Please turn together in your Bibles to Galatians 4:1.

The theme of Paul’s letter is found where?  in 5:1.  Let’s read verse 1 together.  “For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.”

Christ has set us free.  Stand firm and live free.  Set Free.  Live Free.  Let’s repeat that together.  “Set free.  Live free.”  Living free is what it means to live the life that God has created us to live.  It’s a life that we long for but way too often we fall short of.

Beginning at 4:1 - Paul is going to build on what we’ve been looking at over the past few Sundays.  Paul is going to take us farther - challenging us - encouraging us - to live totally trusting God, only, with our lives.  Which is the only way to live the fullness of life that God has created us to live.

At the core of what Paul is writing about here in 4:1-11 is maturity - or the lack of.  A few examples of maturity...

(picture) - BOOOM!!!!

(picture) - maturity doesn’t necessarily come with age.

(picture) - not sure most parents would want their children hanging around these guys. 

Verse 1-7 focus on Our Maturity.  Let’s repeat that together, “Our maturity.”  Where God has brought to in our relationship with Him.

Verse 1:  I mean that the heir, as long as he is a child, is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything, but he is under guardians and managers until the date set by his father.  In the same way we also, when we were children, were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world.  But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. 

Let’s pause there and unpack what Paul is writing here.

Each March the Romans had a festival the called The Liberalia.  They sang songs.  They hung masks on trees.  They had parades.  It was a really big deal.  During this festival they celebrated the maturing of young boys into men.   

During the festival young boys - usually age 14 - sometimes up to age 18 - young boys would remove the bulla praetexta - which was a charm made out of gold or leather - a charm that they’d worn during childhood to ward off evil spirits.  Mother’s would keep the bulla praetexta - put hair in it - hair from the first time the boy shaved - dedicate it to their gods - keep it hoping to display it when her son - now a man - achieved a public triumph.

The boys then took off the toga praetexta which they’d worn as children.  The toga praetexta was an ordinary white toga with a purple stripe on its border.  Then they put on the plain white toga virilis - which is probably more like what most of us have seen in movies.  The toga virilis was a manly man’s toga.  It identified the now adult man as having come to maturity - that he was now a citizen of Rome with the right to vote.

In the Roman world wealthy fathers were not involved in the day-to-day raising of their children.  There were highly educated slaves that raised the children. 

Last Sunday we saw Paul refer to one of these slaves as a “guardian.”  The guardian didn’t teach so much as the guardian watched over the behavior of that child.  In a sense, there really wasn’t much of a difference between being the son of a slave - and being the heir of the household.

When the guardian said jump the child jumped and asked how high on the way up.  It was like having a drill sergeant attached to your hip 24/7/365 - constantly keeping you on the straight and narrow. 

Here in chapter four Paul pushes that image farther by using two different Greek words - probably better translated as tutors and stewards - that have the ideas of slaves educating and providing for the physical needs of the child.

Putting all that together - the whole idea behind guardianship has to do with the process of maturing this child - guiding - educating - providing.  Maturing a child until the father said that the young child was ready for the Festival of Liberalia - until father presented the young child as mature - ready to be considered an adult.  

Going on - in verse 3 Paul uses special word for child that really means infant - a baby who was unskilled - untaught - not even able to speak.  Think immature.  Paul writes that we were like that - babies - immature - enslaved to the elementary principles of the world.

The elementary principles of the world are how the world thinks and acts and feels apart from God - the philosophies and religion and intellect of man apart from God.  When we were under the authority and teaching of the world - we were like slaves to that authority and teaching - immature as little babies.  We thought and acted and felt according to how the world thinks and acts and feels. 

In verse 4 - Paul writes, “But” - huge contrast with all that immaturity and slavery - “But when the fullness of time had come, God sent Jesus.”

Ever pack for a vacation - cram everything in the car - and 3 hours into the drive realize you forgot something?  Not that the Muncherian family has ever done that. 

“Fullness” in Greek is a word that has the idea of a ship being prepared to set sail - provisioned and crewed.  When everything is aboard - when everything is ready - then it sails.

Where Jesus was born - when Jesus was born - how Jesus was born - those are not coincidences.  Right?

When Alexander swept out of Greece - conquering the middle east and beyond - he gave the world a common language for the first time in history since Babel.  The vast extent of Alexander’s empire made commercial and cultural relations possible that linked together people in a way that had never happened in history.

The Romans came in and absconded with all that - adding to what the Greek’s had done - the Romans added their road system.  “All roads lead to... Rome.”  Their subjugation of Europe - North Africa - the Middle East - the Near East - parts of central Asia - provided a transportation infrastructure never before seen in human history. 

The Greeks and the Romans were the original Global Village.  A time of common language - culture - transportation - commerce - and the ability to spread the Gospel that hasn’t been seen since - until today.  Imagine if they’d had the internet - Facebook - texting the Gospel.

Its no coincidence that Jesus enters Jerusalem on Palm Sunday - timing that was fixed before the creation of the world - to arrive at Passover - to present Himself as the sacrificial Lamb that takes away the sins of mankind.

Jesus arrives on the scene when God’s people were searching - desperate - enslaved - without hope - living in fear - spiritually hungry.  Their religious leaders had failed them.  Their politicians were abusing them.  The gods of the cultures around them had come up empty.  Immorality was common.  Jesus entering in triumph before millions looking for a king - to present Himself as the Savior. 

Paul writes - “when the fullness of time had come” - at the critical turning point of history - at the point when God’s people had reached the point of readiness - been matured - to receive their Messiah - “God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the law.”  God sends His own Son - God with skin on - into the human experience - to do what we could not do for ourselves.

First - Jesus came to redeem us.  Slaves don’t become free unless someone frees them.  Being set free from slavery requires payment - a payment that redeems - that buys the freedom of the slave.  Jesus made that payment on the cross.  Paid for our freedom by dying in our place.  Giving His own life as payment for our lives.

Second - Jesus came that we might receive adoption as sons - sons of God.

Many many years ago when I worked at Christian camp down by Woodlake - working with elementary school age children - I worked with a guy named Bill.  Bill was the craft instructor and I was - believe or not - the canoeing instructor.  Bill had a nickname.  We used to call Bill “orph” because Bill was an orphan.

The whole staff used to call Bill - “orph.”  By the second day of camp the children used to start asking, “Why do you call him orph?”  A question we knew was coming.  This was planned.  When the kids would come up and ask us - we’d say something like, “Well, why don’t you go and ask ‘orph’.”

So these eager young impressionable children would go over to the craft area and ask Bill - who knew this was coming - “Why do they call you ‘orph’?”  Bill would break down in tears.  “They’re so cruel.  They hurt me so much.  They make fun of me.  I was an orphan.”

The kids would come back and yell at us.  “You’re so mean!  I think you’re terrible!  How could you be so cruel!”  And we’d just laugh.  Which only made it worse.

It would take the rest of the week to convince them that Bill really didn’t mind.  Bill was part of a family of 5 children - all of whom had been adopted by really loving Christian parents.  In fact - to Bill - calling him “orph” was really a compliment.  He was a part of a great family - a great person - and a brother in Christ.  Adoption was a reminder of that - what God had done for him.

Maturity requires intentional intervention.  We can’t make ourselves to be God’s children any more than we can free ourselves from slavery to this world.

God redeems us from the elementary principles of this world - from what sin has done to us - binding us - enslaving us - holding us in immaturity - keeping us from all that God has for us.  God redeems us from the elementary principles of this world through the broken body and shed blood of Jesus.  God adopts us - going into the slave market of this world - buying us - redeeming us - to live free as His sons and daughters.

Are we together?  Look with me at what that means.

Verse 6:  And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba!  Father!”

Redemption is more that just a buying back from slavery.  Redemption is what we are redeemed for.  Adoption is not just a legal contract.  Adoption is who we are.

There is a story about a farmer who had some puppies for sale.  He made a sign advertising the puppies and nailed it to a post on the edge of his yard.  As he was nailing the sign to the post, he felt a tug on his overalls.  He looked down to see a little boy with a big grin and something in his hand.

The little boy said, “Mister, I want to buy one of your puppies.”

“Well,” said the farmer, “these puppies come from fine parents and cost a lot of money.”

The boy dropped his head for a moment, then looked back up at the farmer and said, “I’ve got thirty-nine cents.  Is that enough to take a look?”

“Sure,” said the farmer, and with that he whistled and called out, “Dolly.  Here Dolly.”  Out from the doghouse and down the ramp ran Dolly followed by four little balls of fur.

Then out from the doghouse peeked another little ball; this one noticeably smaller.  Down the ramp is slid and began hobbling in an unrewarded attempt to catch up with the others.  The pup was clearly the runt of the litter.

The little boy pressed his face to the fence and cried out, “I want that one,” pointing to the runt.

The farmer knelt down and said, “Son, you don’t want that puppy.  He will never be able to run and play with you the way you would like.”

With that the boy reached down and slowly pulled up one leg of his pants.  In doing so he revealed a steel brace running down both sides of his leg attaching itself to a specially made shoe.  Looking up at the farmer, he said, “You see, sir, I don’t run too well myself, and he’ll need someone who understands.”  (1)

Parents have a bottomless well of compassion for their children - an affinity - a unending sympathy.  God is compassionate towards us.  He knows our separation from Him.  He understands first hand - the struggles and emptiness that we feel - the separation from Him.  And God reaches to adopt us.

The Spirit reminds us that we’re God’s sons and daughters.  That we’re beloved of God - our Father.  We’re created to be sons of God - we’re set free as heirs of His promises - to stand on our feet and gaze at our Heavenly Father and cry out “Abba, Father.”  To receive from Him His love and compassion - His healing - His forgiveness.

The Spirit reminds us that we’re God’s sons and daughters.  That our identity is God given.  One of the great tasks of childhood and growing up is trying to find one’s personal identity - a sense of who we are - where we belong - the purpose and value of our lives.  As children growing up - maturing - our parents constantly helped us to explore and discover things - constantly shaping our identity.

When we become teenagers - what’s around us has a powerful influence.  And our task becomes to determine who we are in the middle of all that’s going on around us.  Even adults struggle with this - because we are constantly experiencing new situations which require adjustment and understanding.

Knowing who we are - where we belong - the purpose and value to our lives - is integral to our self-worth.

As Christians we’re identified with Christ - who is the means of our adoption into the household of God.  The word Christian - with its “i-a-n” ending literally means “little Christ”.  It was originally a derogatory term.  “Look a him.  Who does he think he is, a little Christ?”  But we are proud to identified with our Savior.  We’re Christians.

What identity does and orphan have?  In the world in which we live - if we don’t know God - what purpose and value is there to our lives?  But we have this great joy of knowing God - and being identified as His children.

The Spirit reminds us that we’re God’s sons and daughters.  Heirs - that we have an inheritance waiting for us in heaven - the riches of God are ours.

What’s coming isn’t just about being set free from aches and pains - but being set free to live life as God created life to be lived.  To live out God’s great purposes for us as His children.  Heaven isn’t about sitting on clouds and playing harps - waiting for bells to ring so angels can get their wings.  Getting to heaven is only the beginning of what God has in store for us.

When the Apostle John was given a revelation about what’s coming for God’s people - John saw and wrote about the dwelling place of God being with men.  God dwelling with His people.  God Himself amongst His people.  The idea there is intimacy - closeness - union - of a depth that we can only deeply crave now - an intimacy that goes on forever.  (Revelation 21:1-3)

God has promised His sons and daughters a future incomparable to what we see today - an unimaginable eternity with Him.

Grab the hugeness of Paul’s bottom line here in verse 7:  So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.

When a son went through the ceremony moving from childhood to adulthood - the son also moved from the position of being a slave to the position of being a son.  There was a formal adoption that took place. 

When God redeems and adopts us - brings us to maturity from the immaturity of the world we live in - we are His children - His sons and daughters.

Grab the hugeness of that for yourself.  If you are trusting in Jesus as your Savior - your Redeemer - you are God’s son - God’s daughter.  Say this to yourself.  “I am God’s son.” “I am God’s daughter.”  Share that with someone near you.  “You are God’s son.”  “You are God’s daughter.”

Verses 8-11 focus on Our Immaturity.  Let’s repeat that together,  “Our immaturity.” 

Verse 8:  Formerly, when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those that by nature are not gods.  But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world, whose slaves you want to be once more?  You observe days and months and seasons and years!  I am afraid I may have labored over you in vain.

Paul writes, “I’m afraid that I may have labored over you in vain.”  Ever feel that way?  When you’ve invested your life in someone else’s life?  Maybe in a discipling relationship?  Or you’ve been helping them through a really tough time?  Just when you think their getting it - growing and maturing through all that - they turn their back on everything they’ve been learning.  Paul’s way of saying, “How you’re living is breaking my heart.”

Paul asks, “How can you turn back?”  With all that it means to be one of God’s kids - how can you go back to how you were living before?

Observing days and months and seasons and years - is about living by the rituals and sacrifices of the Old Testament - throw back thinking that focuses on us trying to somehow be worthy of God having a relationship with us.  Its back to thinking like the world thinks and acts and feels.  Like life is all about us.

Paul writes - God matured you.  You came to know God - actually God already knew you and He let you in on the reality of His being there.   God redeemed you.  God adopted you.  Given your maturity as God’s son (or daughter) - and all that that means for you - how can you go back?

And yet we do.

Little stupid things happen to us during the day.  The reality of living in an imperfect world.  The other day I waited for 20 minutes for a freight train to move.  Little irritations of life that gnaw at us.  We think to ourselves:  “This is just wrong.”

Some things are much more serious.  Someone rejects our love - bails on a relationship - a marriage - wounds us deeply.  We wonder:  “Why me?”

Whether someone is old or young.  Somehow illness and dying and death never seem right.  We live to die.  “What’s the purpose in that?”

We come face to face with evil and wickedness - a world twisted by the maniacal deceptions of Satan.  Financial greed - corruption - it tears at us.  What’s immoral is considered normal.  We’re surrounded by the effects of abuse and drugs and porn and murder and gangs.  Its like living in a sewer.  We ask:  “Why do I have to put up with all this?”

We end up having conversations with ourselves in the car - often with words that we won’t repeat here.  We get depressed and stressed and frustrated.  Maybe we have words with someone - a few seconds of leveling someone - temporary relief followed by years of trying to repair the damage.

Maybe someplace along the way this thought has gone through your mind.  I know its gone through mine.  “God, I’m getting nailed here.  This is just wrong.  I’m trying to do all the things that I suppose to do and this is what I get?”

Someplace along the way we need to ask ourselves, “Why does this bother me so much?” 

We have this irrational belief that the conditions we live under must at all times be practically and absolutely favorable - safe - hassle-free - and quickly and easily enjoyable - instant needs gratification.  If not - then life is awful - horrible - hardly worth living.

Stuff bothers us because when we go through hard stuff in life we quickly turn back to thinking that life is about us.  That somehow life is about what we think life should be like - what we want and what we do - and then we wonder where God is in all that.

We turn back because we fear what may lie ahead.  What faith - what commitment to God - what that may mean.  We turn back to the familiar - to living by the approval of others - to what makes us comfortable while we do church - the security of doing and thinking in ways that deep down we know are killing us.  We say we want to follow God but when that following isn’t what we think it should be we start wanting our old life back.

How gracious is God that He doesn’t let us get away with that?  How loving is God that He reminds of His promises to us - to bless us - to shield us - to give meaning and purpose to our lives - to fulfill the deepest needs of our hearts.  God reminding us of His love poured out in Jesus?  Redemption and sonship.  What He promises us beyond the fence.    

God doesn’t simply redeem us from the past and give us a bright hope for tomorrow.  God also redeems us in the present from being enslaved to things like fear, insecurity, anger, self-reliance, bitterness, entitlement, and insignificance - from our feelings of futility and worthlessness.  In the hard stuff of life - as we choose to turn towards God - He convinces us over and over again that the power of His gospel is just as necessary and just as relevant after we become Christians as it is before.

What Paul is challenging the Galatians with - and each of us - is the opportunity to grow up - to choose to move beyond spiritual childhood and experience the joy and confidence of what it means to be one of God’s kids.  To mature because God makes that maturity possible.

_________________________
1. Charles Stanley - I Want That One - More Stories From The Heart

Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®  (ESV®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.  Used by permission.  All rights reserved.