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0:52Okay, I have a little puzzle for you guys to work out here. I want you to see something up here. Got it so far? What is that? What do you see? Look at it closely. What do you see? Well, you know what I see? I see a bear climbing a tree. Any of you see that? Okay, let's make sure you see that because it's there. It really is there, and I think you'll see it. So there's the tree. You get that? Now, we're on the other side of the tree, and the tree separates us from the bear. So, there's the bear's first paw, second paw, third paw, fourth paw. You get the picture? He's climbing up the tree. Whoops.

1:48And you see his claws there, right? Do you get the picture now? Many of you, there is a bear climbing up a tree, and we're looking at it, and all we can see is his paws. But it's there. Okay, let me take you, give you another one. What do you see here? Look at it. What do you see? You know what I see? I see a war veteran returning home and his wife kissing him. Do you see it?

2:30You don't see it. It's there. Let me back this up a little bit. Okay, you're looking at the back of the woman, and she has her hair in a big bun, massive, and all you're looking at is the back of her head. And she has big hoops on her ears, earrings. You see them? And guess what that is? That's the haircut of the guy coming back from war. That's the military haircut. You see? It? There it is. And she's kissing him because she's glad to see him. You see all that, right? Now you do.

3:09You see, let me tell you something. There are different interpretations of just about everything. We can interpret lines on the paper very differently. People interpret events very differently, don't we? In fact, that's why we have multiple witnesses in a courtroom when there's a cross-examination going on. We can interpret conversations very differently, can't we? What did he really say? What did she mean? Communication breakdowns are a frequent occurrence, aren't they? In fact, people interpret the physical world very differently, don't they? That's why we have creationists and evolutionists. And even within the categories of creationists and evolutions, there's all kinds of different subcategories.

3:57People interpret Scripture very differently, don't we? That is why the Sadducees and the Pharisees, even though they were both Jews, they viewed Scripture very differently. And even within rabbinic traditions, there were many schools of thought. You know, both Jesus and the Jews interpreted Scripture. And much of the conflict between them involved different interpretations. Of Scripture. The same is true today. There are many different schools of theology, and the basic difference is how they read their Bibles. There are those who read their Bibles like Jesus and come away with a very different view of God, a very different view of the world, a very different view of themselves and how to approach God. And then there are those who pick up Scripture and they see what they want to see, or they're just confused by all the lines, and we need the Holy Spirit to straighten it out because what really matters is what God intended us to see. And that's why we need to approach the Scripture in a way that it can speak to us instead of forcing it to say what we want it to say or what we think it ought to say. Because inevitably, what happens is we end up with just this confused mess and we can't really see anything.

5:27And so, one of the big issues as we turn to Galatians 6 is this concept of the law of Christ, the law of Christ. What in the world is this law of Christ? You know, in the Old Testament, we encounter expressions like the law of Moses, the law of God, and the law of the Lord, and they are clearly referring to the Torah, the first five books of the Bible. And when we come to the New Testament, we still encounter these same expressions referring to the Torah. But then, in our text this morning, we encountered this word, this phrase, the law of Christ. And it is used only by Paul in the New Testament. And it is clearly not a reference to the Mosaic law.

6:29There are many who have gone to great lengths to demonstrate that the Christian isn't under law at all. But if you allow Paul any kind of ability to shape your thinking about Scripture, it's clear that Paul is saying, yes, the Christian is under law. Emphatically, the Christian is under the law of Christ. The law of Christ. In fact, I would submit to you the whole council of Scripture is about bringing you under the law of Christ. The law of Christ fulfilled the law of Moses.

7:13So if you're going to allow the Scripture to shape your thinking and allow God's Spirit to show you what this is all about, we need to jump in and understand what it is that Paul has in his mind about. The law of Christ. Not what we think it ought to say, but what is in Paul's mind. The only other place where Paul used this expression was in 1 Corinthians 9 and verse 20 and 21. Let me read those to you. To the Jews I became as a Jew, so that I might win Jews, to those who were under the law. As under the law, though not myself being under the law, it's clearly a reference to the Mosaic law. Paul is saying, I am not under the law, even though I became like one under the law, because I wanted to witness to those who were under the law, so I became like one under the law, though myself not being under the law. And then he says this in verse 21, to those who are without the law, as without the law, though not being without the law of God, but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those who are without law. In other words, he says, as I came to those who were born outside or didn't have any regard for the Mosaic law, I came to them as one who was not under the law, though I myself am under the law of Christ. I do have law over me.

8:49But I came as though one without the law, the Torah, though I'm really not without the law of God, but under the law of Christ, so that I might win those. So Paul makes a clear distinction, and he makes it a very emphatic, I am under the law of Christ. What is this law of Christ in Paul's mind? There are, as you can imagine, a lot of different interpretations. There are numbers of possible answers, and I will only mention a few.

9:26Is he talking about the Beatitudes? Matthew 5, you know them. Verse 3: Blessed are the poor in spirit. Blessed are those who mourn. Blessed are the gentle. Blessed are the merciful. Blessed are the pure in heart. Blessed are the peacemakers, and on. Does Paul have in mind the beatitudes? Or does Paul have in mind the gospel? He's been talking a lot about the gospel, that the law of Christ is just a synonym for the gospel, repentance and faith.

10:03Or is it a reference to the fruit of the Spirit that's just been mentioned? Verse 22, but the fruit of the Spirit, love, joys, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things, there is no law. And many, certainly many conservative and many of my favorite commentators see it as a reference to. John chapter 13 and verse 34, where Jesus said, A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another even as I have loved you. You remember in Jesus' ministry, he summed up the whole law of Moses under two commands. You remember that? In Matthew 22, the first one being, you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, and with all your mind. This is the first and foremost greatest commandment. And the second one is like it, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend the whole law and prophets. That's how Jesus summed up the whole Old Testament and prophets. Law and prophets. But then just a little bit later, probably just within the same week, he summed it up under, he summed everything up under one commandment. A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another even as I have loved you. So the man-word duty is seen in loving one another, and the God-word duty is loving as Christ loves. That's the God-word duty. And you have to have God in his right place in order to love like he loves. You have to take your cues from him, the standard from him.

11:56So which is it? Well, Even with this last one, I have a little bit of hesitation for a couple reasons. That in John 13 wouldn't be written for another three to four decades from the time Paul is addressing the Galatians. Paul has had little interaction with John up to this point. Had that been what Paul was trying to impress, why didn't he reference Jesus' command to love one another? He doesn't reference that command. He says, Let me tell you, he washed his disciples' feet, and then he gave them this command. He told them this, so that's the law of Christ. That would help me believe that that's what was in Paul's mind.

12:55If Paul was wanting to communicate this expression of Jesus to love one another, even as I, why didn't he just say so? Why didn't he just say, Here's the law of Christ, by the way, it is. Now, these are Galatians, remember? They're new. They're new to the faith. They haven't been instructed. It'd be good for him to have informed us. So if we're going to hardwire Galatians 6:2 and John 13, 34, we have to do so based on conjecture. Even if it's good conjecture, we have to make the connection.

13:29So, What is the law of Christ? Well, certainly it involves and encompasses everything that I just mentioned. It encompasses the Beatitudes. It encompasses the gospel, repentance, and faith. It encompasses the fruit of the Spirit. It certainly encompasses Jesus' command to love one another as he loved. All that. I think it encompasses all of that, so I don't want to detract from anything that would be included in that, but the concept seems to be a little more broad.

14:09An umbrella that it compasses the Beatitudes, the gospel, the new commandment, all of that. It's broader because of the nature of the flesh. How are we to think about this law of Christ? Because the nature of the flesh responds to legal requirements very differently than the Spirit. And there's a danger. There's a danger that if we are not careful, our flesh will turn pretty much anything into another set of rules to obey in which to base or maintain a right relationship with God.

14:52That's what our flesh does. Even Well-intentioned guidelines, which in and of themselves may be noble and good and pure, the flesh can turn into another set of rules to base or maintain a right relationship. Even good conditions, even good traditions, like we have here at Emmanuel, or like many that were in Judaism, good traditions can become a basis for law-keeping righteousness. Even holy commands, such as those found in the Torah, can become a basis for works-based righteousness. For example, let me just tell you what I mean. Take the fruit of the Spirit. He's just talked about the fruit of the Spirit, but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. You know, we can turn those into a law, can't we?

16:03You be patient. I mean it. Get a hold of yourself. Control yourself, will you? We can take even the fruit of the Spirit, and if we're not careful, we can, our flesh will turn it into a law that becomes a works-based righteousness. It doesn't detract from this is the fruit of the Spirit, this is what the Spirit is going to accomplish in your life, but we can turn pretty. Much anything into law-keeping righteousness and base our relationship with God and maintain that relationship on how well we think we're doing in these categories.

16:43That's what the flesh will do. Even the command to love one another as Christ loved. Let me tell you something. That's a big command, isn't it? To pick up your cross daily and follow Him. That is a massive command that the flesh cannot and will not do and will figure out many ways to convince itself that this is exactly what I'm doing. Reduce the law, change the law in some way by putting some tradition, by something, because the flesh cannot do it. I mean, I'll tell you what.

17:32Yeah, I say it all the time. I exhort husbands, go love your wife like Christ loved the church. It's an impossible task unless you're empowered by the Spirit. There is no way you're going to do that in your flesh. Oh, you might idolize your wife and worship her, but you're not going to love her like Christ loved the church. And that goes for true with any of Christ's command to love, and we're not just to love our wives, not just husbands that are to love their wives like Christ loved the church, but it's each of us are to love one another like Christ loved the church. That's the holy standard. And if you just simply take that and elevate it to some kind of law that you've got to keep into your flesh, you're going to be very much a miserable failure.

18:31We cannot perfectly obey even the best of commands, and that's what the law requires. It doesn't just require obedience, half-hearted obedience, but perfect obedience. And that's something only God can do. So, what does Paul have in mind when he uses the expression, the law of Christ? Let's look a little bit more specifically at the phrase itself: the law of Christ. Two observations. First, it is a law. A law. It's not hard to see. It is a rule. It is a guide. It is an instruction. And what do rules, guides, or instructions have in mind? They have a destination in mind, an outcome. So it's a law that wants to achieve something, an outcome in mind. Second, It's a law that characterizes a certain person, persona. It's a law of Christ. It characterizes Christ, Christ's persona. It's a law that has in mind a person, persona.

19:51It's the law that Christ possessed, the law of Christ. It's the law that characterized Christ, how he lived, the law of Christ. We use the expression a lot, the blood of Christ. It's not hard to understand what the blood of Christ is. The law of Christ is written kind of in a very similar syntax. The blood of Christ, we understand the blood is something closely connected to Christ. In fact, inseparable, really. The blood of Christ, it's inseparable from Christ. It's a substance. It has in itself a power, life-giving properties. Well, the law of Christ, in much the same vein, if I can use that word, it belonged to Christ. It flowed from Christ, and it characterized Christ. So the law of Christ, if you think about it, it has substance in mind, it has direction in mind, it has destination in mind, and it has power.

20:59Power includes. It is something that comes from Christ, so its very substance is Christ. Substance is Christ's spirit, inseparable from Christ's spirit. The words themselves are inseparable from Christ's spirit. They're articulated by him. So it's something that comes from Christ. It is something that characterizes Christ. So it's Christ-like. But its destination is also Christ-like. Christ-likeness. So there's a substance, the law of Christ comes from him. It characterizes him. It's Christ-like. It's destination for all who follow it. It's Christ-likeness. You see, the law of Christ is about conformity to a person.

21:53Conformity not by the flesh, by saying, here, you go just be like Jesus Christ. None of us are going to get there. Do you agree? He was perfect. So much so that the law of Moses, perfect, where God said nobody can obey. And then here's Christ, perfect obedience. The law of Christ, how would I boil it down into a simple mind? Simple statement. Law of Christ equals Christ conformity based upon the work of God's Spirit. Christ conformity.

22:30Based upon the work of God's Spirit, not Christ's conformity based upon the flesh. Christ-likeness. You see, one cannot come under the law of Christ without being born by the Spirit of Christ. There is no way. So, coming back to Jesus' new commandment, which I do think is germane to who Christ is, to understanding the persona of Christ. Love one another as I have loved you. That sums it up. That sums up the whole law. That sums up Christ's ministry. That sums up Christ's desire for his disciples. Yes, that is the persona of Christ. And so we do well to pay attention to his command to love one another as he loved us.

23:27Because in this simple commandment, we see the gospel proclaimed. In this commandment, we see the law of Moses fulfilled. Love one another as I have loved you. We see the beatitudes, what it means to be a peacemaker, what it means to be merciful, what it means, we see all of that. We see the nature of Christian community to love one another like Christ loved us. We see the fruit of the Spirit manifesting, that love of God radiating into the soul of man and reflecting in the kindness, goodness, and Gentleness, patience, self-control, all that. We see the love of God shaping all of that in us.

24:09But all of this is where, and the commandment that Paul has been given in Galatians chapter 5 is being led by the Spirit and walking by the Spirit. And those who do will fulfill the law of Christ because that is where the Spirit of God is taking them. But it's clear as we turn the page from chapter 5 and into chapter 6 of Galatians, this last chapter of the book, it's clear that this concept of the law of Christ is in Paul's mind as he concludes this book. Christ conformity is what it's about. Christ conformity by being led by the Spirit and walking in the Spirit. That's what the gospel, that's the end point, that's the destination.

25:08Christ conformity by being led by and walking in the Spirit. And of course, that encompasses everything that is Christ-like. Notice the very first word of this chapter is the word brethren. It's clear that this Last chapter is addressed not to the Judaizers, but to the brethren. To those who are under the Spirit of God, who are led by the Spirit of God, and who are walking in that. That's the brethren. And notice that the very last word in chapter 18, before the word amen, is the word brethren. The very first word and the very last word of this chapter is the word brethren. It's all addressed to the brethren. And so, what Paul does in this chapter, he expounds on this law of Christ better here than anywhere else.

26:11And so, the first major element in obeying the law of Christ is loving the way Jesus loves, of course. Sums it all up, really. But loving the way Jesus loves. And this is evident in the verses that we will be looking at this morning. In fact, we'll only have time this morning to look at two of the characteristics of those who obey the law of Christ. Two characteristics, and it's good as we go through these to ask yourself: are you truly led by the Spirit and walking in his ways?

26:50Because these characteristics will characterize you in increasing significance if you're. Walking in the Spirit, obeying him and obeying the law of Christ. Verse 1, notice that those who obey the law of Christ seek to restore those who are overtaken by sin. Look at verse 1. Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, each one looking to yourself so that you too will not be tempted. Brethren, even if. Now, just look back a couple verses. He just, in verse 25 of chapter 5, he says, If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another, or envying one another. The life of the Christian life, under the guidance of the Spirit, is not one of competing with your brothers and sisters in Christ.

27:58It's not one of competition. In fact, he says, even if anyone is caught in trespass, it's not an occasion to challenge, to boast. But you who are spiritual, restore such a one in gentleness. Now, notice if, if, the word if, if, speaks of a condition. It's a condition that's certainly and frequently going to arise in life. As you go through, is caught. Even if anyone is caught, that is overtaken, ambushed, caught by surprise. If somebody is caught in any trespass, see this, our flesh is likened to an enemy waiting in ambush. And sometimes it catches us, we're caught off guard. Our flesh gets the best of us.

28:59But even if anyone is caught in any trespass, anyone, any kind of trespass, and the word for trespass is really the same for transgression, and that is the idea of crossing a boundary, a moral boundary. Somebody sinning by causing injury or crossing a boundary, harming you. Now, notice that he doesn't talk about the specific sin. If anyone is caught in any trespass, so that's a pretty wide spectrum here. He's not emphasizing the specific sin involved. That's not the issue. And he could put in here a whole category. First of all, there's the perceived sin. Sometimes you think somebody's crossed a boundary against you or harmed you, and they really haven't, and the transgression is merely a perceived transgression. So whenever you perceive a transgression, whether it's valid or not, the condition...

30:00The direction here applies to you to restore. It could be an accidental sin that happens in the heat of the moment, like not a premeditated sin. Like, I woke up this morning. I think I'm just going to, you know, really go and murder somebody. You know, you know, it's not that thought. But what happens, something happens in the day, and we will lash out in anger and we'll have a poor response to a situation. It can be an accidental sin like that, a poor response to a difficult situation or something like that. But it could also be a deliberate lapse into a besetting sin, any transgression.

30:52A deliberate lapse that may be the result of your sinful cravings or poor choices or weaknesses of the flesh, any of that. It doesn't seem like Paul really has high-handed sin in mind that would ruin a church's witness because he dresses that a little differently in 1 Corinthians 5. But even in those situations, what's at issue is how the church responds, how those who are spiritual responds. That's what he's getting at. He's not getting at the specific sin, but those, brethren, you who are spiritual, Spiritual, how you are to respond to someone who is overtaken by sin. And get ready.

31:41You're going to include, as you go through life, get ready. There are going to be transgressors that you come across. It will happen where somebody has crossed a line, they've been overtaken by sin, and you are helping them through it. You're going to encounter them. It's like this. If you take a job at the post office, get ready to see letters. Okay? If you live life, get ready, you're going to encounter people who are overcome by sin.

32:19Because the flesh has a habit of sneaking up and overpowering people. What are you to do? What are you to be doing when that situation happens? Restore. Notice what it says. Even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one. Restore. That's the command. You be restoring them. The idea is like mending nets. It's the same word. You remember if a net, the fisherman, as in fact, when Jesus first meets some of the disciples, they're mending their nets. What are they trying to do? They're trying to put them back in working order. A net that's been torn isn't going to do what it was designed to do. So is somebody who is overcome by sin. They're not going to function like God intended a human to function. And so you who are spiritual are to be restoring them.

33:17Notice who's supposed to be restoring. Not you who are weak, but you who are spiritual. You who are of the spirit, not of the flesh. You who are being driven by the wind of God, the breath of God. You are the ones. And notice how you're to restore. The manner in a spirit of gentleness, in a spirit of friendliness, considerateness. This command, you who are spirits, you're going to restore them in a spirit of gentleness. This has the well-being of the trespasser in mind. God has in mind the well-being of the trespasser. Gentleness involves humility, courtesy. The opposite is pride, tactless. A tactless rebuke may actually aggravate the person's relationship and drive them further from being restored.

34:20A gentle person exercises restraint, but they know how to apply the right kind of pressure that helps God. I mean, Helps people and honors God. But a gentle person also is a humble person. A gentle person also knows their own weaknesses. Notice the concern. Notice the concern there. You who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness, each one looking to yourself so that you too will not be tempted. Looking to yourself. This has in mind the well-being of the restorer. You see, God has in mind when somebody is overtaken by sin, he has the well-being of the one who is taken in the sin in mind, but he also has the well-being of the one restoring such a person.

35:28Paying attention, looking to yourself. What are they to be concerned about? Well, it says to be tempted. Being tempted. So that you too will not be tempted. Now, think about what this dynamic would be like. If someone who is overtaken in a fleshly temptation, there's a lot of work trying to restore such a person. Yeah, and I think it could be that you could be very susceptible to the very same temptation that they succumb to. That's possible. But I think more than likely, and certainly included in that, but certainly it includes all those fleshly temptations that are going to come up in the process of trying to restore somebody. And there could be a whole spectrum of them. Just look at Jesus. Look at his effort when he came to earth to restore people to a right relationship with God. Look at all the temptations that he faced.

36:38It wasn't just the same sin that we were tempted with, but all kinds of temptations when trying to restore somebody. There's the temptation to lose patience, to have outbursts of anger, to give up, to send away, to not be loving, all kinds of that. But here's the thing. What Paul is focusing upon here is the quality of your care when you're trying to restore somebody. It's about quality, how do a good job. Paul is not saying that when somebody falls, That is not an occasion to make much of their failure. That's what pride does. Or gloat over their fall. That's what envy does.

37:40It's not to puff yourself up, to make yourself feel smug. And that's what happens a lot of times. Somebody falls, and guess what? For some strange reason, we feel better about ourselves. What's wrong with that? It's sin. Born out of pride, envy that comes out of the flesh. Or sometimes we could get very discouraged when trying to restore somebody. As if it all depends upon us. No, we speak truth, and then all of a sudden it doesn't take hold, and all of a sudden it's like, okay, you failed. Something's wrong with you.

38:15And we can easily get discouraged. There's all manner of temptations when trying to restore. And yet that is much of what the ministry of the church is. Restoring sinners. Cooperating in step with the Spirit. Well, the first characteristic of those who obey the law of Christ is that they seek to restore those who are overtaken by sin. Second, those who obey the law of Christ bear the burdens of others. Look again at verse 2. Remember the first word of verse 1. Brethren, brethren, now that same address goes to verse 2, brethren, bear one another's burdens and then Thereby fulfill the law of Christ. Bear. That is, you be bearing, you be lifting up, picking up, you be removing. When you see somebody under a burden, you are not to gloat, you are to move to aid, to help. I mean, what's the appropriate response to a little old lady who's struggling under a heavy load? Men, come on, what's the appropriate response? Help. It's not to go over there and say, here, can you carry this? You got that under control. Here, can you carry this? Throw your backpack on there, right? No, it's to help. We all know that, and that's what it's very easy what God is saying here. Bear one another's burdens. People in life are going to have weights that they carry, burdens they carry. And again, Paul is not specific about the source of the burden. Perhaps the burden is a consequence of being overtaken by sin. There are consequences by sin, and people have to live under those sometimes, and it may be a weight due to sin. Or perhaps it's a physical burden of some sort that somebody has to bear, or a social stigma, or a mental situation, or an emotional situation, or a spiritual dilemma. There's weights and burdens that we carry all the time.

40:27And Paul is saying, if you bear weight, One another burdens. All of these are included. Paul is not specific about the source of the burden, nor is he specific about the degree. It could be a very heavy weight that one has to bear a long, long time. There are those kind of burdens in life. Perhaps you're suffering with one of those kind of burdens. Or it could be a light weight that a person has to bury only for a very short time. Whatever the weight is, some burdens are here today and they're gone tomorrow. Some burdens are with you all your life. Paul isn't specifying the degree of the burden or the source. It could be an excessive sorrow or momentary light affliction, but regardless of the source or the degree, the command is clear. Y'all be bearing such burdens. Y'all be helping one another.

41:46Notice the promise here. Bear one another burdens, and thereby, in this manner, in this way, you will fulfill the law of Christ. It said, It's an emphatic statement. It's a future promise. You will fulfill the law of Christ. You will accomplish it. You will fulfill it. You will fill it up completely. That's the word fulfill. You will carry it out with perfection. Wow. Syntax is important. You will fulfill the law of Christ, the direction, the rule, the principle, the sacred ordinance of Christ. You will carry it out if you will bear one another's burdens.

42:48You just might fulfill, there's a good chance if you do this, you just might fulfill the law of Christ. No? You will fulfill the law of Christ. It's a very important statement. As you work through chapter 5 and chapter 6, you start seeing some equivalent expressions here. Notice what Paul said in Galatians 5:14. Look back there. For the whole law is fulfilled in one word. Speaking about the Mosaic law. One word. Not even two. One, you shall love your neighbor as yourself. The whole law. Paul reduces it to one, loving your neighbor as yourself.

43:37And what he says in chapter 6 in verse 2, bearing one another's burdens equals fulfilling the law of Christ. So think about that. These are equivalent expressions. Loving your neighbor, bearing one another's burdens, fulfilling the law of Christ. You do one, you do them all. Fulfilling the law of Christ is fulfilling the purpose that the whole Mosaic law was written. I love what John Stotz says on this verse. It shows us, open quote, let me say it, open quote, it shows us to love one another as Christ loved us may lead us not to some heroic, spectacular deed of self-sacrifice, but to the much more mundane and unspectacular ministry of burden-bearing. Ministry of burden-bearing. Sometimes we think that Christianity is about this big spectacular display and heroic events. No, it's really the mundane and unspectacular day-to-day helping one another with their loads. In that is where you fulfill the law of Christ. Christ wants his people to love one another as he loves them.

45:17Look at verse 3. For if anyone thinks he is something when he is nothing, he deceives himself. You know, another reality in life you're going to face is self-deceivers. Are you one of them? There's going to be the reality of trespassers. Life is going to be filled with those who are overtaken by sin. But there are also going to be those in life who go through life thinking or deceiving themselves. They think they're something in God's eyes when they really aren't. And this is where false religion takes us. Make you think you're really something in God's eyes when you really aren't.

46:06Matthew 7:22, Jesus says this, Many will come to me on that day and say, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name? And in your name cast out demons, and in your name perform many miracles. And then I will declare to them, I never knew you. Depart from me, you who practice lawlessness. You are not under any law. You are not under the law of heaven. You are a law unto yourself, lawlessness. They thought they were doing pretty good, but they really were not. And Matthew 25, verse 41, you remember Jesus sitting in judgment tells us what it's going to be like. And he turns to the goats, and he says these words.

46:54Matthew 25, verse 41, Then he will also say to those on his left, Depart from me, accursed ones, into the eternal fire which has been prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry, and you gave me nothing to eat. I was thirsty, and you gave me nothing to drink. I was a stranger. This was my burden, and you did not invite me in. I was naked. That was the burden I was carrying, and you did not clothe me. I was sick. That was the burden. That was the weight upon me. I was in prison, and you did not visit me. Then they themselves will also answer, Lord, Lord, when do we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison and did not take care of you? Then he will answer them, Truly I say to you, to the extent that you did not do it to the one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.

47:52You see, by bearing one another's burdens, guess what? You avoid the pitfalls of pride and envy. If we live by the Spirit, let us walk by the Spirit. Let us not become boastful, challenging one another or envying one another. Again, I want to quote John Stott, open quote: Christian relationships are governed not by rivalry, but by service. The correct attitude to other people is not, I am better than you, and I will prove it, nor you're better than I and I resent it, but you are a person of importance in your own right because God made you in his own image and Christ died for you. And it is my joy and privilege to serve you. You see, those who are characterized by the love of Christ no longer seek to rival one another, but to carry the burdens of one another. What a dramatic change. That's the difference between life in the flesh and the life in the Spirit under the law of Christ. That's what has happened in chapter 5. He's talking about life in the spirit in chapter 6, life under the law of Christ, and that's where the spirit leads. Freedom in the book of Galatians is about being under the law of Christ.

49:25You see, the sin of the Pharisees, this is where they went wrong, is that they were used. The law as a means to show off their spirituality. Friends, we can do the same with the gospel. Instead of the Pharisees letting the law teach them what God is like and how they are to approach Him and how they are to love Him and how they are to love others, all that was in the law of Moses. Same is true in the gospel. We can do the same in our churches. We can seek to show off our spirituality instead of letting the gospel inform us or teach us about who God is, how He is to be approached, how He is to be loved, and how we are to love one another.

50:10There's a lot more to say on this. That's why I'm thankful we go slow. What did Christ come to do? Christ's love for His people really boils down to this. What did He do? He came to seek and to restore those who were overtaken by sin. He came to bear the burdens of His people. Think about that. Think about what you and I need. Think about as I reflect upon this glorious person of Christ. And I think about what He did for me personally and what He has done for all of His people. You know what I needed? I needed a covering from the wrath. I needed something to shield me from the wrath of God. You know what we call that in the Bible? Atonement. Christ came to shield you from the wrath. Wrath of God. But you need more than just being shielded from the wrath of God. You need a way to make things right with God. What can I present to you, O creator of the universe, that would give you favor or grant favor toward me in your eyes? What gift can I possibly bring?

51:22How do I make it right? That's the word propitiation. I need something to bring, and you know what that is? That is the sin offering. Ah, I can bring Christ. He gave us Christ as an atoning sacrifice, as a propitiation, a way to make things right with God. But he gave us Christ to bring about a new destination. You see, I needed another direction in life. I needed something better than the destination I was heading. And that destination is Christ's likeness. And then I needed, not only did I need a new destination, I needed a new way to get to that destination, and that's the new way of life. Spirit-led, spirit-walking.

52:11But then I needed, not only did I need a covering from wrath, not only did I need a way to make things right with God, not only did I need a new destination, and not only did I need a new way of life, a road to that life, I needed the power to walk in it, which I absolutely did not have in my flesh. And that's why he put his spirit in me, causing me to be. Born from above, so that I would thirst for his things, and so that I would be led by his things, and so that I'd be walking in his ways. That's the law of Christ.

52:44All of these were granted in, by, through Jesus Christ, and that's why God sent his Son into the world. And that's who he has sent to you. You might enter into a right relationship with him. Maybe you're here this morning, you've been overtaken by sin. I want you to look to the one who has borne your burden. His name is Jesus. Let's pray. Heavenly Father, we bow our hearts before you, recognizing that you lived a Spirit-led life. You walked in the way of the Spirit, and you are calling us to the very same kind of life that you lived.

53:40And Father, we recognize that in our flesh there is no way that we'll do it. We will start reducing the law. We'll start making up laws. We'll start redefining. But, Father, we thank you for the destination in Christ. We thank you for the atoning sacrifice. We thank you for. For the sin offering, we thank you for all of that that is granted in Christ that we might walk in newness of life towards a new destination and not in power that comes from our fallenness, but a power that is breathed from above by your Spirit. So, Father, help us this morning to be honest with you and to be led by you and then to walk in the way that you are leading. In Jesus' name, amen.