True Liberty of True Saints

Q: What does the Bible say about true liberty in Christ?

The Bible teaches that true liberty in Christ means freedom from the law as a covenant and curse, enabling believers to serve God in love. In Galatians 5:13, the Apostle Paul emphasizes that believers have been called to liberty, specifically the liberty of Christ, which signifies freedom from the ceremonial and Levitical laws that once bound Israel. This true liberty allows Christians to come into God's presence without the burden of legalistic requirements for acceptance. Instead of being entangled in rituals or traditions that were fulfilled in Christ, believers are free to serve one another in love (Galatians 5:13). This profound freedom assures that our acceptance by God is entirely based on Christ's finished work and not on our strict adherence to the law or any works of the flesh.

Q: Why is understanding our freedom in Christ important for Christians?

Understanding our freedom in Christ prevents us from returning to legalism and allows us to focus on loving service rather than self-righteousness. Understanding our freedom in Christ is crucial because it helps prevent Christians from slipping back into the bondage of legalism, which is trusting in works for salvation or favor with God. Paul warns in Galatians 5:4 that anyone who seeks to be justified by the law has fallen from grace, meaning that they have turned away from the gospel that emphasizes faith in Christ alone. This realization leads to spiritual growth, enabling believers to serve one another through love rather than out of obligation or fear of punishment. A Christian's motivation for obedience should stem from love and gratitude towards Christ for His sacrificial work, not from a desire for self-justification.

Q: How do we know that Christ's work is sufficient for our salvation?

Christ's work is sufficient for salvation because it fulfills the law and offers complete redemption for believers through faith. The sufficiency of Christ's work for salvation is evident in the scriptures, emphasizing that all requirements of the law have been fulfilled in Him. Paul articulates in Romans 10:4 that Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes. This means that His perfect obedience and sacrifice fully satisfy God's justice on behalf of His people. Therefore, no additional works or adherence to the law are needed for justification. Our acceptance before God is solely based on faith in Christ, allowing us to rest assured in the promise of salvation, as reinforced by Ephesians 2:8-9 which states that we are saved by grace through faith, not by works.

Q: Why does the Bible say we should serve each other in love?

The Bible instructs us to serve each other in love as a demonstration of our freedom and new nature in Christ. The call to serve one another in love, as stated in Galatians 5:13, is a practical application of the liberty believers have in Christ. This service is not out of obligation or fear but rather stems from an understanding that we are free from the condemnation of the law. Furthermore, the new nature that believers possess through regeneration compels them to express love and good works towards others. This love is the fulfillment of the law, as Jesus instructed in Matthew 22:37-40, which underscores the essence of Christian living. By serving each other in love, believers reflect the character of Christ, thereby upholding the unity and spirit within the body of the church.

I'm going to be speaking tonight, beginning with verse 13, and
I hope through verse 26. So without any introduction or
words of explanation, let's get right to the text, verse 13.
The title of the message is True Liberty, True Liberty of True
Sons. true liberty of true sons. Paul
says in verse 13, For brethren, you have been called unto liberty. Now, the liberty he's talking
about is what he spoke about back in verse 1, the liberty
of Christ. Let's go back and look at verse
1 through verse 5 for just a moment. This liberty and freedom in Christ
is what this chapter is all about. True liberty for true sons. Look
at verse 1 a moment. Stand fast, therefore, in the
liberty wherewith Christ has made us free. And be not entangled
again with the yoke of bondage. In other words, we're free from
the ceremonial law. We're free from circumcision.
We're free from the sacrifices. We're free from the feast days
and holy days. We're free from the keeping of
Sabbath days. We're free from the tithe. We're
free from all of those Old Testament sacrifices and ceremonies and
washings and so forth, the Levitical law of Moses. All of these things
are fulfilled in Christ. We're free from those things.
And he says, don't let anybody entangle you again in these things. We're free from the law as a
covenant or as a curse. And he says in verse 2, Behold,
I, Paul, say unto you that if you be circumcised, in other
words, if you go back to this law, the Levitical law, if you,
if you circumcise in order to find acceptance with God, if
you pay a tithe in order to find acceptance with God, if you're
baptized, if you do anything in order to be accepted of God
and made righteous, look what it says, Christ will profit you
nothing. In the business of the redemption
of our souls, Christ is all. And if you attempt to add anything
to Christ, then he profits you nothing. You're saying it's Christ
plus my baptism, or Christ plus my decision, or Christ plus my
good work. And he said in verse 3, I testify
again to every man that if you start this thing, if you start
keeping a Sabbath day again, or paying a tithe, or being circumcised,
or doing anything as far as the deeds of the Lord works of the
flesh are concerned to make Christ's work effectual, You're better
to do the whole law. You started down the law road,
and the law road must be followed fully, completely, and wholly,
not partly. It's either grace or works, it
can't be both. It's either Christ or you, it
can't be both. It's either Christ or your deeds,
it cannot be both. And verse 4 says, if this is
the case, And there are a lot of preachers who preach this.
Now, Christ died, but you've got to do this, and you've got
to do that, and you've got to do something else. And if you
don't do that, then God won't save you. If you do, God will
bless you. He said, listen, verse 4, Christ
is become of no effect to you. Whosoever of you are justified
in any way, even in the smallest way by the law, if you're justified
in any way by the law, You've departed from grace, you've fallen
from grace. For we, through the Spirit of
God, through the revelation of the Spirit of God, through the
promise of the Word of God, we wait for the hope of righteousness
and sanctification and redemption and eternal life one way, by
faith. By faith, not by works, not in
any shape, form, or fashion. Our Lord Jesus Christ has given
us freedom. Freedom from the law, freedom
from the ceremonial law, freedom from the Levitical law, freedom
to come into the presence of God, freedom as priests of God
ourselves to offer unto Him sacrifices of worship, praise, thanksgiving,
freedom from fear of judgment, freedom from fear of condemnation,
freedom from the fear of death. Don't allow anyone Also, it's
to entangle you ever, to entangle you again with a system of works
or duties or deeds in order to obtain favor of God. Now, there
are plenty of duties and there are plenty of deeds and there
are plenty of works, but not to obtain the favor of God. You
understand what I'm saying? We're going to get into some
things that are expected of us. and are evidences of the new
birth and of regeneration. But these things are not done
in any way to find favor with God. Our favor with God's in
Christ. Listen to this. God will never
accept you because you do anything or don't do anything. We're accepted
in the beloved. You see what I'm saying? God
will not accept your person or your worship, or your soul, by
your doing or not doing anything. It doesn't matter what it is.
You're accepted in the Beloved, totally, fully, absolutely in
the Beloved. You're not complete or incomplete
because of what you do. You're complete in Him. You're
not complete or incomplete by anything you do. You make, you
and I make no contribution whatsoever to our redemption, to our righteousness,
to our sanctification, or to our acceptance with God. Not
any contribution whatsoever. We're complete in Christ. Your
righteousness before God, now listen carefully to this, your
righteousness before God, your righteousness, your holiness,
That ground on which God accepts you as being perfectly holy,
unblameable, unreprovable in his sight, is neither depleted
nor enhanced in any way by your obedience or disobedience. Is
that correct? That's so. That righteousness
has to be perfect. And the scripture says, by the
righteousness of one, Christ shall be to me made perfect.
righteous, by the obedience of one. Not by yours, his perfect
obedience. All right, go back to verse 13.
So brethren, you've been called to liberty in this matter. It's
total freedom, freedom from the law as a covenant, freedom from
the law as a curse, freedom from the law as a rule of behavior
life, freedom from the fear of the law. We've been delivered
from the law. Freedom in Christ. It's a liberty in Christ. Christ
has set us free. You don't want anything to do
with the law as a means of pleasing God. In the flesh, no man can
please God. God's pleased with Christ and
you in Christ because of Christ. But now, what's the next statement?
Only. Beware. Only. Use not this liberty. for an
occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another." What's
he saying? He's saying this. I'm free from
the Levitical law, free from the ceremonial law, I'm free
from all these deeds and duties and tithes and Sabbath days and
so forth, but don't ever use this liberty in Christ as an
excuse to serve this flesh and this self. Don't use your liberty
in Christ ever as an excuse for sin or to justify anything contrary
to God's holy love. Don't ever use this liberty as
an opportunity to neglect spiritual duties, work, and worship. Don't
ever do it. That's what he says. Only, you're
free. Only. Use not this liberty as
an occasion as an excuse or as an opportunity to gratify this
flesh or to justify anything that this flesh does. But what?
But by love, serve God and serve one another. Now, let me give
you four statements here. You listen to these carefully. We don't circumcise as an evidence
that we're in the family of God. Back in those days, every male
child was circumcised on the eighth day after he was born.
And this was a token, this was an evidence that he was a Jew. No one could come to the Passover
who was not circumcised. No one could come to the Temple
who was not circumcised. No one was included in these
things who was not circumcised. That was an evidence that he
was a Jew, evidence that he's in the the people of God. But we don't circumcise as evidence
that we're of the family or people of God. But our hearts have been
circumcised. That's right. It's a circumcision
not made with hands. Our hearts have been circumcised,
and those circumcised hearts give evidence that we're in the
family of God. Right attitude, right spirit,
right with God in men, bears your evidence that we're in the
family of God. It's a circumcised heart that
works by faith and love. See that? There's your evidence. The Jew could show his circumcision,
and I'm a Jew. But we don't show we're a Jew
by these outward things. We show it by the inward things,
the heart. Circumcised heart. All right?
We don't keep a Sabbath day. Christ is our Sabbath. And don't
let anybody bring you under the bondage of the Sabbath. We, we,
we, Christ is our Sabbath, we've entered into His rest. But don't
use this as an occasion for the flesh. Because we love God, every day
is a day of worship. Every day is the day the Lord
hath made. We'll rejoice and be glad in
it. Every day we praise him and pray to him and call upon his
name, and we don't forsake the assembling of ourselves together
because we don't keep the Sabbath day. A man's not accepted because
he keeps the Sabbath day, but he's not accepted to forsake
the worship of God. That's right. Then thirdly, we don't tithe. We don't tie up their storehouse
for the Levitical tribe. Back in the Old Testament, there
were twelve tribes. One of them was the tribe of
Levi. The tribe of Levi is the tribe from which the priests
came, the people that ministered about the temple. They were the
whole tribe of men who ministered about the temple. They didn't
own any property. They didn't have any assignment
of a lot or a place for their abode. They administered the
Temple, and all the people of Israel paid a tithe. They didn't
just pay a tithe of money, they paid a tithe of their crops,
the first fruits, they paid a tithe of herb and anise and cumin and
everything that they got. Ten percent went to the Temple,
went to the storehouse to take care of the tribe of Levi, to
take care of the priests and take care of the Temple. We don't
have a storehouse. We don't have it. Christ is our
tabernacle and our temple. We don't pay a tithe for the
Levitical trial by the support of the temple and the priesthood.
Christ is our great high priest, and we're ever one priest unto
God. But that doesn't mean we don't
give. Now, Phallus in trouble, who uses that, well, I don't
believe in tithing. Phallus uses that as an excuse
not to give. He's in trouble. Now, don't use
that liberty. It's an excuse because really
we give out of love for God, not out of law or rules or percentage. We give out of love for God and
love for our missionaries and preachers and love for people
who need to hear the gospel and love for one another in the support
of the weak and the unfortunate and the weary. Really and truly,
God's people wouldn't stop with a time. They don't stop with
the tithing. If you folks start tithing, we're
going to go broke around here. That's not the way you give.
That's not at all. But now what I'm saying is, because
I don't preach tithing, doesn't mean we use that as an excuse
not to give. Tell us in trouble it does that,
deep trouble. But really and truly, if I can't
be more gracious and giving, under the mercy and love of Christ
Jesus, then that Jew under the requirements of the law, I'm
in trouble. Oh, and here's something else.
We love the law of God, the Ten Commandments. You go down through
the Ten Commandments and there's not a one of them that we have
the liberty to ignore, the liberty to transgress, the liberty to
break. We love the law of God. David
said, I love thy law. But we don't keep the law of
God out of fear. We don't keep the law out of
God out of fear of punishment. We don't keep the law of God
because of fear of eternal condemnation. We keep the law of God because
we love the law of God. That's the kind of people we
want to be. Isn't that right? He said, I'll take my law and
write them. Where did he write the law when
he gave it to Israel? On tablets of stone. where he
writes the law of God for you and me, on their hearts. That's
where the law of God is written, on our hearts. We love that law. And he said, I'll write it on
their minds. They'll think on it. They'll love it, and they'll
think on it. Look at verse 14 of my text,
Galatians chapter 5. He said, for all the law, the
whole law of God is fulfilled in one word. Even in this, thou
shalt love. There's the one word that's the
fulfillment of the whole law of God's love. Go with me to
Matthew chapter 22. Matthew 22. Beginning with verse 37, Matthew
22, 37. One of these Jews came to our
Lord, one of the Pharisees, and they asked him, verse 36,
he said, Matthew 22, 36. Master, which
is the great commandment in the law? Which is the greatest commandment?
Thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not kill, thou shalt not commit
adultery, thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God
in vain, thou shalt not covet. What's the greatest? What's the
greatest law? What's the greatest sin? All
right, Jesus said to him, thou shalt love the Lord thy God with
all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind. This is the
first and great commandment. and the second is likened to
it, thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments
hang all the law and the prophets." You see, obedience that is motivated
by fear of punishment, obedience that is motivated by duties assigned,
obedience that is motivated by reward is not heart obedience. If I look at the law of God and
do it out of fear, or because I hope to be rewarded for my
obedience, or I do it because it's expected of me, that's not
heart obedience and God will not accept it. Almighty God looks
upon the heart, not on the outward countenance. All right, back
to our text. Verse 15, now he says, Thou shalt
love thy neighbor as thyself, verse 15, but if we bite and
devour one another, take heed that ye be not consumed one of
another. In other words, if we are critical and unforgiving
and unkind and we're filled with bitterness, and malice and hatred
and division. We're going to destroy not only
the unity of the family of God and the peace of the family of
God and the fellowship of the family of God, we're going to
destroy ourselves. We're going to be consumed one
of another. This spirit, this attitude finally
just destroys everybody. So verse 16, this I say, you
see, love is the common, love is the bond or cement that holds
us together. Let me show you that for a moment.
Turn to Colossians. There's a passage over here in
Colossians chapter 3. This is the word. Love is the
bond. It's like all these stones, living
stones in the temple of our Lord Jesus Christ are held together
by this cement, love. Look at Colossians 3, verse 12,
Colossians 3, 12. Put on therefore as the elect
of God, holy and beloved, vows of mercy. Vows, when it talks
in the scripture about vows, it's talking about the innermost
being, down where we live, the real self, the real person. Kindness,
humbleness of mind, not just an outward look of humility,
but a genuine humility of mind, meekness, long-suffering, forbearing
one another and forgiving one another. And if any man have
a quarrel against any, even as Christ forgave you in the same
way, why did he forgive you? Well,
the reason was found in him, not in you. He's motivated out
of his love for you. You didn't do anything to merit
his forgiveness. Well, that's why we're to forgive
others. for no reason at all, except that's the way it ought
to be, that's our nature, forgive one another. And above all these
things, put on love, which is the bond, that's the bond, that's
the cement that holds us together, the bond of perfectness. Now
verse 16 and 17, we have to read these verses together. Now, you
remember our subject, brethren, we've been called to liberty.
freedom in Christ. But don't use this liberty as
an occasion for the flesh. Don't use it as an opportunity
or as an excuse for, well, that's just the way I am, you know,
or that's what I want to do and I'm going to do it no matter
what anybody says, you know, this sort of thing. All right, verse
16 and 17. This I say, now these verses
have to be read together. Walk in the Spirit and you'll
not fulfill the rest of the flesh. for the flesh lusteth against
the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh." Now there are two
words that are used there, three times each. Read it again. This I say, then, walk in the
spirit, you'll not fulfill the lust of the flesh, for the flesh
lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against the flesh.
Two times each. And these are contrary one to
the other, so you cannot do the things you would. Now, every
believer has two natures. Every true child of God has two
natures. Now, an unregenerate man has
one nature. One nature, that's flesh. He's
not born again. The believer is born of the Spirit
of God. He has a spirit, nature of spirit,
nature of flesh. He has two natures. Now, the
flesh, that's that old man, that old nature with which we were
born, that old nature of pride, that old nature of envy, that
old nature of lust, that old nature of anger, that old nature
of selfishness and jealousy and resentment of authority, just
that old nature. That's in us, that's of us, that's
part of us, that is us in the flesh. But secondly, the believer has
a new nature, the spirit. It's called the new man created
in Christ Jesus. When we're born again, when we're
born of the word of God and born of the spirit of God and born
by the grace of God, we receive a new nature. And that's a nature
that loves holiness. It's a nature that loves the
word of God. It's a nature that loves Christ.
It's a nature that wants to be just like the Lord Jesus Christ. It's a nature of obedience. It's
a nature that hates sin. It's a nature that loves righteousness.
It's a nature that loves to be obedient to God in everything. That's that new nature. Now,
these two natures, the scripture says here in verse 17, they are
contrary. They're contrary. It means this,
they're opposite. These two natures are as opposite
as light and darkness. These two natures are enemies. That's what it says. It says
that these two are contrary one to the other, and verse 17 says,
the flesh lusteth against the spirit, and the spirit against
the flesh. It's called a warfare. It goes
on all the time. The old man, the old nature,
still has that desire for sin, and that potential to sin, that
possibility, all those things are there, and that new nature
fights against it. They're at war with one another.
They're contrary to one another. And he says here in verse 17,
so you cannot do the things that you would. What does he mean
by that? Well, the old nature would do
evil, but the new nature won't let it. Greater is he that's in you than
he that's in the world. I know what I'm capable of doing,
but the Spirit of God in me says you're not going to do it. That's
not what you want to do. That's not what would glorify
God. The old nature would do evil, but the new nature battles
it, and the new nature would be perfect. What keeps you from
being perfect? The old nature. Isn't that right? This new nature that God puts
within us would worship perfectly. But why don't we worship perfectly?
Because that old nature in there causes the conflict. This new
nature wants to be just like Christ. It wants to live and
be truthful and Pray and be victorious all the time. Never think an
evil thought. Never speak a hasty word. Never
get mad. Never do these things. That new
nature, that's what it wants. Why doesn't it do it? It has an old nature. And you're
going to carry them with you to the grave. But the only thing
is, when you go to the grave, God's going to destroy that old
nature, and that new nature is going to glory. And then you're
going to be what you've always wanted to be. Then we shall be
what we would be. That's when you're going to be
what you are. But not till later. So that's the reason verse 16
says, this I say then, walk in the Spirit. Walk in the Spirit. Walk in the Word of God. Walk
with the people of God. Walk among those who know God.
Walk in the Spirit of Christ, our example. Walk in love for
God and love for his glory. Walk with those who know God.
Walk daily in the promises of God. And then you won't fulfill
this lust of the flesh. But now, if you absent yourself
from the house of God and the preaching of the gospel, you
absent yourself from the reading of God's word, You absent yourself
from the fellowship of people who know God and who love God
and you run around with people that hate God and hate the gospel? Then your old nature's got some
allies. And that old nature with these allies in this new strength,
by starving the spiritual man, he does what he wants to do. But when the spiritual man is
fed from the word of God and fed by exhort, exhort one another
daily. Sing to one another in spiritual
song. Provoke one another into love
and good works. Edify one another. That's what
the scripture says. Strengthen this new man, and
then you won't fulfill this lust of the flesh. That's praying.
You won't give over. That's the word. You won't give
over to it. It'll be present. It'll always be present. Will
the victory ever be totally won? Yes, but not while you're in
the flesh. But verse 18, but if you're led of the Spirit of
God, you're not under the law. Now what does that mean? If you're
led by the Spirit of God, you're not under the law. Well, when
I was an unbeliever, I was under the law. I was subject to the
law. Let's see if I can show you that
in Romans 3. When I was, before I came to know the gospel, before
I came to know Christ, I was subject to the law, under the
law, under the Curse of the law, listen to Romans 3, 19. Now we
know that what thing soever the law saith, it saith to them who
are under the law, that every mouth may be stopped, and all
the world become guilty. That's all the law will say to
me, guilty. When I was an unbeliever, I was
under the law, I was subject to the law, I was condemned by
the law. And the law says in verse 20,
therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified
in God's sight, but by the law is only one thing, the knowledge
of sin. Do this and live, offend and
die. Where did the law lead me when I was under the law? It
led me to guilt. That's the only place the law
can lead you. Those that are under the law,
let every mouth be stopped and all will become guilty. Where
does the law lead you? To depression. I tell you, if
you make the law your rule of life, you'll stay depressed all
the time. If you know the law, you that
would be under the law, don't you hear the law? The law doesn't
require that I admire it, or applaud it, or agree with it,
but that I do it. And not only outwardly, but inwardly. And the law can only lead me
to depression. What happened to Israel when
God gave the law? They turned and ran. Flee from
that mountain. That's all you can do. The law
led me to condemnation, but now, by the grace of God, I'm not
under the law. I've been delivered from its
curse by the obedience of Christ, I've been delivered from its
condemnation by the righteousness of Christ, I've been delivered
from its judgment, and the law is not my leader, it's not my
inspiration, and under God it's not my motivation. It can't be. Because as I look at that, the
only one thing I can come up with, guilty. Guilty. That doesn't motivate a fellow,
does it? What does motivate me? Verse 18, if you be led of the
Spirit, the Spirit of God, you're not under the law. I'm led by
the Spirit of Christ to do the will of God, the will of Christ,
out of love for Him and for His church. The law may corral the
outward man, but only the Spirit of Christ can motivate the inward
man. See what I'm saying? The law
may put a damper out of fear or duty or reward or promises
of better days. The law will make me... I'll
tell you an illustration. A little boy was misbehaving,
and his mother said, Jimmy, sit down. He kept standing there. She said, I said, sit down or
else, and he sat down. And he mumbled something. And
she said, what did you say? He said, I'm sitting down on
the outside, but I'm standing up on the inside. That's what the law does. The
law will sit me down on the outside, but the law can never sit me
down on the inside. The law can make me give, but
it can't make me love to give. The law can make me forgive you,
but it can't make me really forgive you. The law can make me walk
in a certain path, but the law can't make me love that path.
You understand what I'm saying? The law can corral the outward
man, but only the Spirit of Christ can corral the inward man. And
that's the reason, and that settles the law issue for me, all this
sort of thing that people talk about where the law is our rule
of life. Well, it was mine when I was
an unbeliever. But not since I've been a believer.
Because the law can't help me. The law condemns me. Can't break
me. Can't make me bow. Can't make
me submit. Can't do it. The law cannot do
what the law could not do. And it was weak through the flesh.
God sending his only son in the likeness of sinful flesh condemns
sin in the flesh. Is that what that means, John?
Can't do it. If that's your motivation, you're
a debtor to do the whole law. But beware, don't use this liberty
as an occasion to justify this flesh. Now that's the reason
he goes into verse 19, he said, now these are the works of the
flesh, and they're manifest. They're these, adultery, disregard
for the marriage state. Fornication, that was a practice
of the Gentiles that they thought was all right. Uncleanness, lasciviousness,
that's indecency. idolatry, witchcraft, hatred. You know what all those are?
Variance, that's divisions, discord, emulation, that's jealousy, wrath,
strife, sedition, that's party spirit, heresies, envy, murders,
not just outwardly but in the heart, drunkenness, intemperance,
reveling, carousing and such like, of which I tell you before,
as I've told you in times past, that people who still practice
these things and do these things and walk in these things as a
pattern of life will not inherit the kingdom of God. It's an impossibility. That's just right. I read a letter to the men a
while ago, and I said this letter was written by an unsaved Saved
man can't write a letter like this. Oh, I know the potential
is there. It's still present. The possibility
is still present. But this is not the practice
and pattern of life of a believer. This is not his tenor of life. This is not his wall. This is
the works of the flesh. But verse 22, now because, listen,
it says, if any man's in Christ, he's a new creature. He's a new
creature. He's a new creature. I ask you
tonight, do you hate somebody? Do you hate them? You can't love
Christ and hate people. Your old nature may not like
what they're doing or what they're saying, but you don't hate them. And that goes for all these other
things, you know. There may be the tendency there
and the potential there and all this, but you're not going to
deliberately fly into the face of God Almighty and violate that
which was which he has commanded to the embarrassment of the church
and the gospel and Christ and everything else, you're just
not going to do it. The Spirit of God won't let you do that. He
won't let you do that. But verse 22, this is the fruit
of the Spirit. This is the fruit of the Spirit.
And notice the word is not plural, it's not fruits of the Spirit.
It's just fruit. And the reason he uses a singular
word is this. In verse 22, the singular word,
because this fruit in its entirety, to various degrees, is present
in every believer. You see what I'm saying? Well,
it's in its entirety, it's the whole thing. In other words,
let me read them and you'll see what I'm talking about. This
is the fruit of the Spirit. Now, let me say this first of
all. We can't take any credit for this if we do have this fruit. It's the gift of God. We don't
pretend to be holier than anybody. It's only by his grace that we
have any love or joy or peace or any of these things. It's
not I but Christ that liveth in me, Paul said. He said, I
labored more abundantly than anybody, yet not I but Christ
in me. But here's the fruit of the Spirit, it's love, not hate.
not division, peace, not strife, patience, not impulsiveness,
gentleness, not being unkind, hatred, goodness, faith, meekness,
humility, temperance, and all things. And against these there
is no law. There is no law. And they that
belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its affections
and lusts. When do they crucify it? Every
day. Every day. It's a new job tomorrow. Those who belong to Christ have
and do crucify this flesh with its passions, its pride, its
malice, its desires. It's a constant warfare, but
they're serious about it. They're not going to go over
here and use their liberty as an occasion to the flesh, to
justify the flesh, or to give an excuse for the flesh. They're
going to fight it. They're serious about it. They
don't want to do or say or act in any way which will bring reproach
upon Christ. They don't want to bring reproach
upon the gospel, upon his people. Most of all though, they want
to be like you. And verse 25 says, now if we
live in the Spirit, let's walk in the Spirit. If you're born again, if you're
a child of God, if you do live by the grace of God, by the Spirit
of God, if you have been made a new creature, If the Spirit
of God is your leader, he's not leading you where your flesh
wants to go. That's not the leadership of
the Holy Spirit. He's not leading you there. Somebody says, I believe this
is the will of God. Not if it's contrary to his law. Not if it's
contrary to his gospel. Not if it's contrary to his commandments.
Not if it's contrary to right and righteousness. God's not
in that. God is not in that. That's that
flesh. So if we live in the Spirit, Then let's walk in the Spirit.
And in closing, let us not be desirous of vain glory. We're not trying to impress anybody
with our holiness. We're not trying to impress anybody
with our righteousness. We're not desirous of vain glory
or praise or applause or these things or the glory of the flesh. We're desirous of this one thing,
to please him, to glorify him, to be used of God, to be blessed
of God, to be an example to others, to be a testimony and a witness
to his grace. Let's don't look for vain glory,
because in doing that, we provoke one another. Yeah, we envy one another. We
try to outdo each other. Well, I'm going to try to be
holier than you. be more giving than you or more forgiving than
you. We're not in a contest. We're
not in a contest. Any more than you would take
your four-year-old and pit him against your 20-year-old and
make him come up to those requirements. You have a standard for him and
for her and for him and for her and for him and for dad. See
what I'm saying? We're not in any kind of contest. We're not envious of vain glory.
With whatever our stage or whatever our calling or whatever our gifts
or whatever our station, wherever God's placed us, I just want
to be what I am for his glory. Understand that? Well, okay. I hope that's a blessing.

True Liberty of True Saints

What does the Bible say about true liberty in Christ?

Why is understanding our freedom in Christ important for Christians?

How do we know that Christ's work is sufficient for our salvation?

Why does the Bible say we should serve each other in love?

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True Liberty of True Saints

What does the Bible say about true liberty in Christ?

Why is understanding our freedom in Christ important for Christians?

How do we know that Christ's work is sufficient for our salvation?

Why does the Bible say we should serve each other in love?

Sermon Transcript

About Henry Mahan

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