Galatians 5:1-6: Summary:

Having illustrated the difference between grace and law through the examples of Hagar and Isaac, Paul moves to apply the message to the Galatians. They are free! What a glorious truth! And they are not to sacrifice this freedom for anything the world offers. And to be specific, circumcision is simply off the table for them. Though its proponents promise that it will truly make them one of God's own, and open up the door to righteous living, Paul spies the fly in the ointment. If these Galatians reject Jesus' work for a work of the flesh, even one with such a biblical pedigree, they will find themselves severed from Christ, cut off from his Spirit-filled people. They will find themselves bound to the law, its terms, its promises of coming judgement for unbelief and sin.

Sermon Outline:

What Christ's victory bought (5:1)

An all-or-nothing choice (5:2-6)

-Walking with rebellious Israel (5:2-4)

-Walking with Christ Jesus (5:5-6)

Galatians 4:21-31: Summary:

Paul builds on the assertion that the false teachers want, however unconsciously, to shut these churches out from the inheritance of Christ. He makes an allegory out of an historical situation to prove his point. The law records Abraham as having two sons, one by a slave woman, another by the free woman. Ishmael was the byproduct of pragmatic unbelief---man's attempt to secure God's promise. Isaac was the byproduct of sovereign grace---God's faithfulness to His promise. And the inheritance goes then to Isaac, not Ishmael. Paul relates these women to the Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants. He then relates what they birth to what's birthed by Jerusalem below and Jerusalem above. Point being, the Judaizers, conditioning justification on faith plus works, are like Hagar, enslaved and bearing children for slavery. But the Christian is a child of the Jerusalem above. We've been born again, and we are heirs of Christ's work (Isaiah 53 into 54:1). We are the recipients of sovereign grace, grafted into the line of promise. What's born according to the flesh persecutes what's born according to the Spirit by seeking to move them off the Gospel. Scripture calls us to cast out anyone who, through false teaching, would draw us away from the grace that's made us justified sons and daughters of Heaven.

Sermon Outline:

Abraham had two sons, with different origins. (4:21-23)

Paul's interpretation: origin matters for inheritance. (4:24-27)

Promote the line of promise by preserving it. (4:28-21)

Galatians 4:8-20: Summary:

Having been delivered from the redemptive ideologies of the world, the Galatian churches are now returning to their former slavery by adopting the Mosaic covenant as part of their justification. Anything that robs Jesus of His saving sufficiency, including a false understanding of God’s law-covenant, is anti-Christ, anti-Gospel. Fearing thus that he’s labored over them in vain, Paul reminds them of how God blessed them, and of how it was proven by their Christian care of Paul himself. Expressing his grief, however, those he led to the truth now oppose him for it. Having essentially adopted a man-flattering religion, Paul counteractively resolves to press forward in his labors until Christ is formed in them. At the heart of the true Gospel and true Christianity is the truth as it is in Jesus.

Sermon Outline:

Paul's fear: the churches' turning from the Gospel. (4:8-11)

Paul's grief: the churches' opposition to the truth. (4:12-17)

Paul's resolve: the churches' maturity in Christ. (4:18-20)

Hebrews 10:18-25: Summary:

Through Jesus, we have forgiveness of sins, unfettered access to God, and the oversight of this great Priest. Flowing from His dying love, and the confidence it affords us as the family of God, the author gives us a trio of exhortations: let us draw near, let us hold fast, let us consider how. A local church is a priestly family especially given to the ministry of confident prayer, confessional courage, and corporate encouragement and/or Christian competency.

Sermon Outline:

The finished work of Jesus for the house of God. (10:18-21)

Exhortations for the house because of Jesus' work. (10:22-25)

Let us draw near: the family ministry of confident prayer. (10:22)

Let us hold fast: the family ministry of confessional courage. (10:23)

Let us consider how: the family ministry of Christian competency. (10:24-25)

Amos 5:6-15: Summary:

Forsaking their assignment, God's people have sided with the world in perverting justice. Reminding them that He is the Creator, and that He cares about the morality of His image-bearers, and that He knows the full-measure of our sins, and that He will administer infallible justice, and that they are under His judgment, He calls on them to seek Him and live. In effect, He calls on them to love good and seek it, to hate evil and banish it. He calls on them to establish Heaven's notion of justice on earth. We will explore this with particular application to the protection of the neediest among us: children in the womb.

Sermon Outline:

Injustice thrives where souls are dead. (5:6a, 7)

Might does not make right. (5:9-12, 13b)

But the Almighty does and will. (5:6b-12)

Like Him, act to establish justice in the gate. (5:13a, 14-15)

Amos 8:11-12: Summary:

God has spoken, but His people have not listened. They act like the world. Their worship is barren. They despise true heralds. They won't repent. They're at ease in Zion. And that's how you incur the judgment of judgments, a famine of hearing and/or finding the Word of God. Silence! Such a silence signals the end of God's people. Is there any hope? Will the Word sound forth again? It will. It has. It does. But how can we learn from Israel's downfall? How are we to avoid famines of the Word? The answer is to feast on it, implying a number of tangible activities. But ultimately, it's to create a habitat where the Word of Christ can dwell in us richly.

Sermon Outline:

If we don't feast on God's Word, we can expect a famine of it. (8:11-12)

This famine, the great judgment. (Amos)

A famine of hearing. (8:11)

A famine of heralding. (8:12)

Why this famine at all? (Amos)

Feast on God's Word.

Luke 18:1-8: SummaryWith this passage in Luke, we tackle the second theme of our "First Five" series, prayer. In ongoing discussion of discipleship, humility, and eschatological judgment, Jesus cuts to the chase, calling for persistence in prayer. Working from a proper understanding of who God is and how he responds, we are encouraged to pray, to set our hopes in the context of the already-but-not-yet kingdom and rule of Christ. While we often root God's willingness to hear and respond to his people in his loving character, Jesus points to the centrality of God's justice. We are beckoned to consider the relationship between love and justice illustrated in his calling and care for a people promised to bear his name.

Sermon Outline:

Love: The God worthy of our prayers

Justice: The God who hears our prayers

Faith: The God who awaits our prayers

2 Kings 6:8-23: SummaryThe king of Syria, in initiating war with Israel, intends to encamp at a certain place in the hope of successful raids. The King of kings consistently frustrates his best laid plans. Elisha, the man of God, is God's vessel of revelation for the peace of God's people. Greatly vexed, the Syrian king learns of Elisha's debilitating ministry and seeks to capture him. An army of men is deployed against the man of God. Elisha's servant awakes to this enemy army. Elisha meets his fear and anxiety with a world present but unseen. 'Those who are with us are more than those who are with them.' According to Elisha's prayers for sight and blindness, the Lord helps the servant see the unseen, while blinding the enemy to what they could see. Elisha leads the blind into the seat of Israel's king and power. Expecting judgment, however, the prophet wins the king to pity instead of punishment. Mercy received, the raids end. The passage is for our confidence in the Lord when pressed hard by enemies, big, small, near, far. It's for living, not by sight, but by faith, with all its implications in tow.

Sermon Outline:

Be equipped with the Word: Israel's prophet (6:8-12)

Be equipped with a worldview: Elisha's perspective (6:13-18)

Be equipped for the wayward: Elisha's pity (6:19-23)

Exodus 40:34-38: SummaryExodus closes as the Lord enters the tabernacle, filling it with His glory. Even Moses, who finished all the work as the Lord commanded, is put out by His indwelling presence. Is there a way back into the tent of meeting? Indeed. It's now furnished with emblems of grace that keep relationship with an ever-present Lord. In this way, their Shepherd visibly dwells among them, guiding them through the wilderness to the Promised Land. They see Him. As He moves, they move. But will they live by faith always? The answer finally comes as the Son puts on flesh and tabernacles among them. Jesus is God incarnate. He calls Himself the temple. As He dies, the way into God is opened. As He lives, He indwells all who believe. The Church is the temple of God, the local church, the visible manifestation of Him and His glory on earth. The more we fix our eyes on Him, the more we keep in step with Him, the more we'll show what He's saved us to show.

Sermon Outline:

Meeting the God Who dwells among us (40:34-35)

Following the God Who dwells among us (40:36-38)

Exodus 33:7-34:9: Summary:

From covenant-affirming to golden-calf making, Israel has broken faithfulness with their God. Can sinners be reconciled to God? Can He be reconciled to us? Moses records a conversation between friends, he and the Lord. This is his concern, and God's glory is the answer. But what is that? Can His glory be described? Can we understand it? And if so, how so? To this end, God preaches Himself and, in doing so, reveals the 'backside' of His essential glory to Moses as a goodness weighted to do all that's necessary to save whomever He wills. And as that's hope for a world of sinners, Moses bows, worships, and pleads for Israel's pardon and perseverance as the people of God. The account is an advance upon the glory of God---knowing Who He is---a thing that, in so many ways, ultimately comes to a Head in Jesus Christ. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature! If you want to know Him, know, trust, love Jesus.

Sermon Outline:

Sharing Moses' concern. (33:7-16)

Seeing the Lord's answer. (33:17-34:7)

Savoring Christ, the Radiance of God's glory. (34:8-9)