Rev. David Holwick ZE Very well-received
First Baptist Church
Ledgewood, New Jersey
October 12, 2014
Galatians 3:22-24
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I. Guilt can make you do dramatic things.
Craig Moore, 28, was driving in Manchester, England, when he was
flashed by a speed camera.
He already had a lot of points on his license.
One more violation and he might lose that license, and his job.
He returned with explosives and destroyed the camera in an attempt
to destroy the evidence.
But he didn't realize the recording device was in the base of
the pole and his explosives only wrecked the camera.
The camera did record him setting up the charge, which caused
$22,000 in damage.
Moore was sentenced to four months in jail, but he didn't lose
his license after all: the camera was just a warning device
that was intended to get motorists to slow down.
And even if it did give out tickets, judges in England will rarely
revoke someone's license if it means they will lose their job.
But after Craig Moore admitted his guilt to the judge, his boss
fired him.
#33354
Fear of the law can make you do weird things.
Spiritually speaking, not too many people are afraid of the law
anymore.
Should they be?
II. Christians have big claims but meager facts.
A. On the face of it, we would seem to be on a roll.
1) The Foursquare Gospel churches reported two-and-a-half
million decisions for Christ in 2008.
2) A mission organization reported 10 million decisions for
Christ the following year.
B. Closer scrutiny shows problems.
1) The Assemblies of God churches claimed 5.3 million decisions
from 1995 to 2005, but their net gain in attendance was
only 221,790.
a) That means over 5 million decisions couldn't be
accounted for.
b) In evangelism crusades and rallies, it is not uncommon
for 95% of the converts to fall away.
2) The Barna polling company says 51 percent of people who
make a spiritual decision for Christ leave the church
within 6 to 8 weeks. [1]
C. The dilemma goes beyond mere attendance.
1) Many of those who claim to be Christian believe things
that are not taught by the Bible.
a) Surveys have found that one-third of those who call
themselves Christian believed Jesus sinned while
he was on earth.
1> 2 Corinthians 5:21 says Jesus "had no sin."
2> Hebrews 4:15 says he was "tempted in every way,
just as we are -- yet was without sin."
b) 41 percent of self-proclaimed Christians believe "the
Bible, the Koran and the Book of Mormon are all
different expressions of the same spiritual truth."
1> If they would actually read them, they would find
that these books contradict each other on
salvation and the nature of God.
2> Among those who claimed to be born-again, only 46%
believe in the existence of absolute moral truth.
[2]
2) Our actions are as feeble as our beliefs.
a) A survey of Christian teenagers found that in the prior
12 months:
1> 74% cheated on a test.
2> 93% lied to a parent.
3> 63% physically hurt someone when angered.
b) Perhaps we shouldn't be shocked by the scandal in the
Sayreville high school locker room.
D. Why are the numbers so bad, the experience so weak?
1) Some believe it is because we are soft-selling the gospel.
a) We make such an emphasis on God's love and grace that
salvation seems like a birthright.
b) We don't have to do anything to gain it, and apparently
nothing we do can lose it.
c) Therefore we don't value it or give it much thought.
2) How should we present the gospel to people?
a) You might be surprised how the Jesus and the early
Christians did it.
b) Instead of asking what Jesus would do, look at what
he DID.
III. Jesus grew up steeped in the Law of God.
A. The Jews were very proud of their moral heritage.
1) The Ten Commandments get all the attention.
a) They are short and pithy.
b) You probably can't name them all, but you know that
murder, stealing and adultery are in there somewhere.
2) There were other laws as well.
a) Rabbis counted 613 of them altogether.
b) They cover property and relationships and spirituality.
B. The Law guided everything in their lives.
1) In the dedication of Emily today, I quoted Moses' guidance
in Deuteronomy - our faith should pervade everyday life.
2) Jesus would have learned these lessons from his parents
this way, and memorized the laws of God.
C. Jesus not only knew the Law, he used it. Mark 10:17-22
1) Consider how he handled a young rich guy.
a) The man runs to Jesus, falls on his knees, and asks
what he has to do to inherit eternal life.
b) A typical Christian would be astounded by this - you
are begging me to tell you how to get saved?
1> Just accept Jesus into your heart and come to my
church.
2> We have a youth group, and potluck dinners...
2) Jesus doesn't do this.
a) First, he directs the compliment to his heavenly Father.
b) Next, he points the guy to the Ten Commandments,
specifically, the human-oriented ones.
c) The young guy responds, I have kept all these.
1> He sees himself as a really good young man.
2> His family and neighbors probably agreed.
3) But Jesus goes a step further.
a) He asks the young man to give all his possessions to
the poor.
b) It's a bad move by Jesus - the young man skulks away.
1> He can't afford such an extreme step.
2> But Jesus has just shown that the man really didn't
keep the Ten Commandments.
3> He has a problem with coveting stuff [#10], and by
extension, valuing his stuff above God [#1].
c) Apparently Jesus doesn't want to gain quick converts.
He only wants those who are serious in following him.
IV. New Testament Christians followed Jesus' approach.
A. Evangelism in the book of Acts.
1) The disciples didn't promise happiness and a fulfilled
life to their hearers.
a) Instead, they confronted the people as guilty criminals.
b) You have killed Jesus. You deserve God's wrath.
2) But by believing in Jesus you can be made righteous by God.
B. The Apostle Paul agreed.
1) He has a well-earned reputation for being anti-Law.
a) He is always stressing that the Law cannot save a person.
1> We can only be saved by God's grace, his gift.
b) But in reality, Paul used the Law like the others did.
2) Consider the argument of the book of Romans:
a) Romans 1 - Gentiles are dirty sinners and deserve death.
b) Romans 2 - Jews are not much better even though they
have the Law. (Same could be said of Christians)
c) Romans 3:23 - all have sinned and fall short of God's
glory, and need Jesus to be saved.
3) The law cannot save you, but it forces you to see that you
need to be saved.
C. The Law is like a guardian. Gal 3:23-25
1) Young children need to be protected until they reach
their maturity.
a) If they don't have parents, an adult will be assigned
to them.
b) Paul says this is why we need the Law.
2) It guides us until we discover what true faith is.
a) It shows us how far we have moved from God's perfection.
V. Guilt before grace?
A. Law should come first.
1) We have to know what we are being saved from.
2) Guilt has its place in making us spiritually aware of our
situation.
3) Many great Christians have understood this.
Martin Luther, the leader of the Protestant Reformation and
founder of the Lutheran churches, said:
"The first duty of the Gospel preacher is to declare God's
Law and show the nature of sin, because it will act as
a schoolmaster and bring him to everlasting life
which is in Jesus Christ."
John Wesley, who founded the Methodist Church, said:
"Before I preach love, mercy and grace, I must preach sin,
Law and judgment."
A more recent Christian leader, John Stott, said:
"We cannot come to Christ to be justified until we have
first been to Moses to be condemned.
But once we have gone to Moses and acknowledged our sin,
guilt and condemnation, we must not stay there.
We must let Moses send us to Christ."
#64594
B. Law convicts, but grace saves.
1) The Law can never save a person.
a) We cannot earn our way into heaven by being good,
because we can never be good enough.
b) This is why we need Jesus.
1> He was good enough - perfect - so he alone could
fulfill the Law perfectly.
2> He then became a sacrifice for us imperfect people.
2) We can't pay for our salvation, but we can value it.
a) Honor Jesus for what he has done for you.
C. People need to confront their true selves.
1) Make them aware of their true spiritual condition before God.
a) Have they ever lied, shoplifted, lusted?
b) If so, they stand under God's sentence.
2) Then show them what God has freely done for them.
a) They need Jesus more than they ever realized before.
b) You can't blow up the camera to erase the evidence.
c) But you can cast yourself on the mercy of a great Judge.
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SOURCES FOR ILLUSTRATIONS USED IN THIS SERMON:
1. Ray Comfort, “God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life: The Myth of the
Modern Message (Living Waters, 2010), p. 76. This book provided
the basis for this sermon.
2. Ibid., page 11.
#33354 “Blowing Up the Speed Trap,” Randy Cassingham, This Is True
internet newsletter, September 17, 2006. The original source
is the London Times and Manchester Evening News.
#64594 “First Preach The Law… and Then The Grace of God,” (compilation
of quotes by noted Christians). <http://www.royalpriesthood.info/Godblogs/firstthelaw.htm?keepThis=true&TB_iframe=true&height=700&width=600>
These and 35,000 others are part of the Kerux database that can be
downloaded, absolutely free, at http://www.holwick.com/database.html
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