Galatians (Program #22) – The Spirit of Sonship

Galatians 4 is a wonderful chapter, focusing on two divine sendings. God first sent forth His Son. But, not only so, He also sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts. The two sendings in Galatians 4 are our topic on today’s life study of the Bible.

It helps to see the two main points in chapter 3 are number 1, that the Spirit is the blessing of the Gospel, and number 2, that the law is a custodian leading us to Christ, conducting us to Christ, and keeping us for Christ. In this Chapter 4:1-7, we see a continuation. That is, the Spirit of Sonship replacing the custody of the law. So, we need to begin this program by asking, “Do you want the blessing or do you want a custodian?”

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Galatians (Program #21) – Baptized into Christ and Putting on Christ

The thought in this chapter (Galatians 3) is quite deep and the thought is also divine. And, it’s one thing to be in the first couple of chapters with more objective matters, precious but yet rather basic concerning the fundamental truth of the Gospel and being justified by faith through grace and not out of the works of the law. But in chapter 3 and also chapter 4, which is not that much easier than chapter 3, we’re at the heart of this book. And, we’re deep into the experiential aspect of this book.

Let me try to summarize. We have received the Spirit, not by works of law, but by the hearing of faith. By receiving the Spirit, we receive the reality of the blessing God promised to Abraham. Having received the Spirit and having been brought to Christ through the law as a child-conductor, we are now sons of God and true sons of Abraham. We have believed into Christ. We have been baptized into Christ. We have put on Christ. And, by so doing, we have put off all natural distinctions. And, this is all for the carrying out of God’s economy for us to be in Christ and for Christ to be in us, that we may be the corporate expression of Christ.

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Galatians (Program #19) – Faith Replacing Law

The coming of the Lord Jesus Christ brought in a complete change in the way God dealt with men. His desire today is to bring a rich and bountiful supply of His Spirit to all His children. But, how do we receive this supply? Galatians 3:5 says, “He therefore who bountifully supplies to you the Spirit and does works of power among you, does He do it out of the works of law or out of the hearing of faith?” Are we still struggling under the law or are we receiving the Spirit through faith? Stay tuned for today’s life study of the Bible.

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Galatians (Program #16) – The Spirit versus the Flesh

Galatians 3 shows us a striking contrast between the flesh and the Spirit. In chapter 5, this contrast even becomes a warfare. This Spirit wars against the flesh, and the flesh against the Spirit. This contrast, and even more this warfare, holds tremendous implications for believers of Christ in our own daily walk. Don’t miss today’s life study of the Bible.

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Galatians (Program #14) – Hearing of Faith Versus Works of Law

Galatians 3 presents the Christian with two crucial questions. First, did we receive the Spirit by faith or through law? Then, does God continue to supply the Spirit or by the works of the law? How do we receive the Spirit? And, is the receiving of the Spirit once for all or do we need it continually? Receiving the supply of the Spirit is the focus of today’s life study of the Bible.

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Galatians (Program #13) – Christ and the Spirit

If you’ve been following along with us, you realize that today we’re scheduled to bring you a life study message from the book of Galatians. We really thought we were going to. When we begin work on this particular program, we knew we had a tape of Witness Lee from 1979 that was going to be difficult. But, we thought we’d be able to restore it to a condition that was acceptable to broadcast. But in our final review, we realize the audio quality of that old recording just did not meet our standards. So we’ve decided to bring you instead, a highlight program from the life study of Romans. This program deals with very much the same topic as the Galatians message we were scheduled to bring you. We think you’ll enjoy this.

To find our way out of this experience of Romans 7, we need to see in detail what this experience is. And, I believe this can be a big help to us today. The first thing we need to see is although this is the experience of an unsaved person, nearly all Christians can identify with this chapter. Romans 5 speaks of the truth of being in Adam, where as when we come to Romans 6, we see what the truth is of being in Christ. When we come to Romans 7, what we see is the experience of someone who is in Adam. And, of course Romans 7 describes a very terrible situation that we would like to be delivered from. Eventually when we come to Romans 8 and we will come to Romans 8 in a future broadcast, this shows us the experience of being in Christ. We’re in Christ doctrinally and positionally. But, we want to have the daily experience of being in Christ through the law of the Spirit of life.

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Galatians (Program #7) – Freedom in Christ Versus Slavery Under Law

The book of Galatians is a book of contrasts. For example, God’s Son is contrasted with man’s religion. And, freedom in Christ is in contrast to slavery under the law. And, the spirit is in contrast with the flesh. To understand the depths of this book is to understand these great contrasts. Please stay with us for today’s life study of the Bible.

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2 Corinthians (Program #26) – The Ministry of the Spirit as the Life Supply, and of Righteousness as God’s Expression (1)

The Old Testament had one unique ministry beginning with Moses and his receiving and delivering to the children of Israel the law or commandments. The ministry of the law commands and continues until the coming of Christ. But the coming of Christ usher in another ministry, the ministry of the New Covenant. Actually these two are the only ministries spoken of in the Bible.

Acts chapter 1 makes it very clear that not withstanding the current situation, there is a reality of only one ministry. Listen to verse 17 and 25 of Acts chapter 1,

17 “For he was numbered among us and was allotted his portion of this ministry.”
25 “To take the place of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

The ministry of the New Covenant is a very great matter that we dare not take lightly, neither should we take it into our own hand to try to put it into practice.

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2 Corinthians (Program #21) – Shining the Glory of the New Covenant (2)

Two items are marvelously connected in 2 Corinthians that you may have never noticed or linked before. These two things are the New Covenant and the shining of the glory of Christ.

The Old Covenant was a Covenant of law and of letters with the affect of bringing us into spiritual death. The New Covenant on the other hand has everything to do with the Spirit and life. And to be brought into the reality of the New Covenant is to be brought into the glory of the face of Jesus Christ.

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2 Corinthians (Program #20) – Shining the Glory of the New Covenant (1)

The Bible is very rich in the many titles that it describe to God. Of course He is the almighty, the God of glory, the all sufficient One and on and on. It opens in Genesis 1 with the Hebrew word, Elohim, meaning the creator of the heavens and the earth. But interestingly at the end of the Bible, in the final chapter, Revelation 22, God is called simply, the Spirit.  But along the way between these two great bookends of the Bible, we see the journey or the process, that God has passed through in time to accomplish His great eternal purpose.

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