:32:12 but that we
00:32:12 --> 00:32:13 don't need
00:32:13 --> 00:32:13 to keep it
00:32:13 --> 00:32:14 completely
00:32:14 --> 00:32:16 to be saved
00:32:16 --> 00:32:17 at all
00:32:17 --> 00:32:17 in fact
00:32:17 --> 00:32:18 to be saved
00:32:18 --> 00:32:19 because Jesus
00:32:19 --> 00:32:20 did it
00:32:20 --> 00:32:21 for us
00:32:21 --> 00:32:22 will we
00:32:22 --> 00:32:22 be able
00:32:22 --> 00:32:23 to admit
00:32:23 --> 00:32:24 just how
00:32:24 --> 00:32:24 broad
00:32:24 --> 00:32:25 and how
00:32:25 --> 00:32:25 deep
00:32:25 --> 00:32:26 this command
00:32:26 --> 00:32:26 is
00:32:26 --> 00:32:28 how deep
00:32:28 --> 00:32:29 the law
00:32:29 --> 00:32:29 is
00:32:29 --> 00:32:30 how deep
00:32:30 --> 00:32:32 the commands
00:32:32 --> 00:32:33 of God
00:32:33 --> 00:32:33 are
00:32:33 --> 00:32:35 if we think
00:32:35 --> 00:32:36 we are saved
00:32:36 --> 00:32:37 by obedience
00:32:37 --> 00:32:38 then we
00:32:38 --> 00:32:39 just by nature
00:32:39 --> 00:32:40 have to limit
00:32:40 --> 00:32:41 the scope
00:32:41 --> 00:32:41 of the law
00:32:41 --> 00:32:43 in order
00:32:43 --> 00:32:44 for us
00:32:44 --> 00:32:45 to be able
00:32:45 --> 00:32:46 to manage
00:32:46 --> 00:32:46 it
00:32:46 --> 00:32:48 and what
00:32:48 --> 00:32:48 flows on
00:32:48 --> 00:32:49 from that
00:32:49 --> 00:32:50 is a position
00:32:50 --> 00:32:51 of self
00:32:51 --> 00:32:51 righteousness
00:32:51 --> 00:32:54 you ever
00:32:54 --> 00:32:54 find yourself
00:32:54 --> 00:32:55 looking down
00:32:55 --> 00:32:56 on another
00:32:56 --> 00:32:56 human being
00:32:56 --> 00:32:57 because they
00:32:57 --> 00:32:57 don't live
00:32:57 --> 00:32:58 by the standards
00:32:58 --> 00:32:58 you live
00:32:58 --> 00:32:58 by
00:32:58 --> 00:33:01 that's because
00:33:01 --> 00:33:01 you're living
00:33:01 --> 00:33:02 by the law
00:33:02 --> 00:33:05 that's because
00:33:05 --> 00:33:05 you're living
00:33:05 --> 00:33:06 by the law
00:33:06 --> 00:33:08 not living
00:33:08 --> 00:33:08 by grace
00:33:08 --> 00:33:10 and you've
00:33:10 --> 00:33:11 made the law
00:33:11 --> 00:33:12 manageable
00:33:12 --> 00:33:14 and Jesus
00:33:14 --> 00:33:14 condemned the
00:33:14 --> 00:33:15 Pharisees
00:33:15 --> 00:33:15 for that
00:33:15 --> 00:33:16 secondly
00:33:16 --> 00:33:17 grateful joy
00:33:17 --> 00:33:18 is a motive
00:33:18 --> 00:33:19 that will lead
00:33:19 --> 00:33:20 us to much
00:33:20 --> 00:33:21 more endurance
00:33:21 --> 00:33:22 in obedience
00:33:22 --> 00:33:22 than fearful
00:33:22 --> 00:33:23 compliance
00:33:23 --> 00:33:25 fearful compliance
00:33:25 --> 00:33:27 makes obedience
00:33:27 --> 00:33:28 a drudgery
00:33:28 --> 00:33:30 and it's a drudgery
00:33:30 --> 00:33:31 that cannot cope
00:33:31 --> 00:33:32 with the tough
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 times
00:33:32 --> 00:33:32 the difficult
00:33:32 --> 00:33:33 times
00:33:33 --> 00:33:36 without the
00:33:36 --> 00:33:36 gospel
00:33:36 --> 00:33:38 we may
00:33:38 --> 00:33:38 obey the
00:33:38 --> 00:33:39 law
00:33:39 --> 00:33:40 but we
00:33:40 --> 00:33:40 will hate
00:33:40 --> 00:33:41 the law
00:33:41 --> 00:33:42 we will
00:33:42 --> 00:33:43 use it
00:33:43 --> 00:33:44 but we
00:33:44 --> 00:33:45 will not
00:33:45 --> 00:33:45 truly love
00:33:45 --> 00:33:46 it
00:33:46 --> 00:33:48 so if you
00:33:48 --> 00:33:49 look at the
00:33:49 --> 00:33:49 commands of
00:33:49 --> 00:33:49 Jesus
00:33:49 --> 00:33:50 and you go
00:33:50 --> 00:33:53 oh well I've
00:33:53 --> 00:33:53 got to do it
00:33:53 --> 00:33:54 I better do it
00:33:54 --> 00:33:54 it's kind of like
00:33:54 --> 00:33:55 my kids when I
00:33:55 --> 00:33:55 say you need to
00:33:55 --> 00:33:56 clean your room
00:33:56 --> 00:33:57 stamp stamp stamp
00:33:57 --> 00:33:58 you know try it
00:33:58 --> 00:33:59 with a smile on
00:33:59 --> 00:33:59 your face this
00:33:59 --> 00:34:00 time you know
00:34:00 --> 00:34:01 it's it's I'm
00:34:01 --> 00:34:02 gonna do it
00:34:02 --> 00:34:02 but I'm
00:34:02 --> 00:34:04 oh I don't
00:34:04 --> 00:34:04 love it
00:34:04 --> 00:34:06 don't see it
00:34:06 --> 00:34:06 as a good
00:34:06 --> 00:34:07 thing at all
00:34:07 --> 00:34:12 once we
00:34:12 --> 00:34:13 understand salvation
00:34:13 --> 00:34:14 by promise
00:34:14 --> 00:34:15 we do not
00:34:15 --> 00:34:16 obey God
00:34:16 --> 00:34:17 any longer
00:34:17 --> 00:34:18 for our
00:34:18 --> 00:34:18 sake
00:34:18 --> 00:34:20 we obey God
00:34:20 --> 00:34:20 for his
00:34:20 --> 00:34:21 sake
00:34:21 --> 00:34:22 we use the
00:34:22 --> 00:34:23 law to
00:34:23 --> 00:34:24 please him
00:34:24 --> 00:34:25 and to
00:34:25 --> 00:34:26 delight in
00:34:26 --> 00:34:26 our gracious
00:34:26 --> 00:34:27 father because
00:34:27 --> 00:34:28 the way he
00:34:28 --> 00:34:29 has defined
00:34:29 --> 00:34:30 life
00:34:30 --> 00:34:31 is for our
00:34:31 --> 00:34:32 flourishing
00:34:32 --> 00:34:33 for our
00:34:33 --> 00:34:33 good
00:34:33 --> 00:34:37 so the
00:34:37 --> 00:34:38 point of all
00:34:38 --> 00:34:39 this this text
00:34:39 --> 00:34:39 in front of us
00:34:39 --> 00:34:41 today is
00:34:41 --> 00:34:42 that the law
00:34:42 --> 00:34:42 and grace
00:34:42 --> 00:34:43 work together
00:34:43 --> 00:34:45 for Christian
00:34:45 --> 00:34:45 salvation
00:34:45 --> 00:34:48 many people
00:34:48 --> 00:34:49 want a sense
00:34:49 --> 00:34:50 of joy and
00:34:50 --> 00:34:51 acceptance but
00:34:51 --> 00:34:51 they will not
00:34:51 --> 00:34:52 admit the
00:34:52 --> 00:34:52 seriousness of
00:34:52 --> 00:34:53 their sin
00:34:53 --> 00:34:53 just give me
00:34:53 --> 00:34:54 the good news
00:34:54 --> 00:34:55 about Jesus
00:34:55 --> 00:34:56 without this
00:34:56 --> 00:34:57 sin stuff
00:34:57 --> 00:34:58 they will not
00:34:58 --> 00:34:59 listen to the
00:34:59 --> 00:34:59 laws
00:34:59 --> 00:35:00 searching and
00:35:00 --> 00:35:01 painful analysis
00:35:01 --> 00:35:02 of their
00:35:02 --> 00:35:02 hearts and
00:35:02 --> 00:35:03 their lives
00:35:03 --> 00:35:04 but unless
00:35:04 --> 00:35:05 we see how
00:35:05 --> 00:35:07 hopeless and
00:35:07 --> 00:35:07 how profoundly
00:35:07 --> 00:35:08 sinful we
00:35:08 --> 00:35:09 are the
00:35:09 --> 00:35:10 message of
00:35:10 --> 00:35:11 salvation will
00:35:11 --> 00:35:12 never be
00:35:12 --> 00:35:13 exhilarating
00:35:13 --> 00:35:14 it will never
00:35:14 --> 00:35:15 be liberating
00:35:15 --> 00:35:17 never be
00:35:17 --> 00:35:18 exhilarating
00:35:18 --> 00:35:18 or liberating
00:35:18 --> 00:35:20 unless we
00:35:20 --> 00:35:21 know how
00:35:21 --> 00:35:22 huge our
00:35:22 --> 00:35:23 debt is we
00:35:23 --> 00:35:23 cannot have
00:35:23 --> 00:35:24 any idea
00:35:24 --> 00:35:25 how great
00:35:25 --> 00:35:26 Christ's
00:35:26 --> 00:35:27 payment of
00:35:27 --> 00:35:27 it was
00:35:27 --> 00:35:28 if we
00:35:28 --> 00:35:29 think we're
00:35:29 --> 00:35:29 not all
00:35:29 --> 00:35:30 that bad
00:35:30 --> 00:35:30 the idea
00:35:30 --> 00:35:31 of grace
00:35:31 --> 00:35:32 will never
00:35:32 --> 00:35:32 ever change
00:35:32 --> 00:35:33 us
00:35:33 --> 00:35:37 the law
00:35:37 --> 00:35:38 shows us
00:35:38 --> 00:35:38 who we
00:35:38 --> 00:35:39 really are
00:35:39 --> 00:35:41 and points
00:35:41 --> 00:35:42 us to see
00:35:42 --> 00:35:43 Jesus as
00:35:43 --> 00:35:44 he really
00:35:44 --> 00:35:45 is
00:35:45 --> 00:35:46 a saviour
00:35:46 --> 00:35:47 that we
00:35:47 --> 00:35:47 need
00:35:47 --> 00:35:49 a saviour
00:35:49 --> 00:35:49 who obeyed
00:35:49 --> 00:35:50 the law
00:35:50 --> 00:35:50 on our
00:35:50 --> 00:35:51 behalf
00:35:51 --> 00:35:53 died
00:35:53 --> 00:35:54 in our
00:35:54 --> 00:35:54 place
00:35:54 --> 00:35:55 that we
00:35:55 --> 00:35:56 might receive
00:35:56 --> 00:35:56 the promised
00:35:56 --> 00:35:57 blessing to
00:35:57 --> 00:35:58 Abraham
00:35:58 --> 00:35:59 see friends
00:35:59 --> 00:36:00 salvation is
00:36:00 --> 00:36:01 so much more
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 than just
00:36:01 --> 00:36:01 forgiveness
00:36:01 --> 00:36:03 it is so much
00:36:03 --> 00:36:04 more than being
00:36:04 --> 00:36:05 able to answer
00:36:05 --> 00:36:05 a couple of
00:36:05 --> 00:36:06 questions
00:36:06 --> 00:36:07 you know in
00:36:07 --> 00:36:07 the right
00:36:07 --> 00:36:08 kind of way
00:36:08 --> 00:36:11 grace and
00:36:11 --> 00:36:11 law work
00:36:11 --> 00:36:12 together
00:36:12 --> 00:36:13 to allow
00:36:13 --> 00:36:14 us to love
00:36:14 --> 00:36:14 Jesus
00:36:14 --> 00:36:16 and enable
00:36:16 --> 00:36:17 us to show
00:36:17 --> 00:36:18 true love
00:36:18 --> 00:36:19 in grateful
00:36:19 --> 00:36:20 obedience to
00:36:20 --> 00:36:20 him
00:36:20 --> 00:36:22 they work
00:36:22 --> 00:36:23 together for
00:36:23 --> 00:36:23 salvation
00:36:23 --> 00:36:25 law
00:36:25 --> 00:36:27 needs to be
00:36:27 --> 00:36:27 obeyed
00:36:27 --> 00:36:28 in order to
00:36:28 --> 00:36:29 get a result
00:36:29 --> 00:36:30 promise
00:36:30 --> 00:36:32 just needs to
00:36:32 --> 00:36:33 be believed
00:36:33 --> 00:36:34 in order
00:36:34 --> 00:36:35 to get a
00:36:35 --> 00:36:35 result