All right, good evening. It's good to see you all this evening.
Would you turn in your Bibles, please, to Galatians chapter 4.
Galatians chapter 4, as is our custom, we'll read the entire chapter beginning in verse 1.
Please read along with me.
Galatians chapter 4, the Bible reads,
Now I say that the heir, as long as he is a child,
but is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father.
Even so, we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world.
But when the fullness of the time was come,
God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under the law,
to redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.
And because you are sons, God hath sent forth the spirit of his son into your hearts, crying,
Abba, Father, wherefore thou art no more a servant but a son.
And if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.
How be it then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods.
But now after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God.
How turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, where unto ye desire again to be in bondage?
Ye observe days and months and times and years. I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain.
Brethren, I beseech you, be as I am, for I am as ye are. You have not injured me at all.
Ye know how through infirmity of the flesh I preached the gospel unto you at the first.
And my temptation, which was in my flesh, ye despised not, nor rejected, but received
me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.
Where is then the blessedness ye spake of?
For I bear you record that if it had been possible, ye would have plucked out your own
eyes and have given them to me.
Am I therefore become your enemy?
Because I tell you the truth.
They zealously affect you, but not well. Yay, they would exclude you that ye might affect them.
But it is a it is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing and not only when I am present with you.
My little children of whom I travail and birth again until Christ be formed in you.
I desire to be present with you now and to change my voice for I stand in doubt of you.
Tell me.
Ye that desire to be unto the law, do ye not hear the law?
For it is written that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bond made, the other by a free
woman.
But he who was of the bond woman 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,
For this agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia, an answereth to Jerusalem, which now is, and is in bondage with her children.
But Jerusalem, which is above, is free, which is the mother of us all.
For it is written, Rejoice thou barren that bearest not, break forth and cry thou that travailest not, for the desolate hath many more children than she which hath an husband.
Now we, brethren, as Isaac was, are the children of promise.
But as then, he that was born after the flesh
persecuted him that was born after the Spirit, even so it is now.
Nevertheless, what sayeth the Scripture?
Cast out the bond woman and her son, for the son of the bond woman shall not be heir with the son of the free woman.
So then, brethren, we are not children of the bond woman, but of the free.
Amen, when Galatians 4, getting through this book pretty quickly, it's a great book.
And again, the theme of the book is Paul has had this issue with people trying to bring
in work salvation and he's just written this letter to them so he can really just drive
it home that salvation is completely 100% by faith and not of works.
Telling him seven ways to Sunday and just bringing all different kinds of this is you know
He brings this allegory and so the title of the sermon would be the allegory of Abraham's family
And that's kind of what he really goes into in this passage
He's a lot of different things a lot of different
You know earthly stories that kind of give us the spiritual truce here
And the first one he uses though is his sons and heirs
And so that's the first point and let's look down at verse number one
The Bible says now I say that the heir as long as he is a child differeth nothing from a servant though
He be Lord of all and that's kind of true because you know, even if you were a king like King James
He was taken away from his parents while his dad was killed
and his mother was deposed as the queen.
And so basically at one and a half years old,
he was taken captive and he was,
he was basically kind of given from person to person
and people were kidnapping him and taking him.
But he was under tutors and being taught
all these different languages and taught the Bible.
And he was under tutors,
even though he was Lord of all,
he was the king at one and a half years old.
But he didn't, you know, he couldn't even talk.
He couldn't walk.
he couldn't rule. He didn't know how to rule. And so in reality, he, even though he was Lord
of all, he's still was, he didn't differ from a servant because he's being told what to do.
He has tutors smacking his hand when he's getting answers wrong. And, you know,
he was under George Buchanan, which was a super Calvinist basically. But then when King James
started to get older and started to have and form his own opinions as a young man, they used to fight.
and getting, not maybe not fistfight or anything, but like King James started to say,
I don't agree with you on this. I'm going to form my own opinions. And so he wasn't a super
Calvinist like people like to say he was. He had a difference of opinion, but he was still Lord of
all. And so that's kind of what it's saying is like, you know, you might be the Lord of a household,
but while you're a kid, you're still under tutors. You're learning
what you're supposed to be taught,
and you're no different than whether you'd be a servant,
a hired person in the household.
It says, but is under tutors and governors
until the time appointed of the father.
Once you're able to take over and be the ruler
of the household, the father's gonna tell you
when that time is.
You know, the one that's the lord over the household
at that time.
So it says, even so, we,
When we were children, we were in bondage under the elements of the world, but when the fullness
of the time was come, God sent forth his son, made of a woman, made under the law.
So God waited until the time was right, until the fullness of time was come, until he decided
it was time to send Jesus Christ into the world, then he, what, made him of a woman.
go and turn to Genesis 3 because that's what he said he was going to do, that was the plan to have him made of a woman
because his father is God, Jesus is part God, part man but he's 100% God, 100% man
and so he is different than every single person because of the fact that he's begotten of the father
he's the only begotten of the father full of grace and truth
but he was also made of a woman and made under the law
during the time of the Covenant of the Law for specific reason
but made of a woman. Genesis 3.15 says
and I will put enmity between thee and the woman
talking to Satan here and between thy seed
and her seed.
Her is a woman, right?
That's the pronoun for a woman.
It shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.
So this is the prophecy of Jesus coming into the world,
and that it would be by a woman.
So he had no earthly father because his father is God.
Now turn to Hebrews chapter one, verse one.
Hebrews chapter one, verse number one.
So he was made under the law for a specific reason
because he had to fulfill the law
and live a perfect life so that he could redeem us
from the curse of the law.
Hebrews 1 1 says,
God who at sundry times and in diverse manners
spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets.
Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his son,
whom he hath appointed heir of all things,
by whom also he made the worlds.
So who do you appoint heir of all things his son Jesus Christ who being the brightness of his glory and the express
Image of his person and upholding all things by the word of his power when he had by himself
purged our sins sat down on the right hand of the majesty on high so
Jesus passed all the test
Jesus was tempted by Satan after starving for 40 days
and 40 nights and not having anything to eat or drink
and being tempted and tested and being tempted
in all things, in all ways, yet without sin.
Now turn to Genesis 18, Genesis 18.
Genesis chapter 18, verse 10, the Bible says,
I will certainly return unto thee," he's talking to Abraham here when he comes with the two angels before he goes to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah.
But he visits Abraham here in Genesis 18 and he says,
And he said, I will certainly return unto thee according to the time of life.
Lo, Sarah thy wife shall have a son, and Sarah heard it in the tent which was behind him.
Now Sarah, or Abraham and Sarah were old.
well stricken in age and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women.
In other words, she had already gone through menopause, so she couldn't have
children anymore. Therefore, Sarah laughed within herself seeing, am I
After I am wax old shall I have pleasure my Lord be being old also so Abraham's old too and
The Lord said to Abraham wherefore did Sarah laugh saying shall I of a surety bear a child which I'm old is
Anything too hard for the Lord at the time appointed. I will return unto the according to the time of life and
Sarah shall have a son
so
God is using this language, but he uses this language in Galatians here too at the time appointed
He was brought forth of a woman
At the appointed time
So he did the same thing with Sarah though and Sarah was a mere their child Isaac was a miracle
He is kind of like the virgin birth, isn't it?
And Abraham and Sarah's life picture the Lord Jesus Christ in a way because Mary was a virgin.
That's impossible.
You know, if it was any other woman on the face of the planet, Joseph would have been right.
But Mary really was a virgin and she really was with child of the Holy Ghost.
And he was going to divorce her.
But he would have been wrong, the only person in history that would have been wrong.
But Abraham and Sarah, they had a miracle child also.
But the Lord said, is anything too hard for the Lord?
At the time appointed, I will return according to the time of life, the appointed time.
And so...
I won't have you turn there, but I'll just have you turn back to Galatians chapter 4.
But 1 Samuel chapter 13 verse 8 says,
And he tarried seven days according to the set time that Samuel had appointed,
But Samuel came not to Gilgal, and the people were scattered from him.
So even, you know, Samuel had this time when he was supposed to go and appear before Saul.
You know, he comes when the appointed time is.
And it's like people are like, when is Jesus coming back?
He's coming back at the appointed time,
but we don't know when that day or hour is.
He's at the appointed time.
And so Samuel kind of pictures Jesus here
in that story too, because what does Saul do?
He starts trying to do things in his own power.
Just like Sarah tried to do things in her own power
and she tried to give Hagar to Abraham,
not try to, she did.
And then she is trying to, in the flesh,
a prophecy that God said, no, no, no, you're going to bring forth a son,
you're going to bring forth and I'm going to come back at this certain time.
But see, that's where she messed up. She just tried to do it and fulfill it in the flesh.
The promise was to Sarah. The promise was that Abraham and Sarah would have a child,
not that you're supposed to give your bond servant your handmaid over to Abraham.
And so Saul does the same thing with Samuel though.
He's like, I'm gonna start sacrificing
even though that's not his duty, that's not his job.
And so he tries to do what the priest is supposed to do,
what Samuel's supposed to do,
and Samuel didn't come exactly at the same moment
that he thought he was supposed to come.
And so he takes things into his own hands
and say, well, when we take things into our own hands
and we don't wait for the promise,
then we're operating in the flesh.
And that's why Saul was rejected
and David was chosen, right?
So, Galatians chapter four verse five says,
to redeem them that were under the law,
that we might receive the adoption of sons.
So, you know, the new modern versions,
they'll say that Jesus is the only son.
But that's a bad translation.
Because we are sons also, sons and daughters.
that's why he came to redeem them that were under the law that we might receive
the adoption of sons and because your sons God has sent forth the spirit of
his son into your hearts crying Abba father. That word Abba is kind of like
an endearing term like saying papa is what it is it's kind of like that so
That that term when people say well, I have Jesus in my heart
It is kind of a true saying it's not like you know
Obviously, we believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and we're saved and sometimes we get overly
Technical with stuff and if someone says well, I know I'm safe because I have Jesus in my heart
Technically, they're right
I mean, I wouldn't like say they're not saved
because they said they have Jesus in their heart.
Well, what is that verse there right there?
He sent the spirit of his son into your heart
saying or crying Abba father.
So, I mean, Jesus in our hearts is kind of a biblical teaching
and the spirit of his son in our hearts.
Look at verse seven.
Wherefore thou art no more a servant but a son.
And if a son
than an heir of God through Christ.
So we are now heirs, if we're sons, we're adopted.
But in God's eyes, if we're adopted,
then we're on par obviously with
that we're gonna inherit just like a son
that was born into the home is.
So we're gonna, we're co-heirs with Christ.
Look at John 1-12, John 1-12.
And we all know John 1-12 probably by heart.
But this teaching that we are the sons of God is, you know,
it's misused in the world.
People will say, we're all sons of God.
We're all sons and daughters of God.
The Mormons abuse this.
Lots of people abuse this.
It's not true though.
You're only a son or daughter of God if you're saved.
That's what the Bible teaches.
Look what it says in John 1-12.
But as many as received him,
to them gave he power to become the sons of God.
So, you have to receive Christ first, you have to believe in Him, says even to them
that believe on His name, you must believe on Jesus Christ, you must be saved.
That's what receiving Him means.
It says which were born not of blood, so you don't just automatically get born into the
world and you're a son of God, that's what, isn't that what it says?
We're not born not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh.
nor of the will of man, but of God."
So keeping the commandments is the will of the flesh.
I'm saved because I'm a good person.
Or I'm saved because I keep the commandments, no.
It's not of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man.
You can't will somebody else to be saved either.
They have to choose it on their own.
And it says, but of God.
God is the one that makes us his sons.
And he gives us the prerequisite
that you must receive him.
believe on his name. Romans 8, turn to Romans 8. Romans 8 verse 14, the Bible says
for as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. Gotta have
the Spirit of God, you're not saved. Just plain and simple.
If you have not received the Spirit, then you're not saved.
For you have not received the Spirit of bondage again to fear,
but you have received the Spirit of adoption
whereby we cry Abba Father. So he's already said this to the Romans,
but he's repeating it again in our passage tonight.
We've received the Spirit of adoption whereby we cry Abba Father.
The Spirit itself bears witness with our Spirit that we are the children of God.
And if children then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if so be that we suffer with him that we may be also glorified together.
That is so cool. That is such a great promise to us. I mean, we don't deserve to even be in the same sentence with Christ.
That's just, we're nothing special.
We really aren't.
But the only difference between us
and people that are going to hell,
really is that we had faith
and we believed and trusted in Christ as our Savior.
First John three, turn to first John three.
But to be joint heirs with Christ,
that's such a blessing to us.
It's such a blessing to us
that we get to inherit with Christ.
and he's our brother, you know?
He's not ashamed to call us his brother.
He's also our Lord.
So he's like the big brother
that you don't want to mess around with, you know?
He'll put you in your place real quick.
So anyway, first John chapter three, verse one.
Behold what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God
Think about that. That's a great love these bestowed upon us that we should be called the sons of God
We're not worthy. This is there for the world know with us not because it knew him not
See people don't understand what it's like to be a Christian because you know, and that's why I've been kind of saying this lately
that it's really hard for like
agents to come to our church and try to pretend to be a Christian.
It's one thing for someone to creep in and be a false prophet because they kind of know
a little bit how to kind of creep in because the devil kind of helps them with that,
but to be like a law enforcement agent.
And they don't have a spiritual reason to creep in,
but they're trying to just like gain access
to get us to like buy guns to go to war
with somebody or something or put us through a class
or we're hitting people with clubs.
Remember when they tried to get us to do that.
You know, but to come in and pretend like you have the Spirit of God and to be like a saved person
How can you replicate that you can't pretend that and that's why I think they have such a hard time doing that and
And I fully believe that we've had people come in here and try to be pretend to be one of us
And it's like they just act really weird and then they end up just leaving
It's like you guys know some of the people I'm talking about. I'm sure
but it says, beloved, now we are the sons of God
and it does not yet appear what we shall be.
But we know that when he shall appear,
we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
And every man that hath this hope in him purifyeth himself,
even as he is pure.
Oh, I thought we weren't supposed to purify ourselves.
I mean, according to Pastor Jones,
I mean, we don't purify ourselves, he purifies us.
But no, when we're here in this body, this body sins.
And we do need to act accordingly, okay?
So if we purify ourself, even as he is pure,
so we do need to kind of clean ourselves up
and make sure that we're...
flying right here. And it says, whosoever commit a sin transgresseth also the law,
for sin is the transgression of the law. Your new man cannot sin,
but your old man can.
your old man is going to get smacked around. I mean I just I don't even
understand how it's possible to think that we don't still sin on this earth
in the flesh because we have two natures. We have we have the new man and
we have the old man and they fight against each other. We're gonna go
through that in Galatians chapter 6. I mean there's two natures that we have
and they fight against each other and when you feed the flesh the flesh
wins.
And when you feed the Spirit, the Spirit, you know, if you walk in the Spirit,
you're not going to fulfill the lust of the flesh. But to say that we just don't have that
fleshly nature or that we don't get, you know, smacked around by God for that, I mean, why does
Hebrews chapter 12 even exist? He's just saying that, you know, don't get mad, don't get upset
Oh, that's Old Testament.
I'm pretty sure Hebrews is in the New Testament.
I mean, because I think it, I'm pretty sure that Paul's
getting that from the Proverbs.
I think that he, it's taught all throughout the Old Testament.
I guess we just throw that all away.
I don't know.
Anyway, sorry, I just, that just stirred something up at me.
But.
It says to serve or commit a sin transgress transgressive also the law for this for sin is the transgression
Is the transgression? Excuse me of the law. So when we break the commandments of God
We are sinning. That's what the Bible says, right now
So we are the sons of God. We are heirs and joint heirs with Christ and
The world doesn't know us because it knew not him
They don't understand us
They can't, they can't relate to us.
You can sit there and try to explain.
the things that we believe, but if they're not saved,
they're not gonna get it.
They're not gonna get homeschooling
for the reason that we do it.
They're not gonna get staying true to your wife
for the rest of your life.
They're not gonna get going to the marriage altar pure.
They're not gonna get raising your children
and not letting them watch certain things.
They're not gonna get those things.
They're just not going to.
So they're not gonna understand why you don't like queers.
They're like, well, they're so nice.
They're so funny.
Yeah, until you get them alone in some settings
where nobody's watching them, then they're not as funny then.
Like Alan torturing her cast and crew, like Abu Ghraab
or whatever.
What's the name of that prison?
although great
That's what they said. It was like so probably wasn't that bad, but I mean they are sodomites. So
All right number two tonight
Paul doubts the Galatians salvation
So it's it's so bad that Paul is actually doubting their salvation here
Look at verse eight. It says how be it then when you knew not God
You did service unto them which by nature are no gods
But now after that you have known God or rather are known of God
How turning again to the weak and beggarly elements were unto you desire again to be in bondage
What is he talking about you want to you want to go back to the things that you were unbonded to before?
You know, you're saved by grace through faith.
You have liberty in Christ to serve God
the way we're supposed to be able to serve Him.
And now you wanna go back and to add something,
cause again, they're adding,
they're trying to add that to their salvation.
Not trying to keep the commandments to please God,
but they're trying to keep the commandments to be saved.
Big difference.
It says, you observe days, how are they doing it?
They're observing days and months and times and years.
Those things are done away in Christ.
We do not have to do those things anymore.
It's so weird how there's seventh day Baptists
because they think that we still have to keep the Sabbath.
It's like, dummy.
It specifically says we don't have to do that anymore in the book of Colossians those things are nailed to his cross
We don't let no man judge you there for in meats drinks and the set
You know holy days the Sabbath. We don't have to do those things anymore
So observing days, what is this? Well, how about the feast days? We don't have to do that anymore
No more, well, Hanukkah wasn't really part of it,
but he definitely don't have to do Hanukkah, all right?
But, yeah, the tabernacle's gone.
All that, the feast of tabernacles.
Yeah, we don't have to do that.
We don't have to blow trumpets.
We don't have to observe the new moons
and any of that stuff.
Times, years, none of that stuff.
We don't have to worry about that.
So he says, I'm afraid of you lest I bestowed upon you labor in vain like I worked
I try I go came in there preached the gospel to everybody
Thought you were saved, but he's like I'm afraid of you
Lest I bestowed upon you labor in vain like I wasted my time. It was all for nothing
They're keeping the laws that are done away in Christ specifically is what he's saying also what the circumcision
specifically done away. It's specifically just harped on in the New Testament. You
don't have to do this anymore. The Levitical priesthood, the temple is
is is nothing anymore and it's gonna get destroyed later on but the temple is
still standing but they don't have to do those things anymore. The Sabbath day is
done. Feast day is done. Circumcision done and
What happened again is that in Acts chapter 15,
you know, these guys came down and said,
except you circumcise and keep the law of Moses,
you cannot be saved.
And these guys bought this hook, line, and sinker.
So this is what adding works to salvation is.
This is what legalism is.
When anybody says, you're a legalist,
Well, you're not a legalist unless you're adding works to salvation or you're saying that salvation is by works or
Combination of works and faith. That's legalism
So if you're now saying that you you know Jesus said if you love me keep my commandments
What does that mean that would the Jesus make up all the commandments
Yeah, so did he say keep him to be saved? No, he said you have to believe in me and you're saved
So and his and it also says his commandments are not grievous unto us
You know, don't kill. Oh, well, it's hard for me to not kill people. I don't know. I'm just having a tough time
That's not grievous unto me
You know, maybe some commandments are hard because you had a proclivity to do those things beforehand
But you know for the most part, you know keeping his commandments are not grievous. Maybe some of them are
but
Generally the really horrific ones or not, you know, which one really was easy for me to get over
blaspheming God's name
like instantly that one just
Really quickly it was easy to cut out for me
But it used to be something things. I said a lot and I mean a lot
It was part of my regular vocabulary. I'm not bragging about that telling you that and sorrow like
and it maybe it did take me a little bit to stop saying certain things, but like
It did I cured of that pretty quickly and it really just grades on me when I hear people use the Lord's name in vain
but
I'm not keeping God's commandments
because I think it makes me more saved or something.
I don't go soul-winning because I think I'm extra saved
and that a halo appears on the top of my head when I do it.
I don't think I'm better than anybody else
when I go soul-winning.
I don't think I'm better than anybody else
for anything I do.
If I go to church three times a week,
it doesn't make me better than anybody else.
I just want to please God.
And it's like,
I've been thinking about this a lot, it's like children naturally want to make their
parents happy, especially when they're little, and Jesus said we're supposed to come like
a little child with our faith, but most kids, they do want to obey their parents, they do
want to make them happy, and even when they mess up they still want their parents to be
happy with them, but we're God's children now, and don't you want to make God happy
You know, I mean, I'm sure that the things that we do wrong if Jesus was in front of us for a moment
We'd feel super bad for the things that we do on a daily basis or anything that we do to displease him
And we'd be just like probably melt on the ground and just you know
Just like any time the prophets were in front of God's present like presents like Isaiah and he's just like
I'm a man of unclean lips, you know, and the angel put the coal in his mouth or whatever and Peter same thing
You know God when people would you know be in the presence of the Lord they would freak out and
Just drop to their face immediately because he's so holy and
You know as as we I mean we can really as kids we can relate
to God a lot better when we think about how we are with our parents.
You know, and children do rebel against God, but I like to put it to this when I'm
sonning
and just say, especially when someone has kids and they have like maybe three or
four kids
and like, do you have kids that obey more than the others?
And of course anybody in here with multiple kids.
You know, you have kids that are more obeyed more than the other ones, and kids that you have to spank more than the other ones.
But that's the way the children, you know, the Kingdom of God is like that too.
But to say that one isn't saved because he doesn't keep God's commandments as much as the other one, that's ridiculous.
But it's also ridiculous to say that we're legalistic because we want to make God happy.
That's just stupidity and when you're teaching that
You can just the basically you can do whatever you want
But you know the the law of reaping sowing and reaping are gonna get you not God
That's just as retarded to say it's that's retarded. It is a spiritual spiritual retardation
I covered that last week if you're gonna get mad about it, but
It is
No, God will punish his children
How else do you how else can you see that?
Why does he say why does he say you're you know, you were his sons and daughters now?
And then you're gonna just act like that just doesn't exist. I
Just don't understand it
Anyway, let me move on here
So let's see verse 12 brother, and I beseech you be as I am for I am as you are
You have not injured me at all, like, you can go off into heresy if you want, but it's
not going to change me anyway.
You know how through infirmity of the flesh, I preach the Gospel unto you at the first.
And my temptation, which was in my flesh, you despise not, nor reject it, but receive
me as an angel of God, even as Christ Jesus.
So they treated Paul with great respect when he came and he and it says he had an infirmity of the flesh
What does that mean? He's crippled in some way. He's got some some kind of physical ailment and
They didn't despise him. They didn't reject him
It says, where is this blessedness you spake of?
So apparently they were blessed by His presence
and by the preaching.
For I bear you record that if it had been possible,
you would have plucked out your own eyes
and given them to me.
So now they just kind of seemingly,
they don't want to listen to the apostle Paul.
He's telling them, you're wrong.
The Pharisees that came down to you are wrong.
They're teaching you a legalistic,
Workspace salvation you need to listen to me. I'm the one that got you saved
You know you were blessed by my preach and now all of a sudden you want to go away from what I was teaching you
And this is what they're doing, they're just rebelling against what Paul said.
So, you know, when they treated him before like he was Christ himself and now they're not hearing his message.
He's just like calling them into remembrance right here as to, hey, remember when you had plucked out your own eyes and gave them to me?
Remember when I came to you and I was basically crippled in some way and you were just all on board
and now you're just going to let these Pharisees come down, these, you know,
Judaizers come down and change your you know and change what you believe
So and a lot of people
speculate on what this infirmity of the flesh is
But it's obviously it says infirmity of the flesh
So infirmity is like you know you got something wrong with you and it's in the flesh
So it's the physical element now
I'm not going to go into that necessarily super deep, but a lot of people think because he says I would
that you would have gave me your own eyes,
that it's something to do with his eyesight.
I tend to think that that's probably what it is,
that he has something wrong with his eyes,
but I'm not sure,
because another party says what great letters I wrote
or something like maybe he wrote, you know.
Because you know when you have bad eyesight, you know, you need like bigger font type like
I do now, but you need a bigger font in your Bible, you know, and so when you're writing
it might help you to write bigger letters so you can actually see.
So that could be it, but, you know, God, he did beseech God three times that this, he
that he had this infirmity of the flesh
and he wanted God to take it away from him.
He talks about it in 2 Corinthians 12
and we don't have time to necessarily go over there,
but he said his grace is sufficient.
God, Jesus told him my grace is sufficient for thee
and my strength is made perfect in weakness.
So he, you know, basically Jesus said,
no, I'm not gonna heal you.
I'm not going to take this away from you.
And I mean, why would it be something with his eyesight?
Well, he was blinded by Jesus for three days.
So that flash of light, I mean, if you look into the sun,
you know, they tell you, don't look into the sun.
Kids, don't look into the sun.
Just so you know, because you will go blind from it.
It's just, you know, not a smart thing to do.
Don't just stare into the sun.
But it said it was when he looked, when he saw Jesus,
it was brighter than the sun.
So I don't know if that's what blinded him, but it seems like if it was brighter than the Sun
You're not supposed to look into the Sun. Maybe that's what blinded him
but either way he was blind for three days and
When I mean if you're welding for years at a time
What does it do? It makes you go blind
So if you're a welder, make sure you're always trying to cover those eyes, you know
But so I mean that's kind of what I believe it was but he also took a lot of beat downs. I mean he got
Whooped a lot. He got stoned almost to death. They tore they thought he was dead and then I mean
I'm sure he wasn't very pretty to look at after that
I mean if you get rockstorn at you and sure they were hitting him in the head with them
I'm sure they were aiming at the head, you know sure they weren't just saying not the face not the face
You know he needs an open casket or something, you know not the face, you know
They should probably threw them in his face. So
but
the you know even
Even like when he writes the Corinthians again in chapter 10 he says for his letters say they are weighty and powerful
What his body bodily presence is weak and his speech is contemptible?
I mean Paul Paul the apostle was he didn't just get it, you know physical
Beatdowns and stuff and people say but people are saying stuff about him too like oh, yeah
Apostle Paul his bodily presence is weak. I mean Paul means little
So he was a little guy and he probably wasn't too pretty to look at by the time he took all those beatings that he took
And then apparently they said his speech is contemptible
so I don't know if he had a squeaky voice or
He just wasn't an eloquent speaker or what what the problem was but
People said that about him, but he said let such and one think this
That such as we are in word by letters when we are present such will we be also indeed when we're when we are present
So he's like saying
You know, you think my letters are weighty and powerful,
and I'm weak in my bodily presence,
and my speech is contemptible,
but I'll be just as weighty and powerful on my,
and you know, he's like,
dynamite comes in small packages, you know.
He's letting them know that he's gonna be
just as powerful in his presence when they see him, so.
But the Apostle Paul, you know, he had this infirmity in his flesh
And so he's just kind of reminding him of how they treated him though when he first when they first met him when they first
You know profess Christ look at verse 16. It says am I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth
You know a good friend and a good pastor and a good leader and a good mentor
Is going to tell you the truth when you need to hear it
And sometimes when people have already made up their mind
and they're like, yeah, yeah, yeah, I'm just done,
they won't listen to anybody.
And sometimes they have to go through the,
they have to go through the beat downs in life
before they'll actually listen.
They'll listen to somebody else.
and let them take them away from what is actually true.
And then they go through all the hardness
that they have to go through because of
letting someone else zealously affect them.
Because sometimes people just want to have
their ears tickled.
They want to have somebody tell them what they want to hear.
The Bible says this is gonna happen in the end times.
You know, they've heaped to themselves teachers
having itching ears.
Oh, you don't have to go to church.
Why are you going to church all the time?
Don't listen to people like that. That's a stupid thing that I mean if you listen to people like that
They're gonna take you down a road that leads to a bad place
They are
Yeah, it doesn't really matter if you go someone in or not
Somebody else can do it. How many people are actually doing it though?
You know you should not listen to people like that
When someone is trying to zealously affect you to not do work, to not work for the Lord, to not love God, to not love his people, you should run far away from that person.
Yeah, your flesh loves to hear stuff like that. Your flesh loves to hear, don't do as much, don't do anything for God.
Just just go through the motions, find a church where you're not pressured at all to just do anything for God.
That all sounds fine and good until you're back slidding, you're back in a bar, you're
drinking alcohol again or whatever it was that you were doing before, it might not even
be that bad.
But until you're just out of the game and you know what, that's what Satan wants you
to do.
He wants you out of the game because that's the goal.
He goes around like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour.
and he'll eat you like with a smile on his face.
And he wants you to listen to people
that try to zealously affect you
in the opposite direction of the way you should be going.
And that's what happened here.
Oh, we gotta keep the law.
They love that.
People wanna live in the flesh.
People wanna walk in the flesh.
But they also want to just not do what God wants.
They want to heap to themselves teachers have an issue itching ears
He says am I therefore become your enemy because I tell you the truth and and the answer to that is yes
This is what a lot of people do want
When they get tired of the grind when they get tired of
Being prodded and goaded
You know the master of assembly is supposed to goad you into doing that which is right
Because we need it. I need it
But if I stop doing that then what good am I as a pastor?
That's what I'm supposed to do. But you're like, well, that's all you ever do. No, it's not
But that's what they these people like this want you to think
All they want you to do is work so that they can make a name for themselves. It really is that what you think?
I hope that's not what you think
Because nobody knows who I am
Still
Maybe some some loony tunes that stalker every move know who I am, but that's pretty much it
Hopefully God knows who I am I know he does
But look what it says they zealously affect you but not well
Yay, they would exclude you that you might affect them
See, once you say, this is an interesting verse here.
They zealously affect you, but not well.
See, as long as they're affecting you
in a bad and negative way, it's all good.
But it says, yay, they would exclude you
that you might not affect them.
So they don't want you to rub off on them at all.
So if you try to say, hey, no,
no, we don't have to keep the law.
They just, psh.
They'd get rid of you. They don't want you to affect them.
They just want to affect other people in a negative way.
And if you don't want to listen to them, they're just going to go to the next person that will listen to them.
They want nothing to do with you if you want to zealously affect them in a good way.
If the shoe was on the other foot, they would have nothing to do with you
and they would not let you affect them in the same way for good.
Good to be zealously affected always in a good thing and
Not only when I'm present with you and see each other thing
You know while the while the cats away the mice are gonna play sometimes and this is what Paul is basically saying here
It is good to be zealously affected always in a good thing
You know someone's gonna zealously affect you and things that are good. That's great
But he says and not only when I'm present with you
And we shouldn't just get all zealous
just when our favorite preacher comes to town
and you act all spiritual and people come to church
when that particular preacher comes.
But then you're just off doing whatever you feel like doing
until that preacher comes.
And look, I'm glad you come when that preacher comes.
That's cool.
Not, I'm not jealous of that at all.
I'm just saying, why don't you come all the other times?
You know, it's just be zealous all the time and don't put on a front
Ain't no future in your front. You ever heard of that?
I mean
It happens
People will be like, oh, it's like, hey, where have you been for the last six months?
It's like dude
You know, I mean, how is are you more spiritual when you just show up when that certain preacher comes?
I mean, it's just it's kind of phony
But please do come. I mean, I'm not saying don't come if you're just coming ever once in a while
I'm glad you are but hey get involved get plugged in
Verse 19 my little children of whom I travail and birth again
Until Christ be formed in you so he's not giving up on him
but he's saying
My little children I think he believes that some of them are saved at least
But if they're not he's like I'm gonna try again until Christ be formed in you
I'm gonna travail and birth again. I'm gonna try to if you're not saved
I'm gonna try to get you saved. I'm gonna try to give you the gospel again a
Desire to be present with you now and to change my voice for I stand in doubt of you
He is doubting though. There's no doubt about that
But you know I when he says I to change my voice
for I stand in doubt of you.
And kind of what I think he's trying to say here
is that the written letter does not always convey
what you say face to face.
You know, when you send that text and someone's like,
well, what do you mean by that?
You know, they get all mad.
You know what I'm talking about?
And it's like, I didn't mean it like that.
Here's what, you know, and you call them
so that they can hear your tone of voice
or you talk to them face to face so that they can get,
like, you know, they can see your face
when you're saying things.
Because a written letter doesn't always convey how you feel and the emotion that you're getting forth in that so
it's you know, that's that's kind of how I read it and
So he's definitely though doubting their salvation why
Because you don't go from faith alone to faith plus works or to work salvation if they're saved by faith
They stay stayed by faith. You don't go from Christian to Judaism or
Christian to Catholic or
Christian to Orthodox or
Christian to Jehovah's Witness or Christian to Mormon or Christian to Islam
Those are indicators that you're lost
Not that you lost your salvation because you can't lose your salvation. It's just that you were never saved in the first place
And so there's people that have left and are now orthodox.
It's like, you were never saved, buddy,
because they believe in a workspace salvation,
or they're now Catholic, or they're now Mennonites,
all believe in a workspace salvation.
If you go to be a Mormon after you've been a Baptist,
you were never saved in the first place.
So it's just,
it's not possible. It just means, because you can't lose your salvation, you're like,
well, yeah, but no, you can't lose your salvation. And you're not going to change from being a
saved, born-again Christian to become some Hindu or something. That's just not possible.
So, I do believe though, like I said last week, that you can get messed up on some stuff
and tricked into believing some false doctrine, but again,
If someone just challenges you with something like if someone starts saying oh repent of your sins because they hear a pastor
Just say it every service
And then you don't really think about what you're saying and then someone says well
You know repent of your sins is works and then you show them Jonah
310 or whatever and you kind of explain that stuff to me like oh, yeah
That's what someone did with me
Because my pastor used to say it like literally every service. I just started
repeating what he was saying
But then when I thought about it, when I got explained to me, I was like, oh, yeah, I don't believe that.
So, and that's why we got to kind of be careful at the door with people sometimes,
because not everybody that says that actually believes that you have to change,
you know, you have to stop sinning or whatever before you can get saved because nobody can do that.
So number three, the final part to this is that the allegory of Abraham's story.
Verse 21 says tell me you the desire to be under the law. Do you not hear the law?
So and and I would ask anybody that believes in a works faith based
combination or a works based salvation or
You must have the works because faith without works is dead type person
style of religion look down at the next verse
verse 22
Ford has written that Abraham had two sons and the one by a bond made and the other by a free woman
So here's where the allegory begins
So Haggar Haggar and Sarah
are the two
Women in in in question here. So Haggar is the bond made and Sarah is the free woman
Haggar was a slave wife or concubine
Okay
And Sarah was his free-born wife.
Ishmael was the son that was not of faith,
but came because of the lack of faith in Sarah.
I already mentioned that earlier.
Now, you can disagree with me all you want about that,
but what is a bond made?
Someone that doesn't have a choice.
They're a slave. Okay. I mean slave is not a word that's used in the King James Bible lot. It's got a very negative connotation to it
But that is what it is. Okay, so
And I'm not saying that he mistreated her in that way like I mean she wasn't chained up obviously she runs off
She wasn't like in some kind of chain gang or something
But she definitely wasn't free the Bible says she was a bond maid and Sarah was the free woman
And Sarah was also her boss, and Abraham says to her,
you know, do with her what you want.
And so like, but let's look at Genesis chapter 16,
Genesis chapter 16.
So I do kind of want to address both things
at the same time, if I can, really quickly.
Genesis 16, one.
says, now, Sarah, Abraham's wife, bear him no children, and she had a handmaid, an Egyptian, whose name was Hagar.
And Sarah said unto Abram, Behold now, the Lord hath restrained me from bearing.
I pray thee, go in unto my maid, it may be that I may obtain children by her.
and Abram harkened to the voice of Sarai, bad move.
And Sarai, Abram's wife, took Hagar,
her maid, the Egyptian, after Abram had
dwelt 10 years in the land of Canaan,
and gave her to her husband Abram,
what was his last word to say there?
To be his wife, was Hagar his wife?
Yes or no?
Is that what it says?
a free-born wife. Sarah is the free-born wife. And it says, and he went in unto Hagar and
she conceived. So did he marry her before he went unto her or after? Did he go in unto
her before he was married to her? No, it was after, right? And it says, and she conceived
and when she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes. What is
And so, Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee, I have given my maid into thy bosom,
and when she saw that she had conceived, I was despised in her eyes, the Lord judge
between me and thee.
So what was her wrong, though?
What was her wrong?
To give him another wife.
So you're supposed to just have one spouse you're not supposed to have multiple spouses. You're not supposed to have multiple wives
So her wrong was giving another wife to Abraham
So let me ask you this if Abraham
Went into Hagar before he married her would it be literal adultery? Yes or no?
Yes
But did he know would it be adulterous adultery for Hagar?
Yeah
Yeah, but was it? No, so now same scenario, but Abraham marries Hagar then consummates
the marriage. He hasn't divorced Sarah. He has married another woman that is a bond made,
by the way. So what's what's that scenario look like? Well, he hasn't divorced Sarah,
Also his wife and then consummates the marriage after they're married. So has he committed adultery?
No
so I mean
Now think about Solomon
Solomon had 700 wives good night and 300 concubines. So concubines are
Wives that are bond maids or bond servants that cannot
They don't have a choice. They don't have a choice.
And so the wives were princesses, if you remember what it says in the Bible,
that he married 700 wives princesses.
So they're free-born women.
And then the concubines don't have a choice.
So they're not just living girlfriends that you're committing adultery with
or just lying with nonchalantly, otherwise you would be an adulterer,
they would be adulteresses.
So the difference is that they are married to them,
but they're just lesser wives.
So Leah, what was the other?
Oh, yeah, they gave their handmaids to Jacob and they were handmaids also they were bond
servants and so there they were lesser wives and then they tried to have children by them
the same way that Sarah did with Abraham and because they couldn't have children or Rachel
was having a hard time having children and then yeah so she was so like they were trying
you know they were legally because they belong to them were their children but they weren't
They weren't their legitimate children as far as by blood
Does that make sense?
So now today modern day, you know people will say well, that's your concubine or whatever
But that that it just doesn't really exist anymore
Because of the laws and the rules of the land and like I believe that when Jesus in the New Testament said it was said before
You know, but now I'm saying this to you that he kind of just cut that system out
Now, people do have girlfriends that they live with, but that's called shacking up.
That's fornication.
Now, in some states they do, if you live with someone, they're automatically, you know,
they're automatically a, what a, common law, common law wife, okay?
But how does God see it though?
I mean, I don't think God sees it as that's their wife when they I mean, maybe they do once they become legally common law
maybe but
They didn't have a ceremony or any any like legality
Leading up to that. So I mean, I'm just saying like
concubines as they existed in the Bible in the in the Old Testament stuff don't exist as they today as they did back then
That's just my my spiel on that so
Anyway, verse six, but Abram said unto Sarah behold thy maid is in thy hand to do with her as it pleases thee and
When Sarah dealt hardly with her she fled before her face and the angel the Lord found her by a fountain of water in the wilderness
By the fountain of the way to shore
and said, Hagar, Sarah is made, whence cameest thou?
And wither wilt thou go?
And she said, I flee from the face of my mistress Sarah.
And the angel of the Lord said unto her,
return to thy mistress and submit thyself into her hands.
So he didn't say, wow, it's so bad
that they had you as a slave there.
You know, let me take care of you.
No, he said, return to your mistress.
Do what you're supposed to do.
So I mean just things were just different back then, but like you don't see slavery as a big thing in modern day either
So Jesus kind of I believe that Jesus just in the New Testament changed a lot of things and
One of those things that you know, there was slavery in it has been slavery and things like that in the New Testament
But now do you see it very much? No England got rid of it
United States has gotten rid of it and there are in some countries
I think that it still goes on in some places, but for the most part it's pretty much eradicated
But so I mean that's the reason why you just don't see you know these concubine wives and stuff anymore
so anyway
Look at verse 23 back in her text. It says but he who was of the bond woman
born after the flesh but he of the free woman was by promise so let's get this
back into the context of what the allegory is so the allegory is the bond
woman was born after the flesh was born after the flesh yeah and he of the
free woman was by the promise so Isaac is the one of the promise
Isaac was the promised son by faith.
They had to, they were supposed to go by faith on that,
but the bond woman was after the flesh.
They tried their own way.
They tried to do it on their own by the flesh.
They didn't have faith in the promise at first.
It says, which things are an allegory
for these are the two covenants.
So the old covenant, the new covenant.
And one from Mount Sinai, which gendered to bondage,
which is agar or haggar. Okay. So the old covenant is what? It's bondage. It's of the flesh.
It's not the covenant that saves. The covenant that saves is the new covenant. It's of faith.
That is the covenant that we were supposed to, that was waiting for when Jesus came.
He enacted the new covenant, the New Testament.
What is allegory a story poem or picture that can be interpreted to reveal hidden meaning typically a moral or political one?
verse 25
For this agar is Mount Sinai in Arabia an answer to Jerusalem which now is and is in bondage with her children
But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all
For his is written rejoice thou barren that bearest not break forth and cry thou that travail us not for the desolate
For the desolate hath many more children than she which hath and husband
Now we brethren as Isaac was are the children of promise
But as but as then he that was born after the flesh
Persecuted him that was born after the Spirit even so it is now
So the Jews were what? Persecuting the Christians? Why? Because they're in bondage
under the Old Testament and they want to drag
everybody else into their bondage. That's why they're saying you have to get circumcised.
That's why they want a glory and other people's flesh.
They want them to be dragged under the law and they want to make them people two more, two fold more, the child of hell than they are themselves.
And so this is how it is now.
The Jews are still doing these things now,
and they still don't want the Gentiles to be saved.
They still want to just put in all these,
and the devil uses them to trap people
and allows them to just succeed in all their ventures,
their banking investments,
and all their entertainment,
and all their porn industries,
and all the other crap that they have going on.
to trap people's minds into not believing the truth.
If we knew exactly all the things that they're into,
it'd probably really surprise us.
But it says, nevertheless, let's say at the scripture,
cast out the bond woman and her son,
for the son of the bond woman shall not be heir
with the son of the free woman.
So after we're done with the school master
and we're led unto Christ,
then we're no longer under the law.
And so it's not both of them together.
We don't simultaneously have two covenants.
That old covenant's gone.
The Old Testament's gone.
We do not operate under the Old Testament.
And we are of the new Jerusalem.
We're not under old Jerusalem.
That plot of land means nothing to us anymore.
And so we don't allow them to try to, you know, have us blowing shofars and keeping, you know, the Passover and all this other garbage.
So in other words, you're not saved by both, only by one way.
by the promise, by the hope, and by the faith of Jesus Christ.
So, and if you know kind of what it's talking about here,
it says that he that was born after the flesh persecuted him,
that was born after the Spirit, it's when Isaac was weaned,
and then Ishmael starts mocking him,
because that's what they want to do.
They want to mock us for our faith in Jesus.
They want to mock us because Isaac represents Christ.
And what do they do? They mocked Christ also.
And so that allegory was what is that, you know, because he represents what the Jews, you know, Ishmael wasn't a Jew, but he, I mean, I guess he kind of was, but he was a Hebrew, but then he became, you know, the Arabs or whatever.
He pictures the Jews who are persecuting the want the children of promise
And so that's why he said cast out the bond woman and her son because they will not be heirs with us
And so are the Jews heirs with us or is there a second covenant?
Is that second covenant running congruent with the new covenant right now? No, it's not
It's not running congruent because the the old covenant is done away with
And in order to get into the promises of the new covenant, they have to come over to our side.
They have to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. They have to believe He's the Messiah.
But they believe in another Messiah that's coming. That's going to be the Antichrist.
So, I don't have time to go into those scriptures, but let's read that last verse there.
It says, So then, brethren, we are not children of the bond woman, but of the free.
So, we're children of Sarah, we're children of New Jerusalem, and Abraham by faith, when
he was called to go into a place which he should receive.
For the inheritance obeyed and he went out not knowing whether he went by faith
He so adjourned in the land of promise as in a strange country dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob
The heirs with him of the same promise for he looked for a city which has foundations whose builder and maker is God
God is the salvation is of the Lord
salvation is not of the Jews in their
and you know keeping the commandments and you know look that's what man wants is to
work their way to heaven but God says we have to do it his way and his way is having faith
and that's hard for people because they want to work their way to heaven that's just not the way
it is and people have to give up their pride they have to stop trying to do things on their own
and they have to do and submit to the Lord Jesus Christ let's pray where we thank you so much
for the clear teachings in the Bible,
and pray that you'd help us to just absorb all this
and be able to teach other people these things
because they're so important.
Lord, there's so many people out there trying to judy eyes and try to add works to salvation.
And even people that would say that they're Christians do this.
And Lord, I pray that you'd help us to know our Bible and know the places we can take
them.
Lord, we can take them to this book and just show them all kinds of scripture and refute
them.
I pray, Lord, you'd help us to do these things when the time and occasion comes upon us.
And when the appointed time comes to us to have to refute these works of salvation.
people that would come into our life or we'd come upon them at the door, pray
bless us as we go our separate ways tonight, and we thank you Lord for all
your blessings and Jesus name we pray. Amen.
Thank you, Baster Thomson, and thank you for having me out. I've had a great week, and I've appreciated meeting all of y'all face-to-face.
I've known some of y'all on the internet for years. I'd like to sing number 324. Draw me near.
Number 324.
I am thine, O Lord, I have heard thine voice, and it told thine love to me.
But I long to rise in the arms of faith
And be closer drawn to thee.
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord,
To the cross where thou hast died.
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord.
to thy precious bleeding sign.
Consecrate me now to thy service, Lord,
by thy power of grace divine.
Let my soul look up with a steadfast hope,
and my will be lost in thine.
Nearer, blessed Lord, to the cross where thou hast died.
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord, to thy precious bleeding sign.
O the pure delight of a single hour, that before Thy throne I spend.
When I kneel in prayer, and with Thee, my God, I commune as friend with friend.
Draw me near!
Nearer, blessed Lord, to the cross where thou hast died.
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord, to thy precious bleeding side.
There are depths of love that I cannot know Till I cross the narrow sea
There are heights of joy that I may not reach Till I rest in peace with thee
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord
To the cross where thou hast died
Draw me nearer, nearer, blessed Lord
To thy precious bleeding sign
Amen. Let's close the word of prayer. Heavenly Father, thank you for this evening. You've given a
sword and I pray that you would help each one of us, Lord, to walk in the new man, Lord,
and to celebrate the freedom we have in Christ, Lord, and to go out and give other people the
gospel, Lord, and that we would not only walk in truth, Lord, when those that are watching us,
that we look up to, Lord, but that we would see that everybody around, Lord, is looking to us as
Christians and who we set on the throne in our life, Lord. And I pray that it would be you, Lord,
and that we would not just outwardly appear good,
but that we would think on good things, Lord, continually,
and we would meditate on your word, Lord.
We love you and in Jesus' name we pray, amen.
You are dismissed.