Series: Because You Asked Text: Galatians 3:19-25 Valley Community Baptist Church August 27/28, 2011 Avon, CT Pastor Timothy J. Ponzani Living Free In June, 2011, the city of Alameda, California, immediately changed its policies after first responders stood by and watched a man drown in San Francisco Bay. The first responders didn't venture into the muddy waters of the bay, even as the suicidal man started treading water and then eventually went under. According to Michael D'Orazi, the Interim Fire Chief for Alameda, two things prevented authorities from taking action: First, because it was a crime scene, the police "felt that going into the water initially might not be the best idea because they were unsure if this individual was armed." Secondly, D'Orazi also said, "There was a policy in place that pretty much precluded our people from entering the water." The firefighters "were incredibly frustrated by this whole situation [because] they wanted to get in, they wanted to take action." Local officials also noted that due to a lack of funding, firefighters had no one properly trained to go into the water. The Alameda Interim Police Chief was also quoted to say, "It's muddy out there. We don't want [the police officers] sinking. We don't want them in distress." Fortunately, the policies were changed only a few days after this incident. 1 I think we can all agree that rules, laws and moral codes are absolutely necessary to live in civilized society today. I think that our law enforcement friends would definitely agree with that. The above example, however, simply does not pass the reasonableness test. I m sure that when it was originally written, it was well-meaning and well-intended (for the protection of police officers and firefighters) but somehow the authors failed to see a larger perspective. This is an example of what is called legalism. Webster defines legalism as, strict, literal, or excessive conformity to the law or to a religious or moral code. 1 Copyright 2011 Christianity Today International/Preaching Today.com 1
Today we continue in our series Because You Asked. The questions that you asked were on the topics of legalism, obedience and judging others. I have a couple of questions for you. How many of you like rules? How many of you do not like rules? Do you like rules when they apply to others and not you? Do you like rules because they give you a sense of safety and security you re sure of what s expected of you? I like rules; rules are my friend! However, as we ve seen in the above illustration, rules when unreasonable or outdated are a form of legalism. So today we re going to look at another kind of legalism: a situation where obedience to certain rules were playing havoc with people who were trying to follow Christ; where people were trying to have a vital relationship with God through their own efforts. In order for us to understand what is going on here, it s helpful to have a little background into this passage. I. Rules Have Purpose When the Apostle Paul was writing this letter to the Galatian Christians there was a particular issue he was facing with the church there. Paul had travelled through Galatia preaching the good news and many were converted to Christ. As time went by certain Jewish Christian teachers (called Judiazers) came along and were saying that the Apostles, including Paul, taught that in order to be saved not only did Gentiles need to accept Christ, they also needed to follow the whole Mosaic Law. So what s the problem? Let s take a few minutes to understand the purpose of the Old Testament Law. In this passage Paul gives us the answer to that question. First, the Law was given to reveal sin Paul points out that the Law highlights or reveals our sin. He also says the Law was introduced because of our sinfulness. Romans 7:7 says, What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law." While the law points out our sin, the law could not save. In fact the law only served to separate people from God; it could never give people oneness with God. The law pointed out the great gulf that existed between a Holy God and Sinful Man. The big idea of the law was to illustrate there was no way humanly speaking that we could keep the law. No way, no how!! That is why Paul says in the passage, It was added because of transgressions until the Seed to whom the promise referred had come. The Law was temporary, to function until Christ came! Life and right standing before God comes only through faith in Jesus Christ. 2
This is something that the Judaizers missed; they came to believe that right standing before God came through following the law - NOT faith. They missed the point that the Law could not provide life if life and righteousness could have come through the law, then why was it necessary for Christ to have died on the cross? We see in scripture that it was the worship of the law that led the nation of Israel into a works based, legalistic religion. It was a religion devoid of relationship. Second, the Law was given to prepare the way for Christ In v.24 Paul says that the law was put in charge to lead us to Christ. Later in Chapter 4 of Galatians, Paul uses the image of a tutor or guardian. This illustration says that under the law we were immature children and the law was the tutor or guardian. In Greek and Roman times, well-educated slaves took children to and from school and watched over them during the day. Sometimes they would even teach and discipline the children. By comparing the law with a tutor, Paul further reminds us that the law was given to not only point out sin but to threaten punishment if God s people didn t straighten up and act right. Paul then goes on to say in v. 23 and 25 Before this faith came, we were held prisoners by the law, locked up until faith should be revealed. Now that faith has come, we are no longer under the supervision of the law. The faith that has come refers to the coming of Jesus Christ. What about the Old Covenant? The Gospels tell us that Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets and the key to their interpretation. We read that Jesus didn t dispute the authority of the law (Matthew 5:17), but he gave it a new interpretation. 17 Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. He preserved its moral code, but did away with the need to adhere to its ceremonial requirements. Here is an example of Jesus interpreting the law. In Matthew 22:37-40, he is asked what is the greatest commandment. He responds: Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments. Jesus effectively condenses the whole law and the prophets into these two commands Love God, Love Your Neighbor. So, obedience is still part of the equation. But there is a clear difference between the type of obedience or legalism being taught by the Pharisees or Judaizers and the obedience Jesus was talking about. It is not obedience to the law and following rules that justifies, but faith in Jesus Christ and the reliance on the Spirit which results in obedience. 3
Let's look at some of the differences between legalism and biblical obedience. II. Rules without Relationship First, the rule centered life devalues relationships; with God and with others. There is an interesting word-play in this passage. In verse 19, Paul says, The law was given through angels and entrusted to a mediator. Why would Paul say this? Paul was a scholar of the law; he knew it as well as anyone. He knew that Moses received the law from God on Mount Sinai, as found in the accounts of Exodus 19, 20 and again in 34. However, according to Jewish teachers, they believed that God was so holy that He would have never directly given the law to man. God was so righteous; so transcendent; so otherworldly, that man could not have a personal relationship with Him. Obedience to the law was necessary in order to have a hope of right standing with God. The problem was that the Jewish teachers allowed the law to become the central point of their lives and religion. Remember what the purpose of the law was in the first place. It was to point out our sin, to lead the way to Jesus. It was to point out our immense need for God s redemptive work in our lives. The law was to expose sin and move people to cry out in faith for God s mercy. Secondly, the Jewish teachers also allowed the law to devalue people, not only non-jews, but fellow Jews as well (particularly if they weren't in the right class). The law was to identify the people of Israel as God s own people, to set them apart, to make them special, to make them winsome. God wanted them to be attractive to other nations because of their loyalty to him. They were to be a light unto the nations. However, just the opposite happened. Rather than being inclusive, they became exclusive to the point that women, slaves, the poor, sinners, non-jews became second class citizens or worse. This was not what God had intended. This is where Jesus completely blew away the Pharisees with His actions. Who did Jesus spend time with? He hung out with the poor, tax-collectors, sinners, non-jews. He spent time with people that needed his love and mercy. In Matthew 12:9-14, we have the account of Jesus healing the man with the withered hand. The Pharisees interpreted the fourth commandment Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy to mean that no work could happen on the Sabbath. Yet in this account we have Jesus performing work. However, since the Pharisees had a superficial understanding of God, they failed to understand why the Sabbath Day was declared holy. Rather than seeing Jesus miracle as something which glorified God, they instead, went out and plotted how they might kill Jesus. Beth Moore in her book, Breaking Free says this, The Sabbath belonged entirely to God. He established it for our benefit, not for our imprisonment. The greatest benefit Christ could bring to the man with the 4
shriveled hand was a relationship with the Savior. He initiated that relationship through healing. We don t have to wonder who enjoyed Christ more that day, the Pharisees or the man who was healed. 2 If our focus is on rules and regulations, we miss out on what life with Christ can really be like. We end up with a kind of righteousness, but we miss out on walking in faith with Christ. Are there aspects of our Christian walk that seem like we re just following a set of rules and regulations? Or possibly a check list of tasks, duties, responsibilities? We may not even realize it, but even in coming to worship today is it more about checking it off our lists, or is it because we come because this time belongs entirely to God. We come to give ourselves to him, not out of duty or obligation, but because of what He has done for us. III. Performance This leads us to the second characteristic of the rule-centered life Performance. If we re caught up in following the rules, there is a notion we have to do more and more in order to feel justified. The law of diminishing returns is at work here. We have to do more and more and do it better in order to feel good about ourselves. A rules-based religion says that even if salvation is based on faith, obedience is based on our work and our performance of that work. This was the main issue in the church of Galatia. They were being taught that belief in Christ was not enough; to be a real Christian, you had to follow and keep the law to its fullest what a set up! After all how successful were the Jews at keeping the law? A good example is to look at the Parable in Luke 18:9-14 where Jesus is telling the story of the Pharisee and the tax collector: 9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: God, I thank you that I am not like other people robbers, evildoers, adulterers or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. 13 But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner. 14 I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. 2 Moore, Beth, Breaking Free, 2000, B & H Publishing, Nashville, TN, 2000, pg 118 5
The Pharisees, in most cases were doing the right things (at least externally), however we see that there was a problem and this was a problem that went way back. Isaiah 29:13 says it this way: The Lord says: These people come near to me with their mouth and honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. Their worship of me is based on merely human rules they have been taught. The Pharisee in this case was focused on praying, fasting and giving. They were doing good things, but for the wrong reasons. The Pharisee was focused on putting on a show before others. The point of this parable is not to look externally what these two men were doing, but look inwardly at their hearts. Because, externally they looked pretty much the same. When we perform, we put on an external show for others to see. We focus on the right things to say, how to pray, how to act, but yet something is missing inside. When our attention is focused on doing the right things and acting the right way our focus is diverted from our absolute need to rely on God. However, what we see in the tax collector s attitude is his total and absolute humility before God. He knew that there was nothing he could do, other than recognize that he needed God s mercy and forgiveness. What about us? As we approach God, is it to let him know all that we have done? Or is our attitude like the tax-collector; where we recognize that we are in desperate need of God s mercy. There is nothing we can do, no good work we can accomplish that will change our standing with God. IV. Judgment This brings us to the third characteristic of the rule-centered life Judgment. When we become so focused on external performance and the need to do more and more to please others and God, we spend a great deal of effort judging and condemning the sin we see in ourselves and others. Let s continue with the example of the Pharisee and the Tax Collector in Luke 18: 9 To some who were confident of their own righteousness and looked down on everyone else, Jesus told this parable: 10 Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood by himself and prayed: God, I thank you that I am not like other people robbers, evildoers, adulterers or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week and give a tenth of all I get. 13 But the tax collector stood at a distance. He would not even look up to heaven, but beat his breast and said, God, have mercy on me, a sinner. 6
14 I tell you that this man, rather than the other, went home justified before God. For all those who exalt themselves will be humbled, and those who humble themselves will be exalted. Look at what the Pharisee says in v. 11. Instead of being concerned about his relationship with God, he says, God, I thank you that I am not like other men robbers, evildoers, adulterers or even like this tax collector. What was the Pharisee doing here? He was judging the Tax- Collector! The tendency of the rule-centered life is for us to judge others and compare our behavior to another s; that is what the Pharisee was doing in this case. When we compare, we have the tendency to want to point out faults in others and not look at our own faults. We fool ourselves into thinking that we don t need to humble ourselves before God because compared to the next guy I m not such a bad person. However, there is an axiom in this tendency. To point out fault in other s actions is mainly an expression of the faults we see in ourselves. Yet, we re unwilling to even admit we have them, let alone address them. Another aspect of this judgment is the self-condemnation that occurs when we fail to perform or we fail to measure up to the standards others set for us or the standards we set for ourselves. Donald Sunikjian says it this way: What you discover when you try to earn righteousness by someone else s standard (or even our own) is that rather than benefitting from all that effort, it instead becomes a drain on you. It saps you of spiritual vitality. Some of the activities others want you to do are not natural to you. When you aren t good at them you struggle with failure, defeat and frustration. If you try harder, even if you succeed, you end of miserable. You may measure up, but you ll have no joy. You may satisfy their expectations, but you ll be empty inside. You may have a righteousness that comes from keeping the rules, but you won t be in love with Christ. 3 This is where grace comes into the equation! Ephesians 2: 8, 9 says: For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. We need to realize that there is positively nothing we can do to earn favor or right standing with God. No act of service, no duty, no good work. The other side of this, which is really good news is that there is also nothing so terrible that can keep us from God s love and forgiveness. 3 2009, The Christian Subculture: Righteous or Rubbish?, Donald Sunikjian, PreachingToday.com 7
Let s take a look at this video which gives us a picture of God s overwhelming grace and forgiveness. (Show Video) V. Conclusion What about us today? Rule-Centered Life Rules Performance Judgment Spirit-Centered Life Relationship Reliance Grace We ve talked quite a bit this morning about the actions of men a long time ago? Do we have rules that we try and follow or force others to follow? Is performance part of our daily Christian living? Do we find ourselves critical of others and judging their actions? Or do we do it to ourselves. In Galatians 5:1, when Paul urges us to live as free people and not be burdened by a yoke of slavery, he s talking about legalism. Remember this, For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast. Let s live as free people! 8