Galatians 4:21-31
“Two Sons,
SI: Paul’s letters follow the same format—
First half is doctrine, and the second half
is application.
We’ve been climbing a
doctrinal mountain since started letter.
Paul has been explaining and defending
justification by faith—
against the
legalism of the circumcision group troubling Galatian
churches.
This is the last major
doctrinal point Paul makes—
starting next
Sunday, we start going down other side of mountain.
Paul applies all of this to
the Christian life.
What does it look like to live as a free,
justified son of God?
This last argument is a
picture from life of Abraham, two different ways of life.
INTRO: Have you ever heard someone make a statement that starts
like this:
“There are two kinds of people in the world
. . . “?
I did an internet search and
these are some results I found.
From the movie “The Good, the
Bad, and the Ugly”
Clint Eastwood says:
“There are two kinds of people in the world,
those with a gun, and those who dig. Now
dig!”
From Dear Abby:
“There are two kinds of people in the world,
those who walk into a room and say,
‘There
you are.’ and those who say, ‘Here I am.’”
From CS Lewis:
“There are two kinds of people in the world,
those who say to God, ‘Thy will be done’
and whose to whom
God says, ‘All right, have it your way.’”
And there is this anonymous
saying:
“There are two kinds of people in the world,
those who divide the world into two kinds
of people, and
those who don’t.”
The Apostle Paul was clearly
in the first category.
He divided the world into two kinds of
people—the slaves and the free.
Those who live under the law,
and those who live by faith in the promise.
You could probably fill a sheet
of paper listing the various ways Paul
describes this
contrast in Galatians.
He says that a person can
seek to be justified by the works of the law—
or he can seek to
be justified by the righteousness of Christ.
You can live by works or
grace,
by legalism or Gospel, slavery or sonship.
Reason Paul hammers this
contrast home over and over in letter is because there
were people in the Galatian churches where were teaching that in order
to be a real
Christian, to be really accepted by God—
had to do certain
religious rituals.
These people didn’t deny that
Jesus is the Son of God,
or that he died on
cross for sins, or that you have to have faith in Him—
But they added to faith
certain the requirement of certain behaviors
for right standing
with God—in particular, circumcision, holy days, dietary rules.
Paul was at pains to show
that when you add any behavioral requirement
to faith in Christ,
even something good like religion or morality—
then you no longer
have the Gospel.
You have a program of
self-salvation.
And there are two kinds of
people in the world—
Those who rely on programs of self-salvation
and those who rely
on Jesus Christ.
To drive point home even more
firmly—
Paul uses one last powerful illustration from
OT, life of Abraham.
Abraham had two sons—son by
slave woman Hagar, Ishmael.
Son by free woman Sarah,
Isaac.
Those two mothers and sons
symbols of two kinds of people, two ways of life.
Key verse is 24
“These things may be taken figuratively, for
the two women represent two covenants.”
Covenant is the way God
relates to His people—how we relate to him.
Two covenants, two ways to live—
two ways to seek
salvation—faith in God or faith in yourself.
So all
people are either children of Sarah or of Hagar—Isaacs or Ishmaels.
Reason Paul uses this
illustration is to put false teacher in place.
Show legalists of circumcision group one
more time—
that they do not
have the true Gospel—spiritual slavery.
Also to
encourage and warn true believers.
Don’t fall into the Ishmaelite way of
life—remember who you are.
Remember what it means to be a child of God
by faith in Christ alone.
You can draw a line from
their experience to yours today—
you face the same
struggle between living as an Isaac or Ishmael.
Issue is not, should I be
circumcised, keep the Jewish holy days
to get God’s
approval make sure really Christian.
Other legalism tempted to follow. But same challenge is there.
Let’s look at this
passage—what teaches about two different ways of life—
so that as children
of God, can live wisely and happily.
MP#1
Let’s start with the way of life represented by Ishmael,
son of the slave woman Hagar
Now, have to realize, that
Paul is not plowing new ground here—
he has already
covered this way of life numerous times already in letter.
So there is nothing new
here—except that Paul is using one last
powerful
illustration of this way of life.
What are some of the ways
Paul has described this way of life to Galatians?
What is come of the vocabulary he has used?
Certainly his favorite is
“living under the law.”
That does not mean obeying the law.
Paul never says anything negative about
obeying the law.
In fact, as we will see as
get into application part—Christians, have to obey law.
That’s the way we should live—as obedient
children of Father.
Living under the law means
using religion and morality as a way
to justify yourself
before God, as a way of making yourself acceptable.
Paul criticizes those who
seek to be justified by the law.
He also calls this way of life works, and
contrasts it with grace.
He also calls it living by
the principles of this world.
Principles of this world are simply the
natural religion of every sinful heart.
We are by nature self-righteous—think we can
save ourselves—
by earning the
approval of God and other people.
We use idols to achieve this
righteousness—
created things that
we lean on for blessing.
We are bound by
legalism—things we have to do to please idols, get approval.
It’s a program of
self-salvation.
Paul has said that all self-salvation
programs—
whether legalism in
a Christian church, rituals in pagan temple—are the same—
simply a means of
self-salvation, apart from total faith in Christ.
And they lead to spiritual
slavery—insecurity, guilt, pride.
Now, what
about Ishmael and Hagar.
You remember the story:
God had promised Abraham a
son through Sarah.
Son would be heir of his estate, one through
whom salvation came to world.
But Sarah was old and barren, obvious she could not have children—
so it would take a
supernatural act of God for this to happen.
On the other hand, Hagar,
Sarah’s maidservant was young and fertile.
Abraham decided he would not get his son
through God promise.
His
faith in God’s salvation wavered.
So he decided he would have
to get a son in the ordinary way.
Here was this young, fertile slave woman—
according to the
customs of the day, this was acceptable.
Abraham took matters into his
own hands,
achieved what he
was able to do—had relations with Hagar, produced Ishmael.
Do you see what a good
illustration this is of works righteousness?
Instead of trusting god,
waiting for him to provide son and salvation.
Abraham went out and attempted to do what he
was able to do.
He trusted in his own
ability. He was self-righteous.
This was idolatry.
Counting on a son he produced to bless,
instead of God himself.
Paul says: That’s the way of Hagar and Ishmael.
It’s the way of life that say: I will trust myself to gain righteousness.
Do you remember the story
told a few weeks ago, studying chapter 2.
Woman Larry Taunton said he had met, told
him how brought up in church
taught that godly
women wear dresses and worldly women wear pants.
For years, when I put on a
dress it made me feel accepted by God.
My dress was my righteousness.
I’m sure that if you had
asked her during those years—are you a sinner?
O yes, I’m a sinner. Do you ask for forgiveness? Believe in Christ?
Of course I do.
But what was
her repentance and her faith in Christ?
Just ways to cover the gaps
in her project of self-salvation.
Of course she knew she was a sinner, Christ
died on cross.
But the area that mattered the most—modesty
and dress—she was perfect.
She was avoiding Jesus by
being modest in the way she dressed.
Morality and religion are the
most deceptive forms of living under the law.
Because they are good
things in themselves.
Isn’t that a startling thought.
It’s easy to see how sin is a way to avoid
God.
You see the drunk in the gutter and can see
that he has decided to avoid God
through
alcohol.
But it’s harder to see how
morality is a way to avoid God.
A man could chose sobriety as a way to avoid
God.
His not drinking, his record of never
getting drunk is one plank
in his project of
self-salvation.
O yes, he says—I’m a sinner,
I’ve asked God to forgive me.
But God is just covering the gaps.
In fact most legalism is
trusting in good things.
Having children is a good thing. But Abraham trusted in that.
Paul makes this point in a
dramatic way. Look again at verse 24.
vs. 24 “One covenant is from
By the present city of
Judaism had the Bible, Ten Commandments,
understanding of true God,
understanding of
sin, repentance, faith.
But Paul said that the
performance of this great religion itself—God had given—
which was intended
to show people need for grace and a Savior—
become the thing
that people were trusting.
Saying to legalists in Galatian churches, so proud of Jewish heritange,
trusting in their
adherence to rituals and rules—Ishmaelites in your
hearts.
You are Arabs, you are slaves—you are not
descendants of Isaac.
Because if you were, would
not trust these things—but Lord himself.
Bring home to your own heart.
What are you trusting
for your righteousness?
I know you would say Jesus Christ, hope you
are.
But is there anything else,
any good thing—your record as parent, as Christian—
your morality, your
sobriety, your religion—think really counting on?
Be warned—that is the way of
legalism and slavery. Brings
to second way of life.
MP#2
That is the way of life represented by Isaac,
son of the free woman, Abraham’s wife
Sarah.
Once again, Paul is not
covering new ground—he’s been here before.
He’s just adding another layer, giving us
another illustration.
This way of life is what he
calls in chapter 2,
“living in line
with the Gospel.”
This is justification by
faith in Christ,
this is grace, this
is spirit of sonship, this is adoption as sons.
This way of life is all about
what God has done to secure your salvation—
not what you have
done to achieve it.
This is living by faith in
the perfect life and death of Jesus Christ.
Let’s look at the
illustration again.
Paul says that one of the
differences between Isaac and Ishmael—
born in two
different ways. Mechanics were the same.
But notice how he puts it in
verse 23.
“His son born by the slave woman was born in
the ordinary way;
but his son born by
the free woman was born as a result of a promise.”
We’ve looked at the ordinary
way—
that was what
Abraham did by his own strength—trusted self, fertility of Hagar.
But the promise was that the
covenant child, would come through Sarah—
even though she was
old and barren.
So that when this son came,
it would be evident that Lord had done it.
It was all by his grace.
The amazing thing is,
wonderful thing—even though Abraham’s faith was weak—
and he got a son on this own, and that
caused no end of problems, heartbreak
in his own family—and it has continued to
cause heartbreak and conflict—
Ethnically speaking, Ishmael
is the ancestor of the Arabs, Isaac of the Jews—
they still hate each other, still in
conflict.
In spite of all of that
self-righteousness and legalism on Abraham’s part—
God kept His promise anyway.
To everyone’s amazement—supernatural
happened—
barren Sarah, 90 years old, conceived and
had baby Isaac.
Born as a result of God’s
faithfulness.
Do you see how Isaac is
really a great picture of Jesus Christ himself.
How it is God’s work that saves, not yours—
you are called to live by faith in the
promise of the son.
There will always be
temptations to achieve your salvation by your works—
But as a believer, you must look to Christ
alone.
Tim Keller tells the story of
a woman in his church in
Single, in 30s. Her parents immigrants who from a culture
that believed
something radically wrong with a woman that
age who was not married.
So she wrestled not only with
her own desire for marriage—
but also with shame and unworthiness she
received from her parents’ judgment.
In addition to this, she had
been engaged to a man but he had broken
off the engagement. She was very angry at him. Anger debilitating.
So she did what most
Americans do, went to a therapist.
Told her problem was that she had taken to
heart parent’s cultural values.
If she could just throw those
values off, then she would be free of her
sense shame and unworthiness and also able
to be free of her anger.
Instead she should throw
herself into her career.
Find her sense of worth in that.
But at the same time she was
getting this advice she was hearing the Gospel.
Learning that the good news is not that we
live a worthy life,
give that to God and then He accepts us—
But that Jesus Christ has
already lived a worthy life.
He lived the life we should have lived, died
the death we should have died.
When we believe in Him he
give us His life—
we are completely accepted by God in
Christ.
She realized that this
well-meaning therapist was simply advising her
to
exchange one kind of legalism for another.
This is what she wrote:
“Why should I leave the ranks of the many
women who make marriage their worth and value to join the ranks of the many men
who make career the same thing? Would I
not be as devastated then by career setbacks as I have been by romantic
ones? Yes. But instead, I will receive the righteousness
of Christ and learn to rejoice in it.
Then I can look at either men or career and say, ‘What makes me
beautiful to God is Jesus, not these things.’”
She realized that in the eyes
of the only person who really mattered—
she was accepted through Christ and not
condemned.
And she also realized that
any attempts to fill her life apart from Christ—
would simply result in more slavery and
insecurity.
But what about this woman’s
desire for marriage?
Was that taken away?
Were all the longings and sorrows taken
away?
Of course not. God’s promise did not take away Abraham’s
longing for a son.
Abraham waited many painful years.
But what the Gospel does is
it assures us that the big thing we need—
assurance of God’s love and favor has been
met in Christ.
As that assurance grows, the
Lord fills lives with good things.
Wonderful promise in verse 27
Paul quotes Isaiah:
For it is written: "Be glad, O barren woman, who
bears no children; break forth and cry aloud,
you who have
no labor pains; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of
her who has a
husband." Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of
promise.
All of you have areas of
barrenness in your life—gaps, sorrows.
Like woman just mentioned, may be
relational—
may be material, may be emotional—
Tempting to think—if only I
could get this filled—then I would be complete.
What does the Lord say to the
barren? Trust me and be glad.
Trust my promises to you in Christ.
I will give you all that you need and
more—I’ll give you joy.
That takes faith in
Christ. That is really what Galatians is
about.
Two ways of life: Faith in Christ, or faith in yourself.
Faith in the things you can
see and accomplish—
faith in one you can’t see, to accomplish
things in your life in his time and way.
Which will it be for
you?
Paul: Get rid of the slave woman and her son.
Live as a free child of God.
Listen to the way one
minister put it:
This is a story about the
freedom that comes when we trust God to be in control and the loss of freedom
that results when we attempt to take control ourselves... one son was born
because God promised, the other son was born because Abraham and Sarah doubted.
Ishmael was a product of human
impatience, the human trying to do God's work for him; Isaac was the result of
God doing his own work in his own time. Ishmael caused nothing but trouble;
Isaac continued in the faithful covenant of the freely loving God.
The great disaster of
Abraham's life was that he used Hagar to get what he thought God wanted for
him; the great achievement of his life was what God did for him apart from any
programs or plans that he put into action...The moment we begin manipulating
lives in order to get control of circumstances, we become enslaved in our own
plans, tangled up in our own red tape, and have to live with grievous,
unintended consequences.
Why does Lord give you these
warnings?
Because he loves you want
wants the best for you as his child.
Remember—two kinds of people in
world—Ishmaels and Isaacs.
Those who live by faith in themselves, faith
in Christ.
By God’s grace, be who you
are.