Galatians 3:26-29
“Baptized Into Christ”
SI: My plan for preaching Galatians has been to stick to
Paul’s main point—
not get bogged down
by difficult verses or sidetracked by other things mentioned.
Because I think it’s most
important that you get the big message of Galatians—
which is that you
are declared right with God by faith in Christ alone—
not by the works of
the law—and how that gives you freedom and power
to live for God.
So last week read a big
chunk—10 verses—just skimmed over some difficult
parts to get to the
main point.
But this week we’re going to
go down a rabbit trail that I could have skipped
if I had stuck to
Paul’s main argument.
But this is something that
God says is very important
but we almost never
talk about it.
Your
baptism. Importance of it in your
Christian life.
INTRO: In
if ever God raised
up a member to be a full-time missionary—
church would commit
to 25% of annual support.
Eight or so years later—family in church—
accepted call to
teach in missionary school in
Right around time budget
coming out—elders presented budget.
Notice this increase, because Nantzes are going to
Well, there were a few people
who were again it—thought going to hurt church.
One man came to talk to me and senior
pastor.
Let’s just say the amount was $25,000 a year
church committed to.
He began to argue that the
church couldn’t take this on—
in middle of a
building program,
we had had a
special missionary pledge drive several months earlier,
people giving as
much as they could—tapped out.
When he had said his piece,
conversation shifted, making small talk.
Oh—my wife and I are so excited, just bought
a new boat—
lot’s bigger than
our last one—cost us $250,000.
I though to myself—I don’t
begrudge this man his new boat—
But doesn’t he realize the damage he has
done to his argument?
It seems like Paul has
written something that damages his argument.
What has Paul been pounding home in this
letter?
You foolish Galatians:
You cannot be right with God through the
works of the law—
only by faith in
Jesus Christ.
Morality, religious ceremonies
are worthless in making you right in God’s sight—
they are worse than
worthless. If you rely on them even a
little bit for your
standing with God,
then you are avoiding Jesus.
What was the particular work
of the law being pushed in Galatian churches?
Circumcision.
There was a group in the
church from Jewish background—saying to Gentiles
To be a real Christian, really accepted by
God—you have to be circumcised.
You have to perform this religious
ceremony.
Paul was absolutely hostile
to that idea. He was again it.
Says over and over—No, justified by faith alone—through Christ
alone.
You cannot rely on religious ceremonies to
justify you.
But as he is making a
transition here in his argument—
throws in something
that is a big problem—baptism.
Look at vs. 26 & 27
again:
You are all
sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus,
for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed
yourselves with Christ.
Do you see how this hurts
Paul’s argument?
He is arguing against relying on religious
ceremonies—(circumcision)
But he puts another religious ceremony front
and center—(baptism).
What Paul should have written
was this:
You are all
sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus,
for all of you who believed in Christ have clothed
yourselves with Christ.
Why did Paul bring another
religious ceremony into the picture
when he was dealing
with people whose problem
was putting their
faith in religious ceremonies?
This is the reason:
Baptism is a God-ordained help for
strengthening your faith in Christ.
Paul would not avoid it or
downplay it—
even at the risk of
people misunderstanding him.
You can’t put your faith in
religious ceremonies to make right with God—
but the ceremonies
of Christian faith—Baptism, Lord’s Supper,
What we call the sacraments, are of enormous
benefit to your faith.
So this morning I want us to
look at baptism.
Not going to address the
questions people often ask:
Should baptize professing Christians only or
infants of believers?
What’s the right way: sprinkling, pouring, immersion?
How does baptism strengthen
your faith in Christ alone?
To understand—big picture, how misused and
rightly used.
The danger of baptism
The help of baptism
MP#1
The danger of baptism
Danger is that you will trust
in it instead of in Christ.
There is a constant danger to substitute
ceremonies for living faith.
Some branches of the church
(large branches) have interpreted Galatians
exactly opposite of
the way I’ve been teaching it to you in this series.
They say that Paul’s point is
that Jewish ceremonies are no longer required
for justification—what
is now required are Christian ceremonies.
Believers in the Old
Testament were saved by faith plus circumcision.
Now believers are saved by faith plus
baptism.
They point to this verse in support of
argument—faith plus baptism.
Problem with this
interpretation—besides fact out of step with rest of Bible—
it doesn’t do
justice to rest of letter, many places emphasizes faith in Christ alone.
But it does illustrate the
consistent abuse of baptism through church history.
There has always been a tendency in the
church to trust baptism to for salvation.
This did not start in the Middle Ages—it started in the Old Testament.
Back then the ceremony was not baptism—it
was circumcision.
In order to understand
baptism—have to start with circumcision.
We read this morning the most important
passage—Genesis 17, God gives it.
Remember Abraham had already
been a believer for many years—
he had been
justified by faith in God.
So circumcision was not for
his salvation—already saved.
Lord said that circumcision
was a sign of the covenant.
The covenant is simply the way God relates
to his people.
Circumcision a sign of God’s saving
relationship with his people.
Why circumcision?
Bible never tells us. But if you think about it, some things clear.
A permanent
mark—showing everlasting nature of covenant—blessings/curses.
Intimate part of body—reach
of covenant, demands on innermost part of life.
Later Bible speaks of the circumcision of
heart—total devotion God requires
and that he brings
about in the lives of all who are truly His.
A sign of
cleansing—uncircumcised lips—sinfulness, impurity.
So circumcision conveyed the
character of the covenant—
All we
receive from God as gift of his grace, all he requires of us as His people.
Forgiveness of sins, clean
hearts, deliverance from guilt/power—consecration.
Over the years God said more
about circumcision—tremendous importance.
Demand that it be carefully obeyed by the
Israelites.
In fact, circumcision came to
be a way of referring to the covenant itself.
This is my covenant with you—every male
shall be circumcised.
Virtually all of these things
are carried over into baptism—
cleansing, marking
person as consecrated to God.
Also its
tremendous importance to the Lord.
Great Commission. Make disciples. How?
Baptize and Teach.
In places baptism spoken
of as salvation itself—circumcision/covenant.
But what happened in the
history of
Over and over again the Old
Testament church took circumcision
and turned it into
a good luck charm to keep out of hell.
They trusted their
righteousness before God to a ceremony.
We’re
right with God because we’ve been circumcised.
Circumcision took the place of true faith in
Lord alone, submission to him.
Over and over the prophets
confronted this. Jeremiah.
Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, circumcise your
hearts, you men of Judah and people of Jerusalem, or my wrath will break out and
burn like fire because of the evil you have done—burn with no one to quench it.
They not only trusted
circumcision but other ceremonies—Passover/sacrifices.
We’re doing these things so we must be
right.
There were always true
believers—understood circumcision/sacrifices rightly.
But for long periods of time—trust in these
ceremonies rampant.
You would think that God
would have changed things for New Testament church.
He would have seen the constant temptation
these ceremonies caused—
How, for most part, people used them as
substitutes for faith—
just done away with
them.
Not given the NT church any
important ceremonies.
But He didn’t do it that way.
He gave two new ceremonies to correspond to
old—baptism, Lord’ Supper.
Guess what? Throughout the history of NT church very
same thing happened.
Generations of professing
Christians have turned baptism into a good luck charm
to keep them out of
hell. Same thing with
Lord’s Supper.
Replaced Lord, living faith
in Him with faith in a ceremony church performs.
There was a movie scene in
one of the Godfather movies—
Mafia boss is having his child baptized—even
as being baptized—
his hit men are
killing rival gangsters.
That’s an over the top
example—but it’s an illustration of this spirit.
It’s the ceremony itself—apart from any
life-changing faith in Christ.
We are evangelical
Christians. We are reformed in our
doctrine.
We would never think that baptism saves us
or our children.
We know it’s only Jesus Christ and faith in
him. Good.
But don’t forget that the
history of the church—book of Galatians itself—
is a warning that
you can take anything good in the Christian religion—
and turn it into a
substitute for faith in Christ.
There are evangelical
Christians who would never trust baptism to save—
but they trust the
act of praying to receive Christ—to save a person.
Or they trust certain conversion
experiences.
Even faith itself can become
the thing a person trusts instead of Jesus .
That’s what the book of James is about—
how it is possible
to have a kind of faith that accepts doctrines as true—
but it doesn’t
penetrate the heart and produce a life of love and gratitude.
The human heart is an
idol-making factory—
professing
Christians are not immune. Book of
Galatians is a warning.
So what’s the answer? Should we take a low and cautious view of baptism,
Lord’s supper, all
the lesser ceremonies and customs, rituals of Christian faith?
No—that’s not the
answer.
Instead we need to train ourselves to be
more biblical—
Take greater care to use these things
rightly.
See the great help Lord intends these things
to be for us.
MP#2
The help of baptism.
The Lord has given the church
baptism to help you bring home to your soul,
the great truths of your salvation.
Rightly used, it strengthens
your faith in Jesus Christ alone.
God has made us with souls
and bodies.
He know that the
way we learn about the spiritual world, through physical senses.
John Bunyan who wrote Pilgrim’s
Progress wrote another book, Holy War.
There is a town called Mansoul. Five gates
in and out.
Ear-gate, Eye-gate,
Mouth-gate, Nose-gate, Feel-gate.
spiritual truth
comes into soul through physical senses.
That is not the only way. Holy Spirit can work directly, deeply.
But after He does, primary way you get
spiritual truth—through physical senses.
Bible makes this clear by many
examples. Let’s just consider a few.
How did God convey to
Israelites his glory?
One of the primary ways was through
architecture.
The Tabernacle, and then
later the
Believers can know the glory
of God without architecture.
David knew God’s glory, in fellowship with
Him in the wilderness.
But what did David long
for? Express God’s glory by building a
Because that’s what architecture can
do—express God’s glory.
It can make the impression of it felt more
forcefully.
How did God bring home His
praise to the souls of Israelites?
Through music and singing. Choirs and orchestras and
music.
A believer can have a heart
full of praise and be completely silent.
But when you sing praise,
with congregation, music—deeper.
Comes into your ears and out of your
voice—brings it home.
One more example: How was reverence for God, fear brought to
soul?
One way was through prayer and positions of
prayer—kneeling.
God is everywhere, can pray
without falling on knees.
But there is a connection between body and
soul.
Physical action of kneeling in prayer
conveys to soul reverence and fear.
We could go on and on. How was joy in Lord expressed?—feasting.
How was repentance expressed? Fasting and sackcloth and
ashes.
Faith comes by hearing. Blessed is the one who reads words of this
book.
The physical not only
expresses the spiritual—it completes it.
It makes it more powerfully felt and
enjoyed. This is the way God has made
us.
What does this have to do
with baptism?
The Lord in his wisdom has
given us a physical ceremony—baptism—
to bring home to
your soul your union with Christ.
“All of you who were baptized into Christ
have clothed yourself with Christ.”
For Paul, this phrase “into
Christ” or “in Christ” is most important thing.
It means that you are united to Christ in
His saving work.
All he did is applied to you. In him you were crucified, died, rose again.
Your sins were punished in Christ because
you were in Him when he died.
And, “in Christ” means that you
are connected to him right now.
By his Holy Spirit working out in you all
the good and holy
consequences of his
saving work.
Clothed with Christ—our
acceptability before God, we imitate him.
Paul says this comes through baptism.
Faith and union with Christ
are invisible—spiritual realities.
But baptism is a visible, physical point of
transition from death to life.
It’s the visible point of membership in the
covenant community.
Bible uses this language
often.
Peter:
Closing evangelistic sermon: “Repent and be baptized for forgiveness.”
Annanias: “Get
up, be baptized, and wash your sins away calling on his name.”
Always reminding us that we
were baptized—how important this is.
How we need to consciously think of ourselves
as baptized people.
We can get nervous about this
language—immediately start making qualifications.
But baptism doesn’t save you!
Shows how well have been taught salvation by
faith alone—that’s good.
But if more
spiritual than Bible itself—not good.
The Lord has given the church baptism to
bring home to souls reality of union.
Means you ought to think
highly of your baptism—get comfort from it—
as the physical
demonstration of your union with Christ.
Absolutely consistent with
high view of Gospel, justified by faith alone.
If you are married, look at
your wedding ring.
You could have gotten married without
it.
But wedding ring brings the invisible union
of marriage home to heart.
It’s a physical sign and seal
of your promises to each other.
Wedding ring is a help. Reminder of your spouse,
her love for you.
Your promises to her.
Reminder of the blessings that come from
keeping promises—
and the pain that
comes from breaking them.
Baptism should function for
you in a similar way.
The Puritans had an
interesting phrase—“improving your baptism.”
Duty of every Christian to
improve your baptism.
Consider what it means.
Remember that you are a
baptized person.
Think about what great privileges and benefits
are promised through it,
and how it
obligates you to live for Christ.
Help for two things in
particular—times of temptation.
When you are tempted to sin: I have been baptized.
I have to resist this temptation because of
who I am.
You’re looking at the wedding ring.
For walking
in brotherly love.
What a great help for your dealings with
fellow believers.
Here is this person struggling with,
disagreement with, irritated with.
You’ve both been
baptized. Both received sign of union
with Christ.
Both wearing the wedding
ring—what an obligation to walk in love.
The Lord makes much of your
baptism.
He has given it for your good.
Wants you to improve it,
for strengthening of your faith.