" All one in Christ Jesus" by Rod Bayley, 13 July 2008, PM Service, Galatians 3:26-29

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Sep 14, 2008, 2:43:28 AM9/14/08
to Sermons from Wollongong Baptist Church
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX
Olympiad, will of course be held in Beijing, China from August 8,
followed by the Paralympics from September 6. 10,500 athletes are
expected to compete in 302 events in 28 sports. On top of that, it is
estimated that three million domestic and overseas visitors will flock
to Beijing for the games.

The theme of the Beijing Olympics is "One World One Dream." It is said
to fully reflect the essence and the universal values of the Olympic
spirit Unity, Friendship, Progress, Harmony, Participation and
Dream. These values, it is stated, express the common wishes of people
all over the world, inspired by the Olympic ideals, to strive for a
bright future of Mankind. In spite of the differences in colors,
languages and races, we share the charm and joy of the Olympic Games,
and together we seek for the ideal of Mankind for peace. We belong to
the same world and we share the same aspirations and dreams.

Well, those words of unity and peace are quite impressive, and they
are inherently held by most of humanity. Of course they do overlook
the protests both within and outside China about a lack of human
rights in the People’s Republic, concerns about military actions in
Tibet, and the fact that they’ve supposedly already thwarted a
terrorist threat. And of course China is not alone in such
struggles. If only the Olympic ideals were matched by some reality,
then the expressions of a desire for world unity would seem less
wishful or fanciful. Is there any way that such unity can be brought
across cultural and racial divisions, and gender divides? How can the
hollowness of the words be filled with meaning and real hope, both now
and in the future?

In Galatians 3:26-29, which we’ve just heard read for us, the apostle
Paul holds out an even greater unity, indeed a new world order you
might say, and the basis for this unity is through adoption into God’s
family. God’s family truly has such values, and can produce them in
its members. Notice what verses 26 and 27 state:
“You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, 27for all of
you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with
Christ.”

Notice that we have the full rights of sons - we are adopted into
God’s family as his children through faith in Jesus’ death and
resurrection, which pays for our sin and so brings us forgiveness and
the sure hope of eternal life. Faith in Jesus baptizes us ‘into
Christ’ - this baptism of the Spirit identifies the believer with
Christ and makes us a part of God’s family. Water baptism is not
being referred to here, but it is an outward symbol of this inner work
of the Holy Spirit. The phrase ‘clothed yourselves with Christ’
refers to a change of garments. The believer has laid aside the dirty
clothes of sin and by faith has received the robes of righteousness in
Christ.

What is the application of these amazing truths, which take us from
being God’s enemies who were objects of wrath, to adopted sons and
daughters by faith? Well, firstly in verse 28, we are now all one in
Christ Jesus - our many differences have been removed, because we are
united by faith and brought into the one family where such
distinctions are unnecessary. Notice again how definitive this
statement is about the removal of the many differences, the many
categories that our world uses and abuses to divide people. Verse 28
says:
“There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for
you are all one in Christ Jesus.”

What a tremendous claim! Jesus Christ unites people. This must have
been glorious news for the Galatian Christians, for in their society
slaves were considered pieces of property; women were often confined
and disrespected; and Gentiles were constantly sneered at by Jews.
Pharisees would often pray each morning: “I thank Thee God, that I am
a Jew, not a Gentile; a man, not a woman; a free man, and not a
slave.” Yet all these distinctions, in terms of a basis for spiritual
discrimination, have been removed in Christ. This does not mean that
our race, political status or gender are changed at conversion, but it
does mean that these things are of no value or handicap when it comes
to our relationship with God through Christ. And so as we look around
at our brothers and sisters in Christ, we know that we wouldn’t have
such a gathering as we have tonight, indeed many of us would not even
have had any contact with each other, if it were not for a common
relationship with Christ. We have been brought together into one big
family through faith in Jesus and we can now celebrate the unity which
God has worked in us by his Spirit.

A second and final application of being adopted into God’s family by
faith is that we are Abraham’s spiritual heirs. In verse 29 Paul
states:
“If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs
according to the promise.”

The O.T. law could never make us heirs of God - we cannot fulfill the
law, rather it makes us aware of our sin and points us to our need of
a Saviour, the Messiah. God made the promise to Abraham’s seed in
3:16, and that singular ‘seed’ is Christ. If we are in Christ by
faith, then we too are Abraham’s seed, spiritually speaking. This
means we are heirs of the spiritual blessings God promised to
Abraham. This does not mean that the physical and national blessings
promised to Israel are ours, but that Christians today are enriched
spiritually because of God’s promise to Abraham. In the Old Testament
we have the preparation for Christ, in the gospels we have the
presentation of Christ, and from Acts to Revelation we have the
appropriation of Christ. Your Christian life ought to take on a new
wonder and meaning as you realise all that you have in Christ. And
all of this is by grace, God’s unmerited favour, not by law. You are
a full heir in God’s family and what a glorious inheritance awaits us
when Christ’s return and we live as God’s people in the new creation.
The apostle John gives us that wonderful picture of heaven in
Revelation 7:9, where he describes the wonderful multi-cultural
gathering of our future:
“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no
one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language,
standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb.”

How wonderful that day will be - for now, we just have a small taste
of that oneness in Christ.
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