No Longer a Slave
Study based on the sermon from July 9, 2017, Adopted as Heirs from the sermon series …
RELATE
No Longer a Slave Have you ever felt like an outsider? When was that, and what made you feel that way? When was a time when you felt completely loved and accepted?
READ & REFLECT
Paul says that we are “one in Christ Jesus”. How are we as a church living that out? Where are we falling short in terms of unity in the broader universal Church? Galatians 3:26-4:7 Paul describes our baptism into Christ as being “clothed with Christ”. What do you think he is trying to say by using that word picture? Read verse 28 again, this is one of Paul’s most powerful statements in this letter. Some of these distinctions were more relevant for the Galatian Christians that for us. In your own words, restate this verse replacing Jew, Greek, slave, and free with descriptors that apply to us in our culture today. Being an heir comes with both rights and responsibilities. What are some of examples of each of these? What others things might we look to for our identity other than in Christ and being a child of God? What is the primary motivator of your worship of God? When Paul wrote this letter, slavery was much more common than it is today, and many think it was less brutal as well. But Paul chooses to contrast being an heir with being a slave. What are the differences in living as a slave for a master and living as an heir to a good father?
RESPOND
What do you think Paul is trying to say by calling us children and true heirs of God?
Act Remind yourself throughout the day that you are a child of God. First and foremost, that is where your identity lies. May we live in that place of freedom knowing that we have been united with Christ and are one in Him. Reflect We are no longer slaves, but children of God, heirs to the Kingdom and we are one in Christ Jesus. May we seek to live as children of God and clothe ourselves with Christ today.
RELATE
No Longer a Slave Have you ever felt like an outsider? When was that, and what made you feel that way? When was a time when you felt completely loved and accepted?
READ & REFLECT
Paul says that we are “one in Christ Jesus”. How are we as a church living that out? Where are we falling short in terms of unity in the broader universal Church? Galatians 3:26-4:7 Paul describes our baptism into Christ as being “clothed with Christ”. What do you think he is trying to say by using that word picture? Read verse 28 again, this is one of Paul’s most powerful statements in this letter. Some of these distinctions were more relevant for the Galatian Christians that for us. In your own words, restate this verse replacing Jew, Greek, slave, and free with descriptors that apply to us in our culture today. Being an heir comes with both rights and responsibilities. What are some of examples of each of these? What others things might we look to for our identity other than in Christ and being a child of God? What is the primary motivator of your worship of God? When Paul wrote this letter, slavery was much more common than it is today, and many think it was less brutal as well. But Paul chooses to contrast being an heir with being a slave. What are the differences in living as a slave for a master and living as an heir to a good father?
RESPOND
What do you think Paul is trying to say by calling us children and true heirs of God?
Act Remind yourself throughout the day that you are a child of God. First and foremost, that is where your identity lies. May we live in that place of freedom knowing that we have been united with Christ and are one in Him. Reflect We are no longer slaves, but children of God, heirs to the Kingdom and we are one in Christ Jesus. May we seek to live as children of God and clothe ourselves with Christ today.
