Series: Galatians: Called to be Free Speaker: Steve Hixon Sermon Series Listing

hen men and women get their hands on religion, one of the first things they often do is turn it into an instrument for controlling others...”

Eugene Peterson, Galatians, The Message

Close your eyes for a moment. When you think about your relationship with God, what do you see? Do you envision a relationship with a Person who loves you and has made the ultimate sacrifice to set you free, and now longs to lead you into a daily adventure? Or, is the image one of a set of rules and behaviors that someone else has created for you to follow, with an “approval rating” based on your performance?
A group of brand-new Christians were experiencing some trouble in 1st-century Turkey, and it wasn't just coming from the Roman Empire. Some so-called “elder brothers” were pressuring them to follow all the Laws of the Old Testament, with the idea that unless they were kept to the letter, their relationship with God was on shaky ground.
20 centuries later, Christians still struggle with legalismthe idea that we can win acceptance with God through our activities. Paul wrote this amazing letter to forever sound the call of freedom.

“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” - Galatians 5:1