So, Galatians chapter 5 and verses
1 through 13. Stand fast, therefore, in the
liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free. Be not entangled
again with the yoke of bondage. Behold, I, Paul, say unto you,
that if ye be circumcised, Christ shall profit you nothing. For I testify again to every
man that is circumcised, that he is a debtor to do the whole
law. Christ is become of no effect
unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law, ye are
fallen from grace. For we through the Spirit wait
for the hope of righteousness by faith. For in Jesus Christ
neither circumcision availeth anything, nor uncircumcision,
but faith which works by love. Ye did run well. Who did hinder
you that ye should not obey the truth? This persuasion comes
not of him that called you. A little leaven leaveneth a whole
lump. I have confidence in you through
the Lord that you will be none otherwise minded, but he that
troubleth you shall bear his judgment whosoever he be. And I, brethren, if I yet preach
circumcision, Why? Well, let's see. Did I skip a
page? Yes. The law is no more a promise. Well, I skipped two pages. Excuse
me. And was unknown by faith unto
the churches of Judea, which were in Christ. But they heard
only that they which persecuted us in time past had preached
the gospel of the faith which once he received. Now, we notice
in the 13th verse an admonition. We'll look at it later. For brethren,
you have been called unto liberty, only use not liberty for an occasion
unto the flesh. Now, there are several variations
of the reading of Galatians chapter 5 and verse 1 that have had theologians
contending about it for century after century. Because the words
are in different order in some of the Greek manuscript and in
some of the translation of the Scripture in our English version. Concerning the word, therefore,
or then, or so then. And the word hath made us free,
as well as the words the liberty, the liberty with which Christ
hath made us free. Or it is under freedom that Christ
has freed us. It might be said like this, for
freedom Christ hath freed us, stand fast, therefore, in that
liberty into which he hath emancipated us by his work and death upon
the cross." Now, one of the first questions that we want to consider
in our text is, what is the nature of this freedom? What kind of
liberty does Paul have in mind? A man named Samuel Bolton wrote
a book entitled, The True Bounds of Christian Freedom. He wrote
it centuries ago, first published in 1645. And though we might
not agree with everything that he says about the law in relationship
under the Christian, early in the book he says, that there
are four kinds of freedom that might be considered. There is
freedom natural, there is freedom political, there is freedom sensual,
and there is freedom in the spiritual sense. Now the overall context
in Galatians makes it clear that Paul is talking about the last
kind of freedom, spiritual freedom, and that because of the type
of the bondage that it was set in contrast to, we know that
it is spiritual freedom that Paul is championing here. It was a freedom which required
and was the result of the death of Jesus Christ. It is by his
death that our Lord brought to us this freedom, being a freedom
which came only by Christ and only through Christ have we obtained
this freedom. This was not the political freedom
that so many of the Jews yearned for at the hands of Christ, that
He might overthrow Rome and deliver them from the power of their
subjection under the nation of Rome. The spiritual nature of
it is freedom in and through Jesus Christ. Now, looking at
verse 1 of the text and coming to focus a might upon the word,
therefore. Whenever we see a word like that,
it seems then that there is some exhortation that is based upon
something that has previously been said in an earlier part
of the epistle. And there doesn't seem to be
a new subject that is begun at chapter 5 and verse 1, and we
know that Paul did not write his epistles and divide them
into chapter and into verse. That was done much later. So
if the apostle is basing the exhortation for freedom on something
already said, then the question becomes, how far back in the
epistle do we go to find the reference to the Now, I suggest
that there are two great passages in the Galatian Epistle whereby
the Apostle Paul contrasts liberty and freedom, the bondage, and
to illustrate them, their standing in the Lord Jesus Christ, and
to make a contrast between the bondage and the liberty that
we have. Well, the first passage is way
back in the epistle. It is found back under in chapter
3, verse 23, and runs through chapter 4 and verse 7. And in this, Paul uses the metaphor
of a pedagogue who oversaw young Arish children in their in their
knowledge. They were put under a pedagogue
until the time appointed by the father. Then they were brought
out from under the pedagogue into the full adoption and privileges
of children. Now this answers to their time
under the law. Paul said that they were shut
up. He says that they were kept in
using that metaphor. And he also says that during
that time, while they were under tutors and governors and pedagogue,
that they differed nothing from a servant, though they were Lord
of all, the people of God. And then God sent the Lord Jesus
Christ incarnate in flesh to redeem them from their bondage
out from under the law, so that chapter 4 and verse 7, they were
no more servants, but they were sons. And Paul asked them then
in Galatians 4 and verse 9, Why was it that they were desiring
to be again under bondage and the rudiments and the elements
of the world? Why were they wanting to turn
back again and put themselves under slavery? Why, after knowing
God, and receiving the adoption of sons, would they even then
consider being enslaved again under the weak and beggarly elements
of the world? Now, the second passage, I think,
is even more forceful and might have a bearing upon our text
here in chapter 5. And I refer to Paul's masterful
allegory in chapter 4 and verse 21 through verse 31, where Paul
gives us that great allegory. And what he does, he allegorizes
the domestic history and family of Abraham to illustrate to his
readers the bondage of the law and to cause them to see the
true nature of the law. He says to them, ye that desire
to be under the law, Have you not heard the law? Do you not
know what it says?" Almost in desperation, he puts that question
unto them. Don't you hear the law? Don't you know what it says? And I don't think Paul's talking
about hearing the law read every Sabbath day in a particular synagogue,
because it was, but he is asking them. Since you are so strongly
inclined to put yourself again under the law, do you, have you,
will you really hear what is said? Do you understand how it
is with them that are under the law? Do you understand the situation
of those that are under the law? and the state of them that are
therein. You would not be putting yourselves
under the law. You would cherish the freedom
of Jesus Christ if you clearly heard the law. So Paul starts
to allegorize in that great allegory the history of Abraham, and by
that, by Abraham's house, Abraham's two wives, Abraham's two sons
and such like. Paul illustrates the two covenants. by referring to the two wives
of the patriarch, Sarah and Hagar, the latter a bondwoman and the
first a free woman or a true wife. And then the condition
of those that were born under these respective women. He born
of the free woman, he born rather of the bondwoman, was born after
the flesh, by the energy of the flesh merely, merely by the course
of nature, born in a natural way. As the scripture said, Abraham
went in unto Hagar, and she conceived, and she bared. Genesis chapter
16 and verse 4. But he born of Hagar, being born
of the flesh, was born in bondage with his mother, and then was
cast out with her. Hagar and her son were cast out,
because the son of the bondwoman shall not be heir with the son
of the free woman." Genesis 16, also in Galatians chapter 4. Now, on the other hand, he that
was born of the free woman, Sarah, the legitimate and true wife,
was born by promise. He was born in accordance with
a promise. And He was the true heir and
not Ishmael. And the one born in whom His
seed would be called is He born of the free woman. And Paul makes
the application then in chapter 4 and verse 28. Now we, brethren,
as Isaac was, are the children of promise. We are not born after
the flesh, but after or according to the promise. Then, in Galatians
4 and 31, is the final application of the allegory from Paul. So then, brethren, we are not
children of the bondwoman, but of the free. The we being believers,
whether Jew or whether Gentile. The called ones, the converted
and the believer. And to regard themselves as such,
they are to act upon that principle that they are sons of the free
woman and not of the bond woman. Hence, after long last, the exhortation
in Galatians 5, verse 1 and following. Since we are not born of the
bondwoman, but of the free woman, since we are not children of
bondage, but children of freedom, that being our case and situation,
let's stand fast in that liberty wherewith Christ hath made us
free." The words are after this order, take a stand, stand fast,
be steadfast and unmovable. Now, Paul speaks two great truths
concerning what we call Christian liberty or freedom in Galatians
chapter 5. The first one is in verse 1. Stand fast in the liberty wherewith
Christ hath made us free. And the second one is in verse
13. Do not use liberty as an occasion
to the flesh or corruption. Yes, says Paul, we have been
called into liberty. And it is to be maintained at
all cost. give it up for nothing. And yet,
it is not to be used to indulge or to justify sinful acts or
the works of the flesh. Because, you see, there is always
the danger that some would name the bounds of their own liberty
and make that liberty whatever they desire or want it to be. So before we proceed, let us
acknowledge that the issue of Christian liberty can become
and has become a contentious issue among professing Christians
over the generation. In that, what one calls liberty,
another will call antinomianism and vice versa. And what one
calls conviction and a strong case of conscience, another will
see and view as legalism. And accusations are always hurled
back and forth, one side to the other. Charges of legalist, charges
of antinomian, or of libertine. I remember seeing a religious
cartoon many years ago. For some reason, I still think
about it every now and then. The cartoon was two boxers were
in the ring flailing away at one another, fighting, beating,
they were really going at it. And a referee was there trying
to separate them, and on the trunk of one boxer was written
antinomian, and on the box of the other was written legalist.
and on the referee was written Christian, and he was trying
to separate them and to get them to come unto peace. And they
were fighting away, the legalist and the antinomian. But to return
to the nature and essence of this liberty, we must consider
the nature and the essence of the bondage from which Paul has
declared that we have been delivered. Again, using words from Bolton,
that everyone is by nature in bondage. Everyone is in bondage
of some sort and to some degree. None escape on their own, being
subject unto bondage. They are slaves before they are
free. They are in bondage and slavery. until they are made free by Christ. And the chief bondage, or the
common bondage, is sinful exercises of dominion of every descendant
of Adam and of Eve. There are No exception. Unless we consider the sinless,
perfect humanity of our blessed Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,
conceived without sin, conceived without a man, He had no human
father and absolutely no taint of corruption or sin in Him. He was not born of Adam in the
sense that we are. But next we confess that none
can free themselves from this bondage unto sin. nor may we
expect deliverance from a fellow man. The psalmist has written,
chapter 49 and verse 7, none can by any means redeem his brother
nor give to God a sacrifice for him. In John 8, 32 through 36,
you might remember that our Lord had a conversation and met a
challenge from some of the Jews when he told them that knowing
the truth they would be set free. You shall know the truth and
the truth shall make you free. Well, they denied ever being
in bondage at all to any man. They boasted, we are the seed
of Abraham, we were never in bondage unto any man. That being descendants of Abraham,
they thought, stood them on the level of nobles and of princesses
who enjoyed great liberty. As such, they said, we were never
in bondage to any man. I mention this because it shows,
it exposes the pride of some of those concerning their religious
ancestors. And too proud to admit ever being
the servants or the slaves of sin. That they will actually
deny their own history, and their own experience. We were never
in bondage unto sin. You may remember that God told
Abraham when He called him and entered covenant and blessed
him. He said to Abraham in Genesis
chapter 15 and verse 13 that his seed would be strangers in
a land not theirs, and shall serve them, and they shall afflict
them four hundred years." And one of the high points of their
history was the deliverance by God of them out of the house
of bondage, the land of Egypt. And we remind those Jews again,
what of the Babylonian captivity? Even as they stood there denied
ever being in bondage, they were chafing under the yoke of Roman
oppression and desired that to be thrown off of them by Caesar. But the Lord did not speak to
them of a political bondage. or he tells them in John 8 in
verse 34, he that commits sin is the servant of sin. The words are after this order. Everyone doing sin is the slave
of sin. Because the word here used is
the word doulos, a very strong word for slave in the New Testament. It means to bind one up. It means a state of subjection. It means one who is subject to
oversight and to rule. And by the way, the same word
is used and can be used whether speaking of a natural slave or
a slave to sin or even a servant of Jesus Christ, the same word
applies unto them. Paul is clear that in our unregenerate
days, here's some text, Romans 6 and 17, 6 and 20, that we were
the servants of sin. We served sin and were in bondage. But returning now to Galatians
chapter 5, Paul's admonition to them, stand fast in the liberty
for which Christ has freed us. So let us consider the full extent
of that liberty with which Christ has freed and has endowed us. Here are some measures or aspects
of our freedom. I have jotted down six of them. Number one, He freed us from
the servitude of sin. Sin shall not have dominion over
you. Romans 6 and 14. Number two,
He freed us from the enslavement of and to Satan. Number three,
He freed us from the curse of the law that it cannot curse
and condemn us. Number four, He has freed us
from the traditions and the commandments and the doctrines of men and
of false teachers. we are not to submit to them.
Number five, in the case of the Jew, he freed them from the unbearable
yoke of the ceremonial law. And six, in the case of the Gentile,
he freed them from their idols and the rudimentary, elementary,
beggarly elements of the world. Now let me say that this freedom
that Christ has endowed us with is a great and valuable treasure
to the people of God. It ought to be one of the most
valued things that we have. How miserable is slavery! How hopeless is slavery! How precious is freedom and liberty! In civil life, Men have risked
and given their physical life to gain political and religious
freedom. They have fought tyranny to the
shedding of their blood that their fellows and they might
live as free men and women. Even so, Christ died to set us
free. He was made sin that He might
free us from sin. He was made a curse of the law
and endured the curse of the law that we might be free from
that curse. He abolished the ceremonial law
that the Jews might receive the full adoption of son. And he called the Gentiles into
that gospel liberty. That's why Paul exhorts them
to stand fast in the liberty which Christ has gained for His
people. Christ died, I repeat, to gain
this freedom for His people. gave His blood as the price of
their redemption. He purchased freedom for the
captive. He gave the proper sacrifice
and redemption to buy the slaves out of their enslavement in sin. As in the allegory, He tells
them, you, like Isaac, are the children of the free woman. Therefore stand fast and unmovable
in that freedom with which Christ has freed you. Now the question
might enter into our mind, what did Paul see as a threat to their
freedom? What was it that they were doing,
or being encouraged to do, or might be doing, that was a threat
unto their freedom? What were they doing that caused
their mentor in the faith to give them this strong exhortation? And the answer, perhaps partially
in part, is that they were allowing the ceremonial law, parts of
it and in some cases all, to be imposed upon them as a part
of their justifying righteousness. The Jews came and as in Acts
15 said, except you be circumcised after the manner of the law of
Moses, you cannot be saved. And so there had come those among
this chiefly Gentile church and assembly, by the way, they had
come among them And they were allowing themselves to be entangled
again in a net or a yoke of bondage. That's in the last part of verse
1. Which had as its outward visible
symbol circumcision. And so highly esteemed was it
among the Jews that they actually and others referred to themselves
as quote, the circumcision. They were known as the circumcision. And I'm going to give you several
scriptures where you can confirm that. Acts 10, 45, 11, and 2.
Romans 3. and verse 30, 4 and verse 9,
4 and verse 12, in Galatians chapter 2 verses 7 and 8, Galatians
2 and 9, 2 and 12, and in Ephesians chapter 2 and verse 11. In all of these places, the designation,
the circumcision, was in reference under the Jew. While the Gentiles
were designated the opposite, the uncircumcision. And yet, through gospel grace,
both of them were justified by the grace of God and faith in
the Lord. Paul had reminded them in Galatians
chapter 3 that they had not received the Spirit of God, not received
it at all in conjunction with the law, but they had received
the Spirit of God in conjunction with the preaching of the gospel. And he will tell them in chapter
6 and verse 13, that they wish to impose circumcision on you,
that they may glory in your flesh. And in Galatians 2, 1 through
5, steadfastly did Paul resist the knife being administered
unto Titus. Why did Paul refuse Titus being
circumcised? Well, here it is, quote, that
the truth of the gospel might continue with you. Galatians 2 verse 5, the last
part. That the gospel remain pure and
unadulterated. I'm inclined to agree with the
theologian J.C. Lightfoot's assessment of the
churches that were in Galatia that Paul ministered to and wrote
unto. And that is that they were predominantly
Gentile, but also a decided number of Jewish professors had also
come in the assembly. And as Lightfoot put it, this
became a link of communication between the brethren in Palestine
and those in Galatia, by which Jewish practices were transmitted
to their Gentile fellow Christians, unquote. or whenever there were
Jews in the assembly, whenever they were in the mixture, there
was the inclination both to keep and then to impose the ceremonial
laws upon the Gentile, beginning with circumcision, which some
have called the initiatory rite. Professor Lightfoot thought that
the Judaistic influence was stronger in Galatia than it was in some
of the other Gentile churches. In fact, he wrote, it was the
Judaism of a sharp Pharisaic type. That type of Judaism had
come in Galatia. It was minus that mysticism that
was mixed with it at Colossae. So that the necessity of circumcision
was strongly insisted upon and there was the observance in Galatia
of days, months, seasons, years, and times. Galatians chapter
4 and verse 10. They were still observing and
imposing some of those upon the Gentile. So that in the end,
It was the wish and the attempt of the Judaizers to impose the
whole ceremonial law upon their Gentile brethren and converts. Hear, Paul, if you will, Galatians
5, 2 through 4, I, Paul, tell you, if you become circumcised,
Christ will be of no profit to you. For everyone who gets circumcised
becomes a debtor to fulfill every requirement of the law And in
seeking justification by the law, you are driven off of the
course of grace. Grace is not dependent upon the
law. Neither grace nor law, nor grace
plus works, or grace plus anything, saves the sinner. It is all of
grace. It is grace plus nothing. Grace and grace alone. It is Christ plus nothing or
minus nothing. Add nothing to Christ and take
nothing away. And yet, many professing Christians
are inclined to chain themselves to some law or to some set of
precepts that are not scriptural. Many Christians, far too many,
believe that they ought to wear some yoke. that they ought to
have some shackles to put an unnecessary and an unscriptural
burden upon themselves and upon others. And while some claim
that salvation is by grace and all of grace, They then take
a brand new convert and they put that convert under the law
and began to teach them the traditions of men without the support of
the Scripture behind them. Some, in Christendom even, have
sought to revive parts of the ceremonial law, if not all of
it. Not in whole, but in part. I say in such things as strict
Sabbatarianism. Or trying to bring the Old Testament
dietary laws upon New Testament Christians. These laws of diet
were definitely abolished by Christ in His death. You can
read that to Paul writing to Timothy. 1 Timothy 4, verse 4
and 5. Every creature of God is good
to be received if it is sold with thanksgiving. Now we can
eat a possum, a rattlesnake, or a coon if we want to. The ceremonial law had served
as a dividing wall between the Jews and the rest of the world. And that was one of its functions
or purposes. Paul says that in Ephesians 2,
14 through 16. That ceremonial wall, that middle
wall of petition, was a wedge between Jew and Gentile, but
it was also a source of enmity between the two people. Now,
in coming to a close, let's develop a thought from John Owen. That
is the connection between liberty and the adoption of sons. Enter that now in our memory
bank. The connection between liberty
and the adoption of sons. It's set out in Galatians chapter
4, that for the adoption of one, into the family of God, for one
to be taken in and among and have the full privileges of divine
sonship, means that they must be completely, absolutely, totally
freed from all former restriction and attachment and obligations
and debts, and give them the full privileges and freedoms
of the new family into which they are brought. All former
ties with a former family are severed. A new family is entered
and new liberties are there which they are free to partake of. All rights and privileges of
the new family are bestowed upon them for their use and for their
blessing. So adoption, the adoption of
son brings us into the fullness of the liberty that is in Jesus
Christ. Having said all of that, our
liberty is precious. We would not give it up. We would
not submit to the shackles that men would impose upon us, which
are unscriptural and unchristian. Nevertheless, there is this caution
in verse 13. You have been called unto liberty. Do not use it as an occasion
under the flesh. Do not use your liberty as an
excuse to sin or to give the enemies of the Lord an occasion
to blaspheme. Christian liberty is precious. It is the dowry of Christ. It is to be managed according
to truth. Our Christian liberty is to be
exercised and managed according to the truth. And, in some things
indifferent, we are to forego our liberty to a point not to
wound the weak ones, so as not to pain the consciences of others. Paul talks about that. 1 Corinthians
8, 9, and 10. and again in Romans chapter 14. You see, in closing, genuine
liberty is testified or witnessed to by the truth of God's blessed
word, the Scripture. You shall know the truth and
the truth shall make you free. You have liberty in Christ. Stand fast in that liberty. Only use it not as an occasion
to sin or corruption or the flesh. We have been called unto liberty. call to freedom in and through
Jesus Christ, which means that all of our old enslavements have
been taken away and broken by and through the grace of God
unto us. For that, we should ever be thankful
and grateful.