Galatians 4: 7 Wherefore thou art no more a servant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ. 8 Howbeit then, when ye knew not God, ye did service unto them which by nature are no gods. 9 But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? 10 Ye observe days, and months, and times, and years. 11 I am afraid of you, lest I have bestowed upon you labor in vain.
It’s common to see someone at the end of an exit with a sign asking for help. There are a lot of scammers out there. Many have been heard bragging about how much money they made while pretending to need help. Then others really do need help and it’s hard for us to know the difference. I’ve seen lots of homeless people in the Tri-Cities areas under the bridges. They didn’t used to be homeless but things happened. In some instances the family unit fell apart. Many have served our country. In the past most had better times and now are reduced to being a beggar. If not for God’s grace and our daily decision to keep serving him we’d be there. In a few months’ time we could be on the street. Is anything more frightening than that?
Yes! Look at verse 8 again. You can know the Lord, serve him, and find yourself in trouble. Don’t ever think that you can control sin in your life; sin controls all who harbor it. You can find yourself back to being a beggar. Without God, friends can be a dime a dozen. We have true friends in the Lord. Would you like to go back to what you were before the Lord? You might say “well, I wasn’t all that bad.” You were bad enough to need saving, bad enough for Jesus to die. No, we are not perfect but that’s not an excuse with God. We have a perfect Savior. We’re in the flesh so we’re not perfect BUT we’re saved and trusting the Lord Jesus Christ. Hang in there. If you stumble, don’t lay there. Get up. God leaves no one but many decide to leave him. If you find yourself tying in with any of the world’s wickedness, be careful. You can be weak and then deceived about what to do. Run to Jesus!
The devil cuts slack on no one. This decade is no different than others. The same sins done in the public now were done then under cover. At best, a sinner’s life is one of begging and slavery. So what if you gain the whole world? If you lose your soul, what have you gained? What good is it? Look at the life of Billy Graham. He was saved as a young man and stuck with the Lord through all these years. What a life! Use the mind of Christ that the Lord gave you. You can see what the devil is doing in the actions and lifestyles of others. Do not dress like the worldly in-crowd. Don’t talk and curse like others. Some still act like the sinner they were without Jesus. Paul was warning them against that. He said in verse 9 but now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye desire again to be in bondage? What you have in Christ is the best you’ve ever had. The devil will tell you to go back and do what you want. After all, you can go back to the Lord anytime you want to….isn’t that what he says? That might happen but only by the grace of God. You can tell the Lord you’re going to stop church and reading your Bible and praying to see how it used to be. God is going to allow you to do what you want, but don’t go out on that limb. If you presume on God, you’ll be in trouble. That’s the most foolish choice ever to turn your back on God. Don’t think you’ll tread on coals and not be burned.
Paul said we’re now sons and daughters. Isn’t that a whole lot better than what the devil tempts us with? Our pre-saved condition is worse than a beggar. We fail. Jesus never does. We all deal with failure of our own but Jesus won’t. Why go back to bondage of failure? You were not free in sin. The devil will always fail.
To be saved, a person must admit their sin. If a person dies lost, that person will end up in hell. We need Jesus. We can’t take a break and slip a little. It doesn’t work like that. Look back at verse 9 again. You are known of God. You met him when you opened yourself to a Savior who did for you what you could not do for yourself. We’re saved, born again, into a family through our Savior. He’s God’s Son, Jesus Christ. This is the mercy and grace of God. How can we turn again to the weak and beggarly elements?
When we look at the world, there are plenty of idols out there to follow. Look at how many have committed suicide. Many are in institutions. We need the gospel. What you end up without Jesus is nothing. A house can burn to the ground. Money can be gone in an instant. The devil will cause you to spend it all down. The prodigal son lost it all. He realized whose fault it was. All he had to do was serve his father as his father’s child. Nothing matters more than sticking with God. Live a forward going life, not one going backward.
We don’t need a full house to enjoy God. I’m thankful to be here. If there were only two or three here it would still be a blessing. Leaving the Lord is the worst thing anyone could do. When we go out the doors it is our choice to keep the faith or never come back. Can you be too old to fall away from God? I’ve seen people serve the Lord most of their lives and turn away. We all want to make it to heaven. Jesus is banking on us to trust him and follow through. Walk worthy of the honor of being made his child.
I’ve had enough of the devil telling me what to do. The best way to get him off our backs is to run to Jesus!
Adwolfe Freewill Baptist Church 