Week 5 -- Religion Creates Slaves; Jesus Made Sons

Because of Jesus Ministries BecauseofJesus.com Galatians 4:1-12 NLT Galatians 3:25-29 (NLT)
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And now that the way of faith has come, we no longer need the law as our guardian. 26 For you are all children of God through faith in Christ Jesus. 27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on Christ, like putting on new clothes. 28 There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus. 29 And now that you belong to Christ, you are the true children of Abraham. You are his heirs, and Gods promise to Abraham belongs to you Verse 25-27: Now that we live by accepting Gods promise of righteousness, we no longer need the law to show us our sin. We have become children of God through faith in Jesus and have put on His very nature of perfect righteousness. Verse 28-29: No longer are we separated by our nationality, our earthly positions, or our gender. We are no longer defined or judged better or worse based on our performance. All division based on the law has ended and we have all become one -- equally righteous, blessed, favored, and valued in Christ. We are all heirs of Gods promise of righteousness through Jesus! Slave Mentality = Fear VS Son Mentality = Security in the Fathers Love Galatians 4:1-12 (NLT) 1 Think of it this way. If a father dies and leaves an inheritance for his young children, those children are not much better off than slaves until they grow up, even though they actually own everything their father had. 2 They have to obey their guardians until they reach whatever age their father set. 3 And thats the way it was with us before Christ came. We were like children; we were slaves to the basic spiritual principles of this world.4 But when the right time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, subject to the law. 5 God sent him to buy freedom for us who were slaves to the law, so that he could adopt us as his very own children. 6 And because we are his children, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, prompting us to call out, Abba, Father. 7 Now you are no longer a slave but Gods own child. And since you are his child, God has made you his heir. Romans 8:15-17 (NLT): 15 So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received Gods Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, Abba, Father.16 For his Spirit joins with our spirit to affirm that we are Gods children. 17 And since we are his children, we are his heirs. In fact, together with Christ we are heirs of Gods glory. Verses 1-3: We once were slaves to the law, in bondage to condemnation because all the law had the power to do was show us our sin, show us how we didnt measure up and make us feel like a failure. This put us in bondage to fear and insecurity.
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Religious legalism creates a slave Mentality of Fear and Insecurity. Insecurity is fear of what others think of us, fear of failure, fear of disapproval or rejection, fear that our needs won't get met. Religious legalism makes us feel separated from God because of our sin. It portrays God as angry and judgmental and makes a person feel like if they dont behave they will be punished. Verses 4-6: But at the right time Jesus came and freed us from the religious legalism of the law that made us slaves to condemnation and fear. He did this by making us sons of God. The very purpose in Jesus removing our sins and making us righteous was to reconcile us to the Father so we could have an intimate relationship with Him and live safe and secure in His love for us.

Ephesians 3:17: May Christ through your faith dwell in your hearts! May you be rooted deep in love and founded securely on love. 1 John 4:18: His Perfect love for us expels all fear and insecurity from our hearts! Jesus made away for us to have the exact same relationship with our Abba, Father as He did. He made us one with Himself and one with each other (John 17) Verse 7: Because we are His children, we are His heirs, we dont earn our identity or deserve His blessing, we simply inherit it because of who we are -- His beloved child. Verse 6: His Spirit is in our hearts, prompting us to call out Abba, Father.

The word Abba in our modern day language means Daddy. Its the word a young child would call his or her father. Abba means Daddy. And it implies intimacy. It implies a confident trust in someone that you know loves you and is going to take care of you. Abba Father is our Daddy, and religion has portrayed Him in a negative light, but Jesus reveals His true character of unconditional love and compassion toward us so we can put our trust in Him and live secure in His love. He is the Daddy that our hearts have always longed to have, one who completely approves of us and never changes His good opinion of us regardless of our behavior. 1 John 4:18 says, The Love of the Father Expels all Fear of His judgment from our hearts. If we are afraid, we have not come to know His perfect love. Religions portrayal of God VS The Truth of His love revealed in Jesus 1. Religious legalism teaches that God sometimes says No, but the truth is His answer is always, Yes, in Christ to all of His promises! 2 Corinthians 1:20 (NIV): 20 For no matter how many promises God has made, they are Yes in Christ. And so through him the Amen is spoken by us to the glory of God. Yes, you are approved! Yes, you are qualified! Yes, you are accepted! Yes, you are righteous!
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Yes, you are favored and blessed! Yes, everything works together for your good! 2. Religious legalism portrays God as a distant and angry Master, but Jesus reveals a Daddy who is loving and compassionate to His children Isaiah 54:9-10 (NLT): 9 Just as I swore in the time of Noah that I would never again let a flood cover the earth, so now I swear that I will never again be angry and punish you. 10 For the mountains may move and the hills disappear, but even then my faithful love for you will remain. My covenant of blessing will never be broken, says the LORD, who has mercy on you. 3. Religious legalism teaches that God keeps track of your sins, but Jesus reveals a Daddy who rejoices over you and Hell never remember your sins again! Hebrews 8:12 (NLT): 2 And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins. Isaiah 44:22: I have swept away your sins like a cloud. I have scattered your offenses like the morning mist. Oh, return to me, for I have paid the price to set you free. Zephaniah 3:17 (AMP): 17 The Lord your God is in the midst of you, a Mighty One, a Savior [Who saves]! He will rejoice over you with joy; He will rest [in silent satisfaction] and in His love He will be silent and make no mention [of past sins, or even recall them]; He will exult over you with singing. 4. Religious legalism teaches that our sins can separate us from God, but Jesus reveals a Daddy who will never leave you nor fail you nor let you down! Hebrews 13:5 (AMP) for He [God] Himself has said, I will not in any way fail you nor give you up nor leave you without support. [I will] not, [I will] not, [I will] not in any degree leave you helpless nor forsake nor let [you] down (relax My hold on you)! [Assuredly not!] 5. Your Abba Father comforts you with His promise to help you and strengthen you in every trial life brings! Isaiah 41:10 (AMP) 10 Fear not [there is nothing to fear], for I am with you; do not look around you in terror and be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen and harden you to difficulties, yes, I will help you; yes, I will hold you up and retain you with My [victorious] right hand of rightness and justice. (Hebrew 4:16) 6. Your Abba Fathers plan is to prosper you, not to harm you! Jeremiah 29:11 (NIV) 11 For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.
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7. Your Abba Father, will meet all your needs! Matthew 6:25-33 (NIV) 25 Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? 26 Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? 27 Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life?28 And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. 30 If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe youyou of little faith? 31 So do not worry, saying, What shall we eat? or What shall we drink? or What shall we wear? 32 For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. You can trust your Abba Father, because He loves you! When you know His opinion and His heart of love toward you will never change, you have a sense of security that the world cant take away! Now that you have this loving relationship with your Abba, Father dont go back to religious legalism
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Before you Gentiles knew God, you were slaves to so-called gods that do not even exist. NLT 9 Now, however, that you have come to be acquainted with and understand and know [the true] God, or rather to be understood and known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and beggarly and worthless elementary things [of all religions before Christ came], whose slaves you once more want to become? AMP 10 You are trying to earn favor with God by observing certain days or months or seasons or years. 11 I fear for you. Perhaps all my hard work with you was for nothing. 12 Dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to live as I do in freedom from these things, for I have become like you Gentilesfree from those laws. NLT The Apostle Paul is admonishing us to forsake religion and embrace relationship. When we try to earn Gods favor by a list of things to do we have given up the freedom of our sonship for the bondage of a fearful slave. He pleads with us to live as he does, free from religious legalistic laws that put you in bondage to fear and condemnation and live in the freedom of security and confidence as a beloved son of God!

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