Free to Know God [Part 1]

Pastor, author and Bible teacher Alan Wright. Submission is actually an avenue to freedom, not the opponent of freedom despite what the spear they is always telling us freedom is a life of no restraint. Alan will welcome to another message of use that will help you see your life in a whole new life. I'm excited for you to hear the teaching today. In the series called unbleached is presented at renewal the church in North Carolina. If you're not able to stay with us throughout the entire program today to make sure you know how to get our special resource right now. You can find out more about it than receive a copy of your very own for your donation this month to Alan Wright ministry. So as you listen to today's message go deeper as we send you today's special offer@pastor.org find out more about it and make your request or call 877-544-4860 that's 877-544-4860. Again, our website pastor Alan.org. More on this later in the program but now let's get started with today's teaching here is Alan Wright you can.

Not just know about Don you can know God. In fact he wants you to know him and he wants to know you and he is the one who's made it possible to talk about freedom in a series that we've called unleased because after all, it's really only the well-trained submissive dog that can go unleased submission is actually an avenue to freedom, not the opponent of freedom despite what the spear the age is always telling us that freedom is a life of no restraint life. Don't let them. I tell you what to date on this. Do your own thing and that's what freedom is always been seen as that's not really what freedom is and last week we saw that when you become a Christian that you receive the Holy Spirit who is the spirit of adoption. Paul said in Romans whereby you are able to know that God is your father and you have become an heir and size of the real picture.

Freedom is like going from a slave, spiritually speaking to becoming a son or daughter of God and heir of God along with Christ, so you're now in this family and that's what real freedom is what today in Galatians chapter 4 will get to see the same image. But then Paul carries it even further as he talks about what real freedom looks like is knowing God, and we pick up reading a Galatians chapter 4 in the midst of this sort of Christian Magna Carta and this is a proclamation of Christian freedom and Paul is adamant about the things he's teaching in Galatians, he is furious at those false teachers who have infiltrated the Galatian church and tried to lure people back into legalism and he is he is more direct in this is letter than any other letter about that power and importance of the purity of the gospel cannot be mixed with any law, and we pick up at chapter 4 verse one. I mean that the air as long as he is a child is no different from a slave, though he is the owner of everything so you can have a child living in a home and can be a wealthy home and a child. One is an inherent all of this, but there's still time with the child.

Is this little in the paradigm to tell the child everything to do you know I mean you you have to eat your green beans how many green means do I have to eat six what your your child and heir of the great fortune, but right now you're just being treated no different than what a common slave could Jan be told everything to do with a goal is your gonna grow up out of that, but he is under verse 200 guardians and managers often on people would have a tutor, they would basically oversee the upbringing of a child, a guardian or manager until the date set by his father. You gonna come into a time in the same way. So Paul is a saying I give you thing on the people of God.

Initially they were given the law as a guide to them or they could keep the law, and so the just service like a tutor but wasn't really. They were never relating that the assignment of something much richer than God's eyes had a mind in the same way verse three we when we were children, we were enslaved were enslaved to the elementary principles of the world. Scholars differ on what is meant by elementary principles. I think that it is not just saying the elementary and legalistic things that you might believe that are just religious notions, although that's included and I think is saying that spirit behind all of that is probably talking to powers and principalities of the unseen world that have a hell is their home and wickedness and their deceit. Verse four but when the fullness of time and come, God sent forth his son, born of woman. So is God's son but is human born under the law say comes in in the age of the law, to redeem those who were under the law so that we might not just say not just keep living like under the tutelage of the law but receive adoption as sons and we settle.

If you're here with us last week that this the ESV translation leaves his word sons even though it's gender specific because it's referring to an actual image from the Roman culture where in a childless couple might decide to adopt a male slave and make him the air so inheritance passed down and that patriarchal society through the mail and that's why so it's not is not gender exclusive edges.

They were all like that one through whom the inheritance comes verse six and because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his son into our hearts cry, Abba, father so you are no longer a slave but a son, and if assigned in an heir through God. And when the divorce formally when you did not know God, you were enslaved to those it, by nature are not gods. This is for the reason I think the elementary principles of verse three is talking about really ultimately spiritual powers and principalities, when you didn't know God. All you had was a form of religion is a is that you really can slave verse nine but now you have come to know God rather be known by God. How can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world slaves you want to be much more you can hear is his anger rising here you observe days and months and seasons and years with Tommy talking about festivals and in Sabbath days and you but you can only worship God you know properly if you do it in this way at this time and displays and you gotta keep all the festivals and you got in verse 11. Just how human this actually sounds Republican. Here the great frustration of his heart.

He says I'm afraid I may have labored over you. Mrs. strong words that are conveying to us just how important this is for Paul because these Judaizers false teachers that come into the Galatian church and they were essentially saying to them, yes. You need Jesus, but you need Jesus.

Plus you need some other things you need Jesus. Plus, you need to keep the Jewish ritual of the law of having your baby boy circumcised need to keep the festivals in the Sabbath properly. If you do these things and at times deny yourself mood and practice some rigorous aesthetic lifestyles all the you do this stop then you will be really spiritual and polished furious about this. If I can you read Galatian Jakarta goat is Paul so mad and so adamant about this. It's not like these people are all living in rampant, rebellious, licentious lives always the terrible fleshly stands there, just very religious and is really mad is really mad at the Judaizers and is heartbroken that the people have introduced these little pieces of law back into the gospel.

Why because if you have a gospel that is 99% grace but 1% law that 1% of law can produce an infinite amount of fear. If you are in a relationship with God. 99% because his grace and his forgiveness in the shed blood of Jesus and his righteousness, but 1% because of your righteousness, your own merit or your own work. They want you for ever be wondering if you've done enough. Even in your 1%.

So what Paul is saying is the gospel loses its power and becomes toxic. If you take it you say Jesus plus you inject some of the little things.

So when he says that you've moved from was slavery to the elemental print elementary principles of the world. These religious notions about rituals, seasons, times, religious practices that you need to keep you move down the hat and you moved out of slavery into the freedom of the gospel where you become a child of God. Could you go back to the way you were when you didn't know God. Now you know God always has. Better yet, God knows you.

So the real measure of freedom.

The mark of freedom and the avenue of that freedom is knowing and being known by vets will have more teaching moment from today's important series I will restore the fortunes of Jacob's times have compassion on his dwellings. The city will be built on her powers. In its proper place as timeless words from general authority for the heart of God loves to us the way. Time cities would often be read out on top of the ruins of the former city city withstand higher with social walls and a greater perspective pastor out on right out of the ruins document. Build your life gloriously out of yesterday's disappointments to get to Alan Wright Ministries to listen to Pastor Alan's messages in an attractive city album through digital download as our way of saying thanks for your partnership. Call us at 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor and dialect.

Today's teaching now continues here once again is want to talk to about the difference between knowing about God and knowing God. Some of you may not be aware that Michael Jordan grace as well clear of all time.

He and I were classmates at University of Carolina right now. Everybody that we were there together same years in the walking the same grounds and hallways.

We were we were classmates, Michael, Michael and I and some time ago a friend gave me some tickets. It was unbelievable.

Unbelievable partners and spends on the literally on the floor to watch a Hornets basketball game. The one shown by Michael Jordan and you sit on the right on the bench were sometimes Michael said he owns them as an and then there's all this free food, you go get this free food is a factor in this place.

You want bowel places got locked for Michael Jordan and sometimes a city goes by going to be something we go this game if Michael and I will classmates were there together.

You just gotta catch them all times saying okay this is true in my whole four years.

They are Michael never did get to know me. That is true, it is never got to know me but said to be differences in therebetween so you know about someone I was thinking how how precious how much I would've loved to have known this man, like so many would have and when most of my men ever live and in and out, yet I never I never got to know Billy Graham how I would love to. I would love to hear about Melissa. Some I like to know was so odd is that I felt like I knew him because I studied him and and I I also I knew some people. People that did know. In fact, I met Franklin Graham several times a minute and Grandma's daughter several times but I never I never knew Billy Graham. I was interesting, even more so is that any ends.

Uncle Stanley you hear me mention Stanley is in heaven now, but he was he was the grams pastor four years at Montreat Christian church just up the road here and so he and Joelle and they knew the grams well.

Many times I see Stanley and Joelle and they had been just recently visiting with the grams. I kept thinking maybe sometime I'll go visit with them, but I'm never dead so I never got to meet him. Interesting way benefits have shared with us some of the correspondence and things that they gotten from the grams go there was some way.

The family keep it. So I got some letters that Billy Graham wrote to Stanley early really great stuff, and my guess a big treasure is that we have a Bible that Billy Graham signed to Ann's grandmother when San Leandro missionaries in Brazil. Billy Graham came and did a crusader while he was there he sent back a Bible for them to take to mama Bennett. As we called her and so we've got the Bible, the Billy Graham we got a lot of stuff, you know connected to Billy Graham but I never knew Billy Graham and what is really interesting about this is that my freshman year in college I I took a course called history of Christianity in America and became the professor to my favorite professor Grant Wacker, who is very smart man and who had focused most of his studies on evangelicalism in America and the doctor Wacker was trained as Stanford and Harvard. Very smart guy and our first week in history of Christianity America. We had the privilege of being in Dr. Wacker's recitation section that metal Friday and smoke about 20 of us and he was reading through the roll book and going around and calling out his name were, introducing ourselves and got to a young man student named Sandy Ford and Dr. Wacker said, oh, that's interesting.

He said I see here that your middle name is Layton and he said that so interesting is because Billy Graham's brother-in-law is named Layton for and Sandy said yes my dad is gotta catch this moment on our syllabus of study for this semester is a section on Billy Graham here is Dr. Wacker, Stanford, Harvard educated who later in his life is going to write a definitive biography: America's pastor of Billy Graham and so all of a sudden Sandy Ford who is the son of Layton for brother-in-law to Billy Graham is sitting in this small classroom it Carolina and it gets quiet and Dr. Wacker says so.

Billy Graham is your uncle as it is, like Stanford, Harvard over here… Anything on freshman Sandy freshmen undergraduates will Billy Graham. We can talk to Dr. Wacker about everything and Obama blah blah blah blah going to say Sandy, what is he like to eat at Thanksgiving what you like being around him. He knew you see even the smallest child knows someone trumps the smartest and brightest and most diligent person who just knows about. And Paul is saying to the Galatians the heart of the gospel and everything that makes it good news is it what God is done for you in Jesus Christ.

If he has made it possible for you know him, not just know about him, so why would you return to a life of just knowing about him trying to achieve some religious status through your legalism and he's pleading with them. Once you knew him no him again, the battle spiritually that was going on in the Galatian church is one that we face still they were lured by the Judaizers towards a substitute for knowing God ceremonial law. The implication was vivid there when you turn your Christianity into a law-based allegiance to principles and ceremonies, rather than a relationship with God through Jesus. You're not just abandoning the beauty and power of God's life, but you are returning an effect to the same demons that controlled you before you ever knew Jesus. That's a start thing to say but that's what he saying do not succumb to the allure of the Judaizers want you to have Jesus plus something it will poison your faith and turn it against you. There's one person along than the accuser can stand and say Alan doesn't deserve to be blessed. He hasn't fulfilled his 1%. It wasn't enough until it's 100% grace and then in 100% grace the enemy's tactics fall impotently to the ground.

God in Jesus Christ. Paul said elsewhere in current disbarment. Those principalities by canceling the written code and nailing it to the cross, he said, by fulfilling the law on our behalf and ushering in a new covenant of grace. He took the bullets out of the enemy's gun, and when you go back to law you arm the enemy again see hell is satisfied just as much with our religiosity that substitute for knowing God is hell would be satisfied with our rebellion in the Galatian church wasn't there rebellion.

It was this religiosity relationships get sabotaged when instead of it being about knowing and being known. It becomes about performing and expecting a return if you have a relationship that is downgraded to where it's about. I'll do this and therefore you do this and I expect if I do this and you'll do this, and that's what the relations about then, is not a real relationship. It's an arrangement and and that can happen with Christians in God and today's teaching free to know God it's in our series unleashed Alice back with us in the studio here in just a moment sharing a parting good news thought for the day. Stay with us. I will restore the fortunes of Jacob's times and have compassion on his dwellings. The city will be rebuilt on her powers.

In its proper place as timeless words from Jeremiah 30 for the heart of God loves to restore way time cities would often be read out on top of the ruins of the former city withstand higher with social walls and a greater perspective pastor right out of the Billings document. Build your life gloriously, yesterday's disappointments to get to Alan Wright Ministries to listen to Pastor Alan's messages, and attractive see them through digital download as our way of saying thanks for your partnership.

Call us at 877-544-4860 877-544-4861 come to our website pastor. Our in.work blessing your life. Grace filled vision for your rights, free grace and encouragement for every blessing.

It's free.

Just a click away.

Pastor I got away with Alan Wright in our parting good news thought for the day on this teaching free, to know God from our series unleashed by the way unleashed is to remind folks is a is the is a picture of five well-trained dog who could be off the leash and there's true freedom. But you know that dogs well behaved, only the help train all can go unleashed was out there for a walk the other day and unleashed all cameras by race and at me and barking at me in the master came over apologize and then the I wanted to say that dog needs to be leased when we are really submitted to God, then there's immeasurable freedom is a God of freedom, and today what were standing know is absolute extraordinary. Where, not just privilege to build to know about God. We can know God wants to be known and God wants to know us and then is a glorious not only can you listen again online but also get a daily email devotional that matches today's teaching delivered right to your email inbox free. Find out more about these and other resources@pastorout.org that's pastor out.org. Today's good news message is a listener supported production Alan Wright Ministries