Until Christ Is Formed in You (Galatians 4:19)

Introduction

Well, it’s probably not over yet. But most of the frolicking of here, too, and yon that our congregation has been doing all summer long is nearly, maybe since school is starting, coming to an end. I see Hark Riders in the audience. Where have you been, Ross Harkrider? And we have a pretty full assembly today. But I know how things are. You know, once all the traveling and the trips are done, it’s what’s next. I mean, where are we what are we planning? We’ve got to plan ahead. What’s next on the agenda? Where are you going? What are the big plans that you have for the future? I want to think with you this morning about some bigger future plans as we talk this morning about what lies ahead.

Bigger things than even going to the most magical place on earth. Wherever that might be. What lies ahead? You know, I get to do something every time I teach and preach that is truly enlivening to me, enjoyable to me, and that is I get to focus people’s minds on the most important things that are. To sober you, if you will, to sober you, not that you’ve been drinking, but to cause you to see clearly this. This is what I’m really all about. This is why I was made. This is why I’m here. This is what I’m supposed to do with my life. This is where I’m going. We need to be thinking about what lies ahead.

Where’s all this headed? There is an inescapable conclusion to our lives that we need to keep ever before our minds. As Paul prays to the church at Ephesus, that you may know the hope of your calling. Not just the very grand calling that you have as a child of God, but the hope, the great hope of your calling, and the fact that there is power working in our behalf, the surpassing greatness of the power that works toward us who believe. And so as we think soberly this morning about the unavoidable, inescapable path that is before us, I want to take you to probably some of the most familiar statements of Jesus, at least uttered through Paul. In Philippians chapter 3, verses 13 and 14, when he says, Brethren, I do not regard myself as having laid hold of it yet.

But one thing I do, forgetting what lies behind. Okay? Whatever is in the past, there may be some things that need to be fixed back there, and Paul isn’t saying that’s not the case, but the past is there, it can’t be altered. Whatever history is, it is, forgetting what lies behind and reaching forward to what lies ahead. I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. That’s the New American Standard rendering of those verses. What are those verses talking about? I think it’s important to just see that these verses are talking about progression. I’m going somewhere, I’m headed in a certain direction. There are things that lie ahead. I am moving in the direction of something. I press toward the mark of the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.

And when we read these verses, I think the first thing that pops into our heads is the conclusion. The ultimate goal of heaven. And certainly that’s where it’s all going is toward heaven’s glory. But I think there’s something else in these two verses and in its surrounding context that really what Paul is talking about when he says, I press toward the mark, he’s not just talking about the ultimate destination. He’s talking about a goal. I press toward the mark of the prize, and that would more tend cause us to think about the goal, the mark of the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. And when you look at that contextually, he is talking about becoming more like Christ in his thinking. To know, he says in verse 8, Christ Jesus my Lord, to be found in him, verse 9, not having a righteousness of my own derived from the law, but a righteousness which comes on the basis of faith, that I may know him, verse 10, and the power of his resurrection, and the fellowship of his sufferings, being conformed to his death.

He says, I’ve not already obtained it in verse 12, nor have I already become perfect, but I press on, and that I may lay hold of that for which I was laid hold of by Christ Jesus. Has Christ laid hold of you? Have you submitted to his will and purposes for your life? And are you now pursuing his image, being conformed to his death? I want us to focus on that part of this, because I want to suggest to you that if you focus on Christ’s image, that heaven’s glory, the ultimate prize, will be the natural result of that pursuit. Well, that’s just a brief explanation of where I’m going in Galatians chapter 4 this morning. I mentioned that this sermon was coming from Galatians chapter 4, because this really contains the idea that I think is also found in Philippians chapter 3.

The idea of Christ being formed in us. And if we get that image right as we talked last week about how to construct the godly life, and the biggest and first and central piece of the puzzle was what? Christ.

If you want to be a part of that, come talk to me. About taking that lesson and expanding on some of those thoughts from last Sunday morning. So as we pursue Christ being formed in us, Christ in you, the hope of glory, Colossians 1 and verse 27, this is what the nature of the gospel is for all believers. And I want to read this text in Galatians chapter 4 and make some observations about it. Verse 16. Now I know we’re catching this right in the middle. But where do you start? Verse 1 of chapter 1 and read all six chapters. Not going to do that this morning. Don’t have time for that. Have I therefore become your enemy by telling you the truth? You’ve heard that one before, right?

They eagerly seek you not commendably, but they wish to shut you out in order that you may seek them. What a horrible thing. People who are so consumed with themselves that they will pursue that agenda, even if it means the people that they are taking advantage of are destroyed spiritually in the process. They eagerly seek you, but it’s more about them. And they really don’t care if you’re shut out. Those who are in Christ, if they do not pursue the right things, can be shut out, is an implication of that verse. But it is good always to be eagerly sought in a commendable manner. And not only when I am present with you, my children, with whom I am again in labor, until Christ is formed in you.

But I could wish to be present with you now and to change my tone. For I am perplexed about you.

This is everything that I should be pursuing with you as a teacher of the gospel. That Christ be formed in us, and as we saw in Philippians chapter 3, will eventuate in the ultimate prize. But I wanted to teach this text also because I never have before.

Whole counsel of God, to my knowledge, I’ve never really delved into anything other than verse 16. I mean, I’ve heard verse 16 all my life, and have I therefore become your enemy by telling you the truth? Because we’ve all had experiences like that, right? Where we’ve told people the truth because we love and care about them. Perhaps it’s a family member that we hold so very dear, and we’re trying to show them God’s way, and they get intensely unhappy with you because you dare to rock their boat and to suggest to them that they are not believing and embracing the truth. And so we felt the sting of this, and Paul is actually writing to those in Christ and getting this response. They’re mad at him because he’s telling them the saving truth that they’ve departed from as they are beginning to embrace another gospel, as we see in Galatians chapter 1.

1. Do Not Use Galatians 4:16 as a Badge

So we can sort of identify with this statement. And I want to say something first of all this morning as I talk about this text. This is admittedly a digression from where I’m ultimately going, but it is a point of digression born out of old experiences. We should not use Galatians 4 and verse 16 as some kind of badge whereby we can upset people because they are uncomfortable with the message that we’re teaching. Some people believe that it’s okay to just upset people. That this verse is somehow a justification for preaching and purveying some tenets of truth while lacking compassion, and sometimes even painting those in error who are being misrepresented. Oh, if you can’t embrace what I’m saying, well, have I therefore become your enemy because I’ve told you the truth?

Or, you know, we’re supposed to speak the truth in love, and that means that as long as I’m speaking the truth, I’m doing it lovingly. And that’s absolutely false. I have heard occasions when this verse was quoted when a brother was being misrepresented, and it was being suggested that he believed something that he didn’t believe. Well, if you can’t embrace this, hey, I become your enemy because I tell you the truth. Well, first of all, you need to make sure it’s the truth, but telling the truth is not the end of the proclamation of this message. There must also be a very real compassion for souls and an honesty about the people that we’re talking about. And so when I convey truth, I can’t hide behind Galatians 4 and verse 16.

Well, I just told them that baptism was necessary for salvation, and if they don’t believe that, they’re just going to go to hell. And that’s about the end of our discussion on that. And they never get to a serious consideration of the truth that they need because you’ve made them feel like worthless people. I should not demean people’s intelligence when I preach. There are people who are lost whose IQ far exceeds my own. I should not demean it. It’s not always an intelligence issue. In fact, it rarely is.

Name calling. Saying things that inflame a situation that does not move us toward the goal of getting them to embrace the truth that can save them. I should not exalt myself as superior, as elite or better than them. Because I’m not. I’m merely forgiven. Now, having said that, we have to be firm and unyielding in the proclamation of truth. And Paul is saying some very severe things. And I think some people come to Galatians, and when he says, Oh, foolish Galatians. Well, there you go. I guess we can just call people fools if they’re not embracing the truth. Oh, foolish Galatians, who has bewitched you? I’m amazed that you’ve so quickly deserted the gospel that I preached. He says in Galatians chapter 1. He does say some difficult things, but he also says some things that are quite endearing in tone.

As he says here in verse 18, it is good always to be eagerly sought in a commendable manner. And then in the verses prior, when he talks about his first visit with them, and that he came in bodily, a bodily condition that they did not despise or loathe. And he said, You would have plucked out your eyes for me. He talks about a relationship that he had with them back when there was endearing moments to all of that. And so here’s what I want to tell you about this. Paul has to be severe. First of all, this is written to a region of churches and not a singular church. He had to say some tough things to Corinth, perhaps not as tough in the book as the book of Galatians, but he had to say some tough things to Corinth, and yet he says, I am not restrained in my affections toward you.

He makes it very clear that he loves and cares about them over and over and over again. But here he’s writing to a whole region of churches, and furthermore, he is an apostle of Jesus Christ, and his authority means everything. As he disseminates this message. And so some of the mistakes that people make in regard to this is thinking that I get to do everything the way Paul did, the way he did it, without considering some of the circumstances, like his apostleship and his labors with these churches and the nature of the threats that are coming to them. We need to think about perhaps a little different picture. And make sure that we have a relationship that has been evidenced that I really care about these people that I’m preaching to.

2. Purveying Truth Often Pricks Consciences

Okay, that’s just a point of digression. Let’s get to some other things. Perveying truth often pricks consciences. Now that’s something that comes out of Galatians chapter 4 and verse 16. That sometimes people are provoked by the message. And this was serious. Because he says in Galatians chapter 5 and verse 4, you have been severed from Christ. That’s the nature of the condition of his audience who have embraced this mix of the Mosaic law and the gospel and were binding circumcision. He says, For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision means anything but faith working through love. He says, You were running well. Who hindered you? I mean, he had to talk about the fact that their path now was not in conformance, in conformity with Christ being formed in them, which was his goal.

Couple of things here. Number one, the ill motives of the deceivers. We saw that in verse 17. They eagerly seek you not commendably. Men do not always have noble motives.

3. Paul Is Perplexed, but the Goal Never Changes

That’s what love does. As we’re sent out as innocent doves, we are also reminded to be shrewd as serpents. We’re not gullible to believe absolutely everything. We test the spirits to see whether they are of God according to 1 John chapter 4. Because even Satan transforms himself into an angel of light. 2 Corinthians chapter 11 and verse 14. Be careful. There are people who are out to take advantage of you, Paul says. And he says, this persuasion does not come from him who calls you, that they’re believing in the churches of Galatia in Galatians chapter 5 and verse 8. He will bear his judgment, whomever he is, Paul goes on to say. Another observation I would make is that Paul is surprised. Paul is perplexed by the response of the Galatians.

Now, again, I think the most compelling thing to me about this message of Galatians is again that it’s written to not just one local church, but a number of churches, where this pervasive influence has come that is threatening Christ being formed in them. And he’s puzzled by this. Paul is puzzled by their response.

And here’s what I want to tell you about that. Sometimes we are puzzled by the behavior of people that we expect different things from and better things from. Paul was puzzled. Sometimes the behavior of people is perplexing. Sometimes I look at myself, and my behavior is perplexing to me. We should always know better when we fall short of his glory. And so don’t let that destroy you. Because sometimes people act far differently than what we should expect from them. But here’s the goal of this sermon and the goal of Paul’s message. And that is whether it is embraced favorably or unfavorably, the goal never changes. The goal of the instruction, the goal of Paul’s work, the mission of his life, the reason why he went all across the known world at that time, preaching the gospel, regardless of the consequences, regardless of the persecution that unfolds in great numbers, as we read in 2 Corinthians chapter 11, this is always the goal.

Don’t get so caught up into all the little details and minutiae that are important, as Paul would say, and Jesus would say in Matthew. I get Jesus of Paul mixed up today. In Matthew chapter 23, about the tithing of even the spices. He says, these things you ought to have done without leaving the weightier matters undone. This is the weightier matter right here. Justice, mercy, and faithfulness. That is the character of Christ until Christ is formed in us. Sometimes in all the little details of working out our salvation, we forget the big picture. It’s the big picture that’s being threatened. As the gospel is being changed among the churches of Galatia. Let the beauty of Jesus be seen in that song that I’ve always thought was a little odd and peculiar.

It’s the ever strive to keep sweet. I don’t know why that strikes me funny, but it has, as I’ve been singing, let the beauty of Jesus be seen. Ever strive to keep sweet. Hey, that’s a start. Okay. Some people need to work on being a little more sweet. But it’s so much more than that, isn’t it? And as I thought about Christ being formed in us, I thought, what can I say about this important topic? Again, that’s the goal. Whether it’s received or not. What does it mean to have Christ formed in us? Spell it out for me. Well, we can talk about character. We can talk about the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians chapter 5. That is Christ being formed in us, right? As he goes on in that message to talk about love and joy and peace and patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness.

4. All People Are Worthy Objects of Our Love

Those are the things that Christ, self-control, against such things there is no law. Galatians 5 22 and 23 is a part of that recipe. But I tried to think about some things that get overlooked. Perhaps not thought about sufficiently. And I want to share three things with you here as we come to the conclusion this morning. One of the things that Jesus teaches us, if we would emulate and model him, all people are worthy objects of our love.

Certainly they should be objects of our love. And we struggle even in that sometimes. But all people is a pretty broad spectrum. Now, how did Jesus model that? Of course, he died for everyone. We talk about that all the time. Well, if Christ is going to be formed in me, then I need to think about everyone the way Jesus thought about everyone. And Jesus considered all people were the objects of love. And that gets back to the preaching that I was talking about earlier, where we’re looking down on people and perhaps even despising them because they don’t believe or teach truth. But I can somehow treat them with contempt. What does Jesus want? Why does Jesus have those exchanges that we’ve been looking at on Sunday morning?

With the Pharisees and Sadducees, yeah, it may be about the greater audience that was looking on to these things, but he wanted to save them also if possible. He didn’t look at the Sadducees and the Pharisees and the chief priests, the scribes, everybody. He didn’t look at them with contempt. He wanted their salvation. He knew they probably wouldn’t have it. That’s what he wanted. How do you treat others? How do you treat people you just don’t like very much? Your personality doesn’t mesh with theirs. They’re a bit annoying. You know, people, you know who people are that are annoying or people that aren’t like you. People that aren’t like me. That’s the people that annoy you. I look at me, I look at them, and they are really different.

5. Purpose and Enjoyment in the Father's Will

May we always see those really different people as were the objects of our love. Because Jesus did. I would say, secondly, I see in the example of Jesus purpose and enjoyment in regard to the Father’s will. My food is to do the will of him who sent me, John chapter 4 and verse 34. Says Jesus’ purpose overrides everything. Even the fact that he was hungry in John chapter 4. He not only had as his purpose, his overriding purpose, the Father’s will, but there was even some enjoyment in the pursuit and execution. I get concerned about people who find no enjoyment in spiritual or religious pursuit. And yet claim to be Christians. I think we have this picture of Jesus sometimes in our mind that he was this somber, unhappy person because of all the evil around him, because of his confrontations with the Pharisees, etc., that he always had a frown on his face.

6. Patience for Ultimate Gratification

And even in his darkest hours, as the cross looms, he says to his disciples in John 15 that my joy might be in you. The joy that I have shown you, that it might reside in you as well. There was purpose and enjoyment in the Father’s will. And I’ll tell you there’s one other important lesson that Jesus teaches us about what it means to be his disciple and for him to be formed in us. And that is patience for ultimate gratification. I’ll give you all the kingdoms of the world. Devil, right here, right now. Pretty tantalizing offer. Jesus rejected that. And once he rejected that, he went through a ministry of rejection, being forsaken by his closest disciples, betrayal, denial, scourging, crucifixion. But his patience paid off in providing redemption for everyone who would embrace it.

And the glory that he had with the Father before the world was. A return to that glory. I tell you, we need this lesson about our Savior because we live in a I want to be gratified right now world. If I’m bored for just 30 seconds, I can grab my smartphone and play a game. Or do something fun. I worry about our instant gratification world and how it affects us as believers. We want our fun and we won it consistently and we want it continually. Jesus teaches us about waiting for the greatest prize of all. And I want you to focus also on what Paul says about this work that he was pursuing until Christ is formed in you. He says, I am in labor again.

This was a worthwhile endeavor. I am in labor again. And I when I see the word labor, I immediately go to its opposite that we’re so enamored and enthralled with. This isn’t play. This is serious business. It’s labor. He doesn’t call it fun. He doesn’t call it tiptoeing through the tulips. It’s labor. But it’s a worthwhile labor. It is amazing. The amount of effort, labor, work that people will expend for inferior goals. Not bad goals necessarily. Not worthless goals, but people will absolutely put everything on the line to become the Super Bowl chain. They will sacrifice limbs to win the prize. People will go to great lengths. They will spend hours. They will work 80 to 100 hour weeks to get where they want to be financially and to achieve material goals.

Or perhaps it’s simply the drive to success and excellence that motivates people, and they will expend tremendous amounts of energy, time and affection so that they can be successful as they define it, that they can have excellence, that people can admire and look up to them, and maybe it’s their image that they’re after. Maybe it’s the way they want to be perceived by others that I really have it together, that I’ve really accomplished things. I’m a mover and a shaker. I get things done. I live in a certain neighborhood, I get a certain salary, and these things really motivate most people. It’s really what drives them. The cars they drive, the houses they live in, the neighborhoods. This is the vacations we can take. I mean, we’re driven by those things.

Conclusion

We’ll work ourselves to the bone to get them. So I want to conclude with this.

There is anything better than to be known, loved, and exalted by God. If anyone loves God, he is known by him. 1 Corinthians chapter 8 and verse 3. Let that sink in. Let your fervor and intensity and labor and work and diligence be directed toward ultimate goals. Paul says, I press toward the mark. May your eyes, may your heart be focused on those things. Can we help you begin the journey of Christ being formed in you? Will you be baptized into his death and rise in likeness of his resurrection unto the greatest life that can be lived? Let’s stand the same.