コミュニティと弟子訓練

Faith in Christ: From Start to Finish (Galatians 3:1-9)

2011.10.09Rev. Eddie Byun

Faith in Christ is not only the beginning of our journey with God but also what sustains us through every season and completes us at the finish line, because the work of salvation belongs to Christ alone.

Faith in Christ begins our journey (vv. 1-2)

Paul is frustrated because the Galatian churches turned away from the true gospel, so he asks who has bewitched them. We are not saved by passing an impossible test of perfect obedience; Christ has completed that work for us, and we receive it by trusting him. The cross must be seen clearly, because it is there that we see we are sinners in need of saving. The Spirit came to these believers when they first trusted Christ, and his gifts and fruit were the mark of their salvation. Faith is like a baby carried by its parent, taken to places it could never reach alone.

Faith in Christ sustains our journey (vv. 3-5)

Having begun by the Spirit, we cannot finish by the flesh, because good works are the fruit of faith, not its foundation. We must trust Christ every day, not only at the start, and that trust carries us through suffering. Pain purifies our faith when we believe God's promises, but it poisons our faith when we believe the enemy's lies that God does not love us or control our lives. Faith is needed in every season: in summer to receive blessings as gifts, in fall to hold on to Jesus, in winter to be held by him, and in spring to hope in him. Hope placed in Christ purifies us because it sets our trust where it belongs.

Faith in Christ completes our journey (vv. 6-9)

Abraham was counted righteous because he believed God, so those who have faith are his true children, not those who rely on circumcision. God's promise that all nations would be blessed through Abraham shows that his heart has been missional from the start. Those who trust Christ go to the unreached peoples of the world, knowing his commandments are good and his gospel is the only hope for the nations. Faith also carries us to the end, because the one who endures will be saved. Perseverance is the sign of salvation, not the thing that earns it.

God is painting a masterpiece we must not interrupt

A pottery lesson in college showed that when the teacher took over a student's clumsy attempt, he could make the piece beautiful again. In the same way, we should not interrupt the masterpiece God is making in our lives. The moment we gave our lives to Christ, God began a good work, and he is faithful to finish it. Our part is not to take over but to live out of an overflow of faith that trusts him. He is the author and perfecter of our faith, and he will bring his work to completion.

Apply to Life

  • Let us trust in Christ alone, and not in our own works, for our salvation.
  • Let us walk by the Spirit every day and not try to perfect ourselves by the flesh.
  • Let us place our hope in Christ in every season of life, whether summer, fall, winter, or spring.
  • Let us persevere in faith to the end and take the gospel to the unreached peoples of the world.

This summary was made automatically from the sermon's captions and may differ from the sermon.

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