“Stand fast therefore in the liberty wherewith Christ hath made us free, and be not entangled again with the yoke of bondage,” Galatians 5:1.
Nearly 500 years have passed since the beginning of that remarkable occurrence we call the Protestant Reformation in Europe after the Reformation had taken place?
To answer such a question fully would require volumes of historical data and comment. To answer it in the course of a sermon requires us to concentrate upon one central aspect of the effects of the Reformation.
The Lord Jesus summed up His purpose in redemption in the familiar words of John 8:32 & 36. “And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed.” What came and was received was spiritual freedom.
If Christ came to give freedom, then is mankind in bondage. Where there is true freedom, there the Son of God is to be found ruling and reigning in the hearts of men, for in His service is perfect freedom. Europe emerged from the bondage of superstition, from the slavery of ignorance and from the yoke of a dread of an unknown eternity, as the gospel of the Son of God passed through the lands, bringing light, life and liberty.
As souls and minds were unfettered from the dark yoke of popish superstitions, it was seen immediately in the moral and social affairs of men. While a Saul may be turned into a Paul in a very short time, it takes longer for a nation to be altered in its habits and ways, even when large numbers of its people have been altered by the grace of God. The affairs of an individual life may be reformed much more quickly than the moral and social and administrative structures of a nation. The decision of Zacchaeus to change his life as a result of the workings of the grace of God in his heart took little time to affect, in comparison to the decrees of Nebuchadnezzar (Daniel 3:29) or Darius (Daniel 6:25) or Caesar Augustus (Luke 2:1). Nevertheless, the nations of Europe began immediately to change.
There were wars in the wake of the Reformation, but they were not the fault of the Reformation. While we do not contend for the sinlessness of the reformers, we do contend that the evil events that followed the Reformation were very much the consequence of the resistance of wicked men to the rule and reign of Christ through His Word. There was bloodshed which often followed their preaching. In the days of the apostles and in the days of the reformers, dark forces were at work to hinder and crush the gospel witness.
Dear Christian, recall your own conversion.
Our text sets out:
I. THE AUTHOR OF LIBERTY
He is Christ. He is the One Who sets men free.
1. He purchased our freedom with His blood. “Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many,” Matthew 20:28, Rev 5:9.
2. He leads us to freedom by His Word.
3. He keeps us in freedom by the grace of His Spirit. 2 Cor 3:17. In surrendering to His leading we find liberty.
II. THE NATURE OF LIBERTY
1. Free from the condemnation of the law.
The wrath of a sin-hating God, with me can have nothing to do.
My Saviour’s obedience and blood, hide all my transgressions from view.
2. Free from the power of sin. “For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace,” Romans 6:14. The word dominion means lordship. Sin no longer rules and reigns. “For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death,” Romans 8:2.
3. Free from the fear of death.
III. THE THREAT TO LIBERTY
We may become entangled again. The yoke may be slipped upon our shoulders again and we find ourselves once more bound and fettered.
Pride and carelessness are the snares that we must avoid. Samson, David, Peter, all fell into bondage by these.
IV. THE PRESERVATION OF LIBERTY
Stand fast.
1. Stand fast in prayer. Mark 11:25.
2. Stand fast in the Word.
3. Stand fast in service. Gal 6:9.
4. Stand fast in contending. Jude 1:3. 20-25.