people. Once again, may the Lord help
us as we meditate in the epistle of Paul to the Galatians and
the fourth chapter and tonight we'll read from verse 21 to 24. The fourth chapter to the Galatians
and verses 21 to 24. Tell me, either desire to be under the
law. Do you not hear the law? For it is written that Abraham
had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a free woman. But
he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh, but he
of the free woman was by promise. Which things are an allegory?
For these are the two covenants, the one from the Mount Sinai,
which genders to bondage, which is Aga." Well, Paul is here really coming
to a, I suppose we might say, a conclusion to confirm that
Those who endeavour to keep the law and to earn salvation by
the works of the law are indeed in bondage. But those who are
blessed with the grace of God are free and they are those who
are spoken of here as the free woman, but not those who are
under bondage. This refers, of course, here
to Agar. Agar, of course, is Hagar. It's
the same word. One is the Hebrew, one is the
Greek. And Abraham and Sarah, or we might say through Hagar,
could produce a child. And they did produce a child. And the child was Ishmael. But this was not the child of
promise and Ishmael was born and we might say well that was
planned by Sarah and Hagar and Isaac so that this child was
born and that is therefore what we might term in accordance with
these words, which we read together, which things are an allegory
for these are the two covenants. The one from Mount Sinai which
generates the bondage which is Agar. This is the one which we're
speaking of here principally which is Hagar which Ishmael
was born and the child of bondage. And there are of course the two
covenants as we read here. The one is the covenant of works
and the other is the covenant of promise. If we go through
the Word of God, there are a number of covenants that we can think
of, and a number of covenants which, although not spelled out
as a covenant, in actual fact are covenants, but the reality
is there are only really two covenants, one of works and one
of promise. But they are operated then by
two very different principles. The one is the flesh, and the
other is the Spirit. The covenant of promises is the
covenant of grace. And what a wonderful blessing
that is. And it can really be illustrated
by what the Lord Jesus spoke in when he preached on that occasion. when Nicodemus came to him and
in that third chapter and the sixth verse we read that which
is born of the flesh is flesh. You see Ishmael was born of the
flesh. It was instigated really by Abraham
and Sarah to produce this son Ishmael. But what a blessing
if we realize we have a great God who is in heaven, who brings
about, as he did, the son of promise, Isaac. That which is
born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the spirit
is spirit. Isaac was miraculously born,
so must we, spiritually. If you imagine, you see, Sarah
was past age, of course, for childbearing, Hagar was not,
hence the reason why Hagar produced that child between her and Abraham. And of course in those days it
was permitted that, as it were, a servant or a slave could actually
become someone who would produce a child, which of course she
did. So we see there then that Sarah did not produce the child
but Hagar produced the child and this you see was the covenant
of works it wasn't of the spirit and they had both of them Abraham
and Hagar were together to produce this child but the child of promise
That was a miracle. It was that which the Lord had
spoken to Abraham. And how wonderful it was then
that that promise came to pass in God's time. Sarah was able
to conceive and was blessed with this child. And so she was then
this child of the free woman And what a wonderful blessing
it was. And as the last verse tells us
here, which things are an allegory, and that's almost we can say
that was perhaps like a parable with a result, for there are
the two covenants. And what a blessing it is today,
if we today are not relying on the covenant of works, but if
we are relying upon the covenant of grace. As the apostle commences
by saying, tell me, you that desire to be under the law, do
you not hear the law? Because if they had heard the
law, and if they had kept the law, then they would have been
righteous. But of course they were unable
to keep the law. And therefore they were under
bondage. Well, the epistle to the Romans
helps us in this matter. In the fourth chapter and the
fifth verse we read, But to him that worketh not, but believeth
on him that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for righteousness. See, God gives of his spirit. He gives life. You and I cannot
produce life. And that was really what Paul
has been speaking of here as he's addressed the Galatians.
They seem to want to go back to the old ceremonial way of
trying to keep the law and justify themselves. But Paul clearly
speaks to them with reference to that and points out that they
cannot because that only gendereth bondage. There is no freedom
in it. We read together those few verses
in the 10th of Romans and again the Apostle tells us herefore,
I bear them record that they have a zeal of God but not according
to knowledge. It matters not, you see, how
zealous they may have been. It wasn't in accordance with
the will and purpose of God. For they, being ignorant of God's
righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness,
have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God. Well, that's the Word of God.
How many people there are today trying to justify themselves,
to make themselves righteous, so they're accepted by God because
of what they have done. But we are only accepted by God,
not what we have done, but what the Lord Jesus Christ has done.
We stand upon his merit. I know neither stand. What a
blessing then tonight, if you and I have the evidence that
we are born free, not under bondage, And that being born free is when
the Holy Spirit comes and grants us that new birth, that spiritual
life. And the apostle goes on in this
10th chapter of Romans, he says, For Christ is the end of the
law for righteousness to everyone that believeth. For Moses describeth
the righteousness which is of the law, but the man which doeth
those things shall live by them. Well, you see, we cannot keep
the holy law of God. We cannot be justified by that
ourselves. So what a wonderful thing it
is tonight if we overlook out of ourselves to the Lord Jesus
Christ, seeking that we may be justified through what he has
done in keeping the law on our behalf, that law which we could
not keep. The law, Lord Jesus Christ has
kept it, and he's made it honorable. And may we therefore rejoice
tonight in the freedom that there is in Christ, as the Lord Jesus
Christ said himself, if the Son therefore shall make you free,
ye shall be free indeed. So remember these few verses.
Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do you not hear
the law? For it is written that Abraham
had two sons, one by a bondmaid and the other by a free woman.
But he that who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh. But
he of the free woman was by promise, which things are an allegory.
For these are the two covenants, the one from Mount Sinai, which
gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.