The law is cursed

Scripture Reading - Romans 8:14-16

Good Morning everyone, This morning we are finishing up Chapter 3 and we are finishing up the general thought that we had in the previous periocope.

We learned that Without God we are cursed. WE are cursed with the stench of Sin and Transgressions of this world. The smell and sight of the sin that we add to the equation is worse than any foul smelling thing you can ever think of. The Smell is worse than a Porta-Potty at a Construction site that has not been serviced in a very long time.

The whole reason why i just put that visual in your brain and your nose is that we are messed up and do not add anything to the equation and actually make things worse. we as humans think that we are the best thing but really the only thing that is the “Best thing or the truly awesome” thing is our Heavenly Father. I know that culture has programmed us to say awesome to a great deal of things but really awesome is our Ultimate and one true God sending his son to die on a Roman Cross for a crime that he did not even fathom or start to commit.

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WE are all guilty of our sins and transgressions and we are cursed but God wiped all of that away for us without us even asking.

Additionally, we learned that laws are not everything and they can actually provide a barrier for our relationship with our Heavenly Father. We live in a world where individuals think that you are not saved if you do not wash your hands a certain way or if you do not go to church on Sunday because you have to work.

Lets dive right into verse 19-20 ‌ ​

Galatians 3:19–20

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Why then the law? It was added because of transgressions, until the offspring should come to whom the promise had been made, and it was put in place through angels by an intermediary. Now an intermediary implies more than one, but God is one.

The Apostle Paul continues with his theme to show us that the law does not save us or give us salvation but is a flashlight into the complete darkness of mans sins and transgressions. We as Humans and more specifically Christians think that we are the perfect golden child but really we are just faking it. We all have thinks that we hide from each other, ourselves and we attempt to hide from our Heavnely Father.

We all were in the dark literally a few weeks ago huddled together scared with the wind and the rain howling and in the darkness. Without a flashlight , candle or something that gave off light we were bumping around all over the place attempting to navigate our homes or our workplaces.

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The law or the appearance of our transgressions was never suppose to be the solution but a way to show us that we are messed up, filled of sin, transgression and the stuff that is at the bottom of your trash can. The law was put in placed by angels but through a 3rd party that was Jesus Christ.

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We hear about these angels in Acts and more Specifically

Hebrews 2:2 ​

Hebrews 2:2

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For since the message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and every transgression or disobedience received a just retribution,

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Angels are the messenger and the go between ourselves and our Heavenly Father.  Here is where things get very tricky because we know that Angels are the mega phone of our Heavenly Father but they do not declare the message of God.   This particular passage in Hebrews  has two different angles that could go.

The first angle is that the angels are the messengers that provide the go between our Heavenly father and us.

And the second  angle is that the angels actually declared the message that was being provided and this would actually mean and state that God is not all powerful and declares the message.  The aspect that we must remember is that if the angels decided the message than this counteracts other aspects of scripture and could work on the first and the second angle.

  Basically in the grand scheme of things we do not know and this provides a giant question mark in the list of things that we need to ask our Heavenly Father at the marriage supper of the lamb.  We do not know exactly what the roll that Angels had in the giving of the law but we know that it was critical and was just as important as the other things that were in play.

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We are touching on the topic of the trinity in which Hour Heavenly Father, Holy Spirit and Jesus Christ are all in one but viewed as separate pieces. “ Warning – I am not saying they are separate but are viewed separately because our mind cannot understand it any other way. This topic is viewed and told to myself as a spiritual tight rope and dangerous waters. “

Jesus provided the solution and gave us a way that we could pay for our transgressions in such a way that we did not take the punishment or spill our own blood. every Sin, transgression , white lie or anything along those lines requires payment because of the balance that is required.

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God is the only being or party that provides the solution. He is the only thing that will save us from the punishment that is required for our sins. There was no intermediary because there is no go between God and Man in the Traditional sense that we as Humans can understand.The aspect of the Trinity plays into is that Jesus pays the price and we are seen through the lens of the son. But we are talking to the farther. The aspect of the 3 in 1 is something our brain cannot completely understand and has had many different analogies that somewhat tell us . Some Followers uses the example of the egg where the shell,yoke and the egg white.

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All three of these parts are together as one but can Be separated if i place each aspect in a separate bowl. However, this example is not theologically sound but provides the visual respresinatation for us to understand that something can be 3 separate things but also one thing together.

Additionally, here is another example of the Trinity that we might be able to understand. We all know that i love Duct Tape and use it in any aspect that i can including Car windows.

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The roll of Duct Tape has three parts. The cardboard roll , The adhesive that makes the tape stick and the material that is stringy that provides the strength needed for the tape. Eventually we can separate all three of these parts of the tape but together they are one and they are strong. Yes I know the egg example works better but I just had to put duct tape in the mix if there was an example that might work for it because of my love and thriftiness of the product.

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The Most critical thing that we need to remember if you fall asleep right now

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“ Without God we have no protection and we are adraft in the ocean. The Payment of sin is death and either way it will be paid and should be paid.”

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Galatians 3:21

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Is the law then contrary to the promises of God? Certainly not! For if a law had been given that could give life, then righteousness would indeed be by the law.

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The law is not something that covers the faith and righteous of our Heavenly Father. The only thing that saves us is the love and mercy that God has bestowed onto us. We live in a world right now where we are taught to pull ourselves up by our bootstraps, what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. ( by the way I severely dislike this saying because it been told to me so many times), you control your destiny.

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However, all of these things are not true and we are lying to ourselves. We cannot save ourselves. WE cannot be our own rescue boat or lifeline.

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Here is a real world example since we all still have the sight of broken trees, and over turned gas station owning still in our mind. We did not save ourselves from the storm, we banded together to help each other. We have had people as far as Alaska asking to help. Every where you go you see the Red Cross disaster relief, convey of hope, many many national food banks and other resources.

The key thing is that we did not pull ourselves up but were given the help we needed. The same thing goes for what we are seeing in verse 21. The law is not something that replaces the promise of God and the Grace that has been given to us. Without this promise we are destined to pay for what we rightfully should of been required to pay for.

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Everything in the world has a price and just like the old saying that nothing is free this is true in our Spiritual Health and our Relationship with each other and our Heavenly Father.

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Romans 3:19

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Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held accountable to God.

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The law speaks to every one of us to show us that we are sinful and under the law. The law that shows us that we are foul , disgusting beasts worse than the smell of rotting bodies ( borowed that from pastor Rich) and everything we see and say in this world is touched by it. The only cure is the gift from our heavenly Father through his son.

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Sin requires payment and we learned this last month in our Romans Sermon Series. I love that every week we are going toe to toe with the scripture on this topic. Pastor Rich tackles it in Romans and I Tackle it in Galatians. There is a reason why God has the Apostle Paul Repeating himself many times.

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Galatians 3:22

ESV

But the Scripture imprisoned everything under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.

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There are two types of Pastors that i see. Those that preach Gods word and are blunt and tell you what God has intended or they go with the touchy freely aspect. I hope that i am shaping to be the first one because you should not feel comfortable if i am teaching this pericope correctly.

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Gods words and more specifically the law shows us that we are under arrest to our transgressions. We live in a world where we have seen when it was wrong to tell a lie to now it is perfectly acceptable to lie to someone’s face in a personal and professional setting. Backstabbing, cheating, stealing, lust, overeating are just some of the things that we see constantly on our social media pages and on our streets.

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No matter what we do, say, pay, hope, or barter there is no way that we can pay for our sins unless it is physical and spiritual death. That is not something that can be reversed or paid multiple times. The blood of Jesus Christ paid that price not just for myself or you but everyone that was chosen before the very foundation of the earth. This was not a simple bait and switch but was almost a SUCICIDE mission. If Jesus was not outlined to raise from the dead than it would of been mission that he would of never came back from.

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We have billions if not trillions of people that have been born on this earth. We do not know the number of those that were chosen to be saved or who is saved but Jesus took the punishment which is death for all of us that are chosen. We have heard this and understand this but the severity of it kind of wears of. This is not something we should allow us to grow numb to.

This is one of the reasons why i look forward to 3 fold communion because it is a reminder that we are messed up and the importance of understanding that Jesus paid the price of our transgressions. Of course doing it every week we lose the meaning of it but every few months in my mind would remind us just like the cross that we deserve nothing that’s been given to us no matter if we are perfect little boys and girls or if we live out of a cardboard box.

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The Apostle Paul uses the word imprisoned to explain the law and it is fitting in the sense that we are chained to our transgressions, sin and dirty deeds. They are not something we can run away from or hit away in a drawer. We cannot hide our transgressions from our creator. Additionally, we also have to think of the law as something ingrained into us. It is more than what God has placed in his holy word but also what he has written on our hearts. We know that lying is bad before we learned it in scripture.

We know that stealing is wrong even without know the law of man or the law of our Heavenly Father. They are burned into us just like all of our unque traits like loving peanut butter more than a normal person, or how we love a certain genre of music. The item that i aiming to explain is that the law is something in our very dna.

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Galatians 3:23

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Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.

Verse 23 continues to drive home what we are seeing as a pattern. Before our Faith was given to us by our heavnely Father we were like prisoners to a set of laws that were meant to show us that we were flawed, messed up, tainted and worse than spoiled milk smell. However, the law was more like a ball and chain tied to our ankles when it was not a means to earn our salvation but show us that we needed to be saved.

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The faith that God has given us freedom from the bondage of the law. The law is a light into the deepest darkness of our faults and our soul.

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Our world has glorified the aspect of committing sin but really we should be ashamed. Ashamed that we lie to each other, steal from each other, lust and commit sexual sins like it is ordering a sub at the local publix.

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Galatians 3:24–25

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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,

for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith.

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The Apostle uses an example of the law being like a Guardian. during this particular time there was a common practice where you had a Guardian which was like a tutor or a butler that provided guidance to young men. The tutor would help them understand the ways of the world. in the modern day sense he would be like an elder who would show you how to tie a tie, complete public speaking, how to survive the pregnancy of your first child to just name a few things.

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Who remembers the fresh prince of bel air which was a very popular 90’s television show with the premise of a young African American that was plucked up from Detroit and placed in Bel Air with his Uncle in Beverly Hills. Some of the lessons that were learned by Will that his Family Butler Jeffrey taught him was about love, family, protecting others, respect and many other lessons. The key thing was that even though this position is looked upon in our culture it was one that was important to guide and keep young boys on the right path growing into great men.

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The Apostle Paul uses the example of a Guardian as the law and how it guided us and taught us how to be better individuals by showing us how messed up we are. We are not under the law instead we are under the protection, love , mercy and lastly grace that comes from our Heavenly Father. The law is the past but a reminder that without the mercy given to us by our Creator and Sustainer than we will be thrown into the very pits of hell.

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We are children of god and we have been chosen before the very foundation of the earth. Our Heavenly Father knows every hair on our heads, ( some of us its easier than others), what we are thinking and what we are going to say before we even say it.

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Lets dive back into Romans ​

Romans 6:14

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For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.

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Sin has no power over us because God has provided the escape path away from the flith and the nastiness of the world. The Apostle Paul uses the wording of Sons of God but this is. Meaning that we are God’s true spiritual children. We are the children of God because he watches over us, spilled his sons blood on the cross to cover our transgressions. we really are messed up individuals and do not deserve anything we are given but we were spared. Additionally, we have to also realized that those that are not predestined to be saved are not Gods spiritual children but instead the devils.

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Doing the work of the Prince of Darkness in a dark and wicked world. OF course we have no clue who has been called to be a child of God or a child of Satan. But this doesn’t mean that we do not keep doing the mission of god by spreading the word of god throughout the land. We have been given the end game but not the play by play.

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Galatians 3:27–28

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For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

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Our last couple of verses drive home something that the Judaizers and those of that time were struggling to understand. It does not matter if you are Jew or gentile, slave or free, male or female. Old, young, beautiful , or ordinary. All of us that are chosen by our Heavenly Father are together in Jesus Christ under the blood , sacrifice and gift of salvation from our Creator.

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There is importance in us being reminded that being a Child of god is not for a particular ethnic group, Race, gender, beautiful ,ugly, or anything us that can separate us from each other. We are all Abraham offspring and chosen before everything. WE are not our own and we are under the loving blanket of our Heavenly Father. Protecting us, guiding us, loving us and providing mercy, love stronger than anything we have ever felt or know.

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We have something that has no way to be measured in money or goods. Something that we cannot do anything to earn , deserve or purchase. This gift is not for a particular group of people or individuals that follow the law. The law was meant to show us that we are messed up in every senses of the word.

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Closing

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The law is a microscope

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The Apostle Paul shows us in this pericope that we are messed up and as filthy as sewage tank. The point of the law was to show us that we cannot be good because we are flawed. We are messed up and there is no way that you can do anything on your own to make you a good person. It doesn’t matter what you do, what you pay, how you help someone or how many loafs of bread you hand out in the parking lot.

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The law was given to show the Jewish people how flawed they are and how flawed we are. We do not earn our salvation from it, we do not gain any recover from the law but shows us that we cannot hit the benchmark that has been set.

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The law shows our true-selves in how we will kills, steal and do anything we can for ourselves. WE defile the relationship that we have with our Creator because we think its all about us and how

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2. We are family

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We have been called before the very foundation of the earth to be children of God.  God loved us enough to send his son to die on a Roman cross after being Tourtured and their relationship fractured. We all have different experiences, age, gender, preferences, some of us love ham while some of us cant stand it. We have been chosen before the very foundation of the earth to be apart of Gods spiritual family. Partying in heaven forever and forever and forever.

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The law was never meant to be a set of regulations, laws and statutes but to show us that without the gift from God than we would be destined for what must be paid. All sin and transgressions must be paid. Nothing in life is free and the punishment for our wrong deeds was paid by jesus.

So as we sing our last song lets worship our Creator for saving us from what we deserve and from the punishment of us breaking the law.

lets pray