CALLED TO A RESPONSIBLE FREEDOM

CALLED TO A RESPONSIBLE FREEDOM

Galatians 5:1-26

Dr. Wm. J. Maxwell

First Presbyterian Church, Newport, RI

April 2, 2006

“I’m going to tell you this over and over again until you finally get it right!” How many times have we said these very words, or have even heard them addressed to us? Well, we can almost hear Paul saying these words as we continue making our way through Galatians.

The passion Paul expressed at the beginning of this letter indicates to us that the Gospel was very much worth fighting for. In continued explanation, Paul expressed to the Galatians that we are saved by God’s grace alone in Jesus Christ alone, and not by any meritorious acts on our part, not by circumcision or the observance of dietary laws, rituals or ceremonies. He implored them to turn a deaf ear to the false teachers in their midst who had told them that faith in Christ was not enough. No, they were saved by grace alone and they were to live by grace alone. Period!

By the time we get to this chapter before us this morning, you would think Paul would’ve settled down a bit. Obviously not, however, in view of what Paul said these “agitators” could do with their knives for circumcision! His passion remained strong in his continued concern for their eternal welfare.

Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace.

Again and again, Paul hammered the truth into their resistant and stubborn minds. He did not want them to be in bondage to a yoke of slavery. A life that is acceptable to God is found through the cross of Jesus Christ, he said, because no one can obey all of God’s laws completely. For this reason, freedom in Christ is found in being saved by grace, in living by grace, and in receiving a gracious adoption.

THE INHERENT DANGER IN THIS.

However, having said all this, the ever wise and prudent Apostle anticipated where some of the Galatians might go with this. As he penned this epistle, he could hear what some might be thinking: “Freedom, huh. Freedom to do what we want to do? God doesn’t really care how we live? In love, He’ll just look the other way?”

Right away, Paul wanted it to be made clear that Christian freedom is not a freedom for self-indulgence. It’s not a license to cast off all restraints of virtue and morality. Christians are to take the moral law and the teachings of Christ quite seriously.

In summary fashion, Paul said, “The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.” This verse brings to mind what James said even more simply and more directly: “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.” [i]

The history of the Church has always had to deal with this grave error. Theologians have a word for it: antinomianism, meaning “anti-law” or “against the law.” It may sound appealing, until you realize it actually turns against you.

Those who appeal to such freedom to indulge their sinful desires only fall back into the enslavement of the power of their own sinful nature. A license to sin is therefore an illusive and false freedom, because it leads only to enslavement, to self-destructive behavior, and to the kind of behavior that only ends up destroying relationships.

Samantha discovered this ... unfortunately. Samantha was young, alive and single, and she’d also grown up in a solid Christian home. As an adult, she was active in church ministries and wanted to be a faithful witness for Christ at work.

At work, she was aware that Richard had marital problems, and she looked at this moment as a means of turning his heart to Christ as the answer to his problems. They began to spend time together, first on breaks, then for meals, as Richard poured out his concerns to someone who cared deeply and sincerely.

In time, Samantha realized a change occurring within her. The agenda of her heart was clearly changing. There was a sense of danger here, but also of adventure, and now self-fulfillment became an issue. She was at a crossroads. Would it be Christ or Richard? She chose Richard. [ii]

But now we have to ask, what happened to Richard’s marriage? What happened to Samantha’s character? What happened to her reputation? What happened to her Christian witness? What happened to Samantha’s relationship with Christ? Surely, so much more was lost than anything Samantha might have gained. Freedom? I don’t think so.

AS CHRISTIANS, GOD CALLS US TO A RESPONSIBLE FREEDOM,

AND WE MUST HEED THIS WISELY.

In this matter, Paul was quite specific, as we read in verses 13-15:

You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

A responsible freedom means that, while we are saved by grace, we are to be seeking and promoting the welfare of others. It means that we accept the call to move beyond ourselves and to love our neighbors as ourselves. It most certainly takes dependence upon the Spirit, but we then surrender our wills in joyful obedience, no longer living in self-indulgence, and in doing so, we find a far better freedom.

You may recall that it was Dietrich Bonhoeffer, the German Lutheran pastor during World War II, who spoke so directly about this very issue. In his classic book, The Cost of Discipleship, he wrote the following:

Cheap grace is the grace we bestow on ourselves … the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, communion without confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship …

Costly grace is the gospel which must be sought again and again, the gift which must be asked for, the door at which a (person) must knock … It is costly because it costs a (person) his life, and it is grace because it gives a (person) the only true life. [iii]

By way of illustration, Gordon MacDonald once served as a pastor in New York City. While he and his wife Gail were there, they found to a great extent that the so-called “hostility” of New Yorkers is really only a myth. But then again, they intentionally live a life in Christ that goes beyond themselves into the gracious liberty of the Spirit in caring for others.

For example, Gordon had an acquaintance named Thomas, who was violently mugged and left unconscious on a street corner. He recovered physically, but not emotionally, becoming reclusive and not wanting to talk about what had happened.

Gordon made a special effort in extending friendship, care and concern for Thomas. He found ways to allow Thomas to talk and share privately without feeling humiliated. This gave Thomas the opportunity to flush this out of his system.

In fact, Gordon and Gail had Thomas over for breakfast one morning. It was then that Gordon asked permission from Thomas: “As one brother to another, I’d like to pray for you. And when I pray for my friends, I often put a hand upon them. I’d like to ask God to expel all this terror and hurt from you.” Thomas agreed to this, and it was quite a bonding moment, as well as a moment of God’s healing grace.

In fact, three months later, the MacDonald’s were invited to Thomas’ home for dinner, where there were another 50 or more people, many of whom were family! Thomas is from the Caribbean, and his family is East Indian. So, they all enjoyed a tremendous East Indian meal, followed by Thomas’ introduction of the MacDonald’s. “I want you to meet the man and woman,” Thomas said, “who brought me back from the dead. Mr. Gordon, would you say a few words to my family?”

And as Gordon MacDonald tells it: “I told the group about our friendship and how I continued to pray for my friend. This man is important to me. He’s the sort of friend you find in the city if you’re looking.” [iv]

Oh, dear friends, how rich life becomes when we learn to live a responsible freedom in Christ. Freedom to indulge the sinful nature is only enslavement in the end. To the contrary, as Bonhoeffer stated, the costly grace of the Gospel seems so demanding in that it means a surrender of our will to Christ. It is costly because it costs a person his life; but, oh, it is grace, because it gives us the only true life! Amen and Amen!