Today was the 3rd Sunday before Lent.
This evening I preached on Galatians 4:8-20.
1. THEIR OLD LIFE OF PAGANISM 8-11
They were in bondage to demons that were no gods. The Galatians had been
worshippers of Jupiter and Mercury (Zeus and Hermes, Acts 14:11-13).
a. They had served weak and beggarly elemental spirits. 8-9
There are no other gods than Father, Son and Holy Spirit: three Persons in one
God. All other gods are demonic spirits, discarnate entities, fallen angels,
wanting to be worshipped as if they wer god, and wanting to sabotage God's
Kingdom on earth. Satan was a powerful archangel before he rebelled and fell.
He took maybe 2/3rds of the angels with him. So-called New Age religion is
nothing but a return to the worship of "weak and beggarly elements". Some
impersonate departed human beings; some claim to be "Advanced spirit guides".
All are demons out to deceive and destroy. Jesus said "The thief cometh not,
but to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they may have life,
and that they may have it more abundantly" (John 10:10). Demon possession is a
sad and grievous reality. Only Christ's Name can deliver.
b. They had observed pagan customs and rites. 10-11
In imitation of God, demons demand costly rituals and ceremonies. "You observe
days, and months, and times, and years" (10). In rejection of God, demons
demand disobedience to God's Law and Commandments. Have sex with whomsoever
you will. Get instant abortions on demand. Play with tarot cards and ouija
boards. Worship Gaia the earth-spirit. Be a homosexual and glory in it.
Practise transcendental meditation. Burn down churches and persecute
Christians...
2. THEIR NEW LIFE IN CHRIST 12-16
Christ has set us free from bondage. "You are no more a servant, but a son;
and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ" (Galatians 4:7).
a. They accepted Paul in his illness. 12-14a
The Corinthian Christians were saying "His bodily presence is weak, and his
speech contemptible" (2 Cor 10:10). He was an 8-stone weakling, with a cast in
his eye and an impediment in his speech. But the message came through in the
power of the Holy Spirit.
b. They accepted the Gospel in its fulness. 14b-15
They received Paul's message as if he were an angel, a messenger from God.
They enjoyed real and tangible blessings in believing. They wanted to help
Paul in his illness, and would even have donated their eyes if such a thing
were possible (cornea grafting is commonplace now, but unknown then).
3. THEIR NEW DANGER OF LEGALISM 16-20
Are they merely exchanging the Occultists for the Cultists?
a. Cults are making inroads into the Church. 16-18
Specifically, false Judaizers followed Paul around, and subverted his converts
to make them keep the Law of Moses in order to be saved. Salvation is by
faith alone, and not by works (Ephesians 2:8-9). The "false Judaizers" of
today are the Seventh-Day Adventists, who have been gaining ground in this
country. We also need to oppose the false-witnesses of pseudo-jehovah, and the
menace of Mormonism. These are three very powerful cults with large
followings, each claiming to be the Only True Church.
b. Christ must formed in the Christians. 19-20
Being "born again" involves real travail for the evangelist! As a sort of
spiritual midwife, Paul yearns to revisit his Galatian converts to encourage
them in the true faith: to see them grow up to maturity in the faith of
Christ. Are you a godparent? Have you led someone to Christ? You know how
important "follow-up" is, to encourage them to grow up into Christian
maturity. Have you been confirmed? The Bishop prayed "Defend O Lord this thy
child [servant] with thy heavenly grace, that he [she] may continue thine for
ever; and daily increase in the Holy Spirit more and more, until he [she] come
to thy everlasting kingdom. Amen".
The Holy Spirit will occupy our mortal bodies and garrison us from the
assaults of the "weak and beggarly elemental spirits".
___________________________________________________________________________
In Christ,
Ben
--
Revd Ben Crick, BA CF
232 Canterbury Road, Birchington, Kent, CT7 9TD (UK)
http://www.cnetwork.co.uk/crick.htm
