1st S. after Christmas |LUKE 2:(22-32) 33-40 |Sun. Dec 29, 2024 | 8am

·24 min·2 clips

At the perfect time, God sent Jesus to purchase us from slavery and bring us into adoption as sons and daughters.

The episode is a sermon preached by Pastor John at Holy Cross in Kearney, Nebraska. It begins with a prayer and an invitation for listeners to reflect on the past year as they approach the new year. The host introduces the central theme of adoption into Christ, drawn from Galatians chapter 4. He explains that the Galatian church was questioning if Christ was sufficient, considering a return to Jewish law. St. Paul's letter addresses this by contrasting slavery under the law with adoption into God's family. The sermon delves into the concept of being enslaved to the 'elementary principles of the world,' which is described as an internal moral compass or natural law that governs through reward and punishment. This state is problematic because it is inaccurate, demanding, and cannot save, acting only as a diagnosis of sin. The turning point comes with Galatians 4:4-5, where Paul states that God sent His Son at the fullness of time to redeem those under the law so they might receive adoption as sons. This redemption is portrayed as a purchase, changing believers' status from slaves to children in God's household. The sermon uses the analogy of a child being adopted from an orphanage to illustrate this unearned grace. It further explains that as adopted children, believers receive the Spirit of God's Son, enabling them to call God 'Abba, Father,' and become heirs with Christ. A key emphasis is that this adoption was planned by God before creation, offering security against self-measurement and guilt. The practical implications are explored through examples: anger is met with mercy instead of revenge, lust is redirected to honor Christ's relationship with the church, and greed is transformed into stewardship of God's gifts. The sermon concludes by encouraging listeners to live in 2025 by faith in this adopted identity, free from the fear and slavery of the law. A closing prayer and podcast outro follow.

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