Sermon Tone Analysis

Galatians 4:1-7

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Stephen Caswell © 2004

We have arrived at the end of yet another year.

So I thought it would be good to turn our attention to Christ’s Advent.

/But why did Jesus become a man?

Why not an angel?

What was God’s purpose in sending His Son into the world?

Why did He come 2,000 years ago?

What was special about that time?

What was the result of His ministry?/

*/ /*

The Name Of Jesus

 

Jesus is a precious name to all believers because it reminds us that He is our Savior.

It was the name given to Him by God when He came into this world.

It teaches us the purpose of His incarnation.

The name */Jesus/* means, */Jehovah Saves./*

It is His human name reminding us that He who is God also became man.

Peter made much of this name when healing a crippled beggar.

He said there is no other name given for our salvation.

In Galatians 4: we will see 3 things about what Christ has done for us; */Slaves, Saved, Sons./*

 

1.

Slaves

 

/a.

Children/

* *

*Galatians 4:1-2:* /Now I say that the heir, *as long as he is a child*, does not differ at all from a slave, though he is master of all, but is under guardians and stewards until the time appointed by the father./

/ /

*/Firstly,/* Paul describes our position before salvation as being children.

/Why are children slaves?/

Paul gives a number of reasons.

*1.* Children are immature and need guidance.

Parents or guardians watch over them so that they won’t harm themselves.

Children do some pretty foolish things because they don’t know any better.

*2.* Children have so much to learn.

They must be taught to read and write.

Parents teach their children about life so that their children will grow into mature adults.

*3.* Children can’t do very much because of their limited physical strength and knowledge.

They have great potential but need to grow and mature first.

*/In the same way God made us with great potential./*

Adam and Eve were given dominion to rule over the world.

Tragically, they lost that dominion to Satan when they disobeyed God.

Adam and Eve had only one law to keep and they broke it.

After this they knew both good and evil but were dominated by evil.

As a consequence they plunged the whole race into sin.

The early chapters of Genesis describe man’s failure.

Mankind became increasingly wicked and God judged him by sending the flood.

Ever since then man has not obtained what God has intended for him.

/b.

Chained/

 

*Galatians 4:3: */Even so we, *when we were children, were in bondage *under the elements of the world./

*/Secondly,/* children aren’t free to do what adults can.

Parents make rules for their children to protect them.

There’s no denying it, rules limit a child’s freedom and rightly so.

/But, boundaries also provide a safe environment for children to grow up./

They need a balanced diet to remain healthy.

Late bed times aren’t good for growing children.

Tired children usually get sick and don’t do well at school.

There are many harmful shows on TV.

/So parents make rules for their children for their own good; love motivates this./ */Because children don’t understand this they often question their parent’s rules.

/*

 

Safe Play Areas

 

Today, society is very safety conscious.

In fact everyone is aware of the need for safety.

Play areas for children have strict guidelines.

Play equipment must meet certain standards.

Dangerous play equipment has been banned.

Play areas for small children are usually fenced in.

Usually adult supervision is required or at least recommended.

Why do we have all of these rules and regulations?

To protect our children from harm.

Children need boundaries so that they can play safely.

Such boundaries are for our kids own good.

*Galatians 3:23-24: */But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed.

Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith./

God gave us the Ten Commandments for our own good.

Before sin entered the world they weren’t needed.

In the beginning, Adam and Eve didn’t know how to do evil.

They didn’t need the 10 commandments.

But since the fall man needs rules to make us aware of sin and its consequences.

The Law provides guidelines for us to live by.

The Law reveals God’s perfect standard.

It tells us our responsibilities to God.

The commandments protect the rights of all men.

/The Ten Commandments do limit our freedom; and rightly so./ */Real freedom is the ability to do what is right, not what you like./*

/The law is not God’s choice for us, but because of the fall and our sinful nature we needed it./

/c.

Conquered/

 

*Galatians 4:3: */Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage *under the elements of the world.*/

Society today is governed by all kinds of Laws and regulations.

There are road rules, building codes, regulations for food production, etc.

You would think that with so many laws society would be perfect; That policemen would be out of a job and jails empty.

But that’s not the case.

The Law simply shows us that we are a bunch of Law-Breakers.

Paul said that the Jews received the Law but couldn’t keep it.

Although God’s Law has kept us from becoming as wicked as we might have been, it hasn’t removed evil from the world.

*/In fact one of the main purposes of the Law is to show us that we have been conquered by evil./*

/We are enslaved to it.

/Even when people want to do what is right they can’t.

*/Why do I say that we are enslaved to sin?/*

Because we choose to obey sin rather than God.

*Romans 6:16**:*/ Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness? /God’s law shows us that sin is our master.

Peter’s Drug Addiction

 

I was working with a drug addict in Orange.

He came to church very irregularly.

He owned very little because of his addiction.