Galatians chapter 3. Verse 26 Galatians chapter 3. For you are all the children
of God. By faith In Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been
baptized into Christ. Have put on Christ. There is
neither Jew nor Greek. There is neither bond nor free.
There is neither male nor female for. You are all. One. In Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ's, then are
you Abraham's seed and heirs according to the promise. Let's pray. Lord, we ask that we might be
Christ's. Lord, that's the greatest thing
we can ask for by your grace. We ask that we might be his. We pray for your blessing on
the preaching of your word, the studying of your word. We pray
for your blessing on the public prayers and the prayers that
come from our hearts. As we join in, we pray for your
blessing on the singing. Bless us for the Lord's sake.
Be with all your people, wherever they meet together. Forgive us
of our sins for Christ's sake and Lord, we pray for our friends
that are going through difficulties. We pray for your healing hand
upon them. According to your will. Lord, meet with us for Christ's
sake. In his name, we pray. Amen. Verse 29. You'll notice B is
an italics. If you Christ's, if you Christ's now that points
to both origin and possession, if your origin is Christ, that's
a very awesome thing to think about. Isn't it? He's where I'm
from. if you're his possession. Oh,
I want to be his possession, don't you? If you be Christ,
oh, may I be Christ. Then are you Abraham's seed and
heirs according to the promise. Look what he says in verse 28,
the last phrase, you are all one. In Christ Jesus. Now I've given a name to this,
the mystery of union. The mystery of union with Jesus
Christ. Verse 26, for you are all the
children of God. By faith in Christ Jesus. Now, what could be more significant
than this? To be a child of God. And this
cannot be seen in any other way. This can't be duplicated in our
human experience. We are a child by adoption. He
adopted us. And we're also a child by birth.
Both of those things are true. I'm his adopted child. Every
believer is, but I'm also a child by birth, birthed into the kingdom
of heaven. What a glorious, mysterious thing
to be a child of God. The Lord said, I go to my father
and your father. Think of that. I go to my God
and your God. It is only the children who can
truly pray our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be thy
name. For you are all, every believer,
the children of God. Behold, what manner of love the
father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called sons
of God. And what is the evidence we're
children of God by faith in Christ Jesus for verse 27, as many of
you as have been baptized into Christ. have put on Christ. Now, I love this phrase, as many
as. For as many as you who have put
on Christ, have been baptized in Christ, have put on Christ.
Now, the same phrase is used by Luke after Paul's sermon in
Acts chapter 13. I love this phrase. As many as
were ordained to eternal life believed. After that glorious
sermon, this is Luke's editorial comment. As many as were ordained
to eternal life believe. The Lord says, as many as I love,
I rebuke and chasten. I want to be one of those people,
don't you? It doesn't mean I'm wanting to be rebuked or chastened.
I'd rather get out of it if it's the Lord's purpose, but I want
to be somebody who's loved. As many as I love, I rebuke and
I chasten. Be zealous, therefore repent.
Now look what he says, as many of you as have been baptized
into Christ. All who have been immersed into
Christ. Now this is talking about union
with Jesus Christ. It's so mysterious, I don't even
know how to speak of it as it ought to be spoken of, but every
believer is immersed in Jesus Christ. And that's what baptism
signifies. Union with the Lord Jesus Christ.
You go down into the water, and when you're in the water, you're
completely immersed in the water. Under the water, you can't be
seen. You know, when I baptize someone,
I make sure that they go all the way under. I don't even want
a hair out. Immersed in Christ. So all you
see is Christ. This is talking about the great
mystery of union with Jesus Christ Of him are you in Christ Jesus
and there's no point when that began to be There's never been
a time When you've not been united to Christ now that blows my mind
I don't understand how that can be. Uh, but this had no beginning
point, no starting point. According as he has chosen us
in him before the foundation of the world. union, eternal
union with the Lord Jesus Christ and the evidence of that union,
look what he says in verse 27, for as many of you as have been
baptized in Christ have put on Christ. Now the simplicity of
this, you put on Christ, you're in Christ and you put on Christ
and this seems like I put on clothes so as not to be seen.
We put on Christ So this is something we consciously do. This is what we want to do. We
want to put on Christ so that all God sees when he sees us
is Jesus Christ. Is that your desire? Do you want
God to only see Jesus Christ? That's what it means to put on
Christ. If you've been baptized into Christ, all you want to
be seen in is in the Lord Jesus Christ. I love what Paul said. Imagine I quote this once a week.
Oh, that I may win Christ and be found in him. Not having my own righteousness.
I have such a strong desire to not be seen in my own righteousness
because I know it's filthy rags, but having the righteousness
of God, which is by the faith of Jesus Christ. Now that's what
it means to put on Christ. And look at verse 28 in Christ, all fleshly distinctions
are dropped. There are no fleshly distinctions. All that counts. All that matters
is being in Christ. Look what he says. There's neither
June or Greek. There is neither bond nor free.
There is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ
Jesus. Now, if I'm united to Christ,
I'm united to everybody in Christ. You are all one in Christ Jesus. All fleshly distinctions are
dropped male, female bond free. There are no distinctions. You are all one in Christ. Jesus, the Lord said in as much
as you've done it to the least of these, my brethren, you've
done it to me. That's what the Lord said. That's
how close this union is. You are all one in Christ Jesus. Now hold your finger there and
turn to Hebrews chapter two. Verse 11. For both he that sanctifyeth
And they who are sanctified are what? Are all of one. One with Jesus Christ. Not close, one. Not joined together, one with
Christ Jesus. Now this is just a mystery that
we believe. We don't understand it. We can't
grasp it intellectually. It's impossible, but we believe
it. One with the Lord Jesus Christ. For the witch cause, he's not
ashamed to call them brethren. Now, does the Lord have anything
to be ashamed of with regard to himself? No. He knows who he is. He's altogether
God. Perfect. He has nothing to be
ashamed of like you and I do in and of ourselves, but he's
not ashamed of me any more than he's ashamed of himself because
I'm one with him. How glorious. How mysterious. One with the
Lord Jesus Christ. 1 John 4, 17 says as he is, so
are we in this world. one with him listen to this scripture
2nd timothy 2 13 says if we believe not he abides faithful he can't
deny himself you see for him to deny me would be for him to
deny himself That is how real this union is. For him to deny me, and if we
believe not, well, there's never a time when you don't believe.
I mean, you always believe, and yet you always have unbelief.
And that's what he's talking about when he says, if we believe
not. I believe, help thou mine unbelief. Isn't that always our
prayer? Non-stop. That's our experience. I believe
help down by non-belief. Here I am. Oh, I feel so unbelieving. He's not going to deny me because
if he denied me, he'd be denying himself. Turn to Ephesians chapter
five. Ephesians chapter five. Verse 31. For this cause. Shall a man leave
his father and mother and shall be joined into his wife and they
too shall be one flesh. This is a great mystery. And it is a great mystery. But
I speak concerning Christ and the church. That's what I'm talking
about when I'm talking about the two becoming one flesh. I
speak concerning Christ and the church. Look in verse 25 of the
same chapter. Husbands, love your wives, even
as Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it, that
he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water
by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church,
not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but it should
be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives
as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife, loveth
himself. Now, In a marriage, if you love
your wife, you're going to want the benefit from it. It'll be
good for you. You're just loving yourself.
But that's not what this is talking about. When Christ loved his
wife, he was loving himself. That is how real and mysterious. This union is when Christ was
loving his wife, he was loving himself. Union with the Lord Jesus Christ,
the two become one flesh and this union is eternal. The Lord said, behold, I have
loved you. This is every individual believer. Behold, I have loved you with
an everlasting love, a love that had no beginning, a love that
had no starting point. I've always had personality before
the Lord, and he's always loved me. The eternal union that exists
between Christ and his church. We believe this. We bow before
this. We adore him that has done this,
knowing that this being eternal, the marriage supper of the lamb
will never end. That is eternity. Now, when you're
thinking of this, if you're anything like me. You think of it's so
mysterious, being eternally united to Jesus Christ. There was never
a time when I wasn't. You have a certain feeling of
uncomfortableness with this because you have some idea of your own
sinfulness. And it almost seems, can this
be so? Because I'm so sinful. How could
I how could I really be one with him? How could I be united with
him? I know the Bible says it but
I just don't feel totally comfortable with it. Well, we've got a Old
Testament story that Demonstrates this Genesis chapter 27, would
you turn with me there? Now this is a story of fraud
and deceit. Yet this story lets us know what
union means here in Genesis chapter 27. Now remember, if all I see
in this story, this is where Jacob cheated his brother Esau
in order to have the blessing. And it was deceitful. It was
wrong. It was fraudulent. There was
nothing right about this. And I'm sure that Jacob, when
he got the blessing, because his father perceived him as Esau,
he felt like a fraud. I guarantee you he did, but he
wanted the blessing. Now let's look in Genesis chapter
27. And it came to pass that when
Isaac was old, and his eyes were dimmed so that he could not see,
he called Esau, his eldest son, and said unto him, my son, he
said unto him, behold, here I am. And he said, behold, now I'm
old, I know not the day of my death. Now therefore take, I
pray thee, thy weapons, and thy quiver, and thy bow, and go out
to the field, and take me some venison, and make me savory meat
such as I love, and bring it to me that I may eat, that my
soul may bless thee before I die. And Rebekah heard when Isaac
spake to Esau his son. And Esau went to the field to
hunt for venison, to bring it. And Rebekah spake unto Jacob
her son, saying, Behold, I heard thy father speaking to Esau thy
brother, saying, Bring me venison, and make me savory meat, that
I may eat, and bless thee before the Lord before my death. Now, therefore, my son, obey
my voice according to that which I command thee. Now, this is
this story of deceit and fraud. Now, if you go back into Genesis
25, remember Jacob and Esau. Rebecca preferred Jacob. Isaac preferred Esau. This was really a dysfunctional
family. There isn't very much good you
can say about this, the way they made these shameful differences
between their children. But I, you know, the Bible, the
Bible pretty much tells things as they are. I mean, when we
read these stories, we say, how could they have been that way?
Well, how can you be the way you are? I mean, they're the same. And
this was a dysfunctional family. There was something wrong in
this, but the Lord is going to use this to teach something of
the gospel. Now, verse eight, now, therefore,
my son obey my voice according to that which I command thee.
Go now to the flock. and fetch me from thence two
good kids of the goats, and I'll make them savory meat for thy
father, such as he loveth. And thou shalt bring it to thy
father, that he may bless, that he may eat, and that he may bless
thee before his death. And Jacob said to Rebekah's mother,
behold, he saw my brother as a hairy man, and I'm a smooth
man. My father peradventure will feel me, and I shall seem to
him as a deceiver, and I shall bring a curse upon me, and not
a blessing. I mean, he obviously felt uncomfortable
with this. Can you imagine coming into Isaac's
presence and saying you're Esau when you're not, and you think,
what if he finds me out? That would be real trouble. And
he felt very uncomfortable with this. He said, I'm afraid I'm
going to be cursed. Verse 13, and his mother said unto him,
upon me be thy curse, my son, only obey my voice and go fetch
me then. And he went and fetched and brought
them to his mother and his mother made savory meat, such as his
father loved. Rebecca was a deceitful woman.
She just wanted, why didn't she care about Esau? She cared about
her son, Jacob, and she wanted him to have the blessing. And Rebecca took goodly rainment
of her eldest son, Esau, which was with her in the house and
put them upon Jacob, her younger son. And she put the skins of
the kids of the goats upon his hands and upon the smooth of
his neck, so he'd be hairy like Esau. And she gave the savory
meat and the bread which she had prepared into the hand of
her son Jacob. Now, can you imagine how nervous
Jacob was at this time? He had his brother's shirt on,
his raiment. He had hairy stuff on his of
goat skins on his hand, on the back of his neck, where his father
would be feeling him. And he was thinking, what's going
to happen? Rebecca wasn't worried about it, but he was. Verse 18. And he came into his father and
said, my father. And he said, here I am. Who art thou my son? And Jacob
said unto his father, I am Esau, thy firstborn. I'm sure he was trembling when
he said that, but you see, he understood. that the only way
he could be favored of his father is if he is Esau. That's the only way he could
have his father's favor. And he answers to the name of
Esau. I am Esau, thy firstborn. Now remember, union with Christ. The only way I can be accepted
is as I'm in him. I am Esau, thy firstborn. I have done according as thou
bathest me. Well, in Christ, I've done according
as he bathes me, haven't I? Whatever Christ did, I did. That's
my hope. Arise, I pray thee, sit in need
of my venison that thy soul may bless me. And Isaac said unto
his son, How is it that thou hast found it so quickly, my
son? And he said, Because the Lord thy God brought it to me.
I mean, he's implicating the Lord's name on his deceit. And
yet, is that not the only way you and I can be saved? Because
the Lord God brought this to me. And Isaac said unto Jacob,
come near, I pray thee that I may feel thee my son, whether thou
be my very son Esau or not. You see, I'm going to have to
feel like Christ through the father's touch. I'm going to
have to feel just like the Lord Jesus Christ. And Jacob went near into Isaac,
his father, and he felt him. and said, the voice of Jacob's
voice, but the hands of the hands of Esau and he discerned him
not. For me to be accepted by the
father, there's got to be no discernible difference between
me and the son. Now that's what union with Christ
means. Is that not? mysterious. I don't know what else, what
other word to use for it. But for me to be accepted by
the great father in his holiness, there can be no discernible difference
between me and the son. Somebody says, are you going
to take this story of deceit and use it for the gospel? Yeah,
I am. That's its purpose. Like I said,
I'm sure Jacob felt like a fraud throughout all this. And I think
every believer, as we think of being united to Christ, we feel
like I'm such a fraud. I'm so sinful. How can this be?
Well, the same way it is here. And he, verse 23, discerned him
not because his hands were hairy and his brother Esau's hands.
So he blessed him. And he said, art thou my very
son Esau? And he said, I am now. He was telling a lie when he
said that, wasn't he? You can't deny that. But is it not true
that the believer has the same name as Jesus Christ? This is
the name wherewith he shall be called the Lord our righteousness. This is the name wherewith she
shall be called the exact same name, the Lord, our righteousness. Every believer can truly answer
to the very name of Jesus Christ. And I tell you what, I don't
want, I don't want my name coming in there to you. I don't want
my fingerprints to be on anything. Are thou verily my son Esau? I am, he said. Verse 25, and he said, bring
it near to me and I'll eat of my son's venison that my soul
may bless thee. And he brought it near to him,
and he did eat, and he drank him wine, and he drank, and he
brought him wine, and he drank. And his father Isaac said unto
him, come now, and kiss me, my son. And he came near and kissed
him, and he smelled the smell of his raiment, and blessed him.
Do you know, for me to be accepted of the Father, I'm gonna have
to smell just like Jesus Christ. Well, in this story of deceit,
where Rebecca knew that Isaac could be smelling. She knew him.
She got some Esau's raiment and put it on him and he smelled
and he smelled his son Esau. And every believer to the father
smells just like Jesus Christ. That's how real, that's how powerful
this thing of union with him is. Now, what was the one reason that Isaac gave Jacob this deceitful,
sinful man? You know, his name means heel.
It means supplanter. At the end of this story, Esau
is going to cry out. He's hibbed Jacob's well as his
name, as a deceiver. He deceived me and robbed me
of my birthright, and now he's robbing me of my blessing. And
you can see where Esau would have resented him for all this.
And I can't tell. I mean, he's a bad guy. That's all you can call him is
a bad guy. There's not anything honorable about the way he conducts
himself in any of this. It's deceitful. It's fraudulent.
What is the only reason that Isaac gave Jacob the blessing? Because he discerned him as Esau. What is the one way that God
can give me or you the blessing? He discerns us in his son so
that all he sees is his son. And that's the only place I have
any hope. Is if when God sees me. All he
sees is his son, the Lord Jesus Christ now. Union with Christ
eternal union union with one another. We. Feel. for lack of a better word, weird
about it because of our own sinfulness, something we don't feel totally
comfortable with. I guarantee you Jacob didn't feel comfortable
at this time, did he? I guarantee you he was scared to death, afraid
he was going to be found out, but he didn't know God was just
using all of this to teach us something of his gospel. Union, eternal union. Both he that sanctifyeth and
they who are sanctified are all of one. For the which cause he's
not ashamed to call me, he's my brother. Amen.