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Galatians 5:1-12
Subject:
Nobody likes to start watching a movie half way through, so we should probably rewind and retell what has lead us to Galatians 5. Let’s rewind to a garden…..

Retelling the Biblical Story:
Creation:
A calming, carefree, peaceful and pleasant garden where God and Adam and Eve, lived as one family. They would share meals together, accept one another and affirm the goodness of God, rejoice over the differences and share deeply. There was a sense of belonging and unity.

Fall:
But what happened in Genesis 3? There was an intruder who tempted the family into defecting from the good life they had. And as a result, the good relationships were broken, corrupted and disconnected. There was backbiting, disunity, jealously, rumors, racial prejudice, and many other positive encouraging words as we entered into an evil age. At that point, God could have disaffiliated from humanity and started over but instead he chose to redeem it. The rest of the Bible is the outworking of God’s redemption plan.

Redemption Plan:
The plan was activated through a man named Abram who was later renamed Abraham. God spoke to this man and said that he would bless him and the ENTIRE WORLD through one of his descendants. So Abraham had children who had other children and eventually the nation of Israel was born. God spoke to one of the leaders of this nation, a man named Moses. He gave Moses laws which the nation was to follow. Let’s talk about those laws….

The Role of the Nation with the Laws
By some counts there were 613 laws, does anyone want to name a few? I’ve broadly categorized them. There was calendar, cleansing, dietary, moral and ritual laws. We’re familiar with some of these laws. For example, calendar laws about resting on the Sabbath, cleansing laws about washing your hands before eating meals, dietary laws which prohibited certain foods like pork, moral laws which we know as the Ten Commandments, and ritual laws performed for the forgiveness of sins. The laws were unique and wide ranging. So what was the role of the laws? Israel was marching to the beat of a different drum(in a good way). God wanted to raise a people that would be attractive. A nation that would be “a city on a hill.” A nation that all the other nations would look at and think “I want what they got.” The laws were to be an outward sign to the rest of the world that the true God was with these people. Not only were they an outward sign but they were also an inward sign within the community. Many of us carry a sign or symbol which grounds us. Some people wear crosses, others have tattoos; others carry photos of their children. These signs and symbols work as signposts, pointing and reminding us of what is important. Does the fact that I wear a cross make me a Christian?

Covenant Nomism
Now, here is an important point. Contrary to popular belief, these laws weren’t a condition by which Israel earned their way. Israelites believed that God had graciously initiated a relationship with their ancestors, that he would redeem the world through them, they understood that they had a part to play in that redemption but by no means did they think that they earned their part. In other words, when two people get married, they don’t earn each others love by getting married. No, they get married BECAUSE they love each other, the marriage announces, demonstrates, identifies and sets apart this couple to the world as ‘married.’ The laws worked in a similar way. The laws were a badge, a badge of identification.

The Badge of Circumcision
There was one badge which was incredibly important to Israel. God commanded the Israelites to circumcise every male. Circumcision is the act by which the foreskin of male anatomy is separated or cut off. In order for someone to be identified as a member of the community they had to take on these various Laws. When the Israelites were defeated in various wars with they would always deport the Israelites to foreign lands. While in these foreign lands, they stuck out like a sore thumb with all of there distinctive rules and regulations. This wasn’t like where is Waldo, it was more like, who is that guy? How many of you have ever been to a sporting event where your outfit is of the oppsing team. 49er fans, how welcomed do you feel when you go to a Raiders game? This was the environment the Israelites found themselves in with foreigners. I recently went to a game at Oakland Raider stadium and I happened to be wearing my favorite sports teams jersey and lets just say that those Raider fans had a few choice words for me. I mean imagine, this was the environment the Israelites constantly found themselves in. Being put down, spit on, treated unfairly, and all because God spoke to one of their ancestors and commanded them to follow these laws. As a little boy this was engrained in your psyche.

The Good Side of the Law:
Now these laws functioned well in some respects because they created a sense of unity and common fellowship. Just like Adam & Eve, the Israelites found themselves once again able to eat together under these Laws. And there were less issues of dissension because everyone was under the same standard. So the law had its good side but it also had its bad side.

Locked Up Under Sin:
The old saying goes, “rules are made to be broken.” And so even though Israel had these Laws from God, they were still a world of hurt because they weren’t able to obey them and by the way this isn’t just an Israel thing. This is a human thing. Philosophers study what is good in order to teach others so that they can do well. Many religions teach that they hold the keys to what is good and they can lead a person to the good life. Most people believe they are good based on their own moral standard right? People may disagree on what good morality is but nonetheless, everybody, in their own world, wants to be morally sound. Even people who don’t believe in God have ideas about what is good or bad. Even the worst ghettos have a moral standard. Morality exists within Christian and non-Christian circles but the one thing that Christians acknowledge is that Christians aren’t able to keep the moral standard they know to be correct. But at the end of the day, both Jews and non-Jews found themselves in the same boat. Backbiting, slander, jealousy, racial prejidice. And so, the law, rather then being a primary vehicle which established a world-wide family of God, it became a primary indicator that world-wide of family was in disarray. And so then what was the purpose of the law? What was the point of all these awkward and meticulous laws?

Purpose Of The Law:
The purpose of the law was to keep that community of Israel together until Messiah showed up. Without the law, without the distinguishing factor of a common set of laws, the chances are that Israel, the descendants of Israel would become extinct or fade off into obscurity. God had told Abraham that he would bless the ENTIRE WORLD through him and God intended on keeping that promise.

Jesus came on the scene and enacted a new covenant.
This was the world Jesus was born in. The next stage of development in God’s plan took a totally unexpected turn when the same God who made the promise to Abraham took matters into his own hands so to speak and was born of the virgin Mary. Jesus, God incarnate came on the scene and what was his attitude toward these laws? Jesus was the only one who was able to obey these laws. Jesus wore the badge of membership, after all Jesus was a Jew. Jesus had a good attitude towards the law. During one of his sermons, Jesus said, “I did not come to abolish the law but to fulfill it.” Jesus did for Israel and the world what it could not do for itself. Jesus fulfilled the mission of Israel by being nailed to a Roman Cross. It was there that He absorbed in Himself the brokenness, corruption, and disconnection of the entire world. God’s justice towars those who disobey him was satisfied and his love for the entire world was made known through the cross. After His death He was raised from the dead. He was resurrected. This resurrection was a sign to the entire world that the community of God could now be redeemed from all the brokenness, corruption, and disconnected relationships. Jesus was the seed, Jesus was the descendant of Abraham which would bless the entire world. The resurrection of Jesus was the initiation of a new race, a new creation, which no longer got its membership, it’s badge by the works of the law. The entire world could now be forgiven for their disobedience to the laws by trusting in the work of Jesus on the Roman Cross. One of the early Christians, a man named John said that Jesus was the atoning sacrifice for the sins of the world. Jesus was the true Israel. And now, the entire world could be blessed through him. The entire world could be apart of the community of God, not by becoming ethnic Israel. So this brings up an interesting question……..

The Role of the Law Part 2
What should the nation of Israel do with the badges? What about the calendar, cleansing, dietary, moral and ritual laws? Should those who come to faith in Jesus be circumcised? Now you gotta understand, this was an incredibly volatile topic for the Israelites to swallow. Oh yes, one more small tidbit of information. Rome granted Jews special benefits because of their Jewishness. So, losing the badges meant losing important privledges and potentially losing their place as a nation. Imagine with me, you’ve spent your whole life obeying these laws, teaching them to your children, and forming your identity around keeping them and spreading them to others. You’ve traveled long distances and circumcised many non-Jews and now the God who gave you these laws makes a way for people to come to him without obeying them! DRAMA, THIS IS DRAMA! I’m convinced that this issue, “what should ethnic Israel do now that it has fulfilled its mission”, is one of the main issues facing the early church. This question is at the heart of Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts, Romans, 1st Corinthians, 2nd Corinthians, Ephesians, Philippians, Galatians. It’s all over the place. So, I’ve been talking for about 20 minutes so far, do you still have your Bible open to Galatians? Now, here is the cool part of the sermon. We’re going to read Galatians 5:1-12 and if I’ve done my job then you should be able to understand what is going on with very little explanation from me.

Galatians 5:1-12
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. 2 Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all. 3 Again I declare to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey the whole law. 4 You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from grace. 5 But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the righteousness for which we hope. 6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love. 7 You were running a good race. Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth? 8 That kind of persuasion does not come from the one who calls you. 9 “A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough.” 10 I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is throwing you into confusion will pay the penalty, whoever he may be. 11 Brothers, if I am still preaching circumcision, why am I still being persecuted? In that case the offense of the cross has been abolished. 12 As for those agitators, I wish they would go the whole way and emasculate themselves!

Conclusion:
The new community is not identified through its ethnic background but by the Spirit of Christ which is available to all people regardless of their race, religious background, gender or age. The new community was to be known for its faith expressing itself through love. The circumcision group couldn’t handle letting go of the old way. These people were walking out into the cold snowy winter with their summer clothes on. They just couldn’t imagine that a new day had dawned.

2 Applications
1. What is the new badge of the community of God (the church)?
a. Faith expressed through acts of love.
Now, lets fast forward 2,000 years. Here we are. Followers of Jesus the Jew. Followers of Jesus the Messiah.
What are these acts of love? I spent a lot of time wondering what this “faith expressing itself through love” looks like and then it suddenly hit me. If the passage, if the book of Galatians is about breaking down the racial hostilities between Jews and Gentiles then surely the “faith expressing itself through love” refers to Jews being able to eat with Gentiles! The circumcised and non-circumcised siting togeher being united in Christ. Maybe you are here and you don’t have any problems with different races, i’ll grant you that. So, I won’t dwell on the race card but what about the taboo card. As a Christian, identified by grace through faith in Christ, are you able to eat with people who are different then you? Are you able to with those who have tatoos, speak a different language, have a different value system, have a different skin tone, are on a different poltical spectrum then you? Has your salvation in Christ freed you to be able to eat with those who are not like you? What would happen to this church, what would happen to this community, what would happen to this country, what would happen to this world if Christians started having table fellowship with those who were different then them? What would happen if Catholics and Protestants started talking about the differences? What would happen if Prysbeterians, Episcoplians, Methodists, Charasimatics, Dispensationalits, started to eat with one another? What would happen if Christians, like their leader Jesus, were known as friends of sinners? Please do not mistake what I am saying. I am not saying put yourself in a position of harm. I am not saying that we should actively seek those who are harmful to us and try to spend time with them. Don’t miss what I’m saying. Don’t miss what the Scriptures are saying. Don’t miss what Paul is saying. The community of God is no longer defined by its ability to segregate from the community at large but by its ability to minister to all people where they’re at. To minister to people in a way that makes sense to them.

2. The problem with ethnic Israel was that they had a hard time adjusting to the new day. They were wearing shorts and flip flops in the middle of the winter, hoping that it was still Summer. They were reverting back to their old ways. In what ways are tempted to do the same thing?

Maybe there are people who are luring you back into some old ways, some youthful ways that you’ve out grown. Maybe you can remember it is for freedom that Christ set me free.

Does a school define and set the life path of its students?  Haven’t some of the best scholars been the ones that weren’t afraid to modify and negate what their teachers taught them? (Jesus of Nazareth, Karl Barth)  Could a new possibility emerge out of the straight and narrow?  Is ones theology formed primarily through books and teachers or a multiple array of factors?

As a recent Dallas Seminary graduate, I’ve wondered if my application would be looked at by all churches?  Dallas Seminary has a reputation, among many, for being an ultra-conservative, dispensational, pre-tribulation rapture, women fearing, fire and brimstone breading ground.   During my job search, I have often asked myself, “Will this church even consider someone with a Dallas Seminary background?”  I have received many of the following responses to my resume;

“We have reviewed your resume but feel it does not fall within our hiring parameters.”

Don’t get me wrong, I understand that many will reject my resume for good reason but I find it fascinating that I’m not even considered for positions where my resume exceedingly meets the qualifications.  I have the experience, but for some reason, I don’t meet their hiring parameters?  While many churches are eagerly seeking and hoping for a Dallas Seminary grad, others are less than excited about Dallas Seminary students.  I’ve heard one Senior Pastor say “When I see Dallas Seminary on a resume, it’s a RED flag.”  This puts me, a Dallas Seminary graduate, in an awkward position.  I once tried to contrast the prejudice against female pastors with the prejudice against Dallas seminary grads with a  female pastor of a prominent church in Texas.  Her response was that women didn’t have the ability to choose gender but Dallas Seminary graduates had a choice in the school they chose.  She was right……but is there more to the story?

Is Dallas Seminary Narrow?

There are a couple different ways of dealing with this situation.  I could, as some have done, explain how Dallas Seminary is no longer your your fathers seminary.  I could talk about some of the different theological arguments that are floating around and how views have evolved over the years to become more ecumenically friendly.  I could talk about how revised dispensationalism is very different from classical dispensationalism.  I could even post some of the required and recommended reading lists for classes that I took which include books by Rob Bell, Brian Mclaren, N.T. Wright and others who would be considered on the other end of the Dallas Seminary spectrum.  I could also talk about how the majority of my professors were more interested in my ability to argue a point than they were my actual point.  One of my fondest memories from Dallas Seminary was when my Greek professor would say, “I don’t care if you agree with me but I want to see what evidence and method you use to defend your points.”  Another student once said to me, “There are no answers, just good or bad arguments.”  The bottom line is that Dallas Seminary is an institution which is set in its beliefs but also open to how those beliefs are communicated.  Different definitions are on the rise which emphasize the old but communicate in the new.  The professors are more than open to feedback and have often times researched further when legitimately challenged.  Many professors go out of their way to have different Christian and non-Christian traditions challenge their work through conferences.  (ETS, SBL).  One of my favorite activities during my time at Dallas Seminary was attending debates between professors who respected one another and yet held different theological convictions.   Instead of going into detail about those areas, I would like to raise another point which was mentioned in my opening paragraph…..

Again I Ask:

Is a persons theology formed primarily through books and teachers or a multiple array of factors?

Dallas Seminary is one chapter or maybe a couple chapters in the novel of my life.  Since when did a school become the end-all of a persons education?  Where does the role of family of origin, important experiences, music, and the Holy Spirit fit into a persons theological makeup?  Granted, there are many in the “Christian” subculture who have subscribed to one group as the director of their faith but not everyone has to jump on one bandwagon.  Not everyone feels compelled to throw pep rallies for their school of choice.  Some of my favorite theologians have gone to multiple different schools for their theological training.  Not only have some of my favorite theologians come from a variety of different schools but some of my favorite people have come from a unique mixture of people, schools and experiences.

Have you ever seen the “Evangelist Idol Complex”?  This happens when one person, we’ll call them “the evangelist”, leads another person to faith, and the new convert forever exalts that persons teachings .  The error in this complex is that the new convert fails to recognize that “the evangelist” while playing a significant role in the conversion is not responsible or even a major part of the conversion.  The new convert fails to recognize that Jesus has been trying reach out to them way before “the evangelist” ever showed up.  At some point or another, the new convert becomes an old convert and must deal with this issue.  The new convert must learn that God has been trying to “woo” them through all sorts of experiences, people and avenues before and after the initial decision to come to faith.  I believe that God has shaped me through MANY different avenues.

What Shaped Me?

I was raised in a small town named Turlock in the heart of Central Valley California.  This region has a personality of its own which is known for its rich agriculture and of course…. cows.  My parents emigrated from Iran in 1981 and I was born in November of that year.  My parents raised me Roman Catholic although we did not attend church regularly.  I loved watching the Ninja Turtles and Parker Lewis Can’t Lose.  I went to Crowell School elementary where I had some wonderful teachers who impacted me with required readings such as Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.  I was deeply impacted by my “Introduction to World Literature” class during my senior year of high school.  It was in that class where Mr. Avey prodded his students to look deeper and think critically.  I was the chaplain for Theta Chi fraternity for 3 years and it was there that I learned a lot about different world-views.  Theta Chi was filled with members from all different types of religions and I still look back at that time as one of the most formative times of my theological life.  I spent a few too many dollars and hours at West Village Starbucks in Dallas, where I enjoyed intense theological conversations with Atheists, Buddhists, Muslims, non-religious skeptics and many Christians.

The Point

Any person or organization that judges my theological framework strictly based off of my seminary experience is selling the story of my life short.  They are selling how God works short and are impairing what could be.   I believe that there is more to a person then their schooling and that every person, regardless of their theological background, should be given an equal opportunity at a job.  There are a few bad apples on every tree but that doesn’t mean the tree is all that bad and that the rest of the apples should be discounted.  Perhaps you can be a catalyst in changing the perception by allowing an interview or entertaining a different worldview? I am glad that I was able study at Dallas Seminary and more importantly I am thankful to have had the professors that I did.  But I also remember that a school doesn’t make a person.  The school exists for the scholar and NOT the other way around.

Bible?  Who Said Anything About the Bible?

I love how leaders in the Bible responded those who preached about God from different backgrounds.

Numbers 11:28-29  Joshua son of Nun, who had been Moses’ aide since youth, spoke up and said, “Moses, my lord, stop them!” But Moses replied, “Are you jealous for my sake? I wish that all the LORD’s people were prophets and that the LORD would put his Spirit on them!”

John 9:38-40 “Teacher,” said John, “we saw a man driving out demons in your name and we told him to stop, because he was not one of us.”  “Do not stop him,” Jesus said. “No one who does a miracle in my name can in the next moment say anything bad about me, for whoever is not against us is for us.

Acts 5:34-39 But a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, who was honored by all the people, stood up in the Sanhedrin and ordered that the men be put outside for a little while. ^ Then he addressed them: “Men of Israel, consider carefully what you intend to do to these men. ^Some time ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men rallied to him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing. ^After him, Judas the Galilean appeared in the days of the census and led a band of people in revolt. He too was killed, and all his followers were scattered. ^ Therefore, in the present case I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. ^But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God.”

Philippians 1:15-18 It is true that some preach Christ out of envy and rivalry, but others out of goodwill. The latter do so in love, knowing that I am put here for the defense of the gospel. The former preach Christ out of selfish ambition, not sincerely, supposing that they can stir up trouble for me while I am in chains. But what does it matter? The important thing is that in every way, whether from false motives or true, Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.

Thoughts?