Faith Bible Church - Sermons
A Picture of Redemption - From Slavery To Sonship (Galatians 4:1-7)
- Well, good morning. As we get started today, how many of you guys remember this verse from Psalm 118, 24? I'm gonna quote the first part and I am thinking that a number of you can help me finish it. Here's the first part. This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us... - The Lord has made. - You guys know the word. Praise the Lord. This is the day that the Lord has made. Let us rejoice and be glad in it. And while this is true each and every day, if you're a believer, what a privilege it is, a special privilege, especially on Sundays, to be able to gather and rejoice and be glad to gather, amen, through song, through prayer, through fellowship and through the Word. May we never take that for granted. It is such a blessing. As we turn our attention to the Word this morning, if you have your Bible or your Bible apps, go ahead and open them to Galatians chapter four. We good to try this? Let's give it a whirl here. All right. We are continuing in our summer series, Deep Roots, Vibrant Faith, where we have been working our way through six key aspects of how one comes to Christ and then continues to grow as a disciple of Christ. And we have looked at, explore and discover. And today we're coming back to this third aspect or this third category that is described with the word redeem. And you'll notice the theme is young believers submitting all areas of life under Christ. And we've been careful each week to mention how this is not a sequential thing like graduating from high school and going on to college. There's a sense in which you start learning this as a young believer. I have been walking with the Lord quite a few years. I am still in process learning how to do this as well. If you were here last week, you know, the pastor Mark began to unpack it out of Romans chapter six, pointing out that the story of Jesus is our story too, that through his death, burial and resurrection, we too have died to sin and we too are now alive to God in Christ Jesus and building on that. Today we're gonna see that through redemption, we have been given the amazing privilege of both knowing and relating to God as our Abba Father. And let me say on the front end church, the implications of that are absolutely incredible. But because we are parachuting into the middle of the letter of Galatians, let me quickly get you up to speed regarding the context. How many of you, if you have studied Galatians, realize that it was penned by Paul in response to a literal crisis that was taking place? And I'll tell you a little bit about the crisis. Some Jewish leaders who claimed to be Christians had slipped in after Paul left town and they were telling these new primarily Gentile believers that the Apostle Paul had shortchanged them. He had not told them all that they needed to know. And so out of the gate, they're like, listen to me, Jesus is important, absolutely, but so is God's law. Furthermore, they were being told that the Jews have always been God's chosen people. Salvation is from the Jews. Jesus himself was a Jew. And so if you really wanna be saved, yes, you need to believe in Christ. But in addition, you also need to adhere to the law and all the customs handed down and taught from Moses. So that was the gospel being peddled by these Jewish legalists and it had really done a number in terms of confusing the Galatians because that was not the gospel that they had heard Paul preach. Paul had come into town preaching Christ. And now these other teachers came and were saying, no, Paul is wrong. What Christ started by dying on the cross, you and I have got to finish by being faithful with God's law, by being faithful to keep the law. And so the very heart of the gospel was at stake. And what Paul heard about the inroads that these false teachers had made, he immediately sat down. And under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he began to pour out his heart and pour out his soul, pleading with these young converts not to be led astray. And so the key theme in Galatians that can be summed up in a single central question. In fact, this is a question that Paul, if you've studied Galatians, you know that he comes back to this question again and again and again. Here's the question, are we saved by what we do or by what Christ has done for us? That's the question. That's the principle theme of the entire book. And of course, Paul makes it crystal clear that we are saved by what Christ has done. We are saved by believing not by achieving. Nobody earns or adds anything to their salvation by what they do, right? God cannot be bought. In fact, God is the one that does all the buying, all the redeeming, all the purchasing and the purchase price for us to be saved is nothing less than the blood of his son, our savior and redeemer the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. And that's what we're gonna see reiterated in our passage today out of Galatians chapter four. And what the way Paul is gonna do it is he's going to point out the tremendous differences between who we were and who we now are or to say it another way, the night and day differences of existence between being a slave and now being a son, now being in the family. And guys, this is so rich. In fact, as chapter four opens, he's actually expounding on a point that he's just made in chapter three. And so we need to flip back just for a second to chapter three. And I want you to look at verses 13 and 14. Here's the point that he's making. It's a point about our redemption in Christ. Paul states that like this, Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us. For it is written cursed as everyone who is hanged on a tree. So that in Christ Jesus, the blessing of Abraham might come to who? Notice the Gentiles so that we might receive the promised spirit house. Say this with me through what? Through faith, not law, not circumcision, not through all the customs taught by Moses. Know the blessings of Abraham and the promised spirit. They are received through faith. Drop down to verses 25 and 26. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian for in Christ Jesus. You are all sons of God. By the way, ladies, you're included in that. You are all sons of God again through faith. And now hit verse 29. And if you are Christ, then you are Abraham's offspring heirs to the promise. Believing Jews, this was true of them. Believing Gentiles, this was true of them. Do you understand the point that he was making? All the promises spoken to Abraham have now been fulfilled in Christ. And if you belong to Christ, then you are now a child of Abraham. Look, and you get it all. You're a son. You're a daughter. You are in air. And now he's gonna expand on that. So let's get started in chapter four with the first two verses. He's continuing the thought by saying, I mean that the heir as long as he is a child is no different from a slave. Though he is the owner of everything. The NIV says, although he owns the whole estate, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father. So what he's doing here is he's giving us an illustration. You say, what's the illustration? I want you to picture a two year old who happens to be the son of like a multi-billionaire. And he's growing up in the estate with mom and dad, but until this little guy reaches adulthood, he has no more say over that estate that even a slave would, even though he may be the only heir. But because he is the son, we would look at that and we would say, man, that kid is set for life. He's a trust fund baby, right? I mean, he stands to inherit millions or even billions. Yes, he does, but at that moment, Paul is making the point that as long as he's a minor, all the power and influence of his wealth are of no advantage to him over the kid who may not even have a dime to his name. And this little guy really has no real appreciation of the benefits of what he stands to own one day because again, he's two, right? He's two. He can't make decisions about his inheritance even if he wanted to. He's not in control of his own life. He's told what to do and what not to do, kind of the way a slave child would be. And as verse two says, he's under guardians and managers until when notice the date set by his father. I want you to hang on to that. The point is that in due time, kids grow up and they do become adults. They enter adulthood. But here's the million dollar question. What constitutes adulthood? Well, in the Jewish world, the date set for coming of age was the first Sabbath after their 12th birthday. They had a bar mitzvah, you're a man now. In Greece, it was when you turned 18. But the Romans were a little smarter and they realized that not all children mature at the same level or pace. And so the age of majority was flexible. It was flexible depending on the decision of the father. In fact, Paul, his reference to the father setting, the date demonstrates that he probably had this Roman practice in mind. And the way it worked in Roman society was the father would love his son and train his son and discipline his son and raise his son. And when he knew the heart of his boy had become a man, he would tell the boy, today you've become a man. Today you are a man. And they would commemorate that by taking off the boy's childhood clothes and they would re-close him in the clothing of a man. By the way, I think that might be what Paul was alluding to back in chapter three at verse 27 when he said, "For as many of you as were baptized into Christ "have put on Christ, the imagery being, "we've put off the old self, we've put on Christ. "Or as some of your translations render it, "we now have been clothed with Christ. "We're no longer a child that's subject "to guardians and managers spiritually. "We're now of age, so to speak. "We are in air." And that's the point that Paul is illustrating here in chapter four. In fact, take a look at verse three. In the same way, we also, when we were children, we're enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. Okay, what in the world does that mean? I don't know. I'm just being honest with you. And I say, we're not exactly sure. There's been a lot of debate among scholars, the notes in the ESV study Bible. Some of you have that open and you can read along with me, point out that both here and verse in verse nine, the expression refers to the elementary principles the Galatians previously followed, which for Jews would be the Mosaic law. And for Gentiles, the basic concepts of their pagan religions. Now, if you do a deep dive into the original language, you discover that it was a word that the Greeks used to describe the most basic elementary principles that a little student, young student, would begin studying. So today, think about a little guy, a little girl, in kindergarten, in the first grade, what are they learning at that stage? Okay, they're learning their ABCs, right? And so Paul may be saying, in the same way, we also, when we were little children, we were in slavery under the ABCs of the world. And applied to the Jewish people before Christ came into the world, God did deal with his children, his people, as if they were children, meaning he spelled out what they were to do and what they were not to do. In fact, if you were a Jewish man, a Jewish woman growing up under the Old Testament law from the moment you rolled out of bed in the morning until you went to bed that night, the law would control your life. All of the dietary restrictions, ceremonial laws, the numerous special days and feasts and sacrifices, and it's possible that Paul might be referring to all of that as the basic principles, the ABCs, if you will, of religious faith. The point being, the Old Testament Jews were a lot like trust fund kids who were still minors. And one of the things that Paul repeatedly points out in Galatians is that God never intended for his people to treat his law as a means for salvation. The period of childhood was intended for them to yearn for the freedom that would come from their Messiah. In fact, I want you to go back to chapter three one more time very quickly and take a look at verses 24 and 25. So then the law was our guardian until Christ came in order that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are no longer under a guardian. Some of your translations say we are no longer under a tutor. In other words, now that Christ has come, here's what Paul is saying. We are no longer subject to tutors or guardians or managers or trustees. It's as if he's saying, why in the world would you guys want to go back under that? Back to being a minor. That time has passed. In fact, just as a date would be set by the ancient Roman father as to when his son came of age. So God the father set a date when the guardianship of the law would no longer be needed. What time was it, folks? We've already seen it. It was when Christ came into the world. Go back to chapter four and look at verses four and five. But when the fullness of time had come, God did what? God sent forth his son, born of woman, born under the law to redeem those who were under the law so that we might receive adoption as sons. I was so excited when Todd got up and felt like the Holy Spirit had put that word on his heart for all of us. I was like, yes, because this is so good. It's one of the most powerful sections in the entire New Testament. Each phrase is important in explaining how it is that Christ was able to redeem us. So let's take a look at it, phrase by phrase. Notice first, God sent forth his son indicating the deity of Jesus Christ. Second, he was born of woman indicating the humanity of Christ. Third, he was born under the law. In other words, he was perfectly familiar with the law that these Jewish teachers professed so much to know about. In fact, Jesus kept it and Jesus fulfilled it perfectly where they and everybody else had failed. And when you put all three of these ideas together, they explained the doctrine of redemption in such a powerful way. If Christ had not been human, he could not have redeemed humans. And if Christ had not been a law keeper, he could not have redeemed lawbreakers. And if he himself had not been God's son, he could not have made us into the sons and daughters of God. That's redemption. In fact, redemption itself is a beautiful word which paints the picture of a wealthy man actually going down to the slave auction. For the express purpose of purchasing a slave in order to turn right around and set that slave free. And that's exactly what Jesus did when he died on the cross, paying the penalty for our sin by dying in our place. He literally purchased our freedom with his blood. And so we've been redeemed, we've been purchased, we've been set free from the prison and the slavery of sin. We ought to say amen, but guess what? There's more, look back at verse five. God sent Jesus, notice to redeem those who were under the law so that we might receive what adoption as sons. All mine. I mean, folks, it's one thing for a slave to be freed. It's something else entirely for him to be adopted in by the plantation owner and made an heir to the entire estate. There are, in fact, quite a few stories that come out of the Civil War period concerning the emancipation of the slaves. And some of those stories indicate that there were numerous plantation owners, particularly those that were Christians, who did become convicted and convinced of the evils of slavery, and they ended up setting their slaves free and hiring them back on as workers. But I don't know that I have ever read of a slave owner who adopted one of his slaves as his own son and made him the heir of the entire plantation. But loved ones, that is exactly what God did. It's amazing. Not only did he free us from the slavery of sin, but he took the unprecedented step of adopting us into his family, giving us all the rights and privileges of sons and daughters. Today we would say he literally wrote us into the will, making us his heir. But there's even more. Paul isn't finished. Not only is God sent his son to redeem us and adopt us, but I want you to look at verses six and seven. And because you are sons, God has sent the spirit of his son into our hearts, crying, say this with me, Abba Father. So you are no longer a slave, but a son. And if a son, then an heir through God. Now you gotta get this, okay? We're a son, that's awesome. We're an heir, that's awesome. But practically and experientially, we now know and we relate to God as Abba Father. And this is where we've gotta camp out. I told the first service, I'm done with my introduction. I'm now ready to preach the sermon. Are you ready? Here we go. I'm just kidding, almost. You know, most of us kids, let me help you get your mind, begin to get your mind around this. Most of us that have had kids, you remember when they were first learning how to talk, they learned how to do that little to syllable, dad, dad, dad, dad, mom, mom, mom. Of course, I wanted it to be dad, dad, dad, dad, at first. You know how that goes? Well, I have been told that over in Israel, the little children would learn to say Abba in much the same way, so cool. It's a term of great intimacy and affection and tenderness. Let me say it negatively. No slave would ever call his master Abba, no matter how much trust there was between them, but children do. Sons and daughters do. They learn, that's daddy. They learn, that's mommy. And Paul is teaching us that it is the Holy Spirit that enables us to actually use the language of children instead of the language of slaves. And his commentary on this passage, R.C. Sproul points out that Abba is the Aramaic word for father that Jesus used. And it was natural for Jesus, God's son in a unique sense to use this familial term, but now the spirit puts the same word on the lips of men and women who have been adopted in Christ. And I am saying this is astounding. Let me remind you why it's so astounding. We are talking about God, okay? We are talking about the God who created everything out of nothing by the sheer will of him who decreed it into existence. We are talking about the God who flooded the earth because of the wickedness and utter depravity of sin. We are talking about the God who rained down wrath on Sodom and Gomorrah and killed people for their perversion according to Jude. The God who killed his enemies. The God who is holy, holy, holy, who sits on a throne and rules over everything. In fact, Hebrews 1031 tells us it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Proverbs 9-10 tells us the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. And honestly, I think most people kind of understand that kind of God, but now I want you to understand that after you come to him, after Jesus saved you, okay, we're looking at him and we're gonna ask him this question. Now that I'm saved, and this is all brand new, what should I call you? And you need to know that the Jews, they wouldn't even pronounce his name. This was so serious. And yet God looks at you and he says you call me Abba, you call me dad, call you dad. Yeah, I'm your dad. And we're like, okay, that was not what I was expecting. I was expecting maybe you call me boss and for you to give me a job description and for me to do it, cowering and fear, so much so that if I failed or if I didn't measure up, man, something terrible, what happened, right? But dad, I mean, that's totally different. You're saying I can call you dad? And God says, yes, I'm your father, I've adopted you. You're my son, you're my daughter. I've sent Jesus to die for your sins. And today I am declaring you to be my son, my heir. I've put my Holy Spirit in you so that you can live by his power and he'll lead you and he'll guide you. And any sins that you do commit as you're growing, Jesus has already forgiven. So Lovelins, can we like get totally honest for just a moment and I'm not asking for anybody to raise their hand? But how many of you struggle with a boss, employer, duty-bound, performance-based view of God? Because lots of Christians do. This pastor has done that for years and years and years. It's like if I go to the Bible and it's like, okay, just tell me what I need to do and I'll do it because I don't want God to be angry. Okay, folks, here's the problem with that. That is karma, that is not gospel, that is not grace. Karma says, if I do this, then I can move God's hand and he has to bless me, right? I pick up my toys, I get a cookie. I don't cheat on my wife, I get a raise at work. I mean, it's just all cause and effect. No, that is not grace. We deserve nothing. We get everything that's grace. Job down Romans 832 and later this afternoon, read Romans 832. I got it from the Bible. It is not that God is an employer who gives us a job description and if we do it well, oh, we get a bonus, we get a raise. No, God doesn't work that way. He doesn't. God is Abba for the believer. God is dad. In fact, have you ever seen a dad who was good that had like 600 rules hanging on the fridge and he lines his kids up? Very sternly, he says, read it, obey it and if you obey it, I'll feed you a dinner and if you don't, you're gonna be in big trouble. That's the kind of God these false teachers were presenting. You need to go to the law of Moses and you need to take the list of 600 rules that we put together to make sure you get all the rules and you need to put it on the fridge and you need to do it. Otherwise, God isn't gonna be happy. God's gonna get you. Okay, let me give you a homework assignment this week. You're ready, this is easy. I want you to spend some time watching kids. And if your kids are grown and out of the house like me, let's say you're driving by park and there are a bunch of kids out in the park, I want you to pull over and I just want you to watch them just for a few minutes and I want you to remember that. Is this not true, kids are like insane. They live in the moment. They have no conception of stress. They've got a Kool-Aid stain around their mouth. They've got cookie crumbs behind their ear. They ended up hiding it and sleeping on it. Their hair's all matted. They wet themselves. They're just a mess and we love them because they are kids. And so are we. So are we. We are the children of God. We are the kids that God has adopted and he loves us. And I really think this is the heart of what was going on in Galatia. Instead of relating to God as Abba, they were being told no, he's a boss and he shows up unannounced and he does inspections and performance reviews. And you know what, you're never gonna measure up. See you better try harder and harder and harder and harder or else. You know what I think? I think we take ourselves far too seriously. At least I do. But praise God, I'm learning. Listen, do you know why we're all breathing right now? Because we have a good dad. James 1 17 says every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the father above, the father of lights with whom there is no change of variation. And then Roman society, if a child had a good dad, he had a pretty good shot at having a good life because that dad would instruct him and discipline him. He would feed him and he would love him and protect him and encourage him and he would bring him up. And the day would come when he would hear, now you're my son, carry on the family name. You're a man today. I love you. You can do this. That's a good dad. A bad dad, hands his kid a job description and basically says, you know what, read that, do that. And when you've done all that, come and find me in 18 years and I'll tell you whether or not you've done enough to be my son. Can I just say that is sick? That is karma, that is work-based, earn it, merit it, live up to your own standards that you have created. Somehow try to please God. It is so awful. I've lived it. And if any of you are living there, I want you to look at me, you don't have to. You don't have to. In fact, you've got to get this. What motivates a son to obey their dad? Okay, there is respect. There is healthy fear. I'm not diminishing that. But it's deeper than that, right? It's love. It's their love for their dad and the health of the relationship. In fact, Jesus Himself said, you will obey me if you what? Say it. If you love me, that's exactly right. Obedience comes out of love. Every good parent knows this. If you love your kids, they will be inclined imperfectly, obviously. I had kids, I remember those days, but they will be inclined to obey you. If you don't love them, I can guarantee they're going to be inclined to rebel. Maybe 25 years ago now, I will never forget. I was at a promised keepers meeting in Charlotte, North Carolina. Josh McDowell was one of the speakers and he dropped this nugget that I have been using ever since. Parents, you got to get this. This is what he said. Rules without relationship always will lead to rebellion. Rules without relationship will always lead to rebellion. You know where he got that? He got that from passages like Colossians chapter three where Paul is addressing husbands and dads and he says, don't be harsh. Fellas, don't be harsh. Don't provoke. Don't embiter your children, he writes. Less they become discouraged. Because when dads get harsh and legalistic and they push rules without relationship, kids are going to rebel. It stirs up the seed of Adam in them and the seed of rebellion just gets absolutely launched into a full-scale assault against the father. That's not our dad, folks. You've heard me say many, many times that in Romans 2.4, we're told that it is the kindness of God that leads us to repentance. That's the kind of dad we've got. We've got the kind of dad that loves us so dearly that we want to obey him because he loves us so dearly. Love sets the table for obedience. Relationship always fosters obedience. On the other hand, coerced obedience, it does not build relationship and coerced obedience does not build love. I'll illustrate it like this. I obey the tax laws in this country, but I assure you, I do not love them and I am not in relationship with them, right? Can I get any amen on that one? But I am in a relationship with my dad and I do love him. And folks, what Paul is emphasizing in Galatians 4 is that God is interested in building a relationship with us that is like father and son, not like IRS and tax payer. Do you see? And the Galatians had this absolutely backwards. They were being told, get in the Old Testament, read your Bible, figure out what you need to do. Instead of, as Paul had taught, read the Bible to hear what Jesus has done. And if I go back to verse six one more time and because you are sons, God has sent the spirit of his son into our heart, crying, Abba, father. I mean, you've got the whole trinity involved in this. The Holy Spirit comes into our hearts and he brings us to Jesus. And then he enables us to cry out to God as Abba, father. We're saved by the power of the Holy Spirit through the work of his son into a loving relationship with God as father, our dad. I mean, it is just beautiful. And that is what the Galatians were being pulled away from. And that's what prompted Paul to write this letter. He's like, why would you ever wanna walk away from that? In fact, very, very quickly, look at verses eight through 11. This is how he describes it formally. When you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods. But now that you have come to know God, or I love this, rather be known by God, very relational, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world whose slaves you want to be once more? You observe days and months and seasons and years. And so Paul says, I am afraid and may have labored over you in vain. These Jewish legalistic teachers have been telling these young converts. You guys wanna become godly, then get circumcised. You want God to love you, then learn to obey all his laws. You really wanna be free, then observe all the feast and the ceremonial washings and all the cleanings. And here's Paul saying, stop it. No. No. You know that you're children of God because you talk to and you relate to God is dead. God is Abba. And you love him because he's your dad. That's how you know you're growing in faith. God is your Abba. God is your father. And it's not because of anything you've done. It's not because of anything you've earned. It's not because of any hoop that you felt like I've gotta jump through that. It's not because you have been baptized or because you have a quiet time every day. And I'm not throwing off on that. I'm just saying that is not the ground by which you have your father's love and affection. God is your father. And because your father loves you, you wanna obey him because you love him in return. And when you love him, you actually discover, you know what I, I want to read the Bible. And I find myself actually wanting to pray and I want to obey. Why? Because God is your dad and he loves you and his love is transformational. It is. And maybe you're, you know, you're thinking, okay, Buck, this is like blowing my mind and it's pretty amazing. But are you absolutely sure this is what the Bible actually teaches? I love it when you ask for more verses. I've got 'em, all right? Let me give you one. It's what Paul was describing in Ephesians 5 when he sums up everything with the Ephesians by saying this, look at this. The imitators of God, therefore, what comes next, as dearly loved children and live a life of love. I've got to stop here. I've got to stop here. The order is important. We're to be an imitator of God. What does that even mean? It means living a life of love. How do I do that by first understanding how dearly loved I am? If I don't understand that, everything else goes off the cliff. Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, justice Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. That is the entire Christian life in a sentence. How about if we look at it this way? How many sons want to imitate their dad, okay? Well, if you've got a dad that really loves his son, does that little boy want to copy his dad? Okay, they do, they do. And here's the thing, they do for better or worse, right? That's why your kids drive you crazy. They're little mirrors. They just show you who you are. We're like, why do you keep doing that? Well, you were doing it. Oh yeah, that's right, you know? We all know that. All sons, if their dad loves them, all sons want to imitate their dad. And Church, here's the sermon in a phrase. That's God's plan for our growth and holiness. You gotta get this. It's by grace. And Church, that's the key to submitting all areas of our life under Christ. Again, be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children, as I was working on this message this week, at this spot, my phone goes, dang, in a text comes in from somebody in this church and they sent me this terrific quote from David Jeremiah. I wish I had to put it on the screen, but I didn't, so listen closely. There is a direct correlation between our sense of security and the depth of our understanding of God's love. You bet there is. Dearily loved children understand. I just want to love my dad and I want to be like him. In fact, I wish everybody was like him. Is that a good healthy perspective for a little guy to have? If they have a good dad, you know? Is that a good perspective for a Christian to have with God? It absolutely is. And Paul is telling these Galatian believers and us today that that happens through the Holy Spirit in our hearts, enabling us to cry out to Abba Father. And look, Jesus taught the same thing, right? You remember the time the disciples pull him aside privately and they're like, "Lord, you've got to teach us how to pray." He's like, "You want to learn how to pray?" You pray like this. How does he start our Father, right? Our Father. Maybe you're tempted to say, "Well, problem is I'm not very holy." Well, guess what? You need a dad. You say, "Well, I'm not very smart." Again, you need a dad. The pastor of Buck, you just don't know the depth of my struggle and how much I've sinned. You need your dad. And if you have placed your faith and trust in Jesus Christ, you have a dad. He loves you. Do you remember this verse? How great is the love the Father has lavished on us that we should be called children of God and that is what we are. Do you know what causes 99% of the struggles that we have toward the flash or toward the world? Forgetting who we are, right? And again, if we do not get this, we will not understand the implications of redemption and more specifically submitting all areas of life under Christ. Or worse, we'll see that through the lens of performance. And man, we'll get to work and we'll keep trying and we'll keep feeling guilty and shame. We'll begin to pile on, and no matter how hard we try, we end up becoming frustrated and exhausting. That's the mistake the Pharisee's made. Do you remember? Pharisees took the law and they tied it up as a heavy burden, hard to bear. And Jesus said you lay that on the shoulders of the people. And the people were exhausted, exhausted. And Jesus shows up and he says this, come to me, come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden. And I will give you, say this, rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me for I am gentle and lowly in heart, gentle and humble of heart and you will find, he says it again, rest for your souls, for my yoke is easy and my burden is light. Now what if you're here this morning and this is like brand new to you and you're hearing it and you are thinking, can it really be that good? And if you and I could sit down over a cup of coffee, you would go, I heard what you said, I saw it out of the Bible, I was touched by it. Pastor Buck, I think this is my next question. What do I need to do? It's like where and how do I start? Come to him, do you see that? Come to Jesus, trust Jesus, place your faith in Jesus, begin to follow Jesus, there will be brothers and sisters who come alongside to help unpack what that looks like in a deeper way, but it all starts with you coming to him, you believing in him, amen? Heavenly Father, we are so thankful, thankful, thankful, thankful that we get to use the language of Abba. I often say that you love us more than we can ever begin to understand because you do. Paul prays that we would understand that in a way that it is so deep and so rich and so magnificent that it surpasses our ability to understand it. Thank you for the gift of Jesus. Thank you for the gift of your indwelling Holy Spirit. Thank you that you have revealed yourself as Abba. Thank you for your living and active word and opening the eyes of our heart, transforming our heart of stone into a heart of flesh, putting your Holy Spirit within us to actually move us to want to obey. Teach us what that means for your glory we pray in Jesus' name, amen, amen.