Here’s an outline for the next two lessons or so.
I. Review the breadth of grace
(Gal 5:6b) The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.
A. What is “faith”? As always in the New Testament, faith in Jesus.
B. What does “counts” refer to? Justification. “Justification” is the judge’s verdict of “not guilty” or better yet “innocent.” The only thing that justifies — that shows we’ve been saved — is our faith in Jesus and our love arising from our faith.
C. Recall —
(1 John 3:21-24) Dear friends, if our hearts do not condemn us, we have confidence before God 22 and receive from him anything we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him. 23 And this is his command: to believe in the name of his Son, Jesus Christ, and to love one another as he commanded us. 24 Those who obey his commands live in him, and he in them. And this is how we know that he lives in us: We know it by the Spirit he gave us.
There’s just one command: believe in Jesus and love one another.
II. Now, if this is what “counts,” what doesn’t count?
A. 5 acts of worship
B. Pattern of organization
C. Church name
D. Lots and lots of other things
III. Reflect on how this interpretation brings the scriptures to life
(Heb 8:8-10) But God found fault with the people and said : “The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah. … 10 This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
If we understand “laws” to mean the five acts of worship or the qualifications of an elder, then we struggle to see how God could write his laws on our hearts in a way that’s different from the old covenant. In both cases, it comes from reading and understanding the scriptures.
However, if “laws” means faith in Jesus and love, it’s easy to see how God, through his Spirit, can write those on our hearts.
IV. The law of love is a commandment that cannot be obeyed
In John 13, Jesus told us to love as he loved us. Well, why does Jesus love us? Because he’s commanded to? Because that’s the only way he can make it to heaven? Or because it’s his essence – his nature – to love?
His love comes from his character and nature. It has to be this way because this is the only way it could be love. Were he to love only because God threatened him with damnation if he didn’t, well, that wouldn’t be love for us at all. It would be love for himself!
Just so, when we “love” out of fear of damnation, we don’t actually love at all. We just love ourselves and fear for our souls.
Therefore, in an incredible irony, we can only obey the command if we aren’t motivated by the command! Rather, we have to actually want to do this.
Just so, true worship, can’t be extorted out of fear of reprisals. We may “do acts of worship” but we don’t truly worship. I mean, what does “worship” mean if not love of God expressed?
True worship comes from a heart that desires to worship, that yearns for worship. Nothing else is worship “in Spirit and in truth.”
So – what are the laws for acceptable worship?
V. What are the penalties for violating Gal 5:6b?
A. Falling from grace, being alienated from Christ, preaching a different gospel, Christ being of no value to us at all
VI. If grace is so incredibly broad and if God so badly wants us to be forgiven, why are the penalties for getting grace wrong so severe?
A. Legalism (that is, adding tests of salvation to the gospel) leads to arrogance or to loss of confidence in our salvation
B. Legalism divides the body from itself
C. Legalism makes the gospel unattractive to the lost
D. Legalism keeps us from being effective in service. Why be generous to others when God hasn’t been all that generous to us?
E. Legalism forces an undue emphasis on doctrine at the expense of mission
F. Legalism makes it hard to truly love and to worship
G. Legalism makes it hard to love one another, when we misunderstand who “one another” is and when we feel obliged to fight and feud rather than serve
H. Legalism makes it hard to cross cultural and ethnic barriers because we are afraid to let go of our preferences and traditions for fear they may actually be commands
VII. Notice that Paul’s condemnation in Galatians is pointed primarily to the false teachers and not the pewsitters being duped
VIII. If legalism is this bad — even damnable — how does this fact affect our relationships with other Churches of Christ? Do we preserve our traditional practices to maintain fellowship with them? Do we keep this teaching under wraps so they won’t disfellowship us?
A. Our obligation re the scruples of our brothers and sisters is not to tempt them to do what they consider a sin. There’s no prohibition on acting in ways they disagree with if they aren’t tempted to sin against their consciences.
B. If we were to yield to the scruples of all our brothers and sisters, we could hardly do anything. We couldn’t have a Sunday school, would have to use one cup, could only read out of the KJV, etc.
C. On the other hand, we do have a duty to do what we can to teach them the truth of grace. If the lesson is as important as Paul says in Galatians, we’d be truly heartless not to spread the word.
D. Although there are arrogant brothers and sisters who won’t listen, there are a great many suffering in fear for their souls, desperate for good news. It’s just a matter of getting it to them. And God very often humbles the proud. We need to be ready to teach when they become ready to hear.
E. We have to avoid the temptation to condescend. An air of superiority will close their ears long before we can be persuasive.
IX. How does this affect our relationships with Church of Christ institutions?
A. Again, where we have influence, we need to work to reform them
B. We have no business supporting institutions that teach legalism
C. This can lead to some tough dilemmas —
1. Consider a missionary who learns the truth of the gospel but will lose his support if he teaches a non-traditional gospel
2. Consider a radio broadcast or college or other teaching institution that fears loss of support if it changes doctrinal stances
X. How does this affect our relationships across denominational lines?
A. Cooperation in serving the community
B. Cooperation in evangelism
XI. What would Tuscaloosa be like in 10 years if we were to truly live this teaching?
A. How would it affect our evangelism?
B. How would it affect the poor and needy?
C. How would it affect social ills, such as crime, drug abuse, illiteracy, and teen pregnancy?
D. How would the churches cooperate?
E. What can we do to make it happen?
* “Bringing It All Back Home” is a Bob Dylan album, featuring “Maggie’s Farm.”
